If you want a company to move your vehicle, you will need to engage in some serious research first. A simple internet search term for “auto transport discount” will reveal thousands of hits and it is your job to find the best ones. However, unless you really know what you are talking about, how do you recognize with auto transport discount offer is genuine and which one should not be trusted with a raw egg, let alone your vehicle? One great thing is that simply by looking into the different companies that are around, you will already learn a lot of about methods of transportation.

Finding Quotations For Auto Transport Discount
As stated earlier, the best way to learn about transporting your car is by contacting companies. However, as also stated before, an internet search will present you with thousands of hits and you probably don’t have the time to try them out both. People usually presume that the hits that appear on the first page are also the best. They usually are, but you should not accept this blindly. It is possible that the owner of the website is better at SEO marketing than he or she is at offering auto transport discount. So, unfortunately, it isn’t as simple as contacting the top five companies and hoping for the best. So how do you get a shortlist of companies that you can ask for quotations? Using common sense is generally the best policy. Look through the results for auto transport companies that you have found and think about which ones strike you as genuine and which ones do not. As stated earlier, most of the really good companies offering auto transport discount do manage to get on the first page of Google, so realistically you only have to sift through those results, or perhaps go to the second page as well. Take a look at the websites and dismiss the ones who have a website that is poorly designed or poorly written, as well as those that are too flashy. That is a very common sales gimmick and quite simply not what you should be looking for. Hopefully, once you have completed this, you should be left with no more than five different companies offering auto transport discount and with a bit of luck, the best nationwide car transport service is among that. Getting five quotations is always the best policy, because it allows you to really compare the different offers and find out who offers the best value for money. Always remember that value for money does not mean cheap. Speak to each of the companies you are considering and tell them about the vehicle that you want to have transported. Ask them how they intend to transport it. This will allow you to get a good idea of the methods employed by companies offering auto transport discount. Always ask why they choose a specific method, as this will give you a better idea of what seems safest to you.

Using The Online World Even More To Find The Best Nationwide Car Transport Service
You can actually use the internet to your benefit even more. As shown, the internet should already help you to find the best nationwide car transport service, but it also allows you to have a wider search range. If you were to use the yellow pages only, you will be limited to your geographical area and this is not necessarily the best auto transport discount that is out there. Not just that, if you were to purchase a vehicle that is far from your geographical area, it will make much better business sense to use a company that is nearer to the location of the vehicle, rather than your location as this will usually work out cheaper.

Using the internet will also help you to keep costs down significantly. A lot of companies claim that if you can find the same like for like quotation at a cheaper price, they will match it or even go below it. True, this can add some time in your quest for the best auto transport companies, but we live in difficult economic times and getting the best deal on something is very important. Also, the internet may even provide you with price comparison websites for auto transport discount, where you will be able to find the best price at just a glance. Remember, however, that finding the best price does not necessarily give you the best possible company so make sure you still check the companies out one by one. Last but certainly not least, finding a company online and booking your car transport online may give you even further discounts. Clearly, the internet is your best friend in the search for auto transport discount. Make sure you use it to the best of your advantage.

What To Expect From The Service
Armed with all this information, you should be able to find the best value for money on your auto transport service. But what can you expect from an auto transport company? What service will you receive and what will they actually do? An auto transport company is able to transport vehicles from one location to another. This can be beneficial if you work for a salvage company or own a scrap yard. Or perhaps you have seen the car of your dreams on the other side of the country and don’t actually have the possibility to go out there and drive it back yourself. An auto transport discount service is there to load up your vehicle or vehicles and drive it to whichever destination you want. The vehicle is securely strapped on the back of a truck, together with any other vehicle, and is taken to its destination. The best nationwide car transport service will always be happy to explain further details about this to you. Don’t confuse auto transport discount services with tow trucks. A tow truck tows a car over a relatively short distance. This can be because they have committed a parking violation or because they have broken down alongside a road. Whichever the case, the key here is that this service is not applicable for long distances. After all, you couldn’t tow a car all across California for example.

The Bottom Line
Basically, you should never feel rushed in making a decision. An auto transport company tends to transport an item that is generally of high value. A car, after all, is not a cheap toy that can easily be disposed of. Make sure you pay very close attention to all the quotations you receive. Read all the small print on any details that you get sent from the auto transport discount company. Think about such things as what sort of insurance they have, what would happen in case your vehicle arrives damaged, what would happen if they don’t arrive on time. If your car has to be transported over very long distances, make sure that the auto transport discount service has measures in place to protect the health and safety of their drivers. Do they have machines installed that force the trucks to go no faster than a certain speed? What arrangements do they have in terms of working hours? Also look at the company’s history. Have they had mainly satisfied customers and if not, what were the complaints? When looking at the complaints that an auto transport company has received, it is not so much about the content of the complaint, it is about how the company has responded to this. Remember that there are people out there who feel complaining is a national sport, which makes it clear that the reaction in dealing with any complaint is far more important.

You should now be armed with all the information that you could possibly need to find the best auto transport company. Always remember that it is good to look for an auto transport discount, but that price should not be the main driver in finding the best nationwide car transport service. Indeed, what is important is that the auto transport discount company that you intend to work with is safe and experienced in dealing with what you need. Do they know the vehicle or vehicles that you want transporting? Do they understand how to keep things safe and secure? Do they protect their staff? Do they have a good track record? For one last bit of security, you could once again use the internet to find reviews on the different auto transport discount services that are out there. Do make sure that these reviews are independent and not actually from the company itself. Also, don’t trust the reviews you read on the company’s website. They are highly unlikely to post anything on there that is highly negative. This doesn’t mean that the positive reviews on the service aren’t genuine. However, they will not give you the complete picture of customer experience. Never be afraid to ask questions, a good company should be happy to answer any query.

