Eric review for AutoBahn USA INC

Review Description

I was referred to Autobahn by a Porsche dealership in Washington as a high end carrier. Sam was very friendly and helpful and arranged for pickup within my desired timeframe. They were expensive at $1500 for transport to Tennessee (average quote about $1,100 for open carrier) but I felt it would be worth it. The carrier they used arrived a day earlier than expected. This is where it all went bad. As I watched him load the car he damaged the front end as he drove it right into a ramp. He did not speak english well and I tried to explain to him that I wanted the car repaired by a Porsche dealership. I called Sam at that point and he assured me that when the car was delivered a claim would be filed and the car taken care of and repaired. 3 weeks later the car still had not arrived and was assured it would be there by the end of the week by Autobahn. Apparently there were mechanical problems with the truck which I could understand. When the car did not arrive by that Friday, I called and was told by Autobahn that the car was in Texas due to another breakdown. They told me that the "good news" is that the car had been repaired. I was surprised because I had not authorized repair and to this day still have no paperwork and the carrier and Autobahn have not given me any paperwork on what was done, where it was done or who did the repair despite multiple requests. The car was finally delivered to a Porsche repair center in Nashville 6 weeks after it was picked up. Their technicians immediately evaluated and found that the bumper cover had been replaced, however it was mounted improperly, the front end grills were damaged and hanging off of broken clips, there were also paint drips and runs on the bumper cover that were easily seen. The interior of the car was filthy with grease stains on the steering wheel, seat, door handle and stick shifter and there were food wrappers on the seats and on the floor. Autobahn did give me the carrier's insurance number and instructed me to file a claim with their insurance. They did refund $750 of the $1500 I paid for my trouble. I did file a claim with the transport company insurance for estimated repairs of $1600. However, I just found out the carrier (Continental Transport) has a $2500 deductible. I have tried contacting them directly and they will not respond. Autobahn says there is nothing they can do about it and since it is the carrier that caused the damage they are not responsible. I will now have to pay another $1600 out of pocket to repair the car. I would not use this broker again. While the broker is not responsible for the damage, they did entrust a valuable car to a very poor carrier with poor insurance coverage. My advice is to avoid brokers and search for a reputable direct carrier if possible. Get details on their insurance coverage for damage in writing before you decide to entrust anyone with transporting your car. Do not assume that damaged caused by the carrier means that they or the broker will be responsible for it.