Joe's Drive-Away Service
Regardless of your chosen provider or where you find them here are some tips that may help you choose a service provider and keep you from getting scammed.
A professional company should know what they need to charge, make them give you a price, if close to your budget you should be able to negotiate with them. If the price is well above your budget move on to the next provider. A reputable company may be able to drop 5 or 10% off the price, any more than that and the company is losing money.
By giving them a number, you are giving the scammers a target they know will peak your interest.
Brokers normally have a no refund policy and will wait for you to cancel the shipment.
If the carrier doesn't show up you have 30 days from the date of payment to do a charge-back. This is the reason most brokers don't take credit cards.
A lot of companies will try to rush you by telling you they have a truck or driver in the area or one spot left on the trailer.
If the offer is lower than you can do it yourself or half the price being offered by another company, offering the same service, it's probably a scam.
A company that offers a price without knowing specifics such as Year, Make, Model or Dates is probably adding some type of surcharge.
Doing so opens you up to hidden fees and charges that can easily double your shipping price.
Once they have your vehicle loaded they can charge pretty much anything they want and there is little you can do to get your vehicle back without paying the extra.
Notice how fast they are willing to load the vehicle but won't touch a thing on delivery until they have proof of payment.
Now of days e-mail is the best way to document your contact with shipping companies. A phone call unless recorded in its entirety is useless.
Is the price for door to door service?
Most companies offer Terminal to Terminal pricing. You need to get the vehicle to and from the terminal. If they do offer the service they charge more for door to door.
NOTE: These terminals can be located in a different city or province hundreds of kilometres away.
** This is especially true when vehicles are being moved on or off of Newfoundland, Vancouver and Prince Edward Islands **
Are they a registered business with a National Safety Code (NSC) or provincial equivalent number?
Brokers & Trucking companies are required to have an NSC or provincial equivalent number.
DoT or MC numbers are American numbers. NOTE: Just as a Canadian driver/company can't move goods from one state to another without crossing the Canada/US border an American driver/company can't move goods from one point in Canada to another.
Transport Method? Auto Hauler, Tow-Truck, Enclosed Trailer, Train/Rail, DriveAway, Flatbed?
Auto-Hauler - This is the most popular option. You vehicle is driven on and off the trailer and transported along with a bunch of other vehicles.
Tow-Truck - Will your vehicle be put on a dolly, single flatbed or trailer? A dolly only lifts two wheels and is not the best for long distances.
Flatbed - A loading dock or tow truck is required to load your vehicle on the deck- who pays for those services to load and unload?
Enclosed Trailer - This is the safest and most secure way to go but also the most expensive.
Drive-Away Service - Do they carry insurance that will cover your vehicle or drive under your policy?
NOTE: Because you would be paying someone this becomes a commercial transaction and most insurance companies won't cover a vehicle being driven for profit under yours or the drivers personal insurance. If someone wants to drive under your policy be sure to check with your insurance company if your vehicle will be covered. With you taking all the risk a discount should be applied.
Delivery Time?
Try to get actual dates, not transit time. Some companies need to fill a truck or rail car before they can move your vehicle and your vehicle could sit for days or weeks before it starts it journey. Example You want to move your vehicle from Toronto to Vancouver. The trip should take 5 days but the truck is waiting for a full load and requires 3 more vehicles before it can start it's journey. It takes the company 10 days to find 3 more vehicles going to Vancouver. You car arrives in Vancouver 15 days after it was picked up but only spent 5 days in transit.
Is the price all-inclusive?
TaxesWill they supply you with their GST/HST tax number?
A company not charging tax is doing the job off the books which also means there is no insurance coverage.
I see some carriers are charging improper tax rates.
Federal tax (HST & GST) are destination taxes, which means you pay the tax rate for the delivery province, not the origin or carries base. PST & QST is not charged on inter-provincial transport. I would like to think a legal company in business for more than a year would know the tax code. A company knowingly charging the wrong rate isn't submitting the taxes to the CRA and doing the job off the the books.
More information on taxes from the governments of Canada
There are too many different fees to list but keep an eye out for.
Loading & Unloading fees. I've heard of companies charging this every time they need to move your vehicle to load or unload another vehicle.
Positioning Fee - If you want you vehicle on the top deck.
Out of route mileage.
High credit card processing fees. Some companies are charging over 10% as a way of forcing you to pay by cash or e-transfer.
