Customer Service is a priority when shipping your vehicle
When a person needs a vehicle transported, they usually go online and request a free quote from several different transport companies. At this point the companies respond to the customer’s request with an estimated cost of what it may cost to actually transport their vehicle. There are many factors that go into effect to actually get the vehicle picked up and transported. First you have the cost of the shipment. Then, there is the customer’s situation and expectations of when, where and how fast in regards to transporting the vehicle. Lastly, there is the customer service side that comes directly from the broker mainly and a few phone calls from the carrier company towards the end of the process. I will explain each one of these so if a customer is reading this they know exactly what company to choose and why!
When a customer receives the over-whelming phone calls, emails and texts from many companies, one should write down the quotes of each with the name of the company and the contact information for each company offering a quote. The price each company is giving are legitimate quotes but not all WILL get the job done. Why? First, every company uses the same system and has the same network of driver’s, so this means every company is competing for one customers business and a major buying decision for any product or service is the “cost”. Companies know this so many of the non- accredited companies with the Better Business Bureau, 1-4 star companies on transport review sites, and newer companies (probably reopened under a different name because of their history of bad reviews) will “low-ball” the customer to remove them from the other companies and/or both; charge the customer a non-refundable brokerage fee before the vehicle is picked up or ask for more money at the last minute when you have no other choice, it was never enough to begin with (Bait and Switch).
Next, each customer has a different plan going on. They are either flying out, moving, selling, buying, giving, or something that requires a vehicle to be transported. Many have time constraints and some don’t. There are an endless number of routes and no two transports are the same. Yes they may go to the same city but cities are big and if your location is 50 miles off the path then it may take more money to get a driver to go out the way for that transport. A customer should want an experienced company that knows what it takes to give a proper quote and definitely does not charge for their services before any results are produced! Your concerns should be voiced and the broker should note and manage each concern so he/she knows what you expect.
Lastly, the broker should display customer service qualities that a paying customer deserves. How can a person give great service to a paying customer if they don’t know what you are concerned about and what you expect? Also, just because the customer pays a fee and signs paperwork does not mean your vehicle will move, all it means is that you paid a brokerage fee upfront to have a broker post your info up on the national load board we all use with no insurance as to actually getting the vehicle picked up at the quoted price or giving great customer service. The broker got the non-refundable fee upfront already so if you call after business hours, good luck because the chances are slim for them answering and believe me there are many times where you need an answer and you will not be able to get a hold of someone whose motivation for helping the customer is already paid for. Customer service is such a crucial part in the transport process that even when delays, cancels, truck break downs, etc, occur, the customer is informed and communicated with at all times leading up to any event so there is a trust and a relationship that was built between the customer and the broker. Customer service makes the process of transporting a vehicle so much easier than just booking with a company and never receiving any phone calls after the customer has scheduled a pickup. Please do your research on the Better Business Bureau and www.transportautoreviews.com in order to know that you are not dealing with smoke and mirrors from the start!
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