Working out who you are hiring
How do I check a moving company's USDOT number?
The short answer
Ask for the USDOT number and the exact legal business name, then look both up yourself on the FMCSA public register through protectyourmove.gov. Match the legal name, the address, the operating status and whether they are registered as a carrier, a broker, or both — a mismatch between the name you were quoted by and the name on the register is the single most useful warning you can get for free.
What to match, not just that a number exists
- The legal business name. Sales names and trading names differ from registered names constantly, and a legitimate company can explain the relationship in one sentence.
- The address and phone details. A registered address that is a mailbox in a different state, on a company quoting a local move, is worth asking about.
- Operating status, and whether the authority is active. Registration lapses.
- Carrier or broker. It changes who actually shows up and who is responsible for your goods, and it is the distinction most people never check.
- Insurance on file, which FMCSA records for carriers.
What a USDOT number does and does not tell you
It tells you the business exists as a registered entity with federal operating authority for interstate household goods, and that is a genuine baseline. It does not tell you whether they are good, whether they subcontract, or whether the crew arriving is theirs. It is the first check, not the whole check.
This applies to interstate moves in the United States. A local move within one state is regulated by that state, and moving in Canada is regulated provincially, so a USDOT number is the wrong question there — ask which authority applies and check that one.
Also asked
Do local movers need a USDOT number?
Not for purely intrastate work in most cases. Interstate household-goods transport is the federal trigger. Local and intrastate requirements are set by each state and several require their own licence or registration, so ask the mover which rules apply to your move and confirm the answer with that authority rather than with the mover.
What is an MC number?
The operating authority number that accompanies the USDOT number for carriers and brokers engaged in interstate for-hire transport. Both appear on the FMCSA record, and both are worth matching against the name you were quoted by.
The long version
How to choose a moving company you can trust
Compare movers with a practical vetting process that covers registration, estimates, contracts, complaint patterns, and warning signs.
Read the guide →General information about moving and about hiring, not advice about your move. Interstate household-goods moving within the United States is federally regulated; local, intrastate and Canadian moving is regulated by each state or province, and the rules differ. The authority for your move is the one to check.