With more or less 40 million relocations occurring each year, according to the United States Department of Transportation, it is a wonder most of it goes as planned. The good news is, the majority of these moves are made without any incidents.
Still, the number of complaints from people against movers has increased dramatically over the past couple of years, so it is in everyone’s best interest to find out ways disreputable moving firms can scam you. Your best protection against these scams is a piece of well-researched information about this topic and the companies you are planning to hire. Here are some of the things to watch out for.
Visit https://www.globalchange.gov/agency/department-transportation to find out more about USDOT.
Phoning it in
Movers who do not insist on an actual on-site inspection of the household goods are giving you a false and unseen estimate. Those firms are too good to be true. Clients usually have more things than they think they have, and a good estimator is not looking at certain items as much as guessing the estimate about how heavy or how bulky the client’s items are.
Queen-size beds that do not have footboards or headboards weighs less than one heavy wood frame. Moving prices are based on the weight of the items and how much space it will take up in the truck, and not only based on the distance of the move.
Cursory glance
Estimators and companies like Marathon Moving & Storage in Boston, who does quick walk-throughs of your house without opening your cabinets, checking the items and taking notes all the things that you are planning to move are going to give you estimate that is way off the mark
An excellent estimator will ask you relevant questions and information about the move. Customers must provide as much information as possible. A lot of people each year have their items held hostage by fraudulent companies who low-ball your quote, but refuses to deliver the items until you have paid them more, hundreds even thousands of dollars more in cash.
Requested deposits
Respectable moving companies will not demand money or large deposits before moving your items to your destined location. You will pay upon completion of the task. If you pay up front, there is a big chance that you have no control over when you will see your items again. When you pay, make sure to use debit or credit cards that will help you avoid any scams and fraudulent activities.
Changing of the names
Some organizations get around the BBB or the Better Business Bureau and other agencies that catch fraudulent scam artists by regularly doing business under new company names. Make sure that the organization has a local address, as well as information about insurance and licensing.
They should answer the telephone with the full name of the company, not just a moving service or something too generic. To make sure it is safe, ask for at least three references, not just ordinary references, but references who operate from your area and who moved clients the past two to three months.
How to file complaints with the Better Business Bureau, visit this site to find out more.
You can ask previous clients essential questions about their experiences hiring these companies. Make sure to get the correct names of the company, as well as their federal and state license numbers. Please do your due diligence in researching to see any complaints about them.
You can also call the consumer complaint hotlines of the regulatory agencies of the government in the firm’s history. If your family and friends do not have recommendations, get a loss of reliable moving company from your local or national relocation associations like State Associations of Movers and American Moving and Storage Association.
Not only that, there is a big chance that your realtor knows some of the best relocation firms near you. According to federal law, these firms are required to give your “Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move” booklet while in the planning stages of your relocation. If you were not offered one, move on to another firm.
Window of opportunity
How many people moved to another city or state and still had at least some boxes still unpacked a couple of years later? Pray that your things are secured, safe and undamaged, because you only have eight to nine months to report any issues to the firm and file insurance claims.