Este artículo está disponible solo en inglés.
Short answer: on October 28, 2026, only 13 of the 187 Tampa moving companies registered with the federal government to move household goods were cleared to do it: active operating authority plus liability insurance on file. That is 7%, against 15% nationally, and lower than Jacksonville (26%) or Miami (9%). Before you book a long-distance mover in Tampa, look the company up on our Tampa mover check, which reads the federal files live.
Where the numbers come from
Every company that moves household goods across a state line has to register with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and carry a USDOT number. FMCSA publishes its carrier, census, insurance and revocation registers on data.transportation.gov, and our mover check reads them each time a page loads.
For this article we counted the same file ourselves on October 28, 2026. We took every row in FMCSA's carrier authority file with a household-goods registration and a business address in the city, one row per USDOT number. "Cleared" means active authority, liability insurance on file and no revocation pending, the same rule the mover check uses. Our Tampa count matched the live Tampa page exactly. Fleet sizes come from FMCSA's census file. A filing is a filing, not a recommendation. We haven't rated these companies or met them.
| Tampa movers on the federal register, October 28, 2026 | Figure |
|---|---|
| Registered to move household goods | 187 |
| Cleared to operate (authority and insurance on file) | 13 |
| Share cleared | 7% (15% nationally: 7,971 of 52,563) |
| Revocation under way | 1 |
| No active authority | 173 |
| Liability cover on the cleared filings | $750,000 (9 companies), $1,000,000 (3), $2,000,000 (1) |
| Cleared companies with cargo insurance on file too | 10 of 13 |
| Cleared companies running 5 trucks or fewer | 10 of 13 |
| Largest cleared fleet on file | All My Sons of Tampa North, 9 trucks |
These numbers move. A company can file new insurance tomorrow, and another can lose its authority next week. Check on the day you book, not months later off an article like this one.
Tampa Bay is more than one city on the register
FMCSA files a mover under the city on its business address, so a company across the bay shows up as St. Petersburg or Clearwater, not Tampa. Here's what nearby cities and Florida's other big markets looked like on the same day, counted the same way:
| City on the register | Cleared | Registered | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tampa | 13 | 187 | 7% |
| St. Petersburg (filed as "St Petersburg" and "Saint Petersburg") | 3 | 56 | 5% |
| Lakeland | 5 | 43 | 12% |
| Sarasota | 9 | 43 | 21% |
| Clearwater | 3 | 30 | 10% |
| Riverview | 1 | 19 | 5% |
| Wesley Chapel | 4 | 15 | 27% |
| Lutz | 4 | 9 | 44% |
| Jacksonville | 81 | 314 | 26% |
| Miami | 32 | 368 | 9% |
| Orlando | 17 | 257 | 7% |
The small suburbs have too few companies for their percentages to mean much. The register doesn't say why Jacksonville scores so much higher than Tampa or Orlando, and we won't guess. Every company has its own page on the mover check, wherever it's filed, so search by USDOT number. Florida's other big cities have live pages too: Jacksonville, Orlando and Miami.
Why are most Tampa movers not cleared?
The register doesn't say why, and we won't guess about any one company. In the filing itself, "not cleared" usually means one of these:
- No active authority. That was 173 of Tampa's 187. The company has a USDOT number but no current permission to carry goods for hire across state lines. Many are old registrations from businesses that stopped trading, changed name or never started.
- A revocation. FMCSA is revoking the authority, often because insurance lapsed or a filing wasn't kept up (one Tampa company).
So a low share doesn't mean 174 bad actors are waiting for you. Much of the register is dead weight. But dead registrations still show up in ads and directories, and a company trading on one can't legally carry your things to another state.
How to check a Tampa mover before you book
- Ask for their USDOT number. An interstate mover must have one, and it belongs on their website and paperwork. If they won't give it to you, that's your answer.
- Look it up. Put the number into the mover check, or scan the Tampa page, where cleared companies are listed first.
- Check the name matches. Several of Tampa's cleared movers trade under a different name from the one on the filing. Suddath Moving & Storage, for example, is filed as Suddath Relocation Systems of St Petersburg Inc. Make sure the USDOT number on your estimate belongs to the company you're talking to.
- Read the whole record. A company page shows authority, insurance, cargo cover, fleet size and any past revocations.
- Ask for the insurance certificate. The register shows that a filing exists; the certificate shows the policy and its limits.
- Get written estimates from at least three movers. That's FMCSA's own advice in its moving checklist.
Moving within Florida is a different register
FMCSA covers moves that cross a state line. If you're moving to Tampa from Orlando, Miami or Jacksonville, that's an intrastate move, and Florida regulates it instead. Under Chapter 507 of the Florida Statutes, anyone doing intrastate household moves in Florida has to register with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS). According to FDACS, a registered mover's contracts must state its Florida registration number, its ads must show "Fla. Mover Reg. No." or "Fla. IM No.", and its trucks must display one of those on the driver's side door. So for a move inside Florida, ask for the Florida registration number. Our mover check reads the federal files only, so it won't show a Florida-only registration.
What "insured" does and doesn't cover
The liability figure on a mover's federal record ($750,000 to $2,000,000 for Tampa's cleared companies) is the company's own business cover. Your belongings are covered separately, by what FMCSA calls valuation. For an interstate move, the mover must offer two options: Full Value Protection, where it repairs, replaces or pays for what it loses or damages, and Released Value, which costs nothing extra but caps its liability at 60 cents per pound per article. FMCSA's liability guide explains both. Read it before you sign anything that waives Full Value Protection.
Questions people ask
How many moving companies in Tampa are licensed?
On October 28, 2026, 13 of the 187 Tampa movers on the federal register were cleared, meaning active authority to move household goods plus liability insurance on file. The live figure is on the Tampa mover check.
How do I know if a Tampa moving company is legitimate?
For a move out of state, look up its USDOT number: it should show active authority and insurance on file. For a move inside Florida, ask for its Florida mover registration number, which FDACS requires on contracts, ads and trucks. Then get written estimates and the insurance certificate.
Does a USDOT number mean a mover is licensed?
No. A USDOT number is a registration. To move your household goods across a state line, the company also needs active operating authority and insurance on file. 174 of Tampa's 187 registrations lacked one or the other on October 28, 2026.
Why is my mover listed under St. Petersburg or Clearwater, not Tampa?
FMCSA files each company under the city on its business address. Plenty of Tampa Bay movers are filed under St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Lakeland or a suburb. The record is the same either way; search the mover check by USDOT number.
Is the mover check free?
Yes. It's free for anyone moving, with no sign-up. It reads FMCSA's published files and shows what is filed. Swift Agent Sites doesn't arrange moves.
Before you pick the truck, pick the neighborhood
If Tampa is on your list, FloodFireCheck's Tampa page shows which neighborhoods flood, which matters on the bay.
Related: