Terms and Conditions

These Terms and Conditions are an agreement between you and Sequoia Car Shipping LLC. By placing an order with us or using our service, you agree to these terms. If you don’t agree, don’t place an order.

1. Who We Are

Sequoia Car Shipping LLC is a Wyoming limited liability company. In these terms, “Sequoia,” “we,” “us,” and “our” mean Sequoia Car Shipping LLC.

Sequoia is not a motor carrier. We do not own trucks. We do not employ drivers. We never take possession of your vehicle. We state this plainly because it determines who is responsible for your vehicle while it is in transit, which Section 8 explains.

Sequoia arranges shipments as a booking agent for MJ Transportation, a property broker licensed by the FMCSA:

MJ Transportation is licensed by the U.S. Department of Transportation as a property broker under 49 USC §13102(2) and is bonded under the federal BMC-84 requirement. When you book with us, your shipment is brokered under MJ’s authority, with MJ as the licensed broker of record and Sequoia acting as its agent. The motor carrier that physically transports your vehicle is a separate company. We identify the carrier by name once it has been assigned to your shipment.

These terms are an agreement between you and Sequoia. The service commitments in these terms, including your price, the price lock, payment, and cancellation, are Sequoia’s own. The brokerage of your shipment is performed by MJ Transportation as broker of record. Damage to your vehicle during transport is the responsibility of the motor carrier, not Sequoia and not MJ Transportation. This is explained in detail in Section 8.

2. Placing an Order

When you complete a booking on our site, we send you a verification email summarizing your order and the price. Your order isn’t binding on us until you confirm. Once you confirm, it’s binding on both of us.

By submitting your order, you represent that you are at least 18 years old, that the information you provided is accurate, that you are the legal owner of the vehicle or have authority from the legal owner to ship it, and that you agree to pay the fees set out in the verification email.

Price lock

The price quoted in your verification email is locked for 28 days from the date you confirm your order.

In rare cases, the carrier market for your route may shift in a way that no carrier will accept the price within the pickup window. If that happens, we will contact you. You can choose to increase the price, extend the pickup window, or cancel without charge.

3. Fees and Payment

You owe two payments for a standard booking:

The total of these two payments equals the price quoted in your verification email.

How the deposit works

Nothing is charged at booking. When you book, your card is saved and verified through our payment processor, but no money moves.

The deposit is charged to your saved card 7 days before the first day of your pickup window. If you book with a pickup window that opens within the next 7 days, the deposit is due at booking instead.

Before completing the deposit charge, we may first place a temporary authorization hold on your card for the deposit amount. A hold is not a charge: it reserves the amount but doesn’t take it. If your order ends while only a hold is in place (for example, because we couldn’t find a carrier), we release the hold and you pay nothing.

Approved payment methods to the driver

The driver will accept the balance in any of these forms:

• Cash
• Money order
• Cashier’s check
• Certified check

The driver may also accept Zelle, Venmo, or Cash App, but only if confirmed with the carrier in advance. If you want to pay by one of these methods, raise it with us at booking and we’ll confirm with the carrier before pickup.

Personal checks are not accepted.

If your deposit charge fails

If your card is declined when we try to authorize or charge the deposit, we will contact you for an alternate payment method. We will not dispatch your shipment until the deposit has been secured in full.

Additional charges

You may incur additional charges if:

• Your vehicle is inoperable at pickup but was booked as operable
• Your vehicle is materially larger or different from what you booked (for example, a Ford Expedition booked as a sedan)
• Your personal belongings exceed 100 pounds (see Section 5)
• The driver has to wait for you at pickup or delivery beyond a reasonable time
• The vehicle has to be stored because you are unavailable to receive it

We will tell you about any additional charges as soon as we know about them.

4. Vehicle Preparation

Before pickup, you must:

• Have a key for the vehicle ready to give the driver
• Remove all loose, fragile, or aftermarket parts that could come off in transit
• Remove any racks, antennas, or external attachments that aren’t permanently mounted
• Disable or remove toll transponders (you are responsible for any toll charges incurred during transport)
• Disarm any alarm system, or provide instructions for arming and disarming
• Make sure the fuel level is between 1/4 and 1/2 of a tank
• Confirm there are no fluid leaks
• Remove all sensitive, dangerous, or illegal items from the vehicle (see prohibited items below)

If you fail to prepare the vehicle and damage results to your vehicle, the carrier’s truck, or other vehicles being transported, you are responsible for those damages.

Prohibited items

You must not place any of the following inside the vehicle for transport:

• Firearms or ammunition
• Explosives, fireworks, or other flammable materials
• Drugs (legal or illegal) or medications
• Alcohol
• Cash, jewelry, or financial documents
• Pets or live animals
• Plants
• Anything illegal under federal or state law

If a driver discovers prohibited items at pickup, they may refuse to load the vehicle. In that case, you forfeit your deposit and remain responsible for any reasonable costs the carrier incurred.

