How to Read a Moving Bill of Lading Before You Sign It

The bill of lading is your moving contract. On an interstate move it must be in your hands, signed and dated, at least three days before loading, and you can cancel it without penalty during the three days after you sign. It also states the maximum the mover can demand at delivery, which makes it the most important piece of paper you will receive.

What it must contain

Federal rules list 17 items a household goods bill of lading has to include. Grouped by what they protect, they are:

Who is responsible

• The mover’s legal or trade name as registered with FMCSA, and its physical address.
• The names, phone numbers, addresses and USDOT numbers of every carrier, when known, that will handle your shipment.
• The identification number of the vehicle your goods are loaded on.
• Your name, address and phone number, and for collect-on-delivery shipments, a contact to notify about charges.

When

• The agreed pickup and delivery dates or windows, or, for guaranteed service, the dates and any penalty owed to you if they are missed.
• The actual pickup date.

How much

• The payment terms, including any minimum charges, and the forms of payment accepted at delivery, which must match the estimate.
• The maximum amount the mover will demand at delivery to release your goods.
• A description of every special or accessorial service ordered, and any minimum weight or volume charge.

Protection

• The valuation statement: either full value protection or your signed waiver choosing released value.
• Evidence of any third-party insurance sold to you, including the premium.

Attachments

• The estimate and the inventory, which become part of the contract.
• Any shipment or registration number, and a statement that the bill of lading includes all services on the estimate.

The three-day rule

Since federal rules changed in 2022, the bill of lading must be given to you, and signed and dated by you, at least three days before your shipment is scheduled to load. You then have three days to rescind it without any penalty. That window exists so you can read the contract away from the pressure of moving day. Use it. A mover that hands you the bill of lading for the first time as the crew arrives is not following the rules.

If you add items or services on moving day, the mover must prepare a new estimate, and the matching changes to the bill of lading do not restart the three-day clock.

Blank and incomplete documents

A mover may never require you to sign a blank document. It may ask you to sign one that is incomplete only where the missing information genuinely cannot be known before loading, such as the actual weight on a non-binding estimate. Everything else, including the delivery cap and your valuation choice, should already be filled in.

At pickup and at delivery

• A copy of the bill of lading must travel with your shipment, and the driver must have it before the truck leaves your home.
• It must be signed at origin and again at destination.
• At delivery, check that the amount demanded is not more than the maximum on the bill of lading.
• The delivery receipt can note that goods arrived in apparent good condition except as recorded, but it cannot release the mover from liability.

Five things to check before you sign

1. The company name and USDOT number match the company you verified. See our verification checks.
2. The maximum due at delivery matches your estimate and the 110 percent rule for non-binding estimates.
3. Your valuation choice is the one you made. Read our valuation guide if you are unsure.
4. Every service you were quoted for is listed, and nothing you did not ask for has appeared.
5. The pickup and delivery windows are in writing.

Sources: 49 CFR 375.505 (bill of lading), 375.503 (inventory) and 375.701 (delivery receipt); FMCSA household goods rule effective June 2022. This page is general information, not legal advice. Last reviewed October 2026.