By Relocation.com Staff
When you're looking for moving companies for a state-to-state (interstate) move, check to be sure that the moving company is licensed with the federal government to handle your move. To do that, you need to find the moving company's Department of Transportation number, commonly referred to as its DOT number.
You can find this on a company website, or on the paperwork the moving company provides you for your move. When you find this number, go to protectyourmove.gov, and enter that number to do a check of the company's licensing.
In addition to a DOT license, your moving company must also have the proper operating authority -- operating authority simply dictates the type of operation a company may run (for example, household goods), and the geographical area that it can operate in.
Operating authority is represented by an MC, FF or MX number, depending on the type of authority -- the most common one you'll see for your move is the MC number.
Intrastate (state-to-state moves): If you're just moving within your state, some states require your movers to register with the state -- in California, for example, movers must have a CAL-T number. This obligation varies -- some require, some do not.
In addition, some states require movers to have a USDOT even if they're only doing local moves. States that require a USDOT number include: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
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