Free relocation sounds unbeatable, until you count the fuel, the km on your car, and the insurance gap. Here's the honest side-by-side with professional transport.
Free relocation services (Transfercar being the best-known in NZ) match a car that a rental or dealer needs moved with a driver willing to drive it for free, or close to free. The driver saves on a one-way rental; the company saves on a repositioning fee.
Professional car transport (what we do) is a truck picking up your car, strapping it to a deck, and delivering it to the other end without a single km added to the odometer.
They're not really competitors, they solve different problems. But people keep comparing them, so here's the honest breakdown.
You want to travel one-way anyway. If you were going to fly or drive Auckland → Wellington regardless, a free relocation car is basically a free rental.
You don't own the car. You're the driver, not the owner, no skin in the game if something goes wrong mechanically.
You have time and flexibility. Pickup windows are tight, deadlines are strict, and routes are fixed by whoever needs the car moved.
You can't use it to move YOUR car. Transfercar and similar services move rental fleet and dealer stock, not privately-owned vehicles. If you bought a car on Trade Me in Christchurch and live in Auckland, free relocation isn't an option for that car.
Kilometres go on the clock. Every relocation drive adds full-length km to a vehicle. On a used car sale that's real depreciation.
Wear on tyres, brakes, clutch. A Cook Strait relocation is 1,000+ km of real driving. Truck transport adds zero.
Insurance is on the driver's terms. Cover varies by scheme, read the fine print carefully before assuming your car (or your body) is fully covered in a crash.
You're trusting a stranger with your keys. Professional cartage means uniformed drivers, GPS-tracked trucks, and a company with a phone number that stays live after payment.
Cost to you (car owner): Free relocation, not available for your own car. Professional transport, $250-$1,650 depending on route.
Kilometres added: Free relocation, full route distance (600-1,400 km typical). Professional transport, zero.
Insurance on the vehicle: Free relocation, variable, driver-dependent. Professional transport, carrier's liability cover, certificate on request.
Timing certainty: Free relocation, driver-dependent, tight windows. Professional transport, booked pickup and delivery windows we hit.
Suitable for private car sales / Trade Me buys: Free relocation, no. Professional transport, yes.
Suitable for non-runners, project cars, EVs low on charge: Free relocation, no. Professional transport, yes.
Use free relocation when: you personally want to travel one-way, on the company's schedule, in a car you don't own, and you're comfortable being liable as the driver.
Use professional transport when: it's your car, it's a valuable car, it's a car you're selling, it's a non-runner, it's an EV, it's a bike or boat, or you just don't want extra kms on the clock. That's most people, most of the time.
No. Free relocation platforms move rental fleet or dealer stock, not privately-owned vehicles. For a Trade Me buy you need either to drive it yourself or book professional car transport.
For the driver, close to free (sometimes petrol allowance included). For the car owner, free relocation isn't available, the comparable professional transport is roughly $500-$700 door-to-door, ferry included, with zero km added.
Cover depends entirely on the relocation scheme's terms and the driver's own policy. Read the T&Cs carefully. Professional cartage covers the vehicle in transit under the carrier's insurance, we send a certificate on request.
No. Your car is strapped to a deck the entire way, pickup to delivery. Zero km on the odometer, zero wear on tyres, brakes or drivetrain.
