Transporting Your Car - The Car Carrier - Do NOT Use!

Hey all,

Wanted to give everyone a heads-up to NOT use this outfit: The Car Carrier http://www.thecarcarrier.net. They damaged my 308 and refused to pay. A quick synopsis of the facts is here: http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-car-carrier-pasadena#hrid:-fu-ILYvezb601muQWCYog. Please warn people to stay away from this broker.

 

Sorry to hear about your bad experience with them. Did this happen in 2004 or is this a typo?

 

When it comes to transportation in North America "anyone can be anything". From yahoos moving furniture to idiots using wooden boards to load cars instead of a proper ramp, they're all out there.

 

I have had great experiences with Exoctic Car out of Orlando - used many times and absolutely no problems

 

Thanks for the heads up. I shipped the 348SS across from CA to VA using Horseless Carriage and they did a great job, so I used them again to ship a JAG from CA to MI about two months later, and again, a perfect door to door delivery.

What was the damage and can you sue them?

MB

 

Unfortunately, the law regarding liability when interstate shippers and brokers are involved is very tricky and does not provide a lot of recourse for the consumer; I'm not a lawyer, but my lawyer looked into it and basically said it would require a federal action and be cost-prohibitive. She recommended that I instead put the claim through my own insurer (Hagerty -- I love these guys, they were real pros) and ask them to go after the transporter via the subrogation process. They did, and they too gave up. This is why I've concluded that using a broker is a VERY risky proposition; basically, the broker has no legal liability whatsoever. I'm glad other folks are posting names of shippers with whom they've had good experiences.

The damage to my car reflected real stupidity on the part of the trucker. Apparently he didn't fully close one of the 308's doors when the car was loaded, so the interior light stayed on and he killed the battery. For some reason, he decided to jump start the car (bad idea number two). In the process of trying to find the battery, he caused several indentations on the drivers' side top of the fender. And -- in another stroke of brilliance -- he tried to close the hood without first depressing the little catch on the hood stay. He must have really wailed on it, because the hood buckled about a half inch right at the stay attachment point. Finally, my 308 has the "cow catcher" Euro front air dam, and it was CHUNKED (not just scratched) in three places. My guess is it was due to poor ramp placement, hitting a curb, or improperly securing car tie-downs.

The local shop who did the repairs was great -- they do a lot of exotics and even Pebble concourse cars. They advised against replacing the hood, having found that 1) they're crazy expensive (something like $3,000+) and 2) they arrive all dented from Italy anyway. So, they straigntened and reinforced the existing hood and refinished the air dam.

 

Yeah, it did happen in late 2004 and we pursued it for another year after that. I posted on a few boards about the experience back then, but with the broad reach that Yelp is now getting, I wanted to use that broader platform to spread the word about the Car Carrier. They had many, many chances to make things right, and didn't.

Oh, and I forgot to add another twist. I spoke a few times to the driver who did the damage, and he was very candid about what happened. But, he wasn't insured for trucking the car (his company was involved in putting on rodeos!). After a month or two he stopped being helpful because he said he was never paid by Tucker or Car Carrier because of my claim. So, either the broker or the sub got the money, the driver didn't get paid, and I had to eat my insurance deductible.

 

Have always used Intercity lines and Demoise trucking...They take care of the cars and usually the car stays on one truck. When you get wrapped up with these 'Brokers' the car ends up being loaded and unloaded 3-4 times before it gets delivered. Most of the brokers do not care as they just assume that they can blame it on the next carrier. Sorry to see you had trouble!

 

Had a good experience with Intercity as well.

 

I'm not sure why you would hire a broker (middle-man) when you could have dealt directly with a transport company. The price you paid was not a super-deep discount.

 

I think basically they are all great until they damage your car. However, as already mentioned, I would not use anyone unless their name is painted on the trucks. We had a great experience with Horseless Carriage but another highly respected carrier damaged our car and initially refused to pay any more than a few hundred dollars of a $1000+ damage claim. Only after we threatened suit with a Legal letter did they eventually pay the claim in full.
Note: Always video or have someone video the unloading of the car. Let the camera run uninterrupted until the car is free and then carefully film the entire car keeping the truck in the background as much as possible.
Dave

 

DO NOT Use Horizon Trucking/Transportation out of Conn. A well advertised transportation company. They contracted to deliver a 1910 Buick from Conn to my home in Maltby Washington. The amount agreed upon was not a discount cheapie rate. It was a door to door load and unload price. They picked the Buick up and 2 weeks later called me and asked if their driver had been there yet. He had not and at that point they told me they had no idea where he was or where the car was as they had not been in contact with him for more than a week.

