Moving Into or Out of Arizona: FMCSA Rules, Not the State Contract

Por James Brazil

James Brazil vive en Mérida, México. Fundó Swift Agent Sites y estudió Clásicas en la Universidad de Mississippi.

Publicado el 12 de noviembre de 2026 · Actualizado el 12 de noviembre de 2026

If a household move to or from Arizona crosses a state line, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulates the mover. Arizona does not license in-state movers, and A.R.S. 44-1612's estimated-price rule is for a move that stays in the state. A short trip from Bullhead City to Laughlin, or from Yuma to California, is still interstate.

Check the federal registration before you treat an Arizona hourly contract as the whole job. FMCSA's consumer line is 1-888-368-7238, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern, Monday through Friday. Use that number. An older Arizona handout prints a different federal phone.

What estimate and what valuation?

49 CFR 375.201 makes the mover liable for replacement value up to the declared value unless you waive full-value protection in writing. FMCSA's consumer pages describe the released-value option as 60 cents per pound per article. The agency's example is a 10-pound stereo worth $1,000, which pays no more than $6. You have to sign a specific statement on the bill of lading to take that option. If you do not select 60 cents, the shipment moves at full value and a valuation charge applies. Articles worth more than $100 per pound have to be disclosed in writing, or recovery can be limited.

The regulation tells you to check the current Surface Transportation Board released-rates order for the penny amount, because the rate can be adjusted. The 60-cent figure above is what FMCSA's own consumer page states. Read the waiver before you initial it to save money.

What is the 110 percent rule?

On a non-binding estimate, FMCSA says the mover can demand full payment at delivery if the bill is 110 percent or less of the estimate. If the bill is higher, the mover must release the shipment when you pay 110 percent, and must defer the balance for at least 30 days. Extra services you order after the contract, and impracticable-operations charges up to 15 percent of other charges due at delivery, can still be collected at delivery. This is not the Arizona rule that the total estimated price is the delivery amount. Do not mix them. See the in-state contract.

If you have paid 110 percent of a non-binding estimate, or 100 percent of a binding estimate, and the mover still will not deliver, call 1-888-368-7238 or use the National Consumer Complaint Database. For a load that never left Arizona, call DPS at 602-223-2000. See the in-state hold.

What else should you ask for?

Ask for the USDOT number and look the company up before you pay a deposit. Ask for a written estimate and for the two federal booklets, "Ready to Move?" and "Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move." Ask whether the estimator walked through the house. Arizona has no state license that substitutes for that federal check. See why there is no Arizona mover license.

An auto policy at 25/50/15 does not value the shipment. A homeowners policy may or may not cover goods on a truck. Ask your agent in writing. See the auto minimums.

What to do the week before an interstate load date

Write the pickup city and the delivery city in the email that confirms the date. Ask for the USDOT number in that email and look it up before you pay a deposit. Ask the company to say whether the estimate is binding or non-binding, and to point to the sentence about 110 percent if it is non-binding. Ask whether full-value protection is in place or whether the form is a waiver of it. If you are waiving it, the FMCSA consumer page says you sign a specific statement, and the released option it describes is 60 cents per pound per article. Disclose items worth more than $100 a pound in writing. Arizona's in-state estimated-price statute does not replace any of those steps once the truck is destined for another state.

Keep the federal booklets with the estimate. If the company hands you only an Arizona hourly sheet for a delivery in another state, ask for the federal papers before you pay. The two sets of rules are not interchangeable.

Pay the 110 percent in a form you can prove, and write the time on your copy of the estimate before you leave the curb.

FAQ

Is Phoenix to Las Vegas an Arizona move? No. Crossing into Nevada puts it under FMCSA.

What is the released-value option? FMCSA's consumer page describes 60 cents per pound per article, chosen in a signed statement. Otherwise the shipment is at full value, with a valuation charge.

How much do I pay at delivery on a non-binding estimate? If the bill exceeds the estimate, 110 percent gets the shipment released, and the balance waits at least 30 days.

Who do I call if they still will not unload? 1-888-368-7238. The Arizona DPS line is for a move that stays inside the state.

Does Arizona set 60 cents for an in-state move? No. That figure is the federal consumer-page option for an interstate shipment. An in-state contract states its own reimbursement terms.

Next step

Write down both cities. If a state line is crossed, look up the USDOT number, get the federal booklets, and decide in writing whether you are waiving full-value protection. Pay 110 percent of a non-binding estimate if that is what delivery requires, and call FMCSA if the truck stays closed.

Sources: FMCSA: valuation, FMCSA: estimates and delivery, 49 CFR 375.201, FMCSA: if the mover will not deliver.