Transparent by design
How Safebound calculates space and checks quotes
How your inventory becomes a truck-space estimate, how quote comparisons work, and what to verify before relying on either.
Public methodology · Build, Truck, Check, Talk, and Quote Library require a Safebound account · manual worksheet stays public
What the live app calculates today
| Stage | Implemented rule | Important boundary |
|---|---|---|
| Item and inventory volume | For each selected item, the catalog uses its outside width × depth × height, rounded to three decimals, then multiplies that physical envelope by quantity. The item lines are added into one raw inventory total. | A rectangular outside envelope is reproducible planning geometry. It is not internal storage capacity, packing efficiency, blanket space, a tariff cube, or a physical survey of the customer's actual item. |
| Custom-list truck space | After the complete packed load is verified, truck space runs from the front of the truck to the farthest loaded item, including gaps and unused air within that span. That span is shown in 100 cubic feet steps with an approximation mark. A span no more than 10 cubic feet past a positive step is shown at that step; otherwise it rounds up. A positive load never displays zero. | Per-item and room subtotals retain raw modeled-volume values. If items remain outside the selected truck, the shown span covers only the loaded portion and the full-load planning range stays unavailable. |
| Home-size starter | A starter gives you an editable list of items and quantities. After you review it, the app checks the load in the selected truck and uses the same occupied-space calculation and 100 cubic feet display rule, including the 10 cubic feet tolerance, as a custom list. | Bedroom count does not set cubic feet. Reopening an older saved list does not replace the space calculated from its current items and verified load. |
| 3D truck | The packer arranges the catalog item shapes in the selected truck, reports whether that arrangement was verified, and finds the farthest loaded endpoint used for truck space. | Packing does not change item dimensions or quantities. Gaps and air within the loaded span count as truck space; a rendering is not a guaranteed field loading sequence. |
| One-quote check | The app places one quote's stated cubic feet beside the confirmed inventory's displayed planning total and explains the difference. | An uploaded quote's extracted item matches require user confirmation. This single-quote space check is distinct from the separate Quote Library comparison. |
| Quote Library comparison | The app reads selected written estimates, aligns disclosed fields, and places source references beside comparison findings. | Extraction can be incomplete or wrong. Missing and unclear terms stay questions to confirm, and the original document controls. |
| Weight planning display | The inventory view multiplies the raw modeled item-volume total by 7 to show an approximate planning weight. Gaps in the packed truck do not add weight. If a user enters a weight-based quote, the comparison divides pounds by 7 and rounds the result up to the next 50 cubic feet. | The factor is a Safebound product-planning conversion. It is not a universal federal conversion, a scale weight, a measured shipment volume, or a substitute for the quote's original unit. |
In practical terms: Space Check uses the item envelopes and quantities to pack the selected truck. After the complete load is verified, it measures from the truck front to the farthest loaded item, including gaps and unused air within that span, and shows that truck space in 100 cubic feet steps. A span no more than 10 cubic feet past a positive step is shown at that step; otherwise it rounds up. It then shows a separate planning range 100–200 cubic feet above the rounded truck space. A starter is simply a saved inventory and follows the same verified packing calculation.
Physical item volumes and a worked example
The live catalog stores each item's outside dimensions in feet. The app calculates the item's rectangular envelope as width × depth × height, rounds that line value to three decimals, multiplies by quantity, and sums the inventory. Advertised internal capacity—such as refrigerator cubic feet or tote gallons—is not used as exterior geometry.
For Safebound’s 26-foot truck, the modeled cargo body and attic total 1,847.6667 ft³, displayed as 1,848 ft³ of physical capacity. The physical ruler marks each 100 ft³ through 1,800 ft³ and ends at 1,848 ft³. It measures occupied cargo space through the farthest loaded item. Physical fullness uses that exact occupied span and the physical capacity, rather than the rounded planning headline. A customer load estimate near that endpoint can round up to 1,900 ft³; that is a rounded estimate of occupied space, not extra capacity. The separate 100–200 ft³ advisor allowance also does not extend the truck or its ruler. Count any allowance already present in a written quote toward that guidance.
Whole-home starters follow the same packing calculation. Review their items and quantities against your belongings; a bedroom label does not supply a fixed volume. The space calculation uses the current verified load, including when you reopen an older saved list.
Principles for reviewing multiple quotes
Quote Library can read selected written estimates and compare disclosed fields with source references beside the findings. You verify extracted details and scope against the original documents. The separate four-quote worksheet remains manual and device-only.
Document first
The quote, inventory, attachments, and user-confirmed facts are the evidence. A field is not treated as included merely because it is common in the industry.
