My experience with uShip

Several people have asked me about my experience with uShip, an online shipping and receiving service by independent contractors. I hired a uShip transporter to tow the teardrop trailer from the private dealer I had purchased it from in Winter Garden, Florida to my home in northern Nevada. The service has been made famous by A&E's show Shipping Wars where several transporters competitively bid for unique and interesting loads while trash talking each other.

Roy is one of the more colorful shippers on A&E's Shipping Wars.

For my uShip experience, I actually posted a notice on the forum that I was looking for someone to tow the teardrop to me for around $1,000-$1,200 with no immediate deadline. Most of the shippers scoffed at the price of going across the country for such a low amount, but one driver, David, said that he had a motorcycle he was delivering to San Francisco and that he would be happy to bring my teardrop to me. At the time, he was actually in Florida and the pickup would not be out of his way.

I paid a down payment through uShip to have David tow my tear across the U.S. The trip only took him about four days, but just as he was driving into the Eastern Sierras, he got stuck in one of our crazy spring snowstorms and had to stay for a night in Lee Vining near Yosemite. David kept in close contact with me by cell phone and was able to deliver my new baby late the next morning. He had towed her across the country behind a large box truck and she was just fine. At the time, I was not fully aware of needing to pay the driver the final balance on delivery: I thought it was done through uShip. So, I had to scramble a bit to get David a check before he headed to the Bay Area. However, he was just as curious about looking inside my trailer as I was.

In all, the experience was fairly painless and cost me $1,000. I was so lucky to have found a driver who was willing to meet my budget. Before finding uShip, I did contemplate going on a road trip to pick up the tear myself, but with the cost of gas and hotels and missed work, it ended up being more financially feasible to have a professional do it.

Once in a while I will see a teardrop trailer towing request on uShip, and that would actually be one of my dream jobs when I retire: a personal transporter of teardrop trailers to their new, happy owners.


Things to know before using uShip to deliver your teardrop trailer:

1. Read the reviews on the driver/transporter and ask what kind of tow vehicle they have.

2. Keep in contact with the transporter and get a feel for how professional and knowledgeable they are over the phone.

3. Have the money for the shipping ready to go. Also, be sure to have copies of all your sales paperwork sent to the transporter.

4. Leave a full review on the site if you are pleased with the service.