How Much Does It Cost To Ship A Car ?

There might be several reasons that you find yourself in need of car transport services. Whether you are moving across the country or you are moving to a nearby city. Also you might have just purchased a car out of your state or you receive a permanent change of station (PCS) for your business. At this point, you'll probably look first at the car shipping rate to move your vehicle to your destination. This rate can vary, depending on many factors. How far the car has to travel, size of the vehicle to be delivered, seasonal demand, as well as the trailer type you choose, all impact on the cost of your car transport service. As Safemile Auto Transport to help you choose the cost effective shipping rates and reduce the cost to ship a car, we have published this exhaustive blog.   

Important Factors That Affect Your Shipping Costs

Type and size of the vehicle

The type of vehicle you want to ship is one of the main factors that affects your cost of car shipping. For instance, if you are moving a pickup truck or a large-size SUV, it would cost you much more than moving a regular sedan.These larger vehicles cost more to transport because they take up more space on a carrier. The more vehicles the truck can carry, the lower the rate per vehicle will be.

Shipping distance

Shipping distance has a significant effect on the cost to transport a vehicle . While long-distance shipments cost more in total, they cost less per mile than shorter trips. For example,shipping a vehicle long distance costs an average of $0.60 per mile for trips over 2,500 miles, however shipping a car shorter distance costs an average of $1.5 per mile for trips 1-500 miles. In addition, shipments to or from a difficult place (such as a location far from the nearest interstate) may be more expensive than shipments from easily-accessible, major metropolitan areas.

Vehicle condition

The condition of your car can vary the car shipping costs too. Inoperable vehicles are expensive to transport because they need to be winched or forklifted onto a trailer. In case the car is not running, then the carrier will charge you extra for hauling the inoperable vehicle. Usually, the cost goes up by a couple hundred dollars as carriers have to invest bigtime in equipment required to haul an inoperable.

Time of year

Supply and demand can affect the average cost of shipping a car. January and the summer are more expensive times to ship a car because trucks book up fast and competition on available carriers can be high. Also you have to keep this on your mind as well when you're shipping a vehicle, high demand at certain times of the year can lead to higher prices; for instance holidays and observances. Car transport drivers need their holidays, too, which means shipping a car before Thanksgiving or Christmas can be challenging. The same applies to New Year’s, Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day.

During a certain period of the year auto shipping rates can go up on particular routes. The snowbird season means that demand for car shipments from New York and other northern states, down to Florida and other southern states, peaks between October and December. Similarly, demand for routes in the other direction peaks from March to May because the snowbirds are heading home again.

Transportation type: open vs. enclosed

When shipping a car, the transportation type you choose is going to affect the cost of shipment. Open car transport is the most common choice for people who need to ship a car. It generally costs about 40-50% less than enclosed car shipping. Open car transport carriers can ship more cars so they’re able to spread the cost between customers. Open auto transport carriers can ship up to 10 vehicles simultaneously, whereas an enclosed carrier can ship up to 6 vehicles. In addition, keep in mind that there are only a small percentage of carriers that have enclosed trailers, so they are harder to find and they are more expensive.

Nevertheless if you're shipping a classic or high-end vehicle and want the vehicle protected during transport, you should consider paying more for transport in an enclosed carrier. Open car transport generally carries up to 250,000 dollars in cargo insurance coverage, whereas an enclosed carrier will carry up to one million dollars. An enclosed carrier gives you that extra protection from the outside elements, like weather.

Pickup and drop-off locations:

When it comes to shipping cars, time is of the essence for calculating car shipping rates. If you are shipping a car on a popular route, then it will cost less. The same applies if you’re shipping from city to city. When the carrier has to drive out of their way to pick up or drop off a vehicle, it can cost more. So the general rule of thumb is if you are going from major city to major city, expect to pay less than if you are shipping from the middle of nowhere. However, you could save a couple bucks by agreeing to meet the carrier in the closest city or near a major interstate exit.

"When you ship your car with Safemile Auto Transport, you can rely on our experienced transportation experts. Safemile makes it simple by providing you with an easy-to-use calculator that will help you get an instant quote and find a cost effective car shipping rate."

Tips for reducing your car shipping rates

There are some factors that impact the cost to ship a vehicle that you can’t control. If you have a pickup truck, you obviously can’t save money by shipping a sedan instead! And if you have to ship your vehicle 2,000 miles to its destination, you can’t save money shipping it only halfway. Your situation is what it is. However, if you want to shave some bucks off the average cost to ship your car , here are some tips to help you.

Book in advance : If you can, try to make your auto transportation reservation in advance because it gives our dispatch team plenty of time to find and secure the best deal for you. If you have a chance, book your car shipping a couple of weeks ahead of time and save a couple bucks.

Be flexible with your dates : Being flexible with your pickup and delivery dates can see reduction of the vehicle shipping cost, especially when it comes to pickup and delivery locations. Being open for a span of time will also help you to reduce your car shipping cost. You may even be eligible for a discount with your car transport company if you have your car picked up and delivered on a day that isn’t busy.

Use terminal-to-terminal transport : There’s no doubting the advantage of having your car picked up and delivered straight to your home. However, you can save money by choosing terminal-to-terminal shipping. This involves dropping off and picking up your vehicle from dedicated terminals that also store other cars waiting to be picked up by owners. Without the need for your mover to go to each individual home, this option is much more affordable.

Pick the right time of the year : If you’re not on a particular schedule or time crunch, you should wait until the off-peak period. The cost for your car to be shipped will spike during peak seasons when travel is the most in-demand. You will see that the summer is the worst time to plan to move your car to a new location since that is when most people try to undertake a move to a new location. Do be aware that transporting your car in the dead of winter will also be quite expensive and could also be a slow process due to rugged weather in mountain passes. The ideal time of the year to ship your car is spring and fall. You can save some money by shipping during this period.

Choose open transport trailers : If you have a classic car or a luxury car to transport, this might not be a good idea for your car shipping needs.However, for a daily driver, there is no reason that you cannot select an open car trailer for your vehicle’s trip.When transporting a vehicle on an open trailer, your car will be exposed to the elements, but it is the most popular and affordable car shipping option. We assure that  it’s also a very safe and secure way to ship a car.

Getting a Car Shipping Quote

Getting a quote is the first step in getting your vehicle shipping from the pickup location to destination. All car shipping companies handle car shipping quotes differently, which can be kinda confusing. There are bags of reasons why auto shipping quotes can vary from company to company for the exact same route. The quality of the carrier the company hires can be one of the biggest factors in auto transport quotes. Safemile Auto Transport always double vets all the carriers we hire, making sure they are fully licensed, bonded, and properly insured to haul our customer's vehicles.

When you are getting quotes for your car shipping, you have to be extremely wary of low or bargain prices from car transport companies. We know that everyone wants to save money, however the carriers set the prices based on what they are looking to earn for various pickup and delivery locations. That price is set based on all the factors above which all influence how much time and money they need to operate their carrier. What they make above that depends on what customers are willingly paying on that route. Many auto transport companies provide low quotes as a starting point, secure a fee to secure the car hauler, and end up providing a higher price. This is not how it should be. Therefore, when comparing auto transport quotes, keep in mind that low-priced quotes generally result in delays in getting your vehicle loaded and unloaded. A well run and reputable car transport company like Safemile, will give you the price correctly from the beginning.

 

To receive an accurate quote based on your individual needs, use our online car shipping cost calculator or call one of our car shipping experts at 888 271-8212.

Published by George on June 10, 2022