| G Donaldson | |
| 4/30/2009 3:41:00 PM |
| Showroom Transport |
| Auto shipping 101 |
For those that haven't been to the auto shipping 'dance' before, it is an interesting experience. It shares elements of household goods moving, real estate brokers, and used car buying. Most of the companies that you will encounter on the Internet are Brokers, rather than Carriers. Nothing wrong with that, as long as you understand that you are paying them a 'commission' or fee for listing your shipping business on the 'load board', and arranging a contract with a carrier who owns and operates the trucks.
Showroom Transport is listed with this site as a broker/carrier and is, in my opinion, one of the better ones. My request for quote was handled prompty, and I received an email confirmation quickly. The final price was the same as the quoted price. In this case, all payments to the driver were handled by Showroom and I was not required to have any money to pay the driver at time of delivery. You can argue whether this is a better way than others, but my feeling is that it aligns the brokers interests with the shipper (customer) interests, and thus it appears that Showroom has some 'skin in the game' up until delivery.
As for the shipping itself - the car was picked up the very same day the order was placed. It doesn't get any faster than that. Showroom contracted Accurate Auto Carriers, Inc. to do the actual move for me. My 'loading agent' communicated that the car was loaded successfully and the driver was careful with it (classic car).
At that point, I did not hear for a few days, but was not expecting to. On the day before delivery, I got a call from the driver with current location, and estimated ETA. On the day of delivery, I got another phone call with a 2-3 hr heads up.
The enclosed trailer arrived and the off-loading went successfully. The car was unloaded right at my driveway, and the condition was exceptional. No damage, no claims, no problems. Bottom line: 6 days door to door and arrival in good shape.
Thanks to Showroom Transport and Accurate Auto for a pleasant experience.
Review Options
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G Donaldson gave Showroom Transport a rating of:  
| Review details | |
| Quote or Order ID: | 24883 |
| Quote or Order Cost: | $1525 |
| Origin: | California |
| Pickup: | On Time |
| Destination: | Kentucky |
| Delivery: | On Time |
Total Time from pickup
to delivery of vehicle: | 6 day(s) |
| Truck/Carrier Type: | Enclosed |
| Dirty: | No |
| Items Stolen: | No |
| Damaged: | No |
| Honesty: |   |
| Knowlegeable: | |
| Hold Times/Promptness: | |
| Overall Customer Service: | |
| Primary Contact: | Phil |
| Secondary Contact: | Ty |
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Valley Solutions, Inc.