advice on moving companies
Sep. 7th, 2003 06:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
verbminxI just posted this over on the Pander boards, but I thought that I should post it here, too.
I have to move very quickly - we will have a week between "having enough money to move" and "having to be out of the house." The original moving plan was to rent a truck and have a relative drive it up while my mother and I each drove a car. Because of the level of speed and lack of planning time, though, it looks like we're going to have to hire a moving company. Neither of us can physically handle doing the entire move ourselves.
I know all about how to hire a moving company (get estimates from several, make sure the estimates are binding not-to-exceed, etc) and what to look for (licensed and insured, uses agent labor only, etc). I also know that what you get from a moving company depends largely on where you're moving from and the branch that you're hiring. What I don't know about is - which moving companies have you guys used and liked? Used and hated? I'm primarily interested in long-distance state-to-state moves. (I've heard good things about Two Guys and A Van, but they don't go out of state; likewise, U-Pack has great ratings but is not available around here.) I know that a lot of our satisfaction will just depend on how good the local branch office is, but still, I'd really like to hear from people I know, and I'd like to hear if anyone has any sterling recommendations.
I've looked this up on epinions.com, where almost all moving companies available to us have really poor reviews - Allied and Bekins so poor that we won't even consider them. Suddath/United has mostly decent reviews with a few really bad ones, and Mayflower and North American are super-mixed, about half great and half terrible. There are also two possible local companies that don't have epinions reviews: Paul Arpin and All My Sons. However, I'm assuming that people who feel compelled to post a review on epinions are mostly people who got burnt, and that happy customers are less likely to have anything to say. I've also noticed that a lot of negative reviews came from military people who had no choice about who would be moving them (and, presumably, the movers are likely to be more careless about a government contract that they're not likely to lose even if ppl are dissastified).
I have to move very quickly - we will have a week between "having enough money to move" and "having to be out of the house." The original moving plan was to rent a truck and have a relative drive it up while my mother and I each drove a car. Because of the level of speed and lack of planning time, though, it looks like we're going to have to hire a moving company. Neither of us can physically handle doing the entire move ourselves.
I know all about how to hire a moving company (get estimates from several, make sure the estimates are binding not-to-exceed, etc) and what to look for (licensed and insured, uses agent labor only, etc). I also know that what you get from a moving company depends largely on where you're moving from and the branch that you're hiring. What I don't know about is - which moving companies have you guys used and liked? Used and hated? I'm primarily interested in long-distance state-to-state moves. (I've heard good things about Two Guys and A Van, but they don't go out of state; likewise, U-Pack has great ratings but is not available around here.) I know that a lot of our satisfaction will just depend on how good the local branch office is, but still, I'd really like to hear from people I know, and I'd like to hear if anyone has any sterling recommendations.
I've looked this up on epinions.com, where almost all moving companies available to us have really poor reviews - Allied and Bekins so poor that we won't even consider them. Suddath/United has mostly decent reviews with a few really bad ones, and Mayflower and North American are super-mixed, about half great and half terrible. There are also two possible local companies that don't have epinions reviews: Paul Arpin and All My Sons. However, I'm assuming that people who feel compelled to post a review on epinions are mostly people who got burnt, and that happy customers are less likely to have anything to say. I've also noticed that a lot of negative reviews came from military people who had no choice about who would be moving them (and, presumably, the movers are likely to be more careless about a government contract that they're not likely to lose even if ppl are dissastified).
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Date: 2003-09-08 04:52 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2003-09-08 06:20 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2003-09-08 07:02 am (UTC)Normally what happens when you hire a moving company is this: they send an estimator by your house/apartment to determine what you will need (how many movers, how big of a truck). Estimates over the phone are risky--you will always leave things out. And you may end up getting a smaller truck or fewer movers than you need. You do not want that to happen.
The moving estimator will give you a hard estimate--meaning they can't charge you more if they take more time than they estimated. This estimate is based on a few things: how much stuff you have, how far you are moving, whether or not the movers have to climb up stairs, insurance--you need to get moving insurance in case something gets damaged.
If you are strapped for money, you may be tempted to use fewer movers (you are charged per mover, per hour), but don't do that. Unless you are one person with a tiny one-bedroom apartment or studio, you will need a minimum of three movers--perhaps more. Go with whatever the moving estimator recommends. They are professionals and know what they are talking about.
I assume you are doing your own packing and just leaving the heavy lifting to the movers? U-Haul, as you have probably noted sells boxes for moving. I've always used them for packing materials and I have been very satisfied. Make sure and get the right kind of tape--designed for moving boxes. Don't skimp on the wrapping paper (packing paper), or other padding. Buy special dish boxes for dishes. Use small boxes for books. Label everything by room and number (LR 1, 2, 3, BR 1, 2, 3) and mark down on a piece of paper the box label and it's contents. This will be invaluable when you are unpacking.
That's all the advice I can think of off hand. If you have other questions, just ask. I have moved every 2 years for the last 10 years, so I have gotten pretty good at it.