Verify a moving company’s USDOT number.

Two official checks, in order

Every interstate for-hire mover has a USDOT number, and most also hold MC operating authority; both should be on the written estimate. The first check is SAFER, FMCSA’s Company Snapshot, which opens one carrier record by USDOT or MC number and shows the legal name, DBA name, physical address, entity type and Operating Status. SAFER’s help page explains that the status line reads AUTHORIZED FOR followed by Passenger, Property or HHG, where HHG is household goods, and that NOT AUTHORIZED means the USDOT number is active but the entity has no operating authority and is not authorized to operate as an interstate, for-hire carrier. The second check is FMCSA’s Search Movers & Complaint History, which the page says returns the location of the company’s headquarters, contact information, registration status, type of authority (carrier, broker or freight forwarder), complaints and possibly a safety rating. The page adds two cautions worth quoting: FMCSA and DOT do not endorse any moving company based upon the registration status, safety rating, or any other data provided in the search results, and a company with no safety rating should not be viewed as an unsafe operation based on this information alone.

Mover or broker

Appendix A to Part 375 tells shippers that they should know whether the company they are dealing with is a household goods motor carrier (mover) or a household goods broker, and whether they are registered with FMCSA, and that shippers should avoid brokers and movers that are not registered with FMCSA or that refuse to perform a physical survey of the household goods. A broker arranges the move and another company’s trucks perform it, so the USDOT number on a broker’s paperwork is not the number of the carrier that will hold your goods. The mover search’s type-of-authority column is where the difference shows.

Binding and non-binding estimates

Under 49 CFR 375.401 the mover must give a written estimate before executing the bill of lading and say whether it is binding or non-binding. A binding estimate is an agreement made in advance that guarantees the total cost of the move based on the quantities and services shown on it; the mover may charge for providing a written binding estimate. A non-binding estimate is what the mover believes the total cost will be, is not binding on the mover, and may not be charged for; the final charges then rest on the actual weight and the tariff. Section 375.505(h) requires the bill of lading to be provided to, signed and dated by the shipper at least 3 days before the shipment is scheduled to be loaded, with a 3-day period to rescind it without penalty.

The delivery rule the checker applies

Section 375.703 sets the maximum collect-on-delivery amount. On a binding estimate it is the exact estimate of the charges, plus charges for any additional services requested by the shipper after the bill of lading was issued and, if applicable, charges for impracticable operations as defined in the tariff. On a non-binding estimate it is 110 percent of the non-binding estimate, plus the same two items. In both cases impracticable-operations charges collected at delivery may not exceed 15 percent of all other charges due at delivery. Section 375.407(e) adds that if the shipper pays at least 110 percent of the approximate costs of a non-binding estimate on a collect-on-delivery shipment, the mover must relinquish possession at delivery; any balance is billed afterwards.

Worked examples

A non-binding estimate of $4,000 and $250 of packing you asked for after the bill of lading was issued: 110% of $4,000 is $4,400, plus $250, so the most the mover may demand before unloading is $4,650. The same move on a $4,000 binding estimate with no later requests: $4,000, plus any impracticable-operations charge up to 15% of that, $600, if the tariff defines one and it applies.

Method

The checker reads the number or name you enter, builds the SAFER link (by USDOT, MC/MX or name) and links the mover search, then applies 375.703 to the estimate type and amounts you give. Rule text was read from the eCFR and the FMCSA pages named below on November 11, 2026. It does not look anything up and does not say whether a particular mover is registered; the two FMCSA pages do.

What this does not cover

• Moves within one state, which the FMCSA search excludes and state agencies regulate.
• Valuation and liability for loss or damage (375.201), and the arbitration program the mover must offer (375.211).
• Whether the mover’s insurance filing is current: that is the Licensing and Insurance system.
• Tariff charges for storage in transit or for guaranteed service dates.

Figures read from the sources below on November 11, 2026. Last updated November 11, 2026.

Sources

• FMCSA: Search Movers & Complaint History (About the Mover Registration Search) (retrieved November 11, 2026)
• FMCSA SAFER: Company Snapshot (retrieved November 11, 2026)
• FMCSA SAFER: Help (Operating Status codes) (retrieved November 11, 2026)
• eCFR: 49 CFR Part 375, Transportation of Household Goods in Interstate Commerce; Consumer Protection Regulations (375.401, 375.407, 375.505, 375.703, Appendix A) (retrieved November 11, 2026)