Check These Before You Sign the Bill of Lading at Delivery

The last five minutes of a car shipment decide whether any damage will be covered. When the driver hands you the Bill of Lading at delivery, your signature confirms the vehicle arrived in the condition recorded at pickup. Sign without looking and a claim becomes almost impossible. This article walks through exactly what to check before you sign.

What the Bill of Lading is

The Bill of Lading, often shortened to BOL, is the transport document the carrier issues for your vehicle. It identifies the carrier and the shipment, records the pickup and delivery details, and carries the condition report: a diagram or photo set marking every scratch, dent, chip and crack present when the car was loaded. At delivery the same form is used to record the vehicle’s condition on arrival. Both parties sign at both ends. It is the receipt, the contract and the evidence in one document.

Before the truck arrives

• Have your pickup copy of the Bill of Lading and your pickup photos on your phone.
• Arrange to meet in daylight if at all possible. Damage is easy to miss under streetlights.
• If you cannot be there, send someone who understands that they must inspect before signing. Under our terms, damage reported after an unattended delivery is not accepted.

Check these before you sign

1. The exterior, panel by panel

Walk around the car slowly and compare each panel to the pickup report and photos. Look at bumpers, lower doors, rocker panels, wheel arches and the roof edge, which are the areas most often touched during loading. Check the windshield and glass for new chips. Crouch to see the lower body in reflected light.

2. Wheels and tires

Scuffed rims, a tire that looks low, or a missing center cap should be noted. Straps are attached at the wheels on most carriers, so this is where contact happens.

3. The underside and front lip

Low cars can touch the ramp. Look under the front bumper and along the side skirts for scrapes that were not there at pickup.

4. The interior

Open the doors. Check seats, the steering wheel and the shifter for marks or grease, and make sure nothing that was in the car is missing. Remember that personal items are not covered by cargo insurance, which is why we ask you to remove anything valuable before pickup.

5. Mileage and fuel

Compare the odometer with the pickup figure. A short loading distance is normal; a large difference is not. Note the fuel level too.

6. The car starts and runs as it did

Start the engine and confirm no new warning lights. Carriers are not responsible for mechanical issues that arise in transit, but a car that was running at pickup and is not at delivery is worth documenting on the spot.

7. The paperwork matches

The VIN on the form should match the car. The condition report at pickup should be the one you signed. The driver should sign the delivery section alongside you.

If you find something new

1. Write it on the Bill of Lading, clearly and specifically: “new 3-inch scratch, driver door, lower rear,” not just “damage.”
2. Photograph it from several angles, next to your pickup photo of the same area.
3. Have the driver acknowledge the note. Most will; it is a routine part of the job.
4. Accept the vehicle. Refusing delivery does not strengthen a claim and leaves the car in limbo.
5. Report it to Super Auto Transport and the carrier within 24 hours, as our terms require, with the photos and your copy of the signed Bill of Lading.
6. Get a repair estimate. The carrier’s insurer will ask for it.

The full claims process, including who pays and what is excluded, is in our guide to car shipping insurance and damage claims.

What you are not signing away

Signing a Bill of Lading with damage noted on it does not waive your claim; it creates it. Signing a clean one, on the other hand, is a statement that the car arrived as it left. That is why the inspection must happen before the signature, not after the truck has gone.

Make the pickup inspection as good as the delivery one

A delivery inspection is only as useful as the pickup report it is compared with. Wash the car before pickup so marks are visible, photograph every panel with timestamps, and check that the driver’s pickup report matches what you see. Our preparation checklist covers the whole pickup day.

Booking a shipment? Get a price on the instant calculator. Every shipment we arrange includes a Bill of Lading inspection at both ends with a carrier whose cargo insurance we have verified.