5. Personal Belongings in the Vehicle

You may pack personal belongings in the vehicle subject to these limits:

• Total weight cannot exceed 100 pounds
• Items must be stored in the trunk or below the window line
• Nothing prohibited (see Section 4)

Personal belongings exceeding 100 pounds, or items that cannot be stored below the window line, must be disclosed at booking. Additional fees may apply, and the carrier may refuse the additional cargo at their discretion.

Personal belongings are transported at your own risk. Sequoia and the carrier are not responsible for loss of, damage to, or theft of any items inside the vehicle. Carrier insurance covers the vehicle itself, not items inside it.

6. Pickup

At pickup, you and the driver will inspect the vehicle together for any existing exterior damage. Both of you will sign a Bill of Lading that records the vehicle’s condition. Keep your copy of the Bill of Lading. A photo of it on your phone is sufficient.

You or someone you designate must be present at pickup. A designee must be at least 18 years old. You are responsible for anything your designee does or fails to do.

If access to the pickup address is difficult or unsafe (low bridges, narrow streets, gated communities, weight limits), the driver may ask you to meet at a nearby location that the truck can reach.

Pickup dates and times are estimates, not guarantees. Weather, road conditions, mechanical issues, and other carriers’ schedules can shift the timing.

Unattended pickup

The vehicle can be picked up without you or a designee present. You can arrange this with us by email or directly with the carrier; the carrier has to agree either way and may require you to sign a release. If you arrange it directly with the carrier, let us know, so the key handoff and the paperwork are settled before the driver arrives.

Whenever the vehicle is picked up without you or a designee present, however that was arranged, the following applies. You arrange to leave the key where the driver can collect it. The driver inspects the vehicle and completes the Bill of Lading alone. The driver’s record of the vehicle’s condition at pickup is the binding origin record, and you waive the right to dispute it. The vehicle, its key, and anything left inside remain at your risk until the driver collects the vehicle (see Section 5 for items inside the vehicle).

7. Delivery

At delivery, you and the driver will inspect the vehicle together for any new damage that may have occurred during transport. Note any damage on the Bill of Lading before signing. Then both of you sign.

⚠ Important: This step protects you.

If you sign the Bill of Lading at delivery without noting any damage, you confirm that the vehicle was delivered in the same condition it was picked up in. Damage not noted on the Bill of Lading is presumed not to have happened in transit, and a later claim becomes very hard to prove.

Look the vehicle over carefully before you sign. If it’s raining or dark, ask the driver to wait while you check.

If the address is hard for the truck to access, the driver may ask you to meet at an accessible location nearby.

You or your authorized designee must be present at delivery. If no one is available, the carrier may store the vehicle at your expense or charge a redelivery fee.

Unattended delivery

The vehicle can be delivered without you or a designee present. You can arrange this with us by email or directly with the carrier; the carrier has to agree either way and may require you to sign a release. The balance must be fully paid before the carrier will complete an unattended delivery; settle the payment method with us or with the carrier when the delivery is arranged.

Whenever the vehicle is delivered without you or a designee present, however that was arranged, the following applies. No delivery inspection happens, and that has a real consequence. Nobody is there to check the vehicle and note damage on the Bill of Lading, so no record ties any damage discovered later to the transport. You waive the right to inspect the vehicle at delivery, you accept the vehicle in the condition recorded by the driver, and you acknowledge that a claim for damage discovered after an unattended delivery will be denied for lack of evidence that it happened in transit. If you want the protection of a delivery inspection, someone must be there.

The driver leaves the vehicle at the agreed location and the key as arranged. From the moment the vehicle is parked, it is at your risk, including theft, weather, and parking violations.

8. Damage Claims

This is the most important section to understand.

Who is responsible for damage to your vehicle

Damage to your vehicle during transport is the responsibility of the motor carrier that physically transported it. Not Sequoia. Not MJ Transportation.

This is how the industry works under federal law. The Carmack Amendment (49 USC §14706) makes the motor carrier liable for damage to cargo while it is in their possession. Neither MJ Transportation (the broker) nor Sequoia (its agent) is subject to Carmack Amendment liability, because neither ever takes possession of the cargo.

When we assign a carrier, we send you the carrier’s name and contact information by email. That carrier is required by federal law to maintain primary cargo insurance (49 CFR §387.303). If your vehicle is damaged in transit, the claim goes to the carrier and their insurance.

