Thread: How To Find a Trustworthy Moving Company?

Ask questions when hiring a professional moving company
Ask anyone who's survived the moving experience. Hiring a moving company isn't something you can take lightly. You've heard the horror stories about broken TV screens, scuffs on the freshly painted walls, chips on the banister, gashes on the chair legs, grease-stained sofas and dirty footprints on the plush carpeting. It's tempting to get caught up in the dollar figure you receive from a moving company, but the ultimate determinant of your move is the level of customer service that moving company brings you. Particularly if you're moving cross-country, moving is a process riddled with potential potholes - disastrous scenarios in which your furniture or even your new home suffers damage, and your bank account is depleted drastically.
When it comes time to hire a moving company, you've got to be prepared to become a sleuth, an undercover agent, so to speak. Arm yourself with questions, and interview your prospects before you leap upon a "great deal." Don't just interview moving companies, either. While you'll certainly find plenty of reputable and conscientious moving companies out there, you'll find some others who aren't so savory - who will tell you what you want to hear. After all, what company would say, "Well, yes, we did drop a priceless heirloom once ... and there was also that time when the back door of the van dropped open and we lost a sofa, but other than that, we've got a terrific track record."
Make sure that every mover you interviewed is licensed with the state Department of Transportation and/or Interstate Commerce Commission. And call your local Better Business Bureau to find out if any of the movers you're considering have "rap sheets" of customer complaints. You'd be very, very wise to ask for references from each company with whom you speak. And, of course, if you have friends or family in the area who have used the services of a moving company, ask them for a candid recap. Did the crew work as quickly and efficiently as they could, or did your neighbor catch Lenny lounging on the job?

Be sure to ask all of your references such questions as:

Did the crew show up at the time agreed upon in your contract?
Did the reference's contract contain a specific clause regarding compensation received for any damage incurred to the customer's possessions by moving crew?
How closely did the crew adhere to the time estimate outlined in your estimate?
Did the reference receive a binding or non-binding estimate? If the estimate was non-binding, how close did the crew come to sticking with that figure? Did they exceed it by a large margin, and if so, why?
Was the crew friendly? Enthusiastic? Willing to move everything without complaint? Or did they put up verbal obstacles, such as "That's too heavy" or "We don't dismantle furniture"?
Did the crew wrap your items well and transport them with care?
Did the crew have all of the necessary equipment they needed to move the customer's possessions, or did they add needless time onto the move while they "tracked down" necessary packing materials and other moving aids?
Did the moving crew have a clear idea of their directions to the new residence? Did they arrive at the customer's new residence on time? If they experienced any delays, did they contact the customer to explain why? Did they charge the customer more as a result of that unforeseen delay?
Did any of your possessions suffer damage before, during or after transport (going from the truck to your new home)? If the answer is yes, how extensive was the damage? Did the movers own up to the damage when your reference brought it to their attention? Did they offer to compensate the customer, or did they deny responsibility?
After you've interviewed the references of about four moving companies, narrow down your choice to two or three, and begin the process of receiving estimates for your move.

[font='Times New Roman']In my own experience (I have moved 18 times due to work relocation), there are many very good independent movers, but there are at least an equal amount of "shady" independent movers. I had a nightmare experience with one that tried to hold my wife's furniture hostage for more money. At one point I was more than prepared to drive from SC to VA to punch the guy in the nose! One of the good transport brokers I recommend is TransnetEx.com

Thanks for the great tips on what questions to ask. I have moved twice and each time I used the same moving company. I did most of the small packing and they moved the larger items.

When moving from NE to SE USA we hired a large company well known company. They did everything as agreed except they stole our hand truck and most importantly when we arrived said they would not take our check and had to be cashiers check. They took all of our items and put in storage for 3 days till we could resolve the issue and charged us for the storage and to move it back into the truck and to our house. Luckly we had friends where we moved to and loaned us the $2000.00 moving expense. It took several days to close out account up north and open new account here and do cashiers check. We were lucky we had friends who took us in for 3 days but we only had our clothes on our back and it was very agravating. In short check out payment method prior to moving.

I would suggest going to movers.com and finding a company on there. Than you can do some research on the company by looking them up on google or yahoo answers.

I know when people hear the word "broker" they are automically scared and skeptical. However, a broker can walk you through the entire moving process, find a mover that best meets your needs and timeframe, and handle any problems or issues that you may face. Before I started working here, I wanted to ship a few large furniture items out of state. I contacted full serve movers and their prices were crazy! I finally contacted a moving broker (I didn't know they were a broker at first) who found me a small mover who would move a few items for a reasonable price. I would have never found this small move company on my own. There are a lot of honest movers and brokers out there who are not ready to "scam" people. If you have any questions about moving, please visit transitsystems.com.

hi gays,

I'm currently developing a moving directory with lot info and tips about moving house,working with estate agents,how to pack,and many many more useful tips.Also listings for van hire companies,movers and solicitors.As soon as the site is ready,I will post it here.

Regards
Chris

There are several web sites dedicated to helping people find moving companies, and I like imove.com. Definitely check out two or three companies to ensure that they have a good reputation before you sign a contract. Ask detailed questions to the sales representatives when they come out to do your free in-home estimate. Ask for not to exceed price quotes. If you prefer one higher priced company over the lowest bidder, ask the higher priced company if they can match the price.

Nice tips here, I've read that there are moving service scams out there, better be careful and just hire those recommended by people you know.