Fuel Prices Affecting Car Shipping Rates

We’ve all seen fuel prices steadily and dramatically increase over the past few months. While it can be frustrating to your family budget, this increase can literally put some auto shippers out of business. Any industry that faces an increase in operating costs is faced with few choices. The most immediate and painful one is to increase the price they charge for their services – in this case the cost to ship your car.

The average auto transporter gets only about 5 miles per gallon. At an average of only $2.50 per gallon (in many areas the drivers are paying $3.00 per gallon) it costs $25 per hour just to keep the engine running at 60 miles per hour. According to recent news stories fuel prices are up 40% in the last 12 months. Fuel cost is easily the largest expense in maintaining and running a car shipping company. A coast-to-coast auto transporter will put 6,000 miles on his truck for the round trip. That translates to around 1,200 gallons of fuel – or about what the average consumer would use in a year! Imagine how this fuel situation will impact your pocketbook over the next year and understand the auto shipper will feel that pain over 14-17 days! A .50 increase in fuel cost adds approximately $1,000 each month in additional operating costs for each car transporter you see on the road!

This increase in fuel price has forced the auto transport industry to increase our rates. This is an action National Car Shipping takes very seriously. We pride ourselves on giving our customers the best value for their dollar. However, it simply isn’t fair to the drivers to ask them to shoulder the entire burden of rising costs alone. Our rates have increased by $50-100 across the board to enable our quality drivers to continue shipping cars for our customers. If and, hopefully, when the price of fuel falls the rates will as well. We appreciate your understanding and are always here to answer any questions you may have about shipping your vehicle.

Hurricane Katrina Damage

Everyone has seen the horrific damage caused along the Gulf Coast by hurricane Katrina. Certainly, our thoughts and prayers go out to anyone affected by this disaster. The loss of life and homes are far away the most important things in a situation like this.

In addition to the personal tragedies, many roads have been closed along the southern routes through this area. Vehicles being moved along Interstate 10 from Miami to Los Angeles have been subject to delays due to road closures. Additionally, many gas stations are either rationing fuel or out of it altogether. We are doing everything possible to work with our customers and drivers in these parts of the country to ensure as smooth as possible transportation of vehicles. We ask for your patience and understanding as we work through these difficult times together.