Any Tips on Low Cost Moving?
Yeah -- WATCH OUT!
We moved from New York to Tucson, Arizona several years ago. I thought we had carefully checked out every twist and turn of using an independent mover. We expected to save about five thousand on what we were quoted as about $10,000 from the "regular" companies like United Van Lines.
Everything seemed to be going fine. The first bit of a glitch was that the company that we contracted with, was NOT the company that would actually do the move. Apparently they "sublet" the actual trucking to a "name brand" motor freight company. I had gone ahead to Tucson, and left my wife, two sons and several workers to do the actual move.
Moving day was "delayed" a couple of times. They gave us a "time frame" as opposed to a specific day. At any rate, the truck finally showed up, and all went well until the end, when we had just "a little extra" goods more than the specific "feet" we had contracted for.
So, the driver said he'd add it on (there was plenty of room in the trailer, around 15 more feet) so we said okay. The claim was that they would just bill us for the "extra feet." Based upon the calcs up to that point, it should have been just a few hundred dollars more.
On the drive out, as with pickup day, there was a "delivery gateway" and they went all the way to the end, around three weeks ("will arrive in 7 to 21 days").
Before the driver would unload, he presented us with a "final accounting", and the bill was double what we had agreed on, a balance due of nearly $5,000.
I read through the four or five sheets of the contract, and sure enough, there was a little "clause" in there, that if we changed the original quote terms, they had the right to "recalculate" the entire cost of the move. So they did just that; instead of billing us for just a few more feet, they wanted $5K more! Geez.
I knew from my research that the "independent moving industry" has more complaints than ANY other business in America. So, I had tried to be extraordinarily vigilant. But in the haste of a major move, sometimes people just go through the motions, are distracted by all the details, and maybe forget to read the "fine print". (Hint: Don't forget!).
The independent moving industry is not regulated by the Feds, nor state, and so they fall into a legal netherworld. It is legal for them to seize your property for "unpaid" invoices. They can they sell that off for whatever they want. If you take the time to research terms like "mover horror stories" you'll find many, many, many tales of woe --- of little old ladies who lost $40,000 of household goods, their cars and more, due to moving company scams. It is a grim scene, indeed.
We had an even more complicated mess, because the company that was doing the actual moving (not the company we had contracted with via the Internet) had, in the course of time that our goods were en route, entered into BANKRUPTCY. In fact, our shipment was one of the last and only in process jobs they had. No managers, no management, no process for complaints --- egads!
Finally, I got someone on the phone from the original company and they agreed to a settlement amount of "only" another $3,000.
So, it cost me. And of course, I thought I was getting off "dirt cheap"
Would I use an independent mover again. Well, I have done so -- to have a car transport bring a car from Ft. Lauderdale to Tucson, without any problem whatsoever.
If I was to use an independent mover for a household move again, I would probably not use a company that only exists on the Internet.
Even more importantly, look into the actual company you plan to use by checking with BBB, online forums, etc.
I would also look for a LOCAL company in the town I am leaving from. Find one that has been in business for at least 8-10 years. Call people they provide as references. Also, be very certain to determine your insurance situation. Get it in writing form your company agent, that the specific move will be covered.
But the most important point is : READ THE CONTRACT. If there is ANYTHING, even a comma, that doesn't look perfect to you, or that you cannot understand clearly, don't sign it.
It can work, I suppose. But man, it can really go south on you in a big hurry. I just felt danged "lucky" that we got out without "losing" everything. At least TBN was on our servers in Texas, and not on the truck!
Here is a site with advice on how to avoid a moving horror story, complete with horror stories!
Moving: How to avoid Moving Company Scams
Good luck.
P.S. When we moved from Tucson, to San Diego last year, we rented our own vans and did the move ourselves. It was very inexpensive, under $2,000, and we timed the move much better. Best of all we enjoyed PEACE OF MIND all the way, and that as they say, is priceless.