Scope before price
Totals are compared only alongside the belongings, units, services, liability choice, dates, and payment terms that support them.
Uncertainty stays visible
Illegible, ambiguous, conflicting, or absent information is labeled for confirmation rather than silently guessed.
No accusation by automation
A discrepancy or warning sign triggers a question and source-backed explanation. It does not establish intent, fraud, legality, or future performance.
Fields the Quote Library comparison aligns
| Category | Fields reviewed | Comparison question |
|---|---|---|
| Company identity | Legal name, role, contact details, U.S. DOT or MC identifiers when shown | Do the documents appear to describe the same company and role? |
| Estimate terms | Binding status, date, signatures, revisions, and stated pricing basis | Are the pricing obligations comparable? |
| Shipment | Origin, destination, inventory, quantities, estimated weight, volume, and special items | Does each quote cover the same move? |
| Services and charges | Transportation, labor, packing, materials, access, storage, shuttles, extras, discounts, and taxes when shown | Which work is included, excluded, optional, or not found? |
| Liability | Selected liability option, declared value, stated charge, exclusions, and separate insurance references | Do the prices include equivalent protection choices? |
| Schedule and payment | Pickup and delivery dates or windows, deposit, balance, accepted methods, cancellation, and refund terms | Do timing and cash-flow obligations differ? |
How comparison findings are described
- Aligned
- The available documents express materially equivalent scope or terms.
- Different
- The documents disclose a meaningful difference, such as inventory quantity, estimate type, included service, or liability option.
- Not found
- The reviewed material does not contain the field. This does not prove the term does not exist elsewhere.
- Needs confirmation
- The text is ambiguous, incomplete, illegible, internally inconsistent, or dependent on a fact the document cannot establish.
The comparison does not create a hidden quality score, fabricated customer rating, or unsupported “best mover” ranking from these findings.
Regulatory baseline for interstate estimates
When a document describes an interstate household-goods move, the comparison reviews the estimate features addressed by 49 CFR Part 375: a written estimate, binding or non-binding status, shipment and service description, applicable survey or waiver information, liability election, and relevant delivery-payment language. Source: 49 CFR § 375.401; source: § 375.403; source: § 375.405.
The regulatory baseline produces review prompts, not a legal conclusion. The governing facts may not be visible in a quote, and requirements for intrastate moves can differ.
Multi-quote review process
- Extract: Read the supplied documents and retain the wording, units, and source location for material fields.
- Normalize: Place equivalent fields in consistent categories without changing the underlying quoted unit or promise.
- Reconcile scope: Compare inventory, shipment basis, service inclusions, liability, dates, and payment terms before comparing totals.
- Flag uncertainty: Separate disclosed differences from missing or ambiguous information.
- Explain: State why a difference matters and, where applicable, link the relevant official FMCSA or eCFR source.
- Prompt verification: Turn unresolved issues into specific questions the user can ask the mover in writing.
Review rules for the comparison
- Regulatory statements link to the current eCFR or FMCSA consumer guidance near the claim.
- Federal statements are labeled as interstate requirements instead of being presented as rules for every move.
- Quote text and user-confirmed facts remain distinct from general educational guidance.
- Changes in official guidance require the related explanation and review date to be updated.
- Disagreement between an extracted field and the original document is resolved in favor of the original document.
FMCSA's own glossary notes that its descriptions do not modify or replace applicable regulations or substantive standards. Safebound follows the same boundary by treating official regulations as the controlling source. Source: FMCSA Moving Terms Glossary.
Use the live tools and manual worksheet
Use the app to organize belongings, check one quote's stated cubic feet, and compare selected written estimates in Quote Library. Use the separate four-quote worksheet when you want a fully manual, device-only comparison. Worksheet backups remain separate from move plan backups.
From Talk, Review text/email can create an explicit public snapshot containing the inventory, selected truck, planning headline, and actual side-view image. Anyone with its link can view it. Chat, original quote files, and private quote notes are not part of that snapshot. Local editing remains separate, and nothing is shared until the user chooses the share action.
Primary references
Official sources
Read the rules and consumer guidance behind this methodology directly from eCFR and FMCSA.
- 49 CFR Part 375Federal rules for interstate household-goods transportation.
- Your Rights and Responsibilities When You MoveOfficial Appendix A consumer booklet and required disclosures.
- FMCSA Moving Terms GlossaryDefinitions used in federal household-goods guidance.
- FMCSA Moving ChecklistSteps for estimates, mover research, and moving day.
- FMCSA shipment pickup and weighing guidanceOfficial guidance on weighing, reweighing, and shipment pickup.