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If it's less than a full truckload, your belongings sit in a warehouse until the company has enough loads going your way. I went through this a few years back getting my dad's stuff moved down to Texas. It took much longer than the moving company initially promised.
It's getting worse and worse. Who do you trust? We can't be too careful when hiring a company.
Trust movers with a better reputation than this one. While unfortunate, this couple could have avoided the stress by properly vetting out their options. When we moved from WA to NH, we got a handful of bids at varying prices. We ruled out the cheapest and highest, then spent time researching the others. We chose wisely.
The old adage, if the price is too good to be true....it usually is, a company will under bid, to get your stuff they evaluate your belongings, and hit you up...
I have seen this happen time and time again, it is typical for Miami.
Interesting article. The tips were good too, but this one, "Have the movers come to your house to give an estimate; don't do it over the phone. That way the movers can't jack up the bill later, claiming you have extra stuff" needs elaboration.
The mover should give you a contract that states what the contents of the home are and how much it will cost you. It should stipulate how long they have after you notify them where to send your things they have to get them to you without paying a penalty.
On the day of loading, you should receive a detailed checklist of every box and item they are moving, and which has a unique number assigned to it. You will use that checklist on the day of delivery. Every item that has been assigned a number will be accounted for before the delivery is done.
If the mover does not have a similar procedure in place, don't use them. Find a mover that does have this or a similar procedure to make sure that all your stuff gets delivered.
The contract you sign binds you both. The estimate should be guaranteed to be no more than the amount on the contract.
There are two sides to every story. Using the details reported by Today, it appears neither side is telling the whole truth.
Based on the $1775 price the couple claims they were quoted, they either don't have a very large shipment and/or were shopping only for the lowest price.
The promised delivery spread of 14-21 BUSINESS DAYS supports the assumption they don't have a lot of stuff. It would normally cost between $8000-$12000 to transport the contents of a three-bedroom home 2100 miles during the busiest days of peak summer moving season. Transit time would be between 5-8 calendar days.
Business days aren't the same as calendar days. If their belonging were picked up in Florida on June 28th and taken to First Call's warehouse (as both sides agree), the carrier would not have been late delivering in Colorado until sometime in early August because the four day transit time and mid-week holiday period in early July.
First Call is both a licensed household goods motor carrier and move broker. They received both of their operating authorities in 2012. Combined they have over eighty consumer complaints in the FMCSA's carrier complaint database since they were qualified - despite the fact that both companies have been operating in interstate commerce for less than an entire year! Someone didn't do their homework before they released their household goods to the driver.
While its true that the bill of lading (contract) includes both the pricing and service terms agreed to between the customer and their mover, household goods carriers ARE NOT REQUIRED by law to provide a binding (guaranteed) price estimate even if requested.
Yes, I can see this happening. I got multiple quotes from various moving companies when we made our cross country journey. A few were too good to be true. The company would be unable to make a profit. I also received over the phone quotes...again too good to be true. Some of the companies got downright nasty with me. We ended up going with Allied Van Lines and paying on the scale of what we expected. They were pricey but you get what your pay for. In fact we came in over 2,000 pounds on what they estimated. We were on a not to exceed rate so we got some freebies above their estimate. I have nothing negative to say about our movers....they were the most professional bunch I've dealt with in 21 years of moves.
While its true that the bill of lading (contract) includes both the pricing and service terms agreed to between the customer and their mover, household goods carriers ARE NOT REQUIRED by law to provide a binding (guaranteed) price estimate even if requested.
Not required, but seemed to be standard procedure among the movers we talked to prior to our move cross country last year. All but one talked about the things I mentioned in my post. The company that simply gave us an estimate off the top of his head was not in the running. Not professional.
That's so crazy! I don't trust any moving companies now. I just moved my apt from CA to TX and paid around $2500.. Everything as far as arrival times and pricing were accurate, however the team who loaded my (already packed) belongings in CA decided to steal 2 very expensive designer handbags, a laptop, and a blender out of my already packed and sealed boxes. (items weren't visible, they flat out opened my boxes then got mad when I told them to seal them back up). The blender system was numbered and inventoried on my own personal list, however they purposely didn't bother to list it on their inventory and flat out took it. The lead packer had been demanding I give them a couple hundred cash (not for the company) and I refused to pay them any charges that weren't legit through the company, so I guess they stole my stuff as payback. The company I used had an A+ with the BBB and other relevant licensing agencies.. apparently that doesn't always mean anything. My advice is to use a company you've used before or have been personally recommended, get all the first/last names of the crew members just in case (I ended up not being able to file a police report, btw), and if something seems off even if it's the day of the move, have a plan B in case you need to call it off (what I should've done). Or better yet, just go with a pack-your-own stuff company or just rent a UHaul.
$1,700.00 to move just a chair from FL to CO is too good to be true.
Like others have said, if it's too good to be true it is.
You cannot just go by the lowest price when picking a moving company.
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