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Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 10/14/2009 9:17:24 PM
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I am on the receiving end of shipment of a vehicle that was abandoned in a parking lot for approximately two weeks before it was towed and impounded by the local police department.
I have never had anything of this magnitude shipped to me, and I am a little confused on what the normal procedure is regarding shipping and receiving a vehicle. Can anyone explain what the "normal" protocol is?
Shipper paid the Service Provider in full to deliver the vehicle to a specified address and specified recipient...the vehicle never made it to our side of the state...Service Provider avoided phone calls and text messages day after day. Service Provider claimed he had the vehicle with him for three weeks, but in truth the vehicle had been abandoned in a shopping center parking lot for two weeks and then impounded for ten days before the Service Provider admitted to its location. After contacting the "tow yard", I then find out my bill with them was $400.
The story goes on and on, so I won't drag this out...my questions are "What is the protocol for Service Provider when they get a bid on a shipment of a vehicle and the delivery process?" and "What are the responsibilities of the Service Provider?"
Very Confused,
k. green
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Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 9/24/2007 11:29:48 AM
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| Seeing you have no matches on Uship I can only think this was done off site. Talk to your lawyer.
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Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 10/14/2009 9:17:24 PM
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| No, it was done here on Uship, I am on the receiving end of the shipment, a good friend shipped a vehicle from one state to the other. The service provider was obtained from this site as well as other providers put bids on this item. My friend is of course registered under a different login name.
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Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 3/6/2006 5:21:41 PM
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| My first guess is that you and the seller utilized the services of an illegal carrier (someone with no authority and insurance)to transport this vehicle without a signed contract. A legal carrier with a legitimate business would not abandon a vehicle. Next mistake was paying this carrier in advance, he got his money what incentive does he have to complete the deal. With all that said you are limited to your options. You will have to pay the towing company to retrieve the vehicle, there is no way around that. After about 37 days they will obtain title and then there is nothing you can do. As for the carrier you should do as the other poster stated and contact a lawyer. You should be able to re-coup the transport fee and the towing company's charges but if may cost you more going thru the courts. Maybe contact FMCSA and report this carrier. Bottom line is you and the seller may have learned a valuable lesson.
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Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 10/14/2009 9:17:24 PM
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Thank you for your help, and please forgive my ignorance.
A few more questions, I am looking at paperwork that has this carriers DOT #, MC #, Insurance Info, and under Authority Type-Common it says Authority Status Active. Does this mean he is a legitimate carrier?
As for contract with the shipper, I just spoke to him and he said that the carrier only gave him his UShip bid, and the info above. Yes the shipper paid him in full up front...which I guess is a big mistake. I would have never thought any different, I ship puppies and the puppy buyers pays for the shipment upfront and I make the arrangements with the airlines.
Thank you for your time, I am really just trying to find out what I need to do at this point.
kim
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Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 3/6/2006 5:21:41 PM
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| On the surface he seems to be legit. Without being able to look into it myself I can't be sure if his info is valid. I find it hard to believe if he is legit he would abandon a vehicle like that, but I guess anything is possible. If you have his insurance info you may be able to file a claim against it. Contact them. Also contact FMCSA, they are a little hard to get through to, but with a little persistence they may be able to help or send you in a good direction. Also a lawyer with transportation and logistics knowledge may be helpful. Alot of times they will give a quick 15 to 30 minute consulation over the phone for free. Without a signed contract thou, things may be hard to enforce.
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Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 8/23/2006 8:49:09 AM
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| Is not a Uship contract enforcible? Is this not a vis-a-vis "electronic contract"? Can Uship not provide a hard copy of the contract between parties? I believe a lawyer could deal with that!
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Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 4/18/2007 9:48:07 PM
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| Part of the problem is proving he even picked the vehicle up to ship. The USHIP agreement only says the parties agreed on the terms for service but without a signed bill of lading with his signiture & the shippers signiture on it the question is did he infact ever take possetion of the property?
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Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 9/21/2009 5:01:49 PM
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This is a good example of where being "legitimate" according to some bureaucratic paperwork
doesn't really mean a lot. I'd hold a lot more trust in a third-party (non governmental, and well known) rating system based on actual work done.
Good luck getting your car back. Bad business is bad business, no matter how much "legal" paperwork is kept. Hell, I used to drive for a guy who operated a fleet of trucks on photocopies of his first truck's paperwork. Woot!
I quit, as I really didn't want to be the guy on the mat when some DOT-dude figured it out.
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Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 1/17/2009 7:59:50 PM
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| So what you are saying is having a real business with insurance and having the DOT to make sure trucks are safe on the road isn't important. I'm sure you would like to know you are safe as possible on the roads with your family. Thats all part of being legal. These so called TSP's that don't have DOT and MC #'s don't stop at weight stations and the DOT doesn't know whether they are safe or not. So how do you know they are safe and have insurance. You don't! I know I want my family to be safe as possible out on the roads. The biggest reason the DOT is out there is for SAFETY.
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