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The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration on Wednesday, Sept. 19, provided notice of its policy concerning enforcement of its household goods motor carrier and broker regulations. FMCSA said it may take enforcement action when a HHG motor carrier or broker knowingly and willfully fails, in violation of a contract, to deliver or unload at the destination a shipment of HHG for which charges have been estimated and for which payment has been tendered.

According to FMCSA, a motor carrier or broker found holding a HHG shipment hostage may be subject to suspension of registration for a period of not less than 12 months to not more than 36 months. The agency said it would publish a notice in the Federal Register on this policy. “Thousands of consumers are often stuck at the mercy of abusive moving companies at one of the most vulnerable times in their lives,” said Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.).

FMCSA’s notice came one day prior to a Senate committee hearing targeting household goods moving fraud that was blogged about on this very page. An investigation by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation found a growing trend among Internet-based moving brokers and carriers to provide a price quote without visiting a home to estimate a move’s real cost and later hold the goods hostage and demand huge markups before releasing them. Cord Moving and Storage Headquartered in Saint Louis, MO is very active in many industry associations has consistently and strongly supported this position for stronger enforcement since it impacts all of the relocation companies that are always trying to do the right thing and do it safely.