Texas Moving & Household-Goods Intelligence

Who regulates Texas household-goods movers?

The current regulator is the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles, Motor Carrier Division. The credential is a TxDMV motor carrier certificate of registration (TxDMV No.). Household-goods movers must register regardless of vehicle weight. A historical “TxDOT number” is not the current program name. TxDMV certificate is not a USDOT number.

TxDMV Motor Carriers · TxMCCS Truck Stop lookup

What should I verify?

This is research guidance, not legal advice. Keep Texas intrastate authority and federal interstate authority separate.

• Move entirely within Texas. A TxDMV household-goods certificate is central. Official consumer page: an Active certificate status means the mover is licensed with TxDMV. A USDOT number does not by itself prove Texas intrastate household-goods authority. Verify on TxMCCS / Truck Stop.
• Move Texas → another state, or another state → Texas. FMCSA interstate operating authority (an MC number) is central. Official TxDMV guidance: having one authority does not authorize the other. Verify USDOT and operating authority on MoveTrustHub Verify DOT and protectyourmove.gov.
• Texas carrier with a USDOT but no confirmed Texas certificate. A USDOT number is not a TxDMV certificate and is not interstate operating authority by itself. Texas household-goods registration also requires a valid USDOT number, but that does not replace the TxDMV certificate.
• Texas certificate with no confirmed federal interstate authority. A TxDMV certificate does not prove the carrier may haul household goods across a state line. Confirm FMCSA operating authority separately.

Market findings

• Texas household-goods moves entirely inside the state are regulated by the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles. The credential is a TxDMV motor carrier certificate of registration (TxDMV No.). Official TxDMV guidance: interstate work requires FMCSA operating authority (an MC number). Having one authority does not authorize the other. A USDOT number is not interstate operating authority by itself.
• No official bulk Texas household-goods mover roster was acquired. Public verification is OPEN_SEARCH_ONLY through TxMCCS / Truck Stop Motor Carrier Lookup. The complete Texas licensed-mover count is UNKNOWN, not zero. This page does not invent a general-contractor-style mover universe.
• Household-goods carriers must have Form E (liability) and Form H&I (cargo) filed electronically by the insurer before a certificate is granted. Official TxDMV guidance: Truck Stop publishes insurance data so anyone can look up whether a company's filings are current. That lookup is record-specific. A TxDMV certificate is not an insured badge on this page. Form E / H&I is not a quality signal.
• Official TxDMV consumer rules for Texas intrastate household-goods moves include a written proposal before loading, a moving services contract, the Rights and Responsibilities sheet, a tariff on file, and a claims/mediation path. TxDMV does not settle loss-or-damage claims. A tariff is not an invoice.
• TDLR TowCompanies is a separate transportation-business family (3,797 rows in ATH-TX-001). A tow company is not a household-goods mover. Tow counts are not part of this mover universe and are not used in the hero.

Find movers — keep the universes separate

Never combine the two as one “verified mover” result. Name-only matching is unsafe.

What does a TxDMV number prove?

A TxDMV certificate number identifies Texas motor-carrier registration. For household goods, official consumer materials say an Active certificate status means the mover is licensed with TxDMV. It does not prove FMCSA interstate operating authority, service quality, or a current insurance filing unless the official lookup record shows that filing.

What does a USDOT number prove?

A USDOT number is a federal census/identity number. Official TxDMV household-goods registration also requires a valid USDOT number, but a USDOT number is not interstate operating authority by itself and is not a Texas household-goods certificate. Confirm operating authority separately on FMCSA SAFER / Verify DOT.

Insurance filing information

Household-goods carriers must have Form E (liability) and Form H&I (cargo) filed electronically by the insurer before a certificate is granted. Official TxDMV guidance: Truck Stop publishes insurance data so anyone can look up whether a company's filings are current. That is record-specific. A certificate is not an “insured” badge on this page. Form E / H&I is not a quality signal. Bulk current-filing universe: not acquired.

