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Hi there, I'll be moving at the end of the month to a different city, and will be doing a one way truck rental. According to the rental company, a 10' truck is enough for a 1br apartment's worth of stuff, but I'm skeptical about everything fitting. Do you think I should upgrade to a 14' truck, or will the 10' suffice? I have to be able to drive the truck onto a couple of ferries, and I have a slight fear of driving, so the easier to maneuver, the better. I've got:
-a couch
-a double bed with a large headboard
-one 7ft tall bookshelf
-a computer desk & chair
-small dining table and 4 chairs (the table can be taken apart)
-one small bookshelf
-one dresser
-boxes -- I think I have about 8 boxes so far, and that's just of books. Not sure how many boxes I'll have in total.
-one nightstand
-vacuum, tv, floor lamp, pictures, computer, and other misc. stuff
Second question: I found a guy on Craigslist willing to load/unload and drive my truck for under $20/hour. This sounds great (I wouldn't have to worry about driving or asking friends to help), but I'm leery of the risk. I don't know the guy; it's just him and a buddy that do this on the side of their day jobs (one of the guys' day jobs is working for a moving company). Should I even consider this, or is it a classic 'too good to be true'?
Go with the bigger truck. When we did it, the difference was all of $15 or so, and it was well worth not having to play tetris to make it all fit perfectly.
We hired a pair of guys off craigslist and paid them a flat $100 to unload the truck at the new house. The upside is we didn't have to break our backs. The downside is they have no insurance, so if they break something, too bad, and if they hurt themselves, you could be liable. Depends if you're willing to take the risk.
If you're unsure, get the bigger one. You'll end up breaking less things if you don't have to stack everything.
$20/hour including driving time? It could end up costing you a fair amount.... I would suggest negotiating a flat fee so you both know what you are getting in to.
If you purchase insurance on the truck, it may not cover any damage done if driven by anyone other than you -- so I'd be VERY cautious about letting another person drive it.
Check to make sure the smaller truck has a ramp, the larger truck too! My husband brought home the small one and we had to lift everything into the truck rather than just use the dolly! It was U-Haul.
For the price difference, the 14 foot. In theory it all fits like a glove. In reality it may not. It's better to have a little more space than run out.
Ditto on the ramp. Make sure if its UHaul and if you have your own dolly that they remove it. Otherwise they'll charge you.
I'd be leery about some stranger off of craigslist driving the truck. It's not just the insurence, but many suspect things have occured. If its unloading its one thing but driving off with your stuff?
Also the insurance is on the driver, not the renter. When we rented a truck with two drivers we had to get insurence on the renter since the renter is responsible for the truck, and the driver as the driver is as well. You don't say how far your going, but my relatives found that renting a car pully and towing their small truck was actually cheaper than driving the truck, and far less wear and tear. I'd check into that.
Many states regulate intrastate movers. If you're crossing state lines, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulates interstate carriers.
Hiring someone off craiglist who many not have the proper license, operating authority, workman's comp or transportation insurance exposes not only you, but every other motorist on the road to significant and unnecessary risk.
Thanks so much for all your advice and info. I think I'll skip the Craigslist guys to be safe. As for the truck size, someone looking at my apartment today expressed interest in buying a lot of my furniture, so now I'm thinking about whether it's worth it to sell & replace the stuff or keep & move it. So many decisions :/
I would pay the guy a flat rate. By the hour can sometimes slow down the job and increase the bill.
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