Interstate Movers - advice?
Jun 9th, 2005, 08:03 AM
#2
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I have heard horror stories from people who have had their furniture moved cross-country. Some of them will even hold your belongings hostage in an undisclosed warehouse until you pay a higher fee which was in the fine print or not there at all. Some have waited months to get their stuff back including their clothes. Be careful.
Jun 9th, 2005, 08:14 AM
#3
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We have moved 15 times, all interstate. Getting a good move mostly depends on the packing crew and the driver. We have had some great moves and some horrible ones, and they were all from the large, well-known companies. The most important thing I can think of off the top of my head would be to get everything in writing, everything. Get names and phone numbers as well.
Jun 9th, 2005, 08:22 AM
#5
I honestly think it's the luck of the draw--which packers you get and which driver. We just had our best move ever, with United...not a scratch on anything at all, and on time, and accommodating about delivering on a Saturday. Plus, he was genuinely nice, a delight to deal with.
We were moving from Tampa, FL to San Antonio. Our driver was also our packer and he had his own crew. He was from Houston, and was taking our load back (on his own way home) after he'd moved someone else to Orlando. It was a difficult move. 1/3 of our things were in a hotel casita we'd been living in for 8 years, and 2/3 were in storage in the old moving boxes, some of which we'd opened and gone through and some of which had gone through two moves and two separate storages never having been opened. They had to pack from our casita, then from storage, and on arrival...all things that had been in the casita were moved into our house, and all things from storage were moved into our garage (floor to ceiling!), yet they did it all, did it correctly and with a smile.
I cannot sing his praises loudly enough, and you've reminded me that I needed to write United a letter regarding him...he was that good. His name...Emile Jack, Houston driver with his own packers. He was telling us United has some sort of reward system--drivers with the fewest complaints are eligible for and he's gotten this award for years in a row.
Because of him, I'm very much pro-United, but as I said, I really think it's the luck of the draw...your drivers, your packers. You should be so lucky to find your own Emile Jack!! Good luck with your move...hope you have even a fraction of the good luck we did!!
We were moving from Tampa, FL to San Antonio. Our driver was also our packer and he had his own crew. He was from Houston, and was taking our load back (on his own way home) after he'd moved someone else to Orlando. It was a difficult move. 1/3 of our things were in a hotel casita we'd been living in for 8 years, and 2/3 were in storage in the old moving boxes, some of which we'd opened and gone through and some of which had gone through two moves and two separate storages never having been opened. They had to pack from our casita, then from storage, and on arrival...all things that had been in the casita were moved into our house, and all things from storage were moved into our garage (floor to ceiling!), yet they did it all, did it correctly and with a smile.
I cannot sing his praises loudly enough, and you've reminded me that I needed to write United a letter regarding him...he was that good. His name...Emile Jack, Houston driver with his own packers. He was telling us United has some sort of reward system--drivers with the fewest complaints are eligible for and he's gotten this award for years in a row.
Because of him, I'm very much pro-United, but as I said, I really think it's the luck of the draw...your drivers, your packers. You should be so lucky to find your own Emile Jack!! Good luck with your move...hope you have even a fraction of the good luck we did!!
Jun 9th, 2005, 09:34 AM
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Rates are standardized, so all companies should charge you the same, at least in theory. However, cost of insurance, minimum charge, etc... can differ.
Also understand that United, Allied, etc... are made up of many local franchises. And the driver may or may not be from your local area. However, most of the time, they'll get a few local lumpers to come to your place to pick your stuff up (in a smaller truck, or in a large one), and then they'll reload everything back at the local Allied/United/whatever yard. How well those folks reload the truck may be a major factor.
I don't know specific internet discussion boards for that, but I'm sure there are such boards. You need to look up or ask about the United Van Lines operation in your specific area.
And it's basically pointless to recommend a specific driver. There are tens of thousands of truck drivers working in the long-haul household moving business, and each one can be anywhere in the country at any time. OO's driver from Houston move his/her stuff from Tampa to San Anton. The OP is moving from IL to NC...
Also understand that United, Allied, etc... are made up of many local franchises. And the driver may or may not be from your local area. However, most of the time, they'll get a few local lumpers to come to your place to pick your stuff up (in a smaller truck, or in a large one), and then they'll reload everything back at the local Allied/United/whatever yard. How well those folks reload the truck may be a major factor.
I don't know specific internet discussion boards for that, but I'm sure there are such boards. You need to look up or ask about the United Van Lines operation in your specific area.
And it's basically pointless to recommend a specific driver. There are tens of thousands of truck drivers working in the long-haul household moving business, and each one can be anywhere in the country at any time. OO's driver from Houston move his/her stuff from Tampa to San Anton. The OP is moving from IL to NC...
