Teamsters, Consumer Advocates Release 'Damaged When Delivered?'

Teamsters, Consumer Advocates Release 'Damaged When Delivered?'

For those of you who are not familiar with our industry, this article is nothing but a liberal proganda piece that aims to discredit our industry. For years, the Unions have controlled the new car transportation market, and now that the auto manufactures have discovered that they can save over 20-30% of their transportation costs just by using non-union companies, it has threatened many of the Union bosses. As a auto transportation broker, I have worked with both union and non-union companies to haul my freight and the only difference I saw was price. Both types of companies had good points and bad points. All these accusations that by using non-union companies to deliver new cars will harm consumers is nothing but an outright lie. Union companies represent a small fraction of all cars transported in the United States, which means a majority of auto transportation is done safely without the Unions. Millions of dollars are at stake with the Union bosses and they will stop at nothing to protect their golden egg-even intimidation. My only advise, don't believe everything you read.

Teeter Auto Transport has a 7 year history of providing safe, reliable, and ethical transportation for thousands of customers.  Please visit our website http://www.omahatransport.com/ for more information.

The world of Transportation…

As an employee of the transportation world for the past 4 years I have learned many things about what transportation truly means. The industry holds many terms and divisions and coming from a large freight transportation company to an auto transport company, I have discovered that each is similar in many ways, however much different in others.

The transportation industry is growing rapidly thanks to the internet. Transportation brokerage is now one of the top leading career choices. I have discovered that working in this industry can be challenging, rewarding and at times overwhelming.

Client and customer relationships are built very easily when working in this industry. Reaching out to the public and hearing from the public in regards to transportation needs is fascinating. When working in this industry you become acquainted with many individuals in different parts of the country, and the connections made are interesting as far as getting to know people’s different personalities.

I have learned that the largest key for success in this industry is strong communication. Keeping the client and/or customer informed from pick up to delivery will earn you respect and keeps the relationship solid. Communicating any issues is a vital part of a broker’s role. Thanks to the growing communication devices it is easy to stay on top of the game. I have also learned that another important way to stay successful in this industry is providing great customer service. Showing your client/customer you care about their needs and giving your all shows that you appreciate their business.

Hard work and dedication is a must for this industry. Keeping on top of your game is also important. Tracking each shipment and knowing of all issues at all time until delivery is made will help keep that relationship strong with all customers and/or clients.

To sum it up, I have truly enjoyed working in this industry from each challenge to each successful on time delivery. I have made great connections with other individuals in this field and have created many great relationships.

Today there are many colleges offering logistics degrees due to the industries rapid growth. Many opportunities are in this industry and I have found that they are reachable through experience and dedication.

-Jessica for Teeter Auto Transport

Integrity Award Press Release

Jerry wrote:

Integrity Award Press Release

TEETER AUTO TRANSPORT, INC RECEIVES OMAHA’S 2008 BBB INTEGRITY AWARD

BBB Integrity Awards Honor Ethical Business Practices

OMAHA, NE – September 17, 2008 – Teeter Auto Transport, Inc. received the Better Business Bureau (BBB) Integrity Award at an award ceremony at the Embassy Suites La Vista Conference Center on September 17th.  These awards focus on demonstrated ethical business practices with key stakeholders including customers, employees and community at large, rather than a company’s growth, profitability or popularity.  The Integrity Award winners were chosen by an independent panel of business leaders and members of the academic community.

        “The BBB Integrity Award Winners have shown that ethics and integrity are core values of their organization,” said Jim Hegarty, president and chief executive officer, of the Better Business Bureau serving Nebraska, South Dakota and southwest Iowa.  “The 2008 BBB Integrity Award Winners join an elite group of organizations that realize dealing fairly and honestly with employees, customers and partners are central to profitability and growth.”

About Teeter Auto Transport, Inc.
Teeter Auto Transport, Inc. is an automobile transporter specializing in shipping vehicles that consumers buy through the internet on sites such as eBay, Autabuy, and Classy Auto.  They also ship cars for dealers, banks, corporate relocations, professional athletes, and business’s relocating equipment.  Their coverage is anywhere in the United States, Canada, and most international ports.  For more information, please visit www.omahatransport.com.

About the Better Business Bureau

The Better Business Bureau, Inc. (BBB) has been serving the region for more than 70 years and is a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting trust between consumers and the business community.  Accountability, education and recognition are key components to the BBB’s mission of ofostering trust in the marketplace.  Today, the BBB has a membership of more than 6,700 companie in Nebraska, South Dakota, and southeast Iowa.  Consumers are encouraged to report complaints and possible scams to the BBB.  The BBB annually honors organizations and companies that demonstrate exceptional business ethics with the prestigious Integrity Award.  As a matter of policy, the BBB does not endorse any product, service, or company.  For more information, please visit www.bbb.org.

