Who has to be there for car shipping pickup and delivery

You do not always have to be the person on the curb. An adult you name can meet the truck, if that person has the keys and the right to sign. Someone does have to be there. A car left unlocked with a note is not a pickup plan unless the company agreed to that in writing, and even then nobody is marking damage.

FMCSA's consumer advisory on automobile transporters does not say the registered owner must attend. 49 USC 14706 requires a carrier providing transportation covered by that statute to issue a receipt or bill of lading. 49 CFR 373.101 says that receipt, for carriers subject to that section, includes the consignor and consignee, origin, destination, and a description of the freight. It does not name which human must hold the pen. The practical rule is the one that protects you: the signer can see the car and can refuse a blank form.

What the person at pickup must be able to do#

The adult at the curb needs all of the following:

• The keys, including a wheel-lock key or a spare if the contract asks for one. Details are in keys at pickup and delivery.
• Authority to release the car. If they are not the owner, the company should have their name before the truck is assigned. What to send is in someone else hands over the car.
• Time to walk around the car with the driver and write existing damage on the form before it is loaded.
• A phone with the booking contact saved, in case the truck does not match the dispatch.
• The ability to say no. If the carrier name, the price, or the meeting point is wrong, they should not hand over the keys to keep the driver happy.

They do not need to be a lawyer. They do need to read what they sign. A signature under "received in good condition" or on an empty damage diagram is the record the carrier will point to later.

What the person at delivery must be able to do#

Delivery is the same job in reverse, plus payment if the contract says money is due then.

1. Match the carrier to the dispatch before unloading, using how to verify the driver at the curb.
2. Walk the car before signing. Compare it to the pickup notes and to your photos.
3. Write new damage on the delivery copy as an exception. Do not sign a clean bill for a mark you can see. The how-to is noting damage on the bill of lading.
4. Pay only the amount the contract says is still due. A new number is not paid in cash off the paperwork. See if the driver wants a price change at the curb.

The receiver may be a different person from the shipper. The glossary calls that person the consignee. Tell the company both names if they differ.

Tell the company before dispatch, not from the driveway#

Send this, in writing, as soon as you know you will not be there:

• Full name of the adult.
• A phone number they answer the day of the window.
• Whether they may authorize a different meeting point.
• Whether they may pay, and the maximum the contract allows.

49 CFR 371.3 requires a broker to record the carrier's name and registration number. Ask for that carrier's dispatch phone so your stand-in is not relying on a stranger's caller ID. Look the number up with the company check before you share a gate code or a home address detail you have not already given.

The pickup window can open on the first available date and run for days. The stand-in has to cover the window, or you need two people. A driver can be early or late and still inside the contract. See why pickup can be earlier or later than the window.

A short list you can hand to that person#

Print the pre-pickup checklist and, for the far end, the delivery-day checklist. Hand the stand-in a copy of the order, the dispatch, and your phone number. Ask them to photograph the signed form before the truck leaves.

Vehicle-specific items stay blank until you fill them in. An electric car, a car that does not run, or a motorcycle can need a different key, a charger left out, or a winch. Do not make the stand-in guess. Write those facts on the checklist in pen.

What not to leave on the stand-in#

Do not ask them to decide a new price, a new route, or a "small" cash payment that is not on the order. Those are your decisions. Tell them to pause and call you. If they cannot reach you, they should refuse the change rather than sign it.

Do not ask them to hide damage to speed the driver along. The pickup notes are what a later claim is compared with. A clean form that hides a dent becomes the carrier's evidence that the dent was already there, or was not.

RideShipper does not send a representative to the curb and does not sign for you. The company you booked is the one that must know your stand-in's name.

A pickup hour, in the order it happens#

This is a sequence, not a timed appointment. The driver's call may come with little notice because the driving day is limited.

1. The stand-in confirms the carrier name on the dispatch before walking out.
2. They meet the driver at the agreed spot, not at a new address the driver invents, unless you have approved that address.
3. They watch the car driven or winched on, if they can do that safely. They do not climb the trailer.
4. They read the odometer line, the VIN, and the damage diagram. They add words for each mark they can see.
5. They photograph the signed pages.
6. They keep a key if the contract says a key stays with the owner, and they hand over only the key the carrier requires. Confirm that split before the day, so it is not a debate on the sidewalk.

If any step fails, they call you and they call the company on the order. They do not "fix it" by signing a different price.

Delivery is a second meeting#

The receiver may live in the destination state and may never have spoken to the broker. Send them the dispatch, the pickup photos, and the amount that should still be due. Ask them not to sign "received in good order" until they have walked the car in daylight if that is possible. A night delivery in a dark lot hides paint. If the contract allows you to refuse a night inspection you cannot see, use that clause. If it does not, note "inspected in dark" on the form and look again in the morning. A note is weaker than a mark written at delivery, which is why the delivery checklist says to write exceptions before you sign.

Payment, if due on delivery, should match the contract. Give the receiver a ceiling. "Do not pay more than the balance on the order without calling me" is a clear instruction. It is not a power of attorney, and this page does not supply one. The companion how-to for a friend releasing the car is the right place for what to send. This page only insists that the person be an adult who can see and sign.