How to file a claim

If your vehicle is damaged in transit:

1. Note the damage on the Bill of Lading at delivery, before you sign. This is the document that establishes the vehicle’s condition. Damage not noted on the Bill of Lading is presumed not to be transit damage, and this presumption is the single most common reason claims fail.
2. Take photos at delivery. Multiple angles, including the damage and the carrier’s truck if possible.
3. Submit a written claim to the carrier as soon as possible. Include photos, the signed Bill of Lading, a repair estimate, and a description of the damage. Federal law gives you at least nine months from delivery to file a written claim with the carrier (49 CFR Part 370), but waiting works against you: fresh documentation wins claims, and a claim filed weeks after delivery is far harder to prove. File within days, not weeks.
4. Send a copy of the claim to us at [email protected]. We will help you communicate with the carrier and provide any documentation in our records that supports your claim.

What Sequoia is and isn’t liable for

Sequoia is not liable for damage to your vehicle during transport, loss of personal items inside the vehicle, delays caused by weather or carrier scheduling, or any consequence of those events. Our liability is limited as set out in Section 12.

What we will do

We will provide you with the carrier’s contact information, a copy of any documents in our records related to your shipment, and reasonable help in pursuing your claim against the carrier. We will not represent you legally, advance funds for repairs, or cover damage out of our own pocket.

9. Cancellation

You can cancel your order in writing by emailing [email protected].

If you book with a pickup window opening within 7 days

The deposit is due at booking (see Section 3), but you still get a grace period: you can cancel free of charge within 24 hours of booking or until a carrier is assigned to your shipment, whichever comes first. After that, the deposit is not refundable.

If we can’t find a carrier within your pickup window

If we don’t find a carrier before your pickup window ends, we will continue trying to secure one for 14 calendar days after the window closes.

During these 14 days:

• You can cancel at any time at no charge. Any deposit already charged is fully refunded, and any authorization hold is released.
• If we still haven’t found a carrier at the end of 14 days, we may cancel the order. Any deposit already charged is fully refunded, and any authorization hold is released.
• If you want us to keep trying beyond the 14 days, email us before the 14 days run out and we’ll keep your order open.

10. Failure to Show

This section covers the case where nobody shows up and no unattended pickup or delivery was arranged in advance (for the arranged version, see Sections 6 and 7).

If you or your designee fail to show at pickup or delivery:

• You waive your right to inspect the vehicle and note damage
• Sequoia is not responsible for any damage to or loss of the vehicle or its contents
• The carrier may require you to sign an additional waiver
• The carrier may make alternative arrangements at your expense, including key shipping, towing fees, your transport to an alternative location, cancellation fees, and storage fees
• You remain responsible for the vehicle while it sits at the pickup location until the carrier collects it

11. Disclaimer of Warranties

The service is provided as is. We don’t make any warranty, express or implied, beyond what these terms specifically state. We don’t warrant that the carrier will arrive on time, that transit will be without delay, or that the service will be uninterrupted. We disclaim any implied warranty of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or that the service does not infringe the rights of any third party.

We are not the motor carrier and don’t warrant the carrier’s performance.

12. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent allowed by law, our total liability to you for any claim arising out of or related to your order or these terms is limited to the broker fee you paid us for the shipment in question.

We are not liable for:

• Damage to your vehicle during transport (the carrier is liable, see Section 8)
• Loss or damage to personal items inside the vehicle (see Section 5)
• Indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages
• Lost profits, lost time, lost opportunity, or other intangible losses
• Delays caused by weather, road conditions, mechanical failure, or carrier scheduling

This limitation applies whether the claim is for breach of contract, negligence, or any other legal theory.

Some states do not allow the exclusion or limitation of certain damages. If you live in such a state, parts of this section may not apply to you. The remaining parts still apply.

13. Indemnity

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Sequoia Car Shipping LLC, MJ Transportation, and our respective officers, employees, and agents from any claim, demand, loss, or expense (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of:

• Your breach of these terms
• Any inaccurate information you provided about the vehicle, its condition, its ownership, or the pickup or delivery
• Any prohibited items found in the vehicle
• Any claim made by the legal owner of the vehicle if you weren’t authorized to ship it
• Any third party claim arising from your use of the service

14. Disputes and Arbitration

Read this section carefully. It limits how you can pursue a legal claim against us.

Mandatory arbitration

Any dispute between you and Sequoia arising out of or related to these terms or your shipment will be resolved by binding individual arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association (AAA) under its Consumer Arbitration Rules.

You can find the AAA Consumer Arbitration Rules at adr.org.

Individual basis only

You and Sequoia each agree that any arbitration will be on an individual basis only. Class arbitrations, class actions, and joinder with other claimants are not allowed. You may not bring a claim as a representative or member of a class, and you may not consolidate your claim with anyone else’s.