 

Why We Say, "You Get What You Pay For"

When getting quotes from several companies, many of our customers ask us what the difference is between the cheap guys and the more expensive quotes. Going with a "cheap quote" can often lead to the following situation.


Auto transport company leaves seniors guessing

Reported by: Shannon Cake Email: scake@wptv.com Photographer: Jim Sitton Last Update: 6/18 8:30 am

(WPTV Staff)
Click the video player to the right to watch the story
WEST PALM BEACH, FL -- Snowbirds who flock south in the fall and settle up north during the summer are calling and writing Contact 5.
They are frantic and worried about some of their most expensive possessions.Shannon Cake has been tracking the complaints about a local auto transport company that promised quick deliveries but instead, left a lot of seniors waiting.
It wasn’t adding up to Palm Beach Gardens resident Elana Lowy.
“They’ve been waiting 6 weeks for their car and have been told its coming, but no car!”
Her parents say they paid Auto Transport America in West Palm Beach almost $700 to ship their car to their summer home in New Jersey. Their contract promised four to seven transport days, but Lowy’s mom, Esther Schnitzler, said it’s taking a lot longer.
“I've been calling for the past two to three weeks; I can never speak to a living person! Finally my daughter went a week ago and spoke to someone. They said our car wasn't in their lot and it was on a transporter in Virginia. They said your car will be delivered tomorrow. Tomorrow will be 4 weeks and still no car!” Schnitzer said.
The biggest problem: Schnitzer's walker and cane are packed inside her car.So her daughter, Elana, decided to make another visit to the shipping company last Saturday. This time, she spotted her parent's car!
“The whole time it was in their lot,” said Lowy.
Contact Five has learned there are other families facing a similar run-around.
"We've received 20-to-30 complaints on this but we're in an unusual situation because this is actually a civil matter,” said Chase Scott, spokesman for the City of West Palm Beach.
Scott said the city would like to get involved but it has no jurisdiction. It turns out, missing cars for a bunch of seniors doesn't constitute a criminal case.
But when Contact Five did some checking, we found Auto Transport America had an "F" rating at the Better Business Bureau and The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, which licenses transport companies, recently revoked the company's brokers license.
When we stopped by the business, and inside at the company's counter, more seniors were asking questions about their cars.
"I just don't know what the real information is,” said Stephanie Barchat.
We tried speaking with the man standing behind the counter at the shipping company.
We asked employees to have the owners and managers of Auto Transport America contact us, but never heard back from anyone.
Employees at The Department of Transportation told us when a company's license is involuntary revoked, the company is allowed to complete deliveries, but they can't sign any new contracts with new customers.

The Effects of the Fuel Prices on Auto Transporters

Imagine you own a business and within a 3 year period your cost of services sold (the hard cost to perform the service) more than doubles. Truckers all over the country are facing this harsh reality everyday. What once cost truck drivers $0.25 per mile to fuel their trucks is now costing $1 for every single mile they drive. Drivers that once paid $25,000-30,000 per year per truck for fuel now pay over $100,000 per year per truck just to put diesel in their tanks. And rest assured, the freight rates have not come close to keeping up with the increase. The consumers have only recieved a taste of what the individual drivers are facing.

A study "by longtime trucking analyst Donald Broughton, reported that an estimated 42,000 trucks, or 2.1 percent of the nation’s over-the-road, heavy-duty truck capacity went out of business in the first three months of 2008." (Landline Article 4/22/08). This study only took into account trucking companies that own 5 or more trucks, so add the thousands of owner-operators that have joined those that have shut down and you have a staggering number.

So, what does this mean for the auto transport industry? First, the most obvious change is that prices will continue to climb. Not only are the fuel prices driving the price up, but the increased demand for the drivers that remain infulences the transport rates. Second, with fewer drivers on the road and increased freight available from the thriving internet market it is taking longer to move cars. Third, drivers are planning their routes more carefully. They will no longer venture off their route just to add another vehicle to the load. Unless it is paying their out of route miles in addition to the going rate, they will run with an empty spot. Fourth and most important for the consumer is to investigate any broker that you plan to use. Unfortunatly, many brokers havn't figured out that their drivers will no longer haul the "cheap freight" that they have built their businesses on. Just because a brokers promises you a low price and quick pick up time doesn't mean he will deliver. Unless they can give you the name and number of the driver upon signing the contract, consider their "promise" part of their sales pitch.

My best advice that I can give is to educate yourself on this process and be an informed consumer. Understand the economics that the drivers are facing and understand the process of getting your car shipped. This knowledge will help you reduce the chances of getting taken advantage of.

