This is question one for a reason. Open carriers expose your car to rain, highway debris, dust, UV damage, and physical contact risk throughout the entire journey. Closed carriers seal your car inside a weatherproof truck body — zero exposure, zero contact with the elements. Never let a company talk you into open transport for any car worth ₹4 lakh or more.

A GST registration number means the company is formally registered with the Indian government, files taxes, and issues valid invoices. You can independently verify any GST number at the GST portal in under 60 seconds. An unregistered company has no formal business identity — if something goes wrong, you have no verified entity to hold accountable.

ISO certification means the company has been audited by an independent third party and found to maintain standardised quality management processes — from packing and loading to customer communication and documentation. It’s not a guarantee of perfection, but it is a meaningful signal of operational seriousness that most small operators simply cannot provide.

Transit insurance is the difference between a minor inconvenience and a financial disaster if your car gets damaged in transit. Always confirm whether it’s included in the base price or an add-on. More importantly, understand what it covers — external damage during transit, accident damage, and theft should all be covered. Ask specifically about the insurer’s name and the claim process.

Real-time GPS tracking means you know exactly where your car is at every moment during transit — not just a general update once a day, but actual live location. Companies with their own fleet of GPS-equipped trucks can offer this. Companies that outsource your car to unknown third-party transporters cannot — and that outsourcing itself is a serious quality red flag.

A pre-loading inspection with signed photographs is the document that protects both you and the company. It records the car’s exact condition before departure. Without it, any new damage on delivery becomes a “he said, she said” situation — impossible to prove was caused during transport. Any company that skips this step is telling you something important about how they handle accountability.

The most common vehicle transport complaint in India is the hidden charge that appears at delivery — a fuel surcharge, a “doorstep delivery fee,” a toll charge, or a “loading assist” charge that was never in the original quote. Some companies deliberately quote low and recover margin through delivery-time additions. Ask specifically: does this price include everything I need to pay to receive my car at my door?

Many companies in India that appear to be transport operators are actually aggregators — they take your booking, collect a margin, and subcontract your car to whoever has capacity that day. You have no visibility into the quality of the actual transporter, their vehicle condition, their driver’s experience, or their safety standards. An owned fleet means direct accountability at every step.

When something needs to be clarified — your car’s location, a delivery time change, a document query — who do you call? Companies that assign a dedicated coordinator mean one person owns your move from start to finish. Companies with no coordinator mean you’re re-explaining your situation to a different customer service agent every time you call, with no one accountable for the whole picture.

If you own an electric vehicle or a luxury car, you need to confirm the company has specific experience and protocols for your vehicle type. EVs require battery-state management, specific tilt angles during loading, and temperature awareness. Luxury cars need white-glove packing and extra securing care. A general transporter applying general methods to a Tata Nexon EV or a BMW 5 Series is a risk not worth taking.

Ask for the specific transit time for your exact route — not a range like “3 to 10 days.” A professional company with regular operations on your route will give you a specific, confident answer: “Delhi to Bangalore is 5 to 7 days. Your delivery will be on Day 6 or 7 depending on Bangalore entry timing.” Vague timelines are usually a sign that the company doesn’t run that route regularly or is hedging against delays they can’t control because they outsource.

A professional company will give you a clear, specific list of required documents — RC Book copy, insurance certificate, Aadhaar/PAN — and will explain that they handle all transit permits, e-way bills, and interstate border documentation themselves. A company that says “we’ll figure out documents on pickup day” or asks for more documents than necessary is disorganised at best and overreaching at worst.

A written booking confirmation specifying all service details — pickup date, delivery city, car details, total price, carrier type, and insurance status — is the document that makes the company legally accountable. Without it, your entire agreement is a verbal promise. A GST invoice is additionally required for corporate reimbursement claims and is a hallmark of a formally registered business.

This question is uncomfortable to ask, but the company’s answer to it is one of the most revealing things you’ll hear. A confident, process-driven company will walk you through exactly how damage is handled — pre-loading photos, POD documentation, transit insurance claim, surveyor inspection, settlement. A company that avoids this question, minimises it, or can’t articulate the process is telling you they haven’t thought it through — or that their history with damage claims is something they’d rather not discuss.

Not every company will be able to connect you with past customers — and many won’t even if they could because they’re protecting customer privacy, which is fair. But asking this question is still valuable because of how the company responds. A confident company with genuine happy customers will either offer to share a reference, point you to their Google reviews, or explain why they protect customer privacy while doing so confidently. An insecure company will deflect or become uncomfortable.