Jun 9th, 2005, 10:58 AM
#9
rcs...whomever you use, ask how you will be packed...not just dish barrels etc, but how your furniture will be moved. Our upholstered goods left the casita "shrink wrapped" so there was no fabric exposed. Further, it was all then wrapped with padding which was taped in place, protecting any wood surfaces from scratches. My husband took a photo of the inside of the casita as things were being taken out which shows how well things were protected. http://www.worldisround.com/articles...0/photo14.html The upended piece is the sofa, and other wrapped mystery piece in view in this shot is a large wing chair. Virtually all our furniture left the casita wrapped similarly. The display cabinet was dismantled and wrapped after this picture was taken. Other items...some fragile antique pieces were crated. All boxes containing antiques were marked "high value" so extra care would be taken.
It began to rain moving day on both ends. Our mover taped protective covering on the floor so as not to track it up.
It is a shame you can't request a specific driver, but of course that's impossible. You can ask for packing to be handled in a certain manner however, lessening your chances for damage.
Our two moves prior to this one were both with Allied. Dallas to Savannah move with Allied was so good we asked for them again. We had had what Allied termed a "Master Mover" in that move. We expected the same excellent Allied experience in our next move, Savannah to Tampa. That was as bad as the other was good...so much so that now I'd never use them again. The driver got his packers off the squares in Savannah. One, I decided about 2 hours into the packing was drunk. We raised holy Cain...he admitted that that was all that was available that day and we stopped the move until we could get "real" packers. Even so...we arrived in Tampa with a significant amount of damage. I watched as the wind caught the headboard of our 4 poster knocking it out of the guy's arms onto the pavement of the parking lot and breaking one of the posts off. Our antique carousel horse arrived minus his tail. I'm a quick learner...that is the last time we'll use Allied!
As I said...luck of the draw, but if you insist on certain packing methods you'll definitely come out ahead!
It began to rain moving day on both ends. Our mover taped protective covering on the floor so as not to track it up.
It is a shame you can't request a specific driver, but of course that's impossible. You can ask for packing to be handled in a certain manner however, lessening your chances for damage.
Our two moves prior to this one were both with Allied. Dallas to Savannah move with Allied was so good we asked for them again. We had had what Allied termed a "Master Mover" in that move. We expected the same excellent Allied experience in our next move, Savannah to Tampa. That was as bad as the other was good...so much so that now I'd never use them again. The driver got his packers off the squares in Savannah. One, I decided about 2 hours into the packing was drunk. We raised holy Cain...he admitted that that was all that was available that day and we stopped the move until we could get "real" packers. Even so...we arrived in Tampa with a significant amount of damage. I watched as the wind caught the headboard of our 4 poster knocking it out of the guy's arms onto the pavement of the parking lot and breaking one of the posts off. Our antique carousel horse arrived minus his tail. I'm a quick learner...that is the last time we'll use Allied!
As I said...luck of the draw, but if you insist on certain packing methods you'll definitely come out ahead!
Jun 9th, 2005, 12:13 PM
#10
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You have received some good advice. We did request a particular driver on one move, based on a friends move. We were able to work our schedule around his. He was based in NJ, and we were moving from CT to WA, so it was definitely not "on the way" for him. However, he loved to visit the PNW and wanted to do the move. The company just had him pick up other loads when he was finished with ours in WA. BTW, it was the best move we have had.
We took out the extra insurance once, and would not do it again. Our homeowners had to pay first. Plus once we went through that, it took months to get them to even respond.
Like OO said, if something is not going right, step in and make it all stop until it is done to your satisfaction. I have found that it does help to have sodas and lunches brought in for the packers. I only do that though if they are receptive to how I want things packed.
We took out the extra insurance once, and would not do it again. Our homeowners had to pay first. Plus once we went through that, it took months to get them to even respond.
Like OO said, if something is not going right, step in and make it all stop until it is done to your satisfaction. I have found that it does help to have sodas and lunches brought in for the packers. I only do that though if they are receptive to how I want things packed.
Jun 9th, 2005, 01:46 PM
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I am reading this thread with great interest as my son will be moving soon. He is only going across the river (NY to NJ) but his relocation pkg includes moving.
My son really doesn't have any case goods (most likely will leave his bedrood furniture behind), but he does have many, many containers with clothes, books, prints, dishes in the original box, cookware in the original box, etc. We are arguing over who should move this stuff. I say the mover (rather not break my own back), but he says that the movers will have to repack these things in order to take them and he doesn't want to do that.
Do movers have to pack your clothing and repack originally packaged items in order to move it?
My son really doesn't have any case goods (most likely will leave his bedrood furniture behind), but he does have many, many containers with clothes, books, prints, dishes in the original box, cookware in the original box, etc. We are arguing over who should move this stuff. I say the mover (rather not break my own back), but he says that the movers will have to repack these things in order to take them and he doesn't want to do that.
