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I'm using a UHaul big truck, loaders to load, and store at UHaul while house hunting out of the city. I will not be in my original city to watch, when I request the stuff loaded up on a UHaul truck and moved to my destination city.
I felt fine with that, except now it has occurred to me that the guys may steal or not load everything. I have a full 3 bedroom home, so it will take me a while to go through the boxes & determine if something is missing. (I'm doing a numbered item list, so I'll know if something is missing.)
Is that a cause for concern, you think?
I didn't go with PODs because one of my possible destination cities doesn't have PODs. It does have the UHaul Boxes that store, but they're so small, that the cost is prohibitive because I'd had to use a bunch of them.
Depending on where you live, in some areas passers-by and opportunistic thieves may grab a box or item off the sidewalk when the movers aren't looking.
Depending on where you live, in some areas passers-by and opportunistic thieves may grab a box or item off the sidewalk when the movers aren't looking.
Thanks.
I'll be here for loading into the U-Haul truck to go to storage. And I'll be there when unloading into storage at U-Haul.
But I won't be there several months from now, when the loaders load from U-Haul storage into U-Haul truck. That loading is done behind gates at the U-Haul facility, so nothing is exposed to the public. It would have to be theft by one of the loading guys, or someone else who is allowed behind the gates by U-Haul.
I COULD do the U-Haul boxes, and pay the extra amount.
There are many things that can go wrong besides theft. I think it's a good idea to either be there or pay the gas/fare for a trusted friend or relative to be on site.
If you must be away, make sure that all the little items like cameras or extra phones are with you or locked up in some way. when I moved, I had my passport, credit cards, camera, etc in a tool box that I put under the seat of my car, and then I locked the car and parked it where I could keep an eye on it.
I think many movers are honest but, like anywhere else, there are those who will take advantage. I sure wouldn't trust strangers to move my stuff if I wasn't there, unless it's crap, and then why am I moving it?
Added: we both posted at the same time. Having them move closed boxes might be OK. I would still want a friend on site to do a count.
Many moving companies use day laborers, undocumented workers, pay in cash---in essence, the movers are here today, gone tomorrow, they couldn't be traced if a theft did occur and how could you prove it anyways?
I've had stuff stolen every move, and, like OP says, you don't go through every box until much later so you can't do a final inventory for many months. By then, your window to make a claim is long gone.
However, I've had the most theft occur when "friends" helped, rather than moving companies. Trust me, you do NOT want friends that much in your business
I'll be here for loading into the U-Haul truck to go to storage. And I'll be there when unloading into storage at U-Haul.
But I won't be there several months from now, when the loaders load from U-Haul storage into U-Haul truck. That loading is done behind gates at the U-Haul facility, so nothing is exposed to the public. It would have to be theft by one of the loading guys, or someone else who is allowed behind the gates by U-Haul.
I COULD do the U-Haul boxes, and pay the extra amount.
Did you look into ABF's U-Pack trailers ?
Where your stuff goes on 1 or more 28' trailers, behind a wall that you lock, and then if to be stored, the trailer is stored as is. IOW, your stuff never leaves the trailer while in storage.
Where your stuff goes on 1 or more 28' trailers, behind a wall that you lock, and then if to be stored, the trailer is stored as is. IOW, your stuff never leaves the trailer while in storage.
Best of all, you don't drive the truck. With U-Haul, were you planning on hiring a driver also, if you weren't involved in the storage in and out ?
Yes, I checked into Upack. That was the most expensive of all. That's because they would charge me $1,000 for use of the trailer and storage for one month, then $600 a month storage after that. (I have to store for several months). They weren't less expensive in other ways to make up for that high storage cost. Upack is best for straight moves, with no storage, I think.
I think I'll try to switch to U-Boxes (UHaul's version of PODs). It's pricey, but might be worth the cost for peace of mind. I checked into PODs, but it's more complicated, since it may not have a location in one of the two cities I might a new house in.
What's valuable to you is different than what may be valuable to a mover.
Take your jewelry, computer equipment, xboxes, and the Picasso with you in the car.
Movers move a lot of crapola that isn.t valuable: only you are perceivng it to be so, other than the above list.
I worked for a moving company for several years when I was fresh out of college. No one stole anything. Most workers were just trying to earn an honest buck, and if there are any part-time workers on the crew, the foreman kept an eye on them. What you should watch for is disreputable moving companies who fatten their bill with unnecessary services, such as wrapping every item and charging you a fortune for materials.
It's more likely your stuff will be damaged, rather than stolen. That's been my experience, after something like 6 moves. Occasionally they'll drop stuff... especially if the move involves lots of stairs. Heavy things get dropped. Wood furniture gets scratched and chipped being moved around tight corners.
I wouldn't worry about theft too much, but, you can take some precautions. Anything small and super valuable, like heirloom jewelry, legal papers, stuff you definitely don't want to lose, keep them with you. Put it all in a rolling suitcase if you need to, but don't let it out of your sight during the move.
One cautionary tale... anything breakable, like fine china, you definitely want to bubble wrap that stuff and mark it as FRAGILE. Make sure the movers know where it is. I heard a story once about some movers who picked up one end of a large wood cabinet and heard a loud "crash"... a relative of the people moving had "helpfully" stacked all the china very loosely in the cabinet, without telling anyone else what they'd done. Smashed the lot to smithereens. So, if the movers need to be very careful in handling something in particular... make sure that you mark it clearly, and tell them.
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