· by Michael Blair, Nashville's Mover
An interstate moving quote from Nashville is more than a number on a page. Under the federal rules for household goods moves, the written estimate arrives with a package of paperwork, and part of it has to be in your hands before the bill of lading is drawn up. Most people skim it or never ask where it is. This post goes through what the package holds, what each piece is for, and how to read a quote with it beside you. How a shipment is weighed and delivered is its own subject, covered in long-distance moves: weight and delivery.
What papers should an interstate mover hand you before you sign?
Two federal booklets with the written estimate, then four more items before the bill of lading. 49 CFR 375.213 on the eCFR says a mover giving an individual shipper a written estimate has to provide "Ready to Move?" (FMCSA-ESA-03-005) and "Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move" (FMCSA-ESA-03-006), either as copies or as a link on its website. Before the bill of lading is prepared, the same section requires the mover to furnish:
- A concise estimate of the charges
- Notice that the parts of its tariff that apply to your move can be examined, or sent to you on request
- A summary of its arbitration program
- A summary of its complaint and inquiry procedures, with its main phone number and who pays for the call
The booklets, and the receipt you sign for them
If you take the website link instead of printed copies, 375.213 requires the mover to get a signed, dated receipt from you and keep it for a year. That signature is the record that you were given the booklets, so open the link and read them before you sign.
The longer of the two is published as Appendix A to Part 375. The 2013 edition on GovInfo works through the move in question-and-answer form, from estimates and payment to complaints and claims. It says that if a problem is not settled by the local agent, the salesperson who arranged the move or the driver, the next call is to the mover’s principal office, with your paperwork in hand. It also advises getting estimates from at least three movers.
Can a moving company make you agree to arbitration?
No, not before a dispute exists. 49 CFR 375.211 requires every interstate mover to run an arbitration program, but it may not make you agree to arbitration before a dispute arises. If you ask for arbitration on a claim of $10,000 or less, the result is binding; above $10,000 it is binding only if you request it and the mover agrees. The arbitrator has to decide within 60 days of written notice of the dispute, and you cannot be charged more than half the cost of starting the proceeding.
The arbitration summary in your package is something to read, not something you sign away. The 2013 booklet notes that arbitration covers loss or damage and charges billed beyond what was collected at delivery, and that you keep the right to go to court under 49 U.S.C. 14706 instead. The complaint side works the same way: under 49 CFR 375.209, the mover has to keep a complaint and inquiry procedure with a telephone number, a way to reach its principal place of business by phone, and a written record of every complaint, and it has to give you a written description of that procedure.
How do you read an interstate moving quote before you accept it?
Read it against the rest of the package, starting with how you will pay. Under 49 CFR 375.217, the form of payment has to be stated when the estimate is prepared, repeated on the bill of lading and honored at delivery unless you agree in writing to a change. An estimate that is silent on payment is the first thing to send back with a question.
Then check the name and number. 49 CFR 375.207 requires every advertisement to carry the name as it appears on the mover’s USDOT registration and the number written as "U.S. DOT No." followed by the number. The company in the ad, on the estimate and on the paperwork should be the same company; if the names differ, ask why before you go further. Whether the number on the estimate is binding is its own question, covered in binding, non-binding and why quotes change.
These duties apply to interstate household goods moves, such as a family leaving Nashville for another state. A move that stays inside Tennessee is under the state’s rules instead, which is how our local moves around Davidson County are handled. If you are planning a long-distance move out of state, ask us for a written estimate; the booklets, the summaries and the payment terms come with it.
Sources
- 49 CFR 375.213, Information for prospective individual shippers (eCFR) — Ready to Move? and Your Rights and Responsibilities with the written estimate; estimate of charges, tariff notice, arbitration and complaint summaries before the bill of lading; signed receipt for a web link, kept one year
- 49 CFR 375.211, Arbitration (eCFR) — Program required; no agreement before a dispute; binding at $10,000 or less on request; decision within 60 days; shipper pays no more than half the start-up cost
- 49 CFR 375.209, Complaint and inquiry procedure (eCFR) — Telephone number, phone access to the principal place of business, written record of complaints, written description to shippers
- 49 CFR 375.207, Advertisements (eCFR) — Name as on the USDOT registration and U.S. DOT No. in every advertisement
- 49 CFR 375.217, Form of payment (eCFR) — Stated at the estimate, repeated on the bill of lading, honored at delivery unless changed in writing
- FMCSA, Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move (49 CFR Part 375, Appendix A, 2013 edition, U.S. GPO) — Written estimates; complaint path from agent to principal office; arbitration scope and the right to sue under 49 U.S.C. 14706; estimates from at least three movers
FAQ
What an Interstate Mover Must Hand You With the Quote — questions
What must an interstate mover give you with the written estimate?
Under 49 CFR 375.213, the two FMCSA booklets Ready to Move? and Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move, on paper or as a website link. Before the bill of lading it must add a concise estimate of charges, a notice about its tariff, an arbitration summary and a summary of its complaint procedures.
Do interstate movers have to give a written estimate?
Yes. The federal booklet Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move lists written estimates first among the points it asks customers to remember, and 49 CFR 375.213 ties the two federal booklets to that written estimate. Whether the estimate is binding or non-binding is a separate matter the estimate has to state.
Can I use arbitration against a moving company?
Yes. Every interstate mover must offer arbitration under 49 CFR 375.211. It is binding on claims of $10,000 or less when you request it, the arbitrator decides within 60 days of written notice, and you pay no more than half the cost of starting it. You may go to court instead.
Must an interstate mover put its USDOT number in its ads?
Yes. Under 49 CFR 375.207, every advertisement has to show the mover’s name as it appears on its USDOT registration and its number in the form U.S. DOT No. followed by the number. Compare that name and number with the estimate and the paperwork you are given before you sign.
What is Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move?
It is the federal consumer booklet published as Appendix A to 49 CFR Part 375, numbered FMCSA-ESA-03-006. In question-and-answer form it covers estimates, payment, complaints, arbitration and claims on interstate moves. A mover has to give it to you, or a link to it, with the written estimate.