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Do auto shipping companies allow things in your car while it is being shipped?
We receive multiple inquiries each day from potential clients who want to know whether they can pack personal items in their cars during car shipping. For many people, this is one of the handy tips they get from relocation checklists, on how to save money during a household move.
However, those checklists typically refer to moving items in your vehicle when you travel in your car from one home to another. When you make use of auto shipping, the company asks for the make and model of your vehicle in order to establish your vehicle’s GVWR. By law, auto shipping carriers must abide by strict weight regulations and therefore, they calculate the weight of vehicles that will be on the carrier.
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Some auto shipping companies allow you to transport up to 100 pounds of personal belongings in your car free of charge. However, it is important to follow the guidelines and to consider the risks involved. For instance, you should not transport:
- perishable, flammable, or living and breathing things;
- illegal firearms, contraband, or persons;
- valuables.
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- Find out if you’re allowed and what things to have in your car during auto shipping and where it must be stored. Most companies only allow personal items in the trunk.
- Keep to the limits set out by the company. If you want to ship more than the allowed amount, you may sometimes pay an additional fee and be allowed to ship personal items in the car.
- If you ship personal items in the front of the car, be sure that it is below window level, and keep the driver’s seat clear in order for transporters to drive your car onto and off of the truck.
- Recognize that there is a risk of theft when you transport personal belongings in the car during auto shipping. If items of high value are visible, it will attract thieves.
- Remove any valuables from the vehicle, and only ship large, bulky items such as bedding, curtains instead of expensive technology or items of high sentimental value.
- Remember that any personal items left in the vehicle are not insured during auto transportation. Only the motor vehicle is insured.
Would you like to learn more about having personal items in your car during auto shipping? Speak to our friendly assistants today.
