How to Research and Find the Best Auto Transport Company

Your guide to placing your vehicle’s journey into the right hands

There are a lot of vehicle shipping companies out there, but here’s the good news: The basic requirements for a positive experience are comparatively few. At the very least, customers deserve a team that ticks two key boxes. Thereby, providing a fair deal for the service while appreciating and adapting to the unique transportation needs of the vehicle.

There’s more you need to know before entrusting your valuable business to an automotive carrier. Understanding what to look for before you start researching is key to saving time and finding the right relationship.

In this blog, you’ll learn:

• Why professional and social profiles matter
• What the best auto transport companies should know
• The importance of licensing and bonding
• How Mercury Auto Transport sets the standard

Why professional and social profiles matter

It’s a good sign when auto transport companies prominently display reviews on their site. Even in the event of a less-than-stellar review, you can still learn a lot about the company’s character by noting how they engage with dissatisfied feedback. Did they acknowledge the reviewer’s issue and address it respectfully and responsibly? Did they get defensive or, even worse, ignore it?

The next consideration is how a transport company’s professional reputation looks with industry review bodies. The Better Business Bureau offers a quick and easy way to gauge a company’s standing, while the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is more industry-specific. The FMCSA keeps a close eye on industry best practices, and on which companies abide by them. We recommend their advice as an important part of making any auto transport decision.

Lastly, drop by the auto transporter’s social media pages. LinkedIn is a great way to “meet” the boss and employees of a company. Seeing what drives the people in power gives you a better understanding of how those people would drive for you. Less resume-oriented social sites like Facebook and Instagram are also good indicators of how a transport company interacts and connects with its customers and the wider community.

What the best auto transport companies should know

There are a lot of rules to keep track of inside the world of auto transport; guides that are frequently altered and updated. Federal, state, and intrastate regulations set industry standards for the safety and benefit of everyone concerned.

These deal with many factors: vehicle weights, heights, and how long a driver can legally be on the road are just a few of them. That last metric can be a crucial one in choosing a transport company – if a quote for a long journey seems too quick to be true, they’re likely cutting corners and breaking rules in the process.

It’s not the customer’s job to be up to speed with regulations; that responsibility lies squarely with the transporter. Therefore, make sure your selected auto transport company knows the rules of the road, rail, and sea.

You can gain peace of mind (and learn a lot in the process) by checking an auto transport company’s compliance with and awareness of FMCSA, Federal Maritime Commission (FMC), and Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) regulations and statutes.

The importance of licensing and bonding

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) is responsible for regulating and licensing all American auto transport companies. Asking for and then verifying a transporter’s 7-digit DOT number is an important step in your selection research. Also, it is important to request their 6-digit FMCSA MC Docket number. 

Bonds, licenses, and insurance provisions prove that an auto transport company is accountable, both to regulatory bodies and to the customers they serve. If a candidate can’t provide you with these details in a quick and clear fashion, we recommend scratching them off your list.

For further insight, check out our previous blog where you’ll find more valuable selection criteria based on how auto transporters work, where insurance factors in, and on prepping a vehicle for pickup. We didn’t overlook the cost aspect, either – that critical concern merits a blog of its own.

How Mercury Auto Transport sets the standard

You’re now on your way to confidently researching and finding the best auto transport company for your vehicle. Viewing candidates from a professional, social, and procedural point of view gives you the edge before making an informed choice.

The Mercury Auto Transport team makes that decision even easier through our combination of expertise and transparency. We’re fully licensed and insured, so you can rest easy that we’re 100% in line with DOT and FMSCA procedures.

You can access all our licensing information with a single click to see how seriously we take safe and compliant conduct. You’ll find at-a-glance data that fills you in on everything from our inspection results and insurance status to audits and compliance reviews.

Feel free to contact us at the details below with any other queries you might have on the auto transportation process. We’re here to help!

Mercury Auto Transport finds quotes in minutes for open, enclosed, and flatbed auto transportation. We’ve arranged safe delivery for over 186,000 vehicles by road, rail, and air while working with the most trusted shipping partners in our industry. Email info@mercuryautotransport.com or call us free at (800) 553-1828 or for a quote.