Eight Steps for Choosing a Reputable Mover

One of the most daunting tasks related to moving is hiring the mover. With all of the horror stories and scams you read about on the Internet, it can be a process that is fraught with pitfalls. Fortunately, you can make the task easier by following eight simple steps.

1. Get reviews. Ask your friends and family members for their opinions and experiences with local movers. Jump on the Internet and seek out reviews from independent websites. Do not even bother reading the reviews on the moving sites themselves since they are only going to post the positive remarks. Try to weed out the reviews that are overly enthusiastic or overly negative because no experience is ever all good or all bad and those reviews could be bogus.

2. Get professional referrals. Talk to local real estate agents who deal with movers on a regular basis. They are going to know which companies generally do a good job and which ones to avoid altogether.

3. Make sure the company you go with is licensed. Using unlicensed movers might be cheaper, but remember, you get what you pay for. If they are not licensed, bonded and insured, you are setting yourself up for disaster in the event something happens to your belongings during the move. Make sure you get a copy of the company’s license so you can be assured of their legitimacy.

4. Research the company you choose thoroughly. Check the U.S. Department of Transportation, the Better Business Bureau and movingscam.com to see if any complaints have been left unresolved by the company.

5. Get at least three in-home estimates from three separate movers that are calculated based on the actual items you want moved.

6. Do not base your decision on price alone. Movers offering a too-good-to-be-true price are too good to be true. All estimates should be fairly close in price, although there will be some differences based on the services each company includes in their base price.

7. Get “binding not to exceed” estimates. This means the price will never go above what is quoted in the estimate unless you significantly add items to be moved.

8. Do not get scammed. Basically, it all comes down to trusting your gut. If you do not feel right about any aspect of the mover, do not choose that company. Nothing good can come of going with a company you don’t trust right from the start.