Congress Told FMCSA to Fix Moving Fraud. Here Are 19 Recommendations the Agency Ignored.
In 2017, a Congressionally mandated Working Group submitted 19 consumer protection recommendations to FMCSA. The agency promised to evaluate them. Seven years later, virtually none have been implemented.
In 2015, Congress required FMCSA to establish a Household Goods Consumer Protection Working Group (FAST Act, Section 5503). Fifteen people, consumer affairs experts, educators, and industry representatives, met three times at DOT headquarters and submitted 19 recommendations in September 2017.
FMCSA published its response to Congress in September 2019. For most recommendations, the agency's response was some version of: 'FMCSA is evaluating the working group's recommendation. If deemed appropriate by the Administrator/Secretary, FMCSA will develop proposed regulatory changes for notice and comment rulemaking.'
The Working Group was terminated in 2018. Here is every recommendation, FMCSA's response, and the current status as of August 2026.
Education and Technology (Recommendations 1-4)
1. Develop modern communication tools and platforms to educate consumers. FMCSA response: 'Working with industry organizations to direct outreach.' Status 2026: FMCSA's Protect Your Move website exists but does not mention the BMC-84 bond as a consumer remedy, does not explain the 180-day billing dispute deadline, and does not provide complaint data in a format consumers can use.
2. Develop online education modules aligned with the phases of the moving process. FMCSA response: 'Developing an online consumer education program.' Status 2026: No structured education program visible on FMCSA's website.
3. Develop modern tools for the industry to educate consumers. FMCSA response: 'Developing website content, webinars, videos.' Status 2026: FMCSA's YouTube channel has educational content. Its reach compared to scam broker advertising budgets ('a million dollars a week,' per Safe Ship's CEO) is negligible.
4. Provide additional funding for HHG consumer education staff. FMCSA response: 'Currently being assessed.' Status 2026: FMCSA lost 15-20% of its workforce in the past year. The Chief of Commercial Enforcement and the Lead HHG Investigator are gone. Fewer than a handful of dedicated HHG enforcement specialists remain.
Consumer Disclosures and Documentation (Recommendations 5-14)
5. Formally adopt the 2013 'Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move' booklet and update it. FMCSA response: 'Evaluating. If deemed appropriate, will develop proposed regulatory changes.' Status 2026: The booklet has not been formally updated through rulemaking.
6. If a consumer adds items on moving day, the mover must prepare a completely new estimate. FMCSA response: 'Evaluating. If deemed appropriate, will develop proposed regulatory changes.' Status 2026: Not implemented. Movers still add charges on moving day through informal verbal 'revisions.'
7. Change 'physical survey' to 'visual survey' to include virtual and video surveys. FMCSA response: 'FMCSA supports this recommendation and is identifying the regulatory and potential statutory changes.' Status 2026: This is the one recommendation FMCSA explicitly supported. The regulatory change to allow virtual surveys was implemented.
8. Require movers to offer visual surveys for all moves over 50 miles. FMCSA response: 'Evaluating. If deemed appropriate, will develop proposed regulatory changes.' Status 2026: Not implemented. Brokers still waive physical/visual surveys as standard practice. Eagle Moving's estimate noted: 'The shipper has elected to waive the physical and virtual survey.'
9. Eliminate the separate Order for Service; move critical items to the Bill of Lading. FMCSA response: 'Evaluating.' Status 2026: Not implemented.
10. Move critical items from Order for Service to Bill of Lading so documents can be combined. FMCSA response: 'FMCSA would maintain the requirements for the mover to provide names, addresses, and telephone numbers of additional motor carriers involved in the move.' Status 2026: Not implemented.
11. Make the Bill of Lading available to consumers before the date of load. FMCSA response: 'FMCSA supports these recommendations and is evaluating.' Status 2026: Not implemented through rulemaking.
12. Remove the requirement for a separate freight bill; transfer to invoice. FMCSA response: 'FMCSA finalized the proposed rule allowing electronic delivery. The rule became effective June 15, 2018 (83 FR 16210).' Status 2026: Implemented. Electronic document delivery is permitted.
13. Finalize the rule allowing electronic delivery of all required documents. FMCSA response: Same as #12. Status 2026: Implemented.
14. Eliminate the written waiver requirement for electronic document delivery. FMCSA response: Same as #12. Status 2026: Implemented.
Consumer Information Booklet (Recommendations 15-19)
15. Movers should provide the FMCSA consumer booklet (ESA 03005) when the visual survey is scheduled or waived. FMCSA response: 'FMCSA supports this recommendation and is evaluating.' Status 2026: Not implemented through rulemaking.
16. Change the title from 'Ready to Move?' to 'Choose Your Mover.' FMCSA response: 'FMCSA will not be taking action on this recommendation. The Agency does not agree to change the name of the pamphlet because changing the name will not address the concerns relating to the stages in the moving process.' Status 2026: This is the only recommendation FMCSA explicitly rejected. The title remains 'Ready to Move?'
17. Make ESA 03005 available electronically, printable, mobile-friendly. FMCSA response: 'FMCSA is developing an improved electronic version.' Status 2026: A PDF version exists. Whether it meets the Working Group's vision of a mobile-friendly, consumer-accessible document is debatable.
18. All movers with websites must prominently display ESA 03005 or a link to it. FMCSA response: 'This recommendation, though beneficial to consumers, will likely increase regulatory requirements on the industry. FMCSA is assessing the cost impact.' Status 2026: Not implemented. Most broker and carrier websites do not link to the consumer rights booklet.
19. Condense ESA 03005 to include only essential content. FMCSA response: 'Identifying the regulatory changes, if any.' Status 2026: Not implemented.
The Scorecard
Of 19 recommendations submitted in 2017:
Implemented: 3 (recommendations 7, 12-14, all related to electronic document delivery) Explicitly rejected: 1 (recommendation 16, pamphlet title change) Explicitly supported but not implemented: 3 (recommendations 11, 15, 18) Still 'being evaluated': 12
Three of the implemented changes (12, 13, 14) were a single rule about electronic delivery that was already in progress before the Working Group submitted its report. The only recommendation the Working Group can claim credit for advancing is recommendation 7 (virtual surveys).
Twelve recommendations remain in 'evaluating' status seven years later. FMCSA's standard response, 'If deemed appropriate by the Administrator/Secretary, FMCSA will develop proposed regulatory changes for notice and comment rulemaking,' is not an answer. It is a deferral formatted as an answer.
The Working Group was terminated in 2018. Its members have no mechanism to follow up. No progress report has been published. The recommendations sit in a 2019 document on the FMCSA website, cited by nobody except the advocates who read it.
Contributors: John H. Vetne
Sources: Household Goods Consumer Protection Working Group Report to Congress, September 2019 (pursuant to Section 5503(d) of the FAST Act, P.L. 114-94). FMCSA response tables (September 2019). 83 FR 16210 (electronic document delivery rule, June 15, 2018).