Factors that may increase the cost of shipping your vehicle

What Factors Increase Costs Of Car Shipping?

As you may know, each car shipping company has different prices for transporting your car or any other kind of vehicle. This is due to certain factors that affect the final cost, and rely mainly on company policies as well as the driver’s availability to ship the car. However, most of these costs are competitive and offer you a great service for a good price. If you’re thinking of shipping your vehicle, consider the following tips to make your transport costs affordable and which features might increase the total price of your service.

Why Is Shipping Your Vehicle A Good Idea?

Well, considering the fact that driving from one place to another takes some time and responsibility, shipping your vehicle might be the best option. Since most car movers ship their vehicles for different reasons such as moving to a new town or state, staying for a long period at the new destination, or even going for an extended vacation, vehicle shipping has turned into the best ally when it comes to this need. Factors such as less mileage, no long-distance driving, traveling preparation time or even safety, are some of the reasons why some people choose transporting their vehicles instead of driving or buying a new one. 

What Is Considered At The Moment Of Shipping My Vehicle?

You should notify your auto-transport company of the following things during your vehicle’s transport before loading:

1. Type of vehicle. (Modified, Non-operational, etc.)
2. Location for pickup and delivery. (How accessible is your location?)
3. Dates. (How flexible is your schedule?)
4. Transport method. (Either open or enclosed)

Factors That Affect Shipping Costs

There are several factors that affect your shipping costs. Your final price can either increase or decrease depending on some main features. Let’s talk about them.

Moving Location

This is the primary factor that affects your car shipping cost, which varies directly depending on how far the journey is. Most shipping companies will charge a price per mile, so you’ll pay based on how many miles your car will go. For example, if you’re shipping your vehicle from Miami to Tampa, that will cost less than shipping it from Miami to Chicago. Distances increase rates due to the amount of miles your driver has to travel, the work done, fuel rates along the route, and even toll devices along the way. But, despite this, shipping it long-distance is also highly requested by car movers. 

Seasons

Believe it or not, shipping your car during certain times of the year can affect your transport costs. Some seasons will be cheaper than others depending on different social and cultural reasons that impact directly on car shipping services. 

Transporting your car during summer is by far, the most expensive time of the year. But, why? During summertime, most people move between places or organize activities in order to enjoy the warm sunny weather. Families, for example, look for alternatives to relocate their kids during summer vacation. Also, college students return home after a long year of being away from it, and the military families move from base to base. Therefore, roads turn heavy in terms of car traffic, and more people look for car shipping quotes to move their vehicle to a new location during this season. This leads to limited availability for car carriers, where the vehicles that offer the most, are the ones that will be selected for pickup. For some routes, more than 200 cars may compete for a spot in a single truck during the summer, while during other months, such as winter, the number lowers to almost 30. On the other hand, the fuel costs increase impressively during the season, and because of this, transportation costs tend to increase as well. 

These are the primary reasons why shipping your vehicle during the summer is way more difficult and expensive than during any other time of the year. Try transporting your car during seasons in which costs are lower and carriage availability is higher. You can see and compare this by requesting quotes on different auto transport companies. 

Shipping Preferences

Several situations can lead to choosing from different shipping methods. For example, you can decide for the fastest shipping delivery, also known as expedited, or only for economy or standard shipping. You can also choose between open or enclosed carriers, and if you decide for enclosed auto transport and expedited shipping, costs are going to go higher. Therefore, the more flexible you are for shipping options, the less you’ll need to pay!

Your vehicle’s features

Your car is another primary factor when it comes to calculating your shipping costs. The size of your vehicle, the weight, and some modifications or features will directly affect the amount you'll have to pay for transport. For example, these modifications can be a non running car, or anything that requires extra work during the loading and unloading process, which results in additional costs. 

The weight and size of the vehicle define the amount of space it takes up to load and accommodate the car into the hauler. The larger and weightier the car is, the more space it will take, resulting in more money to move it to the new location. Therefore, for smaller and compact vehicles, the costs will be lower. Keep in mind that factors such as gas or your own belongings inside the vehicle, also affect the car’s weight. Try to remove unnecessary things inside of it and fill the gas tank up to ¼, so you only get to pay the necessary amount for shipping. 

Choosing Your Auto Transport Company

When it comes to choosing the right auto transport company for you, there are a few things you must consider in order to make your whole shipping process successful. Now that you know the factors that affect your shipping costs, keep in mind the following aspects at the moment of hiring your vehicle transport service.

Customer Reviews

Looking at customer reviews after researching for different companies is one of the first things you should do before requesting a car shipping service. Getting to know different customers' opinions, thoughts, doubts and even issues during the transport process, will tell you about the company and help you out with your decisions. The more reviews you see, the more you’ll get to know what best aligns with your needs and get a successful delivery experience. 

Customer Service

Customer service is very important when considering a vehicle transport service. This is because the agent will provide to you the necessary information before, during and after the transport process, and therefore, they will be your guide. 

You can find this in different customer reviews, as well as visiting the company’s website and identifying their different customer service channels and the way they talk and interact with their clients. You can even request a free quote on most auto transport companies via phone call or through the website, and get a quick view of what your customer experience could be like when hiring the service. 

Costs 

This is a strong factor when it comes to choosing your auto transport company. Costs tend to be different for each company, and depend also on the carrier’s availability to move your car. Try to make sure that you are getting a good deal on your desired delivery dates, but also choose a professional company. Sometimes a cheaper deal can lead to a bad experience, so choose wisely!

Professionalism 

It’s very important to take into account the company’s experience and professionalism in the industry of auto transport. We recommend going for those that have years of experience in the process, a professional team of leaders, agents and drivers, but also great customer service and reviews. 

AmeriFreight Is The Right Option For You

In AmeriFreight, we are more than a car shipping company. We are a team of qualified agents that will ensure a successful and extraordinary experience during the entire shipping process. Our professionalism, years of experience, excellent customer service and reviews, are the way you can trust that our transport services are the best ones available. Simply give us a call or visit our website and request a quote today, we are more than happy to help you move your car to your final destination!