Moving deposits and FMCSA warning signs
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration publishes a list of things that signal a problem mover. These are the ones that show up before you have handed anything over — while you can still walk away.
On deposit size specifically
FMCSA describes a demand for a large deposit as a warning sign, but it does not publish a percentage that separates a normal deposit from an excessive one — and neither will we. The useful questions are how large it is relative to the total, what it is for, whether it is refundable, and whether you can pay it by credit card.
The warning signs
A large deposit demanded up front
Ask what the deposit buys, and get the refund terms in writing on the estimate before you pay. A deposit with no written cancellation policy attached is a deposit you may not see again.
Cash, wire transfer, money order, or a payment app
These are the payment methods you cannot reverse. If your goods are held or never arrive, there is no chargeback. Paying by credit card keeps that option open. A company that will not take a card for a deposit is choosing to remove your recourse.
An estimate given without anyone seeing your belongings
A price quoted over the phone or from a web form, with no in-person or video survey, has nothing solid behind it. This is the single most common starting point for a price that grows after loading.
Being asked to sign a blank or incomplete document
Never do this. Whatever gets written in afterward becomes what you agreed to, and you will have no record of what the page said when you signed.
No USDOT number, or one that does not check out
Every interstate mover and broker must be registered with FMCSA. If the number is missing from the paperwork, or the name attached to it in FMCSA’s records is a different company, stop and get an explanation in writing.
The company will not say whether it is a broker
Brokers are required to disclose that they are brokers. Evasion on this point is itself the answer.
No written estimate, or a rate sheet presented as one
A list of rates is not an estimate of what your move will cost. If there is no shipment-specific total based on your actual goods, you do not have an estimate.
Generic phone answering, no local address
A company that answers with “movers” rather than its name, has no verifiable physical address, and has no local presence is harder to hold to anything.
What to do before you pay
- Get the USDOT number and check it on FMCSA’s Company Snapshot.
- Insist on a survey — in person or by video.
- Get a written estimate that names the estimate type and lists every possible charge with amounts.
- Get the deposit, cancellation, and refund terms in writing on the document.
- Pay by credit card.
- Read FMCSA’s consumer booklets. They are free.
- Keep a signed copy of everything.
If something has already gone wrong
You can file a household-goods complaint with FMCSA. Complaints feed the enforcement data FMCSA uses to act against problem companies.