Arbitration costs

You pay the AAA consumer filing fee (currently capped at $225). We pay all other arbitration costs charged by AAA. The arbitrator can shift fees and costs to the losing party in the final award.

What’s not subject to arbitration

You may bring a claim in any court for an injunction or other equitable relief to protect your rights to your vehicle while it is in transit. We may bring a claim in court to recover unpaid amounts you owe us.

Statute of limitations

You must file any arbitration demand against us within one year after the event that gave rise to your claim. Claims filed after one year are waived. This limit applies to claims against Sequoia; it does not shorten any deadline federal law gives you for claims against the motor carrier (see Section 8).

Severability of this section

If any part of this Section 14 is held unenforceable, the rest of this section continues to apply. If the prohibition on class actions is held unenforceable for a particular claim, that claim and only that claim will be heard in court rather than arbitration.

15. Communications

Electronic communications and signatures

You agree to receive all notices, contracts, disclosures, and communications from us electronically, including by email and on our website. Your acceptance of these terms electronically (by clicking, checking a box, or submitting your order) has the same legal effect as a handwritten signature under the federal E-SIGN Act.

You can withdraw your consent to electronic communications by emailing [email protected], but if you do so we will not be able to provide the service.

SMS and text messages

By providing your phone number when you book, you agree to receive transactional SMS messages from us about your shipment, including pickup notifications, carrier assignment, and delivery updates.

You can opt out of SMS at any time by replying STOP to any of our messages. Opting out does not affect our ability to send you email about your shipment, and does not cancel your order.

Standard message and data rates from your mobile carrier may apply. Message frequency varies based on your shipment status.

Keeping your contact information current

You must keep your email and phone number current with us during your shipment. If we send a notice to the email or phone number you provided and we don’t hear back, we are not responsible for the consequences of you not receiving the notice.

16. Environmental Commitment

Sequoia is a member of 1% for the Planet. An amount equal to 1% of the price of every booking funds environmental work through our partner organization, currently Clean Air Task Force. Details are published on our Footprint page.

This 1% commitment is a stated practice, not a term of your individual contract. We may change partner organizations, and we will publish any change on our website before it takes effect.

17. California Residents

In accordance with California Civil Code §1789.3, California residents are entitled to the following notice:

The Complaint Assistance Unit of the Division of Consumer Services of the California Department of Consumer Affairs may be contacted in writing at 1625 North Market Boulevard, Sacramento, California 95834, or by telephone at (800) 952-5210.

18. Other Terms

Governing law

These terms are governed by the laws of the State of Wyoming, without regard to conflict of laws principles. Subject to the arbitration requirement in Section 14, any court proceeding (where one is permitted by these terms) will be brought in the state or federal courts located in Wyoming.

Entire agreement

These terms, together with your verification email, are the entire agreement between you and Sequoia about the service. They replace any prior agreement, representation, or communication.

Amendments

We may update these terms from time to time. Changes apply only to orders placed after the change takes effect. Orders already booked under prior terms are governed by those prior terms. The current version is always at our website with the date of the last update at the top.

No assignment

You can’t transfer your order to anyone else without our written consent. We can assign these terms to a successor or affiliate.

Severability

If a court or arbitrator finds any part of these terms unenforceable, the rest stay in effect. The unenforceable part will be reformed to the minimum extent needed to make it enforceable, or removed if reform isn’t possible.

Waiver

If we don’t enforce a particular right or term once, that’s not a waiver of our right to enforce it later or in another situation.

Force majeure

Neither party is liable for delay or failure caused by events outside its reasonable control, including weather, natural disaster, war, terrorism, government action, public health emergency, road closure, fuel shortage, or labor dispute.

Survival

The following sections survive cancellation or completion of your order: 5 (personal belongings), 8 (damage claims), 11 (warranties), 12 (liability), 13 (indemnity), 14 (disputes), and 18 (other terms).

Headings

Headings are for convenience only. They don’t affect the meaning of these terms.

Language

These terms are written in English. If we provide a translation for convenience, the English version controls in case of any conflict.

Third parties

These terms are between you and Sequoia. They don’t create rights for any third party. The motor carrier is not a third party beneficiary of these terms.

19. Contact

For all questions, cancellations, claims, and legal notices:

Email: [email protected] Phone: +1 (858) 504-2007 Mailing address: Sequoia Car Shipping LLC 30 N Gould St Ste R Sheridan, WY 82801

Sequoia Car Shipping LLC is a Wyoming limited liability company. We arrange motor vehicle transportation as a booking agent for MJ Transportation (USDOT 4265685, MC-1655840), a federally licensed property broker and the broker of record for shipments booked through this site.