Tips for Hiring Quality Movers

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After your first and second move, you now get the picture, “moving, whether far or near, is never easy.” It is, and always will be one of life’s bitter-sweet treats you find exciting and sweet but quite sour after ingesting it. But, the fun part of bitter-sweet treats is that you always want more.

If you’ve at any time moved out, you know by now that the easiest way to manage an exhausting transition is to get help. But, it’s not just any help, only “quality professional help.” Quality interstate moving services are known to make the transition more beginner and advanced movers friendly. Yet, it depends on whether they are legitimate and know their job well.

By this time, the simple question on your mind will be, “how do you hire quality interstate moving companies?” We’re here to provide the answer to your question.

Quality shippers will always take inventory of items

Inventory, in this case, simply denotes ‘stock keeping.’

You don’t have to be a manufacturer, wholesaler, or retailer for a professional company to take stock of your item. Your belongings are your stock and demand the extra care a professional company offers to ensure every item is worth the haul.

Movers also take inventory of your items to determine the shipping cost. You don’t want to hire a shipping company that only offers estimates based on expensive.

Good movers will do a physical or virtual tour of your home.

Apart from taking stocks of your items, a credible moving contractor never turns down the idea of doing a walk-through of your current and new home. Why? It helps them know the weight of your items which determines the moving cost. Plus, a walkthrough tells them if you have specialized needs. For instance, even if you tell shippers that you have a large piano at home by the phone, they won’t know how big or small it is until they see it for themselves.

Add the fact that transporting specialized equipment like the piano can be challenging if shippers don’t know the layout of your new and current place. To easily find ways to maneuver danger zones like the stairs and hallway, they need to complete a virtual or in-person walkthrough.

A large down payment screams a red flag

Typically, a relocation company won’t ask for any payment, especially large upfronts, if the move is like every other regular one without specialized needs. However, large moves may require shippers’ demand for some form of payment, never large, to cover essential costs. The keyword here is ‘never large.’ If the relocation company asks for large deposits on regular or large moves, they might not be as credible as you thought.

Frequent name switches are a definite red flag

A company will only change its name frequently if they are illegal and want to avoid being tracked by regulated bodies. Before hiring relocation services, check to make sure that the business name on their company card, website, and social media page corresponds. Another way to get good results is to check with previous customers or trusted bodies like the Better Business Bureau or the US Department of Transportation.

Get Reliable References

Another smart step to ensure you don’t fall prey to moving scams is to ask for trustworthy references or reviews. Most people would prefer using the company’s website on Google as their reliable source. But, the fact remains that they run the page and determine what users see. The Better Business Bureau is one of the US trusted bodies that offers trusted references, whether reviews or ratings on any transport company in the United States. So, contact them to know more about your choice shipping contractor.

Choose DIY packing

A professional full-service relocation company will always offer packing services. Before signing any contract with them, ask if they include packing costs. If they do, you want to opt out of their packing services since this kind of service always increases the transition cost. To avoid this, go the DIY route.

While you may not have any specialized skills to pack your large equipment or don’t have any storage to arrange your stuff, how-to tips for hiring movers like this will put you on the right track before the big day.

Know their extra fees policy

If you live several floors away from the ground with steps and hallways, the chances are that you’ll get extra charges on your estimates. A professional company will have a written policy about additional charges on their contract. If they don’t and you forego asking before the transition, you very well have to pay for any cost stated at the end of their task.

Say no to “guaranteed” estimates

Guaranteed quotes can be a win-win situation, but they can also be a means to exploit you.

A guaranteed quote, also known as a binding estimate offers a fixed advantage where you only pay the estimated cost no matter the extra work done by your shipping contractor. However, the drawback to this estimate is even after inventory, you find out your luggage weighs less than previously stated, and you still have to pay the fixed amount.

Report problems on time to make a claim

After moving, the chances are that a fragile item gets damaged on the road. Transparent companies will allow you to make claims nine months after you get your belongings to activate your insurance cover.

Rouge operators don’t offer insurance

Whether you pack your belongings well or not, the chances are that they may damage the road. Quality moving companies will always offer two valuation covers to insure your goods no matter the size.

The most common insurance cover many companies offer is a full cost option that assures full compensation in form of replacement, or repairs. Another valuation cover many relocation companies offer is a no-cost option which only assures you get a small percentage of the actual cost of the item.

Request for Free Estimates

When you’re not sure the relocation company is reliable, another red flag to watch out for is the estimates. Any mover that requests you pay to get a quote is never reliable. Relocation companies often offer potential customers free estimates no matter how large the transition may seem.