Is Shiply a Good Option for Transporting a Car ? Our In Depth Review
Is Shiply Legit ? We tried Shiply out !
HERE IS OUR REVIEW OF SHIPLY: What is Shiply ? Shiply is a UK based transportation website, that allows consumers, and transport professionals alike to come together to bid on freight jobs . The way Shiply works, is very similar to USHIP. The website will prompt you to enter your freight details, along with the origin zip and destination zip code. Once you have submitted your transport request, several companies will begin reaching out via email to you with bid offers. Once you begin receiving bid offers, one would assume that these bid offers are from direct trucking companies who actually own and operate trucks. One would also assume that these "bids" , are final if you decide to accept one. So at first glance, Shiply allows a user to quickly input basic details about a transport, and within minutes offers begin to flow in, from supposedly licensed and insured trucking companies.OUR EXPERIMENT:
We decided to test the service by submitting a request to transport a 2022 Ford Bronco. Within minutes, we were receiving a multiplicity of emails offering to transport our vehicle. Some contained messages, asking about pickup windows, and other details about the terms of their bid. One odd component was that the prices were being shown in Euros, but possibly this was our mistake. The company is based out of the UK, so maybe we did something wrong, but we know we clicked " USA SITE" when a prompt appeared asking us online. Now when going about trying to find bids to transport our Bronco, we were hoping to be dealing directly with actual trucking companies , that own and operate trucks. But what was very evident right from the moment we began receiving bids, was that similarly to USHIP, these bids were clearly coming from freight brokers, not trucking companies. Freight brokers are authorized to facilitate and broker loads, not to haul freight. You can easily find this information out by going to the US Department of Transportation's website, and doing a quick search inside the FMCSA SAFER system. It will show you what their operating status and authority is, and what they have authority to do.
EXAMPLES OF COMPANIES WE RECEIVED BIDS FROM:
American Logistics SHIPLY Profile :
As you can see, this company is posing as a trucking company, but their real company name appears to be "1 Shot Auto Logistics". So we went over to the FMCSA SAFER PORTAL and pulled up the specific profile for 1 Shot Auto Logistics
So what we have found here, is that this supposed highly rated trucking company on Shiply, going by the name "American Logistics" is actually not a trucking company at all, and even worse, they are not even authorized as a freight broker ! 1 Shot Auto Logistics, is an out of service & suspended freight broker with no active bond or insurance on file, per the FMCSA. Far from an insured and licensed motor carrier as Shiply claims.
Let us take a look at yet another company that has bid on our Ford Bronco job. This time, lets look at
IW Logistics:
As you can see above, this company, although an actual motor carrier, is UN-authorized to haul vehicles per the FMCSA. You can view that profile also directly on the FMCSA portal here: FMCSA PROFILE FOR IW LOGISTICS That typically means that either their insurance has lapsed, or they were involuntarily suspended by the FMCSA for safety or other violations on the road. You NEVER want to release your vehicle to a company that has an "inactive" DOT or MC . The status granted by the FMCSA is something that requires immense paperwork, insurance, and regulatory approval, so it demonstrates that you are at least dealing with a legally organized outfit. If a company is willing to haul vehicles with no insurance or authority, they clearly have no regard for the law, and you will be quite lucky if you see your vehicle again.
Here is another example from the bid list provided by Shiply. In this case we looked at the company named "Shiply Logistics". After searching for their profile on the FMCSA database, we could not find anything for this company. However, one user in the reviews on SHIPLY , claimed that the company is actually going by the name of "2 JS Auto". So we decided to check the nature of this company as well. Here is what we found:
So once again, here, this company is NOT a motor carrier. This company is a freight broker authorized only to broker freight, not to haul cars. It obviously does not build confidence when learning the company is intentionally hiding their real business name and using Shiply's name to gain clients, let alone posing as a trucking company. At least this company is actually authorized to operate however.
Now, some other name's on this list, that we received bids from, we happen to know simply by being in the industry:
- - First Class Transportation is 100% a freight broker, they used to be based out of TX, but they may have changed their name as we are having difficulty locating their FMCSA profile. I have personally hauled loads for this company, and the individual that used to run this company was a man named "Stu".
- -White Gloves Transportation is also a freight broker - ( We literally have hauled loads for them in the past under our previously active Midwest Exotic Trans MC number. )
- -Car Mover USA is a freight broker as well.
The other one's on this list appear to be using obscure user handles, so we cannot determine who they are.
OUR TAKE AWAY:
So as you can see with the information provided above, you are not cutting out the middleman by using SHIPLY. You actually are just make the entire process even more obscure and challenging to unpack. Some of the glaring problems include:
- - Shiply allows their transport providers to hide their real company name, before you even know who or what company you are agreeing to do business with. Furthermore, they even allow companies to use the "Shiply" name to manipulate clients.