The foreign and commonwealth office draws up an extensive list of countries that should not be traveled to quite regularly and it is from that our, and other global travel insurance providers’, underwriters decide which countries travel insurance should be provided for. We look at the government travel advice and decide from that whether or not we can provide insurance to travelers.

Although global travel insurance does, by its nature, cover the majority of the world, the current climate ensures that there are some places where the likelihood of incident means that UK travel insurance providers are unable to offer protection. Thankfully, the list is clear of the majority of popular holiday destinations, and you’re unlikely to have your big holiday plans affected. The most likely group to have their travel plans altered by the foreign office’s travel advice are business travelers.

The foreign office’s travel advice is not to travel to the following countries, even if it means losing business – the risk from the war-zones listed below is just too great to make the reward worth the danger:

Here’s our top 10 countries to avoid traveling to, and the reasons for the high risk factor! The risk is far from conclusive (the foreign office’s travel advice lists many more countries), but to me, these are the ones that all travelers should avoid like the plague:

10) Liberia

Economic hardship in Liberia is currently making outbreaks of violence common, and foreigners (especially westerners) are at risk targets due to their affluence. This extra likelihood of incident ensures that no UK travel insurance provider would risk offering you cover if you choose to visit Liberia

9) Nepal

Occasional acts of terrorism and political violence in urban areas make Nepal off-limits for those who want to get travel insurance. In September this year, three nearly simultaneous bombs went off in the capital of Kathmandu, killing 3 and injuring many innocent bystanders.

8)Haiti

Haiti is considered off limits to many travelers on account of the high risk of kidnappings and civil unrest that is prominent. At the time of writing, there have been 12 kidnappings of American travelers in 2007 – mostly criminal in nature. In the past, these kidnappings have ended in physical and sexual assaults and shootings. The potential for spontaneous protests and demonstrations has also been known to result in unexpected violence, day or night. It’s no surprise that the government’s travel advice is not to travel here!

7)Yemen

Due to the high levels of terrorist activity in Yemen, westerners are advised to steer clear of Yemen. If this is not possible, then all travelers are encouraged to stay vigilant and to keep a low profile to avoid attacks or kidnapping. The situation is so grave that the US Embassy often restricts American citizens from certain hotels, restaurants and shopping areas.

6)Israel

The Gaza Strip and West Bank has seen immense violence in recent months between Israeli and Palestinian factions, and shootings, kidnappings and violence demonstrations have occurred in each. The region’s continued instability makes travel to Israel widely recommended against – the risk of abduction or worse makes travel insurance impossible to obtain.

5)Democratic Republic of Congo

The democratic republic of Congo remains one of the most dangerous places to travel in Africa, where violence, neglect and corruption has left the country distinctly damaged. Fighting erupted in the streets of Kinshasa in March this year, and the situation remains volatile despite the immediate threat of violence calming down. Travel outside of Kinshasa is difficult and dangerous with security, especially in the north and easy, being unstable. Any traveler brave enough to travel to the Congo should be extremely cautious, avoid the North Kivu district which is the backdrop to armed conflict between government troops and army rebels, avoid crowds and keep a close eye on local media.

4)Burma (Myanmar)

While the human rights situation makes Myanmar an ethically uneasy place to visit, currently there is a lot of personal risk involved as well. Throughout September, the anti-government protests sparked a violent crackdown from the authorities and made international headlines. Although the dusk-til-dawn curfew imposed in some of the towns has been lifted, it still remains an uncertain time to visit the country and you’re unlikely to find any global travel insurance company who will insure you.

3)Colombia

Colombia remains one of the most dangerous places to travel in the world thanks to the crime the country suffers from. The illicit drug trade in urban areas such as Cali and Buenaventura means that there is often a high risk of violence, while the more rural areas expose visitors to the country at risk from narcoterrorist groups who will often kidnap civilians to use for ransom or to gain media attention. Naturally UK travel insurance companies are loathe to insure travellers who choose to ignore these warning and travel to Colombia anyway.

2)Afghanistan

With the war on terror in Afghanistan still fresh in the mind, it’s no surprise that the country remains a big no-go area. Western tourists are obvious kidnap and assassination targets, as many of the disbanded Taliban and Al-Qa’ida forces remain at large and hostile to the new regieme. Additionally, the country remains unsafe due to tribal groups, explosive devices, landmines, military operations and acts of terrorism. Unsurprisingly, the government’s travel advice is to avoid traveling here at all costs!

1)Iraq

Given the high profile nature of western kidnappings by various insurgent groups, and the regular acts of terrorism and hostility to Western troops, it is no surprise that no travel insurance companies will insure travelers to the troubled country. The instability is caused by various groups – Ba’ath regime remnants, transnational terrorists and criminal elements have been known to attack convoys en-route to venues, hotels, restaurants, checkpoints and police stations.

While holidaymakers are unlikely to be affected by these less touristy locations, their riskiness means that business travelers will have to forgo their travel insurance if they are unable to cancel their trips.