So, you’ve chosen to move and hire a moving company. We always want to believe that businesses have the best interest of their customers at heart, but unfortunately that is not always the case.
Here are some of our best tips to choose a reputable moving company:
- Get a visual, free, no-obligation estimate – In-person is best, but virtual options are a good alternate
- If a company insists that a phone or email estimate is good enough, be wary. No two moves are the same, therefore no two quotes are the same. So, while an agent may be able to give you a ballpark range, they cannot accurately assess your move needs without seeing your home
- Reputable companies will give you an estimate in writing – if they don’t, this is a red flag
- Get multiple estimates from several moving companies
- Beware deposits!
- In the moving industry, it is not custom for a company to request or require a deposit before a move begins or to hold your move date
- Payment is usually made upon delivery before the truck is offloaded
- Do your research
- Check reviews on websites such as www.bbb.org, www.google.com, and www.yelp.com
- Ask your friends and family who they’ve moved with and what their experiences were
- Verify companies on google maps and make sure they have an actual space
- Some less than reputable companies merely rent trucks to move you and don’t have office and/or warehouse space
- Take a look at the truck they arrive in – if there are no markings or just a small decal, this could mean they’re a company who changes their identity often
- Remember, if it seems too good to be true, it usually is.
- Moving services can seem expensive but the cost you’re paying includes both tangible and intangible benefits. Depending on what services you’ve selected, the movers are doing everything from assembling/disassembling furniture to packing/unpacking, loading/unloading, and transporting your items.
- If an estimate seems much lower-priced than 3 others that were relatively the same price (or 1 is much higher), this can be a red flag
- If you’re moving cross-country and a company guarantees that it will be delivered on a certain day and not within a delivery spread (even if you pay for exclusive use of a truck, which is rare). We give a spread of days to account for where your load is on a truck, traffic, and weather delays, etc.
We hope this information helps you in choosing a moving company that you feel comfortable with. If you’re in South Florida, A1A Atlantic Moving and Storage has been in business for over 40 years and has been an agent for Mayflower Transit since we opened our doors in 1982.