TIL the hard way about open deck vs enclosed quotes
Last month I got a quote to ship my 2004 Mustang from Portland to Denver. Open deck was $850, enclosed was $1,400. I almost went open to save the cash. Then I talked to a driver named Ray at the pickup lot. He pointed at a scratch on his trailer and said 'that was a rock chip from a semi passing us at 70. Enclosed is insurance for paint you care about.' My Mustang has original paint, so I paid up. The enclosed ride was clean, but now I'm wondering how often that price gap is actually worth it. Anyone else splurge on enclosed just for peace of mind?
So did Ray get a commission off that upsell or does he just enjoy watching people's faces when they hand over an extra $550? For real though, enclosed makes sense for original paint on a 20 year old car since you can't just buff out a rock chip the size of a pea. But I've also seen open carriers where guys wrap the whole front in that stretch film for like 50 bucks, which is way cheaper than the enclosed upgrade if that's your only worry.