What is the difference between a moving company and a moving broker?

A moving company (a household goods motor carrier) owns trucks and employs the crew that moves your things. A moving broker owns no trucks and employs no movers: it sells your move to a moving company. Both must be registered with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration for moves between states, and you can check which one you're dealing with by its USDOT number.

How do I know if I'm talking to a moving broker?

Look up the USDOT or MC number on the FMCSA's site. If its authority says only Broker of Household Goods, it doesn't own trucks. In the paperwork, look for the word broker, phrases like 'an authorized carrier will be assigned', or a company name on the payments that differs from the name on the quote.

What are the warning signs of a moving scam?

A large deposit, pressure to sign while you're still on the phone, a price that 'changes if you hang up', an estimate given without seeing your things, paperwork fees such as a 'binding estimate fee', cash or money order only at delivery, coverage pre-set to 60 cents a pound, a blank total on the contract, and calls that are never returned.

Moving company or moving broker?

A moving company owns the trucks and sends the crew. A broker owns no trucks: it sells your move to a company you haven't met. Both can be legal. Knowing which one you're talking to decides who shows up, who you pay, and who answers when something goes wrong.

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The difference, side by side

A moving company

Owns trucks, employs the crew. The federal record says "Motor Carrier of Household Goods."

Good

You know who is coming, and you can look up their trucks and safety record.
The price comes from their own rates, and they're the ones who must honor it.
One company is responsible for your things and for any claim.
Can give a firm pickup time and a firm delivery date, especially with a truck of your own.

Harder

You call several companies yourself to compare.
The first price you hear can be higher than a broker's opening number, because it includes what the job really costs.

A moving broker

Owns no trucks, employs no movers. The federal record says "Broker of Household Goods."

Good

One call can reach many movers, which can help when trucks are scarce.
A registered broker must use registered movers, and must base its estimate on the actual mover's rates.

Harder

You may not know which company will turn up until the truck does.
The mover it hands you to has to honor the estimate; the broker can't make it.
Pickup and delivery are "windows" the broker can't guarantee.
Your deposit goes to the broker, and claims go to a mover you didn't choose.

Tricks to walk away from

Every one of these came from real quotes and phone calls during one move this fall. They're patterns, not one bad company. Real, legitimate movers do business without any of them.

"Stay on the line while you read it. I'll wait on hold."

They don't want to hang up, because once you do, you have time to think. A real mover lets you read the contract, sleep on it, and call back. Hang up.

Slow talk, long calls.

They talk slowly and keep you on the phone as long as they can, until signing feels like the only way to make it stop. Real movers move quickly: a clear price, a few questions, and you're done.

"Scroll to the bottom and sign here."

Walked page by page to the signature lines, signing as you scroll past the terms. Read every page before you sign anything, on your own time.

"Thank goodness I got you and not your husband. He'd ask too many questions."

Flattery that tells you questions are a nuisance. Questions are how you find what's hidden. A good mover is glad you ask.

"Nobody does that. Everybody does it this way."

Said when you ask for a small deposit, a delivery date, or a set pickup time. It isn't true: real movers do all three. The mover booked on that move took $100 down, when a broker wanted 70% up front.

"They're lying to you."

Tell a broker you booked a real mover, and the call turns to stories about the company you chose. Thank them and hang up. You've already checked the facts.

The calls don't stop.

Ask for a quote and your number can be passed along, so the calls keep coming after you've chosen. Say "Please put me on your do-not-call list," note the date, then block the number. Under the FTC's rules, once you ask a company not to call you, it has to stop.

Irritation when you read the fine print back.

Point out that the contract allows 30 business days for delivery, or guarantees no pickup time, and the tone changes. That reaction is your answer.

"The price changes if you hang up."

A real price is still there tomorrow. A price that only exists during this call isn't a price.

Thousands of dollars down.

The FTC and FMCSA both list a big deposit as a warning sign. Some real movers take nothing up front; the mover booked on that move took $100.