A fuel surcharge is an added per km/mile fee the carrier adds to the final bill and does not show up on their quote. A fuel Surcharge allows the provider to offer an artificially low price and recoup the money on delivery.
Note: With the added Fuel Surcharge and wrong tax you could be charged upwards of 50 percent above the quoted price on your final bill.
GPS Tracking
If the company you choose doesn't offer GPS Tracking add your own.
Although we would like to win your business we know Drive-Away is not for everyone and would like to offer some suggestions.
Below is a list of companies I trust and they should give you a pretty good idea of the price range to expect.
Shipping by rail would be your best choice.
Shipping by rail is normally the cheapest mode of transport and the car is inside a trailer for the duration of the move.
When shipping by rail the only items allowed to be transported inside the vehicle are 4 tires and a car seat.
They prefer the gas level below a quarter of a tank.
Delivery time is normally measured in weeks, not days.
Both Canadian railroads (CN & CP) outsource the business of moving personal vehicles. Dealing with anyone other than the following two companies you will be charged a broker fee on top of the broker fee these companies already charge.
CN RAil - Contracts the shipment of personal vehicles out to a company called Livingston.
Livingston Canada web-page - https://vehicletransportation.ca/
CP Rail - Contracts the shipment of personal vehicles out to a company called MVS Canada.
MVS Canada Web-page - https://www.mvscanada.ca/
Inter-modal Transport may be what you are looking for
With inter-modal transport you can request door to door service or drop the vehicle off at the carriers yard.
From the carriers yard your vehicle would moved to it's destination using various methods of transport such as Truck, Train and Cargo Ship.
Inter-modal is more expensive than rail and slower than shipping by rail only.
Because rail is normally used once again it's the same two companies that offer the service.
Livingston Canada - https://vehicletransportation.ca/
MVS Canada - https://www.mvscanada.ca/
There are many companies that offer this service but these are the companies I see the most on the road and likely to offer the quickest service.
Keewest - https://www.keewest.com/
Hansen’s - https://www.lhf.com/car-shipping-cost
Do you have a high end vehicle? TFX International - https://www.tfxinternational.com/services/cars
You can get a deal on both of these sites but there is the risk of getting scammed. Both of these sites allow legal and illegal service providers. You must do your homework before choosing a provider on these sites.
On both sites you will notice a high number of new providers. These are normally providers who just keep changing their name because their last profile has received too many complaints.
uShip - https://www.uship.com/
Shiply - https://www.shiply.com/
I set up a page that will help you understand how these two companies operate and what to watch for. Dealing on uShip and Shiply
Nothing beats drive-away service for the turn around time. In most cases your vehicle can be picked up and delivered within 2 weeks.
Again drive-away service is your best option for price and time.
Unless the vehicle came off the assembly line equipped for towing I personally don't recommend towing long distances with most car's and aftermarket hitches.
Cars that came equipped for towing will normally have an oil cooler installed which helps save your motor. Because of the hills and mountains involved in trips across Canada a vehicle towing a trailer without a factory installed oil cooler risks blowing a motor.
On trips under 500 kms it's best to deal with CAA or your local tow company
CAA members with a Plus Membership receive four tows up to 200 km and Premier Members receive one tow up to 320 km and 200 km on four calls.
Nothing beats talking to your local new and used auto dealer. They may be able to set you up with who they deal with.
Feel free to send us a message with the details and if we have time we can offer some suggestions on routes and overnight stays.
Most companies take for granted the fact they are dealing with someone not use to the shipping process and make more money from extras than they do the shipment itself. When talking to shipping companies or dealing online be sure to describe in detail what you have and what you expect.
Something as simple as forgetting to tell the company the year of the vehicle can add hundreds to your shipping cost. If the vehicle has been modified in any way be sure to let the provider know. Again something as simple as a cap on a pickup truck can add hundreds to your bill.
The company will normally tell you something like the vehicle is longer, taller or heavier than they quoted and they won't be able to fit the next vehicle on the truck. Because of this they need to charge you more. All of this also comes at a time when most people don't have the option of looking for another transport company.
If moving a car or SUV be sure to tell them the Year, Make & Model and any modifications as well as your expected delivery date.
If moving a pickup truck or van be sure to tell them the Year, Make, Model, Body Style, Drivetrain, Bed size, loaded or unloaded and any modifications as well as your expected delivery date.