Scams and how you pay: questions and answers

Two patterns, from the Better Business Bureau's alert of 21 July 2023. First, a low quote and a deposit of a few hundred dollars, usually by a digital wallet. Pickup day comes and no one arrives, and the company may stop answering. Second, the vehicle is transported, then someone demands more money than agreed before it is released. A consumer in that alert paid $50 through PayPal for a California-to-Florida quote and could not reach the company. This page does not name or accuse a company. Check the federal record. Pay by credit card. Do not pay by wire or a prepaid debit card.

A low price alone is not proof, and a high price is not proof of honesty. Put the number next to the current range for the same lane, vehicle, and transport type. It is a red flag when that gap comes with a fee before any carrier is named, or with a demand to pay by a wallet, a wire, or a prepaid card. Those match the BBB alert of 21 July 2023. Look up the USDOT or MC number on SAFER before you pay. A broker's $75,000 bond under 49 CFR 387.307 is not evidence the quote is real, and it is not cargo insurance.

Stop and read the contract you signed. The BBB alert of 21 July 2023 says some reports describe a vehicle that was moved, then a demand for more money than agreed before it was released. Do not send a wallet payment to a new number because someone on the phone is holding the keys. Call the company on the contract, using a number you looked up, not the number in the text. Note what the bill of lading says. If you paid the original charge by credit card, ask the card issuer about a dispute. It is not the carrier.

Get the legal name and the USDOT or MC number, then look them up yourself. SAFER is the safety snapshot. FMCSA's Licensing and Insurance search is the authority record. The name on both has to match the contract. A search such as "is this brand legit" is the same check no matter which brand is in the box. This page does not pass or fail Montway, uShip, Shiply, AmeriFreight, or any other name. A review site is not the federal record. 49 CFR 371.7 says a broker must not advertise as the carrier. If they will not say which they are, pause.

Ask for the legal name and the MC or USDOT number before you discuss a deposit. Look that number up on SAFER and on the Licensing and Insurance search the same day. Match the name to the quote. End the call if there is no number, if the price is far under the current range, if money is due before a carrier is named, or if they want a wire, a gift card, or a payment app. One of those is enough. BBB's 21 July 2023 alert says to pay by credit card, not by wire or a prepaid card.

There is no list on this page, on purpose. A legitimate interstate carrier or broker is one you can find, under the name on the contract, with active authority in the federal record. You still read the cargo terms, the deposit, and whether the price can change. A bond, a logo, or a stack of reviews does not replace that. If you request quotes, licensed companies that serve the route contact you.

No. A site that posts loads, or a site that publishes reviews, is not the company whose truck shows up. Shiply-style searches and "is this review site legit" questions have the same next step: identify who will actually haul, then look that carrier up on SAFER. Do not treat a star rating as authority. RideShipper shows a range and can send a quote request. The contract, the deposit, and the bill of lading belong to the company you hire. Check that company's name, not only the website that introduced you.

Do not pay a car-shipping deposit by Zelle, a bank wire, a gift card, or a prepaid debit card. The BBB alert of 21 July 2023 says wallet payments work like cash, tells you to use a credit card, and says not to pay by wire or a prepaid card. The alert does not name Zelle. Treat Zelle the same way. The money is hard to get back. A partial payment by an app, before a carrier is named in the contract, matches the deposit pattern in that alert.

A deposit can be a normal contract term. It is a red flag when the deposit is the whole pitch: pay now, and a truck will be found later. The safer version is the reverse. A carrier is already named, the amount is written down, you pay it on a credit card, and the contract says when a refund goes back to that card. No page opened for this topic sets a legal deposit amount. The BBB alert describes a deposit of a few hundred dollars by a digital wallet before a pickup that never happens.

Refuse a wire, a gift card, a prepaid debit card, and a payment-app transfer for the deposit. BBB's 21 July 2023 alert says digital-wallet payments are essentially cash, meant for people you trust, and tells you to pay with a credit card. It also says not to pay for the service by wire or with a prepaid debit card. If you pay by card, watch the account and confirm that only the amount you authorized is taken. A text that tells you to pay RideShipper by any of those methods is not this service. RideShipper never charges customers.

Call the card issuer, and follow up in writing. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says to send a written billing-error notice within 60 calendar days after the charge appeared on the statement. A service that was not provided may use a different dispute path. Ask the issuer which one applies. Keep the contract, the ad, and the record of calls. This is not a promise the bank will reverse the charge. Wallet and wire payments are harder, which is why the BBB alert says not to use them.

Either can be legitimate if you can find the authority and the contract is clear. A broker arranges an authorized carrier for pay. A carrier moves the car. You can pay a broker and meet a different driver. 49 CFR 371.7 says a broker may not represent itself as the carrier. A direct carrier can be full, so the wait may be longer. Ask who you pay, when the carrier will be named, and whether the price can change after that. The $75,000 broker bond is not cargo insurance. The $750,000 public-liability figure in 49 CFR 387.9 is not a stated value for your car.

Call a carrier and hire that carrier. You still look up its USDOT or MC number on SAFER and on the Licensing and Insurance search before you pay. Ask for the cargo limit in writing. A carrier that is already loaded may not have room, so "no broker" can mean a longer wait, not a lower price. Do not pay a deposit to a lead site that has not named a carrier and is asking for a wallet transfer. A quote request here is not a booking, and you are not charged for it.

Six answers. The legal name and the federal number. Whether they are the broker or the carrier. The cargo limit, which is not the $750,000 public-liability filing. The deposit amount and how a refund returns to the card. When the carrier will be named. And whether the price can still change after that. If a line is blank, do not send the money. 49 CFR 371.7 requires broker ads to show broker status. Match the name to SAFER the same day.