Freight brokers and logistics providers met earlier this year in San Antonio, providing more evidence of the bleak condition of the freight transportation and auto relocation industries. They also moved to gather data on the size of their segment of the industry. Load volumes and revenues have been on the decline, but gross margins have improved with similar results to those published by a major load board and a transportation stock analyst.

The Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA) hired an Auburn University business professor to publish a quarterly market report on the scope of work by brokerage firms and third-party logistics providers. Volume and revenue were down in the third quarter of 2008 and got worse in the fourth quarter, but gross margin continued to rise. Gross margin refers to the proportion of gross revenue a broker keeps after paying trucking companies and other freight carriers.

Cash-strapped trucking companies have increased their use of quick-pay discount programs. Brokers have always offered expedited payment programs where a carrier or driver gets the money more quickly but receives less of it. In the present time, more carriers are looking for money faster. In 2008, TransCore 3sixty Freight Match saw approximately 6.4 loads posted for each truck looking for work.

You might need to spend quite a bit of time and effort to find the exact used or new car you are looking for. You may even find the car you’ve been searching for but are unable to purchase it because the vehicle is located on the other side of the country. That is why it is beneficial to use an autoshipping agency as opposed to picking up the car yourself.

Consider the mileage. For example, if you live in Los Angeles, California, and find the car you want in Tampa, Florida, you will end up putting over 2,100 miles on the clock just to get it back to L.A. Some buyers may want to save money and actually enjoy driving their car back, but for others, it might be beneficial to take advantage of an auto transport service that can pick your car up at the dealership and drop it off at your door without accruing any mileage.

You might just use an auto transport service for peace of mind just in case your newly purchased car breaks down en route to your home. You can also insure your car so that you are guaranteed to get it in the condition that it left the dealership.