A "binding estimate fee."

A charge for making the price binding, or a "booking," "dispatch" or "admin" fee. On one quote it was almost $2,000 on top of a $2,769 move. Add up every line yourself.

Nobody calls back, then the deposit is "gone."

Calls and texts go unanswered for days, and the first reply says the deposit is kept, with no offer of the change fee. Put every request in writing, with the date.

"All our agents are busy. Please leave a message."

All weekend, in the days right before your pickup, with nothing to say the office is closed. Later you're told dispatch is "off on weekends." Your requests go into a voicemail box while the refund window runs out. Send every request in writing too.

Suddenly they can accommodate you.

Days of silence, then a friendly text offering the date you asked for, after you've disputed the charge or booked someone else. Keep that message: it shows when they finally answered. Reply in writing that you've already made other arrangements, and why.

"Our notes say you agreed to that."

A friendly call asks to move your pickup earlier, and you say yes on the phone. When you can't make it after all and try to change back, nobody answers, and the deposit is "gone" for the change. Agree to any date change in writing only, and ask what it costs to change back.

"We have a truck a day or two early."

It sounds like good news. But if your boxes aren't done, the crew packs what's left, and packing is billed by the hour or by the box. You'd have finished it yourself on your own schedule. You don't have to take the earlier date. Keep the day you booked, and get it in writing.

"The truck is ready after all."

First the deposit is gone and you have to start over. Then, once you've moved on, the truck is suddenly ready for your original date. If they could do the original date, ask in writing why the deposit was kept.

The truck isn't where they say.

"The driver is on his way," but the driver says he hasn't left another state. Ask for the driver's name, the truck's number and where it is now, in writing.

Payments go to a different name.

The quote says one company; the checks are made out to another. Ask who that is before you pay anyone.

The paperwork says you "waived the survey."

A price made without seeing your things is the easiest kind to raise on pickup day. Ask for a video walk-through.

60 cents a pound, already checked.

Full Value Protection must be offered on a move between states. At 60 cents a pound, a 150 lb bed is worth about $90. Ask the price of full value.

A blank total on the contract.

Never sign a bill of lading with a blank or $0 total. Cross out empty lines, and keep a copy.

30 days to file a claim.

On a move between states, federal law gives you at least 9 months (49 U.S.C. 14706). A shorter limit in the fine print doesn't change that.

"Up to 30 business days" and cash at delivery.

That's six weeks without your bed, and a payment you can't dispute. Ask for a latest delivery date in writing and a way to pay by card.

Ask every company these four things

"Are you the mover, with your own trucks and crew, or a broker?" If it's a broker, ask which mover will carry your things.
"What's your USDOT number?" Then look it up yourself. Don't use a link they send.
"Will you see my things first, in person or on video, and give me a binding price in writing?"
"What's the deposit, when is it refundable, and can I pay by card?"

Finding a real mover

Search registered movers near you on the federal Protect Your Move search. It shows whether each one is a mover or a broker, and its complaint history.
The large national van lines work through local agents who run their own trucks. Each van line's own website has an agent finder by ZIP code.
Get at least three written quotes built from the same inventory, so you're comparing like with like.

If it goes wrong

Write everything down. Email or text every request with the date and job number. Keep screenshots.
Paid by credit card? If the service wasn't provided as agreed, dispute the charge with your card company in writing. Under the Fair Credit Billing Act, send it within 60 days after the charge appears on your statement.
File a federal complaint on FMCSA's National Consumer Complaint Database. It goes on the company's record, where the next person can see it. Your state attorney general takes complaints too.

Where this comes from

FMCSA: Movers vs. brokers; FMCSA: Protect Your Move; FTC: Avoid scams when you hire a moving company; CFPB: Disputing a credit card charge; FTC: National Do Not Call Registry FAQs; 49 U.S.C. 14706 (claims). Moves within one state follow that state's rules. This is a guide, not legal advice.

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