Official minima (Form 1899H / Motor Carrier Handbook): liability Official Form 1899H / handbook: $300,000 for household-goods vehicles under 26,000 lbs GVWR/registered/gross weight rating; $500,000 above 26,000 lbs. Cargo: Official Form 1899H / handbook: $5,000 loss of a single shipper's cargo on any one vehicle; $10,000 aggregate for multiple shippers on any one vehicle.

What state roster information is not in bulk?

Coverage OPEN_SEARCH_ONLY / SOURCE_NOT_ACQUIRED. No official CSV, open API, or downloadable household-goods carrier roster was acquired. TxMCCS search results were not scraped. The licensed-mover denominator is UNKNOWN, not zero.

Consumer protections

Official TxDMV consumer pages and 43 TAC Chapter 218 household-goods rules as retrieved 2026-09-03. A tariff is not an actual invoice and not a quality score. This page does not calculate mover quotes.

• Before loading, a household-goods carrier must give a written proposal stating the maximum amount the shipper could be required to pay (binding or not-to-exceed).
• A licensed mover must also provide a moving services contract before loading. Do not rely on verbal agreements.
• Licensed movers must provide the official Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move in Texas information sheet before loading.
• Additional charges after the contract is signed require written agreement by both parties.
• Licensed movers must have a tariff (maximum rates/charges) on file with TxDMV.
• The contract must clearly disclose the mover's liability for loss or damage. Parties may agree to $0.00 liability; that is not insurance.
• Loss/damage claims are first filed in writing with the mover. TxDMV does not settle claims.
• Household-goods carriers have 90 days from receipt of a claim to pay, decline, or make a firm settlement offer in writing.
• A shipper may request TxDMV mediation within 35 days after an unsatisfactory offer or denial, or after 90 days with no mover response.
• Licensed movers must mark trucks with the company name, TxDMV certificate number, and USDOT number.

Don't Make a Move Without Us

Complaints and enforcement

Coverage OPEN_SEARCH / CONSUMER COMPLAINT PROCESS. No bulk complaint report was acquired. A complaint is not a violation. No complaint found is not a clean record. TxDMV does not settle loss/damage claims. CES contains complaints filed after September 1, 2008.

State enforcement bulk case roster: OFFICIAL_SANCTION_SCHEDULE_PDF / NO_BULK_CASE_ROSTER. The official Motor Carrier Disciplinary Matrix is a sanction schedule, not a list of orders. Adverse profile attachment requires an exact TxDMV or USDOT identifier. Name-only is unsafe. Attachments in this snapshot: 0.

TxDMV Complaint Management System · helpline 1-888-368-4689

Tow-company data is a separate family

Texas tow-company data exists separately and is not part of this household-goods mover universe. ATH-TX-001 counted 3,797 TDLR TowCompanies rows. Those rows are not used in the household-goods hero and are not a mover denominator.

Evidence depth

What we don't yet know

Missing is not zero.

• Complete Texas household-goods mover roster: OPEN_SEARCH_ONLY / SOURCE_NOT_ACQUIRED
• Complete current Texas household-goods certificate denominator: UNKNOWN
• Bulk current Form E / Form H&I filing universe: LOOKUP_ONLY / SOURCE_NOT_ACQUIRED
• Complete state enforcement / penalty history: PDF_SANCTION_SCHEDULE_ONLY / SOURCE_NOT_ACQUIRED
• Bulk complaints: OPEN_SEARCH / CES AFTER 2008 / SOURCE_NOT_ACQUIRED
• Statewide TxDMV certificate ↔ USDOT exact crosswalk: SOURCE_NOT_ACQUIRED
• Texas county intelligence pages: OUT_OF_SCOPE_THIS_TICKET

Semantic rules

• TX STATE AUTHORITY != USDOT
• USDOT != INTERSTATE OPERATING AUTHORITY BY ITSELF
• FMCSA ACTIVE != TEXAS INTRASTATE AUTHORIZED
• STATE AUTHORITY != CURRENT INSURANCE UNLESS FILING PROVES IT
• FORM E / H&I != QUALITY SIGNAL
• TOW COMPANY != HOUSEHOLD-GOODS MOVER
• COMPLAINT != VIOLATION
• MISSING != ZERO
• NO TRUST SCORE
• NO PAID RANKING

No Trust Score. No paid ranking.