Door to door means the carrier comes as close to your door as it legally and safely can. For most suburban addresses that is your driveway or your street. For some addresses, it is not.
Why a truck may not reach you
A loaded car carrier can be 75 feet long and 14 feet high. Municipal zoning, road closures, low-hanging trees and wires, narrow or dead-end streets, gated communities and parking restrictions in dense neighborhoods can all keep it out. Our Terms and Conditions anticipate this and ask you to meet the carrier at an alternate location when access is not possible.
How it is handled
The driver, or Rivalane on the driver's behalf, contacts you before arrival to agree a meeting point: a shopping center lot, a wide side street, a gas station near the highway. You drive or have the car driven there for pickup, or collect it there at delivery.
Tell us upfront
If you already know your street is tight, say so at booking. We note it on the order so the carrier plans a meeting point from the start. In New York City, for example, carriers rarely reach residential blocks in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens or the Bronx, and the meeting point is arranged before dispatch.
Why a car hauler is different from a delivery truck
Federal rules in 23 CFR 658.13 require states to allow stinger-steered automobile transporters of at least 75 feet on the National Network of highways, so that is the size of rig that comes to collect a car, and loaded rigs run close to the 13 feet 6 inch to 14 foot height limits most states set. A rig that size cannot make a tight residential turn, cannot reverse out of a cul-de-sac, and cannot pass under low branches or utility lines without risk to the cars on the top deck. The driver is also responsible for the vehicles on the truck, so a scrape against a tree is not a risk the carrier will take.
Many towns also prohibit commercial vehicles over a certain weight on residential streets, and gated communities often bar them outright. Section 4a of our Terms and Conditions lists exactly these conditions as reasons the pickup or delivery point may change.
What a good meeting point looks like
Large, flat, open and legal to stop in for twenty minutes: a shopping center lot away from the storefronts, a big-box store lot, a wide industrial road, a truck stop, or a park-and-ride near a highway exit. Avoid lots with low canopies, tight entrances or active tow enforcement. The driver has done this many times and will often suggest a spot used before in your area; if you know your neighborhood better, propose one.
What the Terms say: if the carrier cannot access the pickup or delivery location, the customer agrees to meet the carrier at an alternate location so the vehicle can be safely loaded or unloaded (Section 4c). The carrier delivers as close to the customer's door as legally and safely possible (Section 5b).
City addresses
In Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx, carriers rarely reach residential blocks, and meeting points along the major avenues, near bridge and tunnel approaches, or just across the river are the norm. Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago, San Francisco and the dense parts of Los Angeles and Miami work the same way. Our New York, California and Florida pages describe the usual arrangements in each.
Rural addresses
The problem is reversed: no restrictions, but narrow roads, gravel, soft shoulders and long distances from the carrier's route. A gas station or diner lot on the nearest state highway usually works. If your property has a long driveway, do not assume the truck can use it; a nine-car rig needs room to turn around at the end.
Getting the car to the meeting point
You drive it there, or your agent does. If the car does not run, tell us at booking so the carrier assigned has a winch and can plan a spot where winching is practical, because an inoperable car cannot be moved to a meeting point by you. The driver can occasionally use a smaller vehicle or a tow dolly for the last mile, but that is the carrier's choice and may carry a fee; it is not something to count on.
Why this still counts as door to door
Door to door describes the service model, not a promise about the exact curb: the carrier comes to your area rather than you driving to a terminal in another city, and the meeting point is usually within a few miles of the address. Our door to door page explains the service in full, and telling us about access at booking means the plan is made before dispatch rather than on the day.
Checking your own street
Look at your street on a satellite map: tight corners, parked cars on both sides, low trees over the road and a dead end with no turning circle are the signs a 75-foot rig will not fit. The FMCSA's hours-of-service rules are the other reason drivers avoid a risky street: a truck stuck for an hour backing out of a cul-de-sac is an hour off the driver's legal day.
Related questions
- Do I need to be present at pickup and delivery?
- How does carrier assignment work after I book?
- What should I check when my car is delivered?
Go deeper: Terminal-to-Terminal Car Shipping: Whose Yard?.
