Moving Into or Out of Wyoming: FMCSA Rules, Not the WYDOT Letter
James Brazil lives in Mérida, Mexico. He founded Swift Agent Sites and studied Classics at the University of Mississippi.
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If a household move to or from Wyoming crosses a state line, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulates the mover. A Letter of Operating Authority covers for-hire hauls inside the state. A trip into Colorado, Montana, or any other state is still interstate.
Check the federal record before you treat the state letter as enough for that route. FMCSA's consumer line is 1-888-368-7238.
Which paper applies to my route?
- Both addresses in Wyoming. Ask for the Letter of Operating Authority and the insurance filings WYDOT requires. See what that letter means.
- One address outside Wyoming. Use FMCSA's company search and the federal estimate rules below. The state letter can still matter for the Wyoming miles. It does not set the interstate valuation.
What estimate do federal rules require?
49 CFR 375.401 requires a physical survey of the goods before a binding or non-binding estimate, unless you waive the survey in a writing signed before loading. The estimate is one of two kinds:
- Binding. The total for the items and services listed. If you add goods on moving day, 49 CFR 375.403 lets the mover reaffirm the estimate, write a new binding estimate you sign before loading, or agree in writing to treat it as non-binding.
- Non-binding. A reasonably accurate written estimate at no charge. The final bill follows actual weight and the tariff and can be higher. The estimate must say you will not have to pay more than 110 percent of it at delivery.
What is the 110 percent rule?
49 CFR 375.407 says that if you pay up to 110 percent of a non-binding estimate at delivery, plus charges for extra services you requested after the bill of lading, the mover must release the shipment. Holding the goods after that tender is a failure of reasonable dispatch. If only part of the shipment arrives, the mover can demand only a prorated share based on the weight delivered. Wyoming's in-state letter of authority does not publish an Oregon-style 10 percent deferment. Do not quote a state percentage to an interstate driver. Use 110 percent and the federal booklets.
What else must the mover hand you?
49 CFR 375.213 requires two publications with the estimate: "Ready to Move?" and "Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move." Before the bill of lading is signed, you also get the estimate, a notice that you can see the relevant tariff, a summary of the arbitration program, and a complaint summary with the company's main phone number.
Liability starts at full value protection under 49 CFR 375.201, up to the declared value of the shipment. A lower released rate applies only if you waive full value in writing. Read that waiver before you sign it to cut the price. A waiver signed to save money on a Cheyenne-to-Fort Collins move is the federal waiver, and it is hard to undo after the truck is loaded. A deceptive ad on a Wyoming move that never left the state is a different desk. See the Attorney General complaint.
What should I check before I pay a deposit?
Ask for the USDOT number and look the company up on FMCSA's site. Match the legal name on the estimate to the name in that record. A Wyoming letter in a different name is a second company. Ask whether the estimator walked through the house. If the answer is no, the federal survey rule still applies unless you sign a waiver before loading. Count the rooms the estimator actually entered. A walk-through that skipped the garage and the storage closet is the survey that produces a low estimate and a fight on moving day.
Ask which estimate you are signing, binding or non-binding, and have the mover point to the 110 percent sentence on a non-binding form. Ask whether full value protection is in place or whether the form is a waiver. Put the pickup city and the delivery city in the email that confirms the date. Those two cities are what make the job interstate. WYDOT at 307-777-4850 can talk about the letter. It is the wrong number for a shipment that ends in another state. Pay any deposit only after the estimate names the valuation and the two federal booklets are in your hands. Keep a photo of the signed estimate with the delivery address visible.
FAQ
Is Cheyenne to Fort Collins interstate? Yes. Crossing into Colorado puts the move under FMCSA, however short the drive is.
Does a WYDOT letter cover that trip? The letter is intrastate operating authority. The interstate leg needs federal registration. Ask which credential matches the estimate.
Can the mover demand the full non-binding bill before unloading? Not more than 110 percent of the estimate, plus extra services you requested after the bill of lading, if you tender that amount.
Do I have to let the mover see my goods? Federal rules require a physical survey unless you waive it in a writing signed before loading.
Who takes a complaint? FMCSA at 1-888-368-7238. WYDOT at 307-777-4850 is the operating-authority desk for a Wyoming-only haul.
Next step
Write down both states. If a line is crossed, check the mover in FMCSA's search, get a written estimate from a survey of the goods, and keep the two federal booklets. Mark the estimate binding or non-binding before anything is loaded.
Sources: FMCSA: Protect Your Move, WYDOT: intrastate operating authority, 49 CFR 375.201, 375.213, 375.401, 375.403, 375.407.
Before you hire: Check a moving company's federal authority and insurance free, from FMCSA's records.
General notes for moves in and to Wyoming. Not a quote or a recommendation of any specific company. Confirm details with the mover you hire.
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