On the recordDecember 19, 2012
Along with the growth of general freight motor carriers and container-supply companies catering to the needs of do-it-yourself consumers, we have seen some of these same companies become regulated property brokers and step forward in this capacity to assist these consumers. For a negotiated fee, they offer to arrange with portable container companies and general freight carriers to place the containers and trailers for loading and to have them transported to their destinations when loaded. To counteract this middleman-service, the full-service traditional moving companies are now urging the FMCSA to require do it yourself consumers desiring broker assistance to engage only brokers registered with and regulated by the FMCSA as ``household goods brokers'' to make these arrangements on their behalf and to require them to use only registered, full-service ``household goods motor carriers'' to perform the underlying transportation. Their principal argument relies upon a false negative inference they want the FMCSA to draw from the absence of a similar ``Limited Service Exclusion'' from the ``household goods broker'' definition for brokers that arrange household goods moves for do-it-yourself consumers. This effort at changing the meaning of the statute further obstructs the intent behind the Household Goods Mover Oversight Enforcement and Reform Act of 2005.…