- -Shiply does not prevent brokers from bidding on jobs that were meant for trucking companies. 90% + of the people bidding (just a best guess) are freight brokers that own zero trucks and employ zero drivers.
- -Shiply does not disclose or alert the client to the fact that the rates shown, or the bids shown to each customer, are not final rates. These rates cannot be guaranteed. Once a bid is accepted, that load then has to be placed on a REAL COMMERCIAL LOAD BOARD, like Central Dispatch or Internet Truckstop, where actual commercial trucking companies, that actually operate trucks, are looking for loads on. What this means for you is, the rate may have to increase from your bid to actually move the unit. Trucking companies do not care about your SHIPLY bid. You are competing with all the other freight on major commericial load boards, so if your Shiply Bid is not in line with where the market actually is, your Shiply Bid will essentially never lead to a truck loading your vehicle for transport. And Shiply is not where commerical trucks are booking loads at, so you have no idea if your bid will be honored on the Shiply site.
- -Shiply does not attract quality carriers. Experienced trucking companies do not use sites like USHIP or SHIPLY, for the most part. Of course once in a blue moon they might pick up a load off a public bid site, but the percentage chances or the % of loads they haul from sites like Shiply, we can promise you is very close to 0%. There are just far better options and places for them to get loads at , like Central Dispatch. Trucks also need to know that a load is for real. A highly rated freight broker, or manufacturer , or dealer like Carvana, for instance, with high ratings on commercial load board sites, is where trucks find their loads. They know they aren't wasting their time.
- -Shiply does not verify the credentials of anyone on their platform. Even if they do on sign up , they certainly don't keep up with it. A carrier can be suspended or go out of service at any time. Shiply has no checks in place to prevent unauthorized brokers or carriers from continuing to operate on their site.
Compare that to the airRyd.com database with over 1200 legitimate trucking providers that own and operate trucks. You can view a legitimate database with 100% real trucking companies here: airRyd.com Trucking Company Search
airRyd.com is the only company in existence with such a database. We do not allow brokers onto our platform , ever. - -Double Deposits - By using Shiply, you are effectively inserting a third hand into the pot. Shiply will charge you a deposit upon accepting a bid. (Even though this bid is not a guaranteed rate. ) Then after you make that deposit, you'll likely be asked by the freight broker who you accept a bid with (not a trucking company ), for yet another deposit. Finally, once the unit arrives at the destination, you'll typically pay what you owe the actual trucking company. And you may be unpleasantly surprised in many cases, since many brokers will lie about the price, and leave you fighting with the trucking company as to the cost when the car arrives. The broker will gladly take their cut, and then dispatch out the unit at a potentially higher rate then your bid. Once the car is loaded for transport, you have no option left other then to basically pay what the truck is saying they are owed - per the contract your freight broker sent to them. Shiply from our experience is no where to be found when it comes to these matters.
- -Zero assistance with auto transport damage claims - when a client ships a car on airRyd , we know exactly what company is coming to get it, we send you out an "order finalization email" , that contains every ounce of data on the prospective trucking company, including their DOT, MC, insurance history, loads completed with us, driver name, and etc etc.. If a company damages a load, we will assist and pursue a claim against their cargo insurance policy on your behalf. Most unbeknownst clients, and first time auto shippers, are utterly clueless as to how to navigate the cargo claims process, as many trucking companies will stonewall and do all they can to avoid paying out or dealing with a claim.
Although incidents are rare we have had the following success just in the past year (2022)
- -A truck leaked brake fluid onto a 90's M3 from the top rack of the transport trailer. We fought with the trucking company and secured a $5000 payout to the customer for the damages.
- -A transport driver accidentally backed a 2022 Toyota Camry into the back of his trailer, the only damages sustained were some scratches on the rear bumper. The cost of the transport was $1200, we negotiated with the company and secured a 100% free transport as compensation for this incident.
- -A buyer of a newer Jaguar F type , complained that a particular enclosed carrier that we have a great relationship with, damaged the side skirt ground effects on his car. Even though he signed off on the bill of lading, indicating "no damages" , we were able to secure a $2500 payout to the client to compensate him for this incident.
- -A buyer of a newer F-150 , claimed his truck sustained minor scratches on his hood while in transport. Key word here was "minor" . In fact they were hard to see. We were able to negotiate at $750 reduction on the transport cost.
To get a quote from us, please go to airRyd.com
For even more information on the world of auto transport, be sure to check out our growing YouTube Channel at Auto Transport For Dummies
Happy Hauling out there folks !!
Written By: Wes Hopkins / Founder of airRyd.com & Auto Transport For Dummies
Wes has extensive experience in the auto transport industry, having been a professional car hauler himself for over 5 years before launching the YT Channel, "Auto Transport For Dummies" as well as airRyd.com - which is now a leading provider of auto transport services. He also has appeared on sites such as "Shoutout Arizona" for his outstanding achievements in the industry.
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