Review Report Review
Long Wait Times

Liz Osorio Submitted this review about Budget Auto Shipping
Review made Live: 7/28/2015 9:12:00 PM
I just shipped my 2011 Dodge Avenger from Honolulu, HI to Oakland, CA via Budget Auto Shipping. Here are the basics of my experience with Budget.

Drop Off
I called on Friday, July 10th to book a reservation with Budget Auto Shipping after calling around to several shipping companies. Budget was the cheapest option (they offered a military discount) and offered about the same average delivery date as the other companies (PASHA, Matson direct, etc.) so we chose them. I was impressed that I was able to get one of their last spots for the next sailing barge (Saturday, July 18th) so close to the cut off date of Monday, July 13th. The customer service representative was very helpful and nice. We only had to pay a $129.99 deposit to secure our spot. He sent me confirmation emails promptly and made sure I was aware of all the necessary paperwork for the drop off.

Drop off went smoothly. I would definitely recommend you show up earlier than 8 AM to get in line. We were running a little late and got there about 5 minutes to 8 and there were already about 15 people in line. Thankfully we only had to wait 45 minutes before it was our turn to give our ID's, car registration, lien holder letter, and booking number to the agent. She then directed us to the payment line where they charged our debit card for the remaining $860.01. Somehow we got lucky and the actual inspection only took about 10 minutes.

Pick Up
I tracked the car's movements and saw that we were given an approximate July 27th available date for pickup. I checked it again on Friday, July 24th and it showed that the car was available for pickup, but that I would receive a courtesy call verifying it was ready for delivery. Never got a call. I attempted to call them first thing Monday morning and found out the Oakland office does not have a direct line for customer service. I waited for 20 minutes on the Matson 1-800 number before my call was answered. Then they hung up on me! Had to wait about another 15 minutes for the next representative. She was nice and did verify my car was available for pickup, but offered no explanation for why I didn't receive a phone call.

Drove to Oakland on Tuesday, July 28th and got to the gate right at 1 PM. The gate guard, office lady, and man who took me to my car were all very pleasant and professional. It was a fairly quick wait. Imagine my surprise though when I got to my row and noticed that they parked my car into the hitch of the SUV in front of me. The worker quickly called his boss who ran over and inspected/took photos before moving the car. Thankfully no damage was done to my actual car frame - only a crunched license plate. No claim was filed or indication on the receipt of delivery. No harm, no foul. It was just annoying honestly. My car was clean on the inside, but filthy on the outside; to be expected. I was a little sad that we didn't get a car wash voucher. Not sure if it's random who gets it, or they don't give it at all at Matson.

In the end, I would probably choose to go through Budget Auto Shipping again. My car was at the port on time and in good condition. It was a bit annoying trying to get ahold of customer service and seeing my car parked into another vehicle, but at the end of the day - I'm in CA with my running car.

P.S. Thanks Budget for offering a military discount. That's really the main reason I chose you over PASHA or another company. Much appreciated. :)
Shipment Details
Origin State:
Hawaii
Pickup:
On Time
Destination State:
California
Delivery:
On Time
Customer Service
Honesty:
Knowlegeable:
Promptness:
Customer Service:
Review Details
Quote or Order Id:
8096033
Quote or Order Cost:
$999