Posted on 05/16/2011 9:39:11 AM PDT by US Navy Vet
After you've spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on a new home, hiring a mover can almost seem like an afterthought. But if you're not careful about which mover you choose and which questions you ask before you hire them, you can wind up paying unforeseen charges and moving in with damaged property.
A number of federal and state regulations govern how moving companies must operate when contracting a move, and interstate movers are actually required to furnish clients with a copy of "Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move," a publication of the U.S. Department of Transportation. We thumbed through the guide to find out what rights consumers might not realize they have, and spoke to moving industry veterans to get some tips that movers (particularly unscrupulous ones) might prefer that consumers didn't know.
(Excerpt) Read more at finance.yahoo.com ...
Also, instead of using u-haul or the like it’s very nice using storage pods. They can be sent, stored and then delivered when convenient.
I’ve used them for my last two moves.
Anyone who has EVER been in the military is a specialist and deal with movers.
#9. More likely than not at some point between old house and new house, one or more of the movers will be smoking crack.
I fired one of the movers who showed up smelling of alcohol ... yeah they were pissed at the little woman...but I could just see the guy slipping and falling as he was moving our armoire or something. And, this was a major company. BUT, the next day one of the other movers who complained to me about my firing his buddy....was not on the job unloading at our new home.
Have a yard sale/garage sale...
Try to sell the stove/refrigerator/washer/dryer/lawnmower with the house.
My biggest issue is how I will move all those wines/liquors without breaking them. I may just have to make presents of some, and have a 'clean out the liquor cabinet' party.
Yikes!
It can be awkward asking the mover about his finances/internal practices but the sad truth is that many of these firms keep the field personnel at arm’s length i.e. the truck drivers/estimators/foremen may be W-2 employees or they may be 1099 contractors. The roustabouts that physically moved us were being paid under the table. No harm done to us but if there had been a liability or theft issue I’m sure we would have had a hard slog.
thanks for the info
Some movers will go by weight. Make sure that when they get the truck weighed to show you the actual weight, then load your belongings on and weigh it again, that they have their fuel tanks full when they first get the truck weighed. Otherwise, they will load the truck, fill the fuel tanks and then get the truck weighed. You may pay for the weight of the fuel.
Rule #1 if you live in the NY/NJ area:
Avoid all Russians. Period.
If you have to, hire your own truck and go down to where the Spanish-speakers hang around waiting for day-jobs.
Or don’t move.
But do not — repeat NOT — ever deal with anyone with a Russian accent (or even the HINT of a Russian accent) on a moving job.
They are THIEVES.
A few years ago, a woman I know was being packed out for a PCS to Nicaragua. She was upstairs in her townhouse and overheard a conversation between two of the movers downtsairs. One guy told the other to hurry up. The other asked him what his hurry was. He said he had to be back at Lorton by 5:00PM. Turns out he was on a work-release program from Lorton, the District of Columbia jail.
These are rules to follow with any business.
As far as it being profitable to move quickly: There will always be different points of view on this. At my work (I own my own business, so customer complaints mean different things to me than to others) I may be quick, I may be slow. Computer virus scans, installs, troubleshooting - It differs all the time. I could do 2 machines at the same place, for seemingly the same problem, and it will take me different amounts of time.
I am ok with any of my guys doing this. When I’m running a scan or something, and decide to take a smoke break or call other clients, you bet I make my clients aware that they aren’t paying for that hour or so, or that the hours are discounted by some degree (Yeah, a cigarette may cost me $60 or so dollars to smoke). IT’s always a delicate balance.
We have moved 14 times in the last 20 years, so I do have a little experience with this.
Just have to use your brain and not allow yourself to be intimidated by these guys...which I have not always done.
We lost an entire shipment of lawn care, trampoline, swingset and stuff in our outbuilding, because we listened to the packer who was running late and ran out of stickers. He “promised” to label them and said he was driving straight to our new house (across country)...so we could yell at him, if he didn’t have the stuff..well he passed our shipment off of course..and we lost it all.
Live and learn.
Last move was overseas. The papers they have you sign, says that they do not insure nor pay for the replacement of antiques.
The packer for the airshipment kept asking me what I was going to have put into storage...it was none of his business. But, he asked if my antique wagon wheels were gonna be in storage—several times. I didn’t answer. Then the dolt went on to tell me that I would love his house, because he has a ton of antiques which he had gotten from “his job”!!! He wasn’t too smart now was he?! He tried to correct himself and say that people had GIVEN HIM their antiques! Sure. I complained to the company and they were furious! They stated that they trusted the man so much that he even had a key to their storage area....imagine that.
Your stuff is one of their benefits.
bttt
“That was a priceless Steinway!”
“Not anymore...”
I have no idea about Angie’s List, but the Better Business Bureau is kind of a scam. I had a friend that owned a moving company and he was a member of the BBB. During his membership he had a good relationship with them. He chose to not renew his membership at one point and later there was a complaint about one of the moves his guys did. The BBB guy called him and said that if he signed back up with them and paid some kind of additional “fee” they’d wipe the complaint off their website and he’d be pristine again. If he didn’t, they’d leave the complaint on there indefinitely. He said he doesn’t pay extortion money and the BBB they could go to hell.
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