To make a sad story short the driver was a commission driver, (his tractor and their trailer) and when he reached Sacramento the Buick was the last car on the truck. You need to ask pointed questions of the firm. This was when fuel was very expensive, and the driver decided it was not worth the effort/ money to drive 900 miles north. So he dropped the Buick at a friends house in the front yard unprotected and uncovered and did not bother to tell the trucking company. He did post a note on a trucking website that the Buick needed to be delivered to the Seattle area. After 2 addtional trucking companies and nearly 3 months the Buick did arrive however not until the last guy that had the Buick, was met by the local authorities and forced to hand the Buick over. After many addtional dollars and much anguish it did arrive unscathed

So beware even the big guys who advertise in Hemmings and like magazines are not necessarily good or legal. Deal only with a company that hires the drivers and the company owns their rolling stock. As a side note Horseless Carriage Transport which we see at Hershey every year was short on trucks this year at the meet. So they called in some of their addtional rigs. In rolls a Ferrari red 18 wheeler with Ferrari logos all over the rig. I asked what was the deal with that rig. It turns out that they are also the official delivery agent for Ferrari around the US. Who would know our cars better than they would?

howard
tr0768

 

Stay away from brokers unless your looking to ship a daily driver type car.

 

If the damage exceeds 7500 you are right, you've got to go to Federal Court. Your damages are restricted to the repairs of the vehicle, and the carriers know that they got a break under the law, and the best you can do is the repair. So they lie, cheat, steal, and don't pay what is due, and hope that you won't go after them. We've got the best government money can buy, and this is a classic example of how that works.

Currently in litigation with FedEx in Arizona for someone who's car got burned by them. They have no defense, but seem to think that we won't go to trial. I'm at that stage in my career where I don't much care if I get full boat on this, told the client that we will get what they owe. When it dawns on them that they are indeed looking at a 3 - 4 day jury trial, I suspect they might modify their behavior, but I need a few days in that warm climate anyway.

Art

 

I will never use Exotic again and I never miss an opportunity to bad mouth them.

They left me and my car stranded 600 miles from home and cost me over $400 in additional air fare because their driver was a day late, and no one even bothered to call to notify me. I didn't get a "we're sorry", much less a refund or a discount on a future trip. Very bad service.

Jack.

 

I will let people make their own judgments about the Car Carrier based on the facts:

1. They gave the job to a carrier who subbed it out again to another carrier in the rodeo business, not the business of transporting exotic cars.

2. Neither Car Carrier nor the first sub (The Tucker Company) knew that the trucker they hired was uninsured.

3. The Car Carrier would not refund my money, even though either they or the Tucker Company did not pay the trucker who transported and damaged the car.

4. The trucker himself offered to pay for the damage if he was paid by the Tucker Company or the Car Carrier. They refused and he wasn't paid.

5. I pursued the Car Carrier for 10 months during which their rep Tom tried to sound helpful, but in the end said they owed me nothing and stopped taking/returning my calls.

6. Hagerty paid for the repairs, minus my $1,000 deductible. Their claims people are GREAT -- they really treat the repair of an exotic differently than you experience getting a "regular" car repaired. They cared more about the job getting done right than what it cost.

FWIW.

 

Several years ago I shipped a 328 using a broker. When the car arrived it had nearly $7K in damage including a destroyed front air dam and a broken gear box cover. It appeared that the car was taken for a joyride when transferred from one truck to another. It took about three months and several letters and phone calls but the carrier's insurance paid for all repairs. Since then I have shipped several other cars using Intercity Lines. Won't use anyone else, great service, car care and drivers. Cara were never moved from the time they were loaded to the time they arrived.

 

I've used Horseless Carriage twice...always had a good experience with them.

 

I had my 1984 308 Qv shipped by Intercity Lines back in July of '08 after speaking with many others. I learned very quickly that 90% of the companies that offer transportation are brokers, they contract out the job to independents that own a trailer/carrirer. In the end I concluded that Horseless Carriage and Intercity Lines own and operate their own equipment. As it turned out Intercity quoted $500 less for a NY to LA transport and I went with them. They have a very professionsal customer service and as the driver got within 2 days of arrival they provided me his cell number so that I could communicate with him directly. I would highly recommend Intercity and would use them again.

 

Ditto w/ others on Intercity. Two perfect experiences with them.

 

There's a naked female driver in this month's Playboy that hauls Bentleys and Lambos, I am using her!!

 

I've used Intercity Lines, Passport Transport and Premier Auto Carriers. All were excellent.

 

I drove my Ferrari instead of shipping it. Best decision ever

 

go to www.transportreviews.com and pick your favorite company! it's interesting to see how these companys realy rate. I'm listed there with 5 stars(highest) and some well known names with 1 or 0 star ratings. look up your last transport company or broker. Remember, brokers don't have trucks, so they have no idea who, how, or when your car is transported always ask the people you call if they have their own trucks.

 

I used Horseless Carriage late summer to move my QV from New Jersey to St. Louis. I am extremely happy with them and the driver. I received the mobile number for the driver (Lou?) and he was very good about giving me updates. For whatever reason Horseless was less than the 2 others I talked with. That was unexpected since I had been under the impression that they would be the high priced solution.

Jeff