For more information, call the offices of Teeter Auto Transport and we will do our best to answer your questions. We can be reached at 402-880-4101 Monday thru Saturday.

Happy Car Shopping.

Jerry Teeter

Transporting to Canada?

In the recent months, we have seen a significant increase in business from our friends to the North in Canada. While many of our competitors ignore these customers, we at Teeter Auto Transport specialize in moving cars from the U.S. to Canada. As with our U.S. customers, many of our Canadian customers are first time shippers and are unsure of the process. That is why we will dedicate this post to you.

Most everything you need to know about importing your new purchase can be found by visiting two websites. They are http://www.tc.gc.ca/roadsafety/importation/impusae.htm and http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/publications/pub/bsf5048-eng.html . I will highlight some of the major points.

1. How old is your vehicle. Vehicles newer than 15 years old must be approved by checking with the Canadian Registrar of Imported Vehicles (RIV). This list can be accessed by clicking on http://www.tc.gc.ca/roadsafety/importation/VAFUS/list/VAFUS.pdf .
   
2. Get a recall letter from the manufacturer or dealer before the car is shipped. Also, have the dealer perform any modifications such as day time running lights, light color (amber, red, clear), etc.
   
3. Make sure the U.S. border receives a copy of the title and Bill of Sale at least 72 hours prior to the vehicle arriving at the border.
   
4. If you are not experienced with importing vehicles, call a Customs Broker to handle the paperwork for you. This will ensure that the vehicle will be able to cross the border with little hassle. A complete list of Customs Brokers can be found by clicking on http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/services/cb-cd/menu-eng.html
   
5. At the border, you will be required to pay the G.S.T. tax and the R.I.V. fee. These fees are determined by the vehicle and the price that was paid for the vehicle.

While there are many more intricacies that are involved with importing a vehicle to Canada, this will at least get you started. The main thing to remember is to be educated about what you are doing and ask questions. If you don't understand, make sure you are talking to a company that is teaching you, not selling you.

For more information about importing a car into Canada, please call our offices at 402-933-3618 or email me at jerry@omahatransport.com . Have a great week.

Jerry Teeter, President
Teeter Auto Transport, Inc.
www.omahatransport.com

What Is Covered By Truckers Insurance?

Is my car covered while being transported? What does the insurance cover? Who's insurance provides coverage?

These are common questions we at Teeter Auto Transport recieve on a daily basis. The unfortunate reality is that most brokers do not give accurate information about insurance when their customers ask about it. The most common question is, "Is the car covered by insurance during the process?" The most common answer that most brokers give is, "Yes, the drivers carry $1,000,000 in coverage" and "The car is 100% covered." While these two statements are mostly true, the answers are very mis-leading. Just like automobile insurance, truckers are required by law to maintain LIABILITY Insurance of $1,000,000 or more. The truth is, this liability insurance does you the customer no good. The type of coverage that covers the vehicles on the trailer is called CARGO insurance. This type of insurance is not required by law, so it is very important to find out what level of Cargo Insurance the driver carries. Most drivers carry between $250,000-$350,000 in coverage for open and $500,000-$1,000,000 for enclosed.

Another important point that many brokers fail to point out is who is liable in the event of damage. The driver or company that physically hauls the vehicle is responsible for any damage that is done to the vehicle. If they fail to pay for it outside of insurance, then it is their insurance that will be responsible. It is at this point that the good brokers are seperated from the bad ones. In the event of damage, a good broker will assist you in filing the insurance claim and overseeing that process to make sure your car gets returned to its pre-damage state. Unfortunatly, most of the brokers out there, especially your discount ones, will simply give you the insurance companies name and number and tell you that you are on your own. From a legal standpoint, you hire a broker to connect you with a driver. The placement of your vehicle with a driver is the point that the broker is no longer obligated.

Another mis-conception is what is covered on the car. The drivers insurance will cover damage that he causes to the vehicle. This includes dents, scratches, broken glass, vandalism, theft, or physical damage. The things that aren't covered are rock chips, acts of god, fluid leakage from other vehicles, and weather related damage. Many brokers will try to sell you on a "$0 deductable policy" for an extra fee. We recomend that you maintain your own insurance on the vehicle which is much cheaper and better coverage than any policy that you would buy.

If rock chips, weather related damage, fluid leakage, or acts of God are a huge concern, you should ship the car in an enclosed carrier. In an enclosed truck, you eliminate the possibility for many of these types of damages. The cost difference between open and enclosed is far cheaper than dealing with an insurance claim.

Next post will contain information on how you as the consumer can verify a drivers insurance, the brokers repuation, and many other things. Stay tuned.

Jerry Teeter, President
Teeter Auto Transport, Inc.