Do movers have to pack your clothing and repack originally packaged items in order to move it?
Jun 9th, 2005, 02:04 PM
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We have saved the original boxes for many items, and for each move we pack them back up like how they came. The movers have never had a problem with that and have moved them that way. The movers have always packed our clothes though.
Jun 9th, 2005, 02:59 PM
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Hi, I'm new here and scouring the universe for names of moving lines. This is our first move (UTAH- WASHINGTON D.C.) and have read a lot about scams and such.. so other than Allied, who are big, national moving companies we should get estimates to?
Jun 9th, 2005, 03:40 PM
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As rkkwan pointed out, a lot of these "National" companies like United, Allied, Mayflower etc use local companies (franchises) to move. When I moved from Philadelphia to Dallas, I obtained the names of the local franchises and then check them on BBB to make sure they didn't have any complaints against them.
seetheworld-
Yes, you can choose to pack your belongings yourself - BUT, the self-packed boxes are NOT insured. So, if your self-packed box of china ended up being broken when you open the box, you WILL NOT get reimbursed. My moving company (I packed it myself) told me that unless there is clear exterior damage to the box, such as half the box is crushed, the contents are not insured.
Obviously, I chose to pack it myself because I was the one paying for the move, which was a lot cheaper than having the company packed for me.
seetheworld-
Yes, you can choose to pack your belongings yourself - BUT, the self-packed boxes are NOT insured. So, if your self-packed box of china ended up being broken when you open the box, you WILL NOT get reimbursed. My moving company (I packed it myself) told me that unless there is clear exterior damage to the box, such as half the box is crushed, the contents are not insured.
Obviously, I chose to pack it myself because I was the one paying for the move, which was a lot cheaper than having the company packed for me.
Jun 9th, 2005, 04:32 PM
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Surprisingly, some "local" ndependent moving companies do long distance moves as well - not just town-to-town. We discovered this when the wonderful local company we used for 3 moves within state was able to move an apartment load of furniture from MY to Massachusetts. They told us they did Northeast to Florida moves all the time.
While I agree that you will probably end up using a "name" national company and taking your chances, if you have any prior positive experiences with a local company, it might be worth it to give them a call - and they may even be able to give you some good advice.
While I agree that you will probably end up using a "name" national company and taking your chances, if you have any prior positive experiences with a local company, it might be worth it to give them a call - and they may even be able to give you some good advice.
Jun 9th, 2005, 05:04 PM
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Some good advice in this thread, let me add my own 2 cents.
I just moved from Dallas, Texas, to Harrisburg, Pa. - a long move we didn't want to do ourselves. After MUCH online searching, we chose Suddath Relocation Systems out of Grand Prairie. Let me say - these people are so professional, it's amazing.
The line does not matter - it's the local company you MUST investigate. Also, when getting a price estimate, be sure you recieve a GNTE (Guranteed Not To Exceed) - that way you're not geting a bill for $3,000 more at the end of the move. Also, if a place says they can give you an estimate without coming out to look at what is going to be moved, immmediately hang up: It's a scam.
The best resource for this (with big-time professionals posting) is http://www.movingscam.com/ . This has a messageboard I strongly urge you to register for and post specifics about your move. You will get a plethera of advice and tips and good/bad stories.
Best of luck - and remember - INVESTIGATE first.
I just moved from Dallas, Texas, to Harrisburg, Pa. - a long move we didn't want to do ourselves. After MUCH online searching, we chose Suddath Relocation Systems out of Grand Prairie. Let me say - these people are so professional, it's amazing.
The line does not matter - it's the local company you MUST investigate. Also, when getting a price estimate, be sure you recieve a GNTE (Guranteed Not To Exceed) - that way you're not geting a bill for $3,000 more at the end of the move. Also, if a place says they can give you an estimate without coming out to look at what is going to be moved, immmediately hang up: It's a scam.
The best resource for this (with big-time professionals posting) is http://www.movingscam.com/ . This has a messageboard I strongly urge you to register for and post specifics about your move. You will get a plethera of advice and tips and good/bad stories.
Best of luck - and remember - INVESTIGATE first.
Jun 9th, 2005, 05:13 PM
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sppunk restated my point, and I will elaborate again. It's all about the local company who pick up your stuff and pack the truck.
United, Allied, Mayflower, etc... all are a combination of local franchises. Next time you see one of their trucks on the highway, look to see that they will say something like "Rkkwan Movers, Houston, TX" under the "Allied" logo.
And no reason not to use a local company. I used one when moving from RI to TX. I called the "big companies", and they want like a month in advance, while a local firm says they can do it the week after. The actual driver - who was also the one to pick up my stff - owns his own truck and is from Florida.
Really no difference between big firms and small, as long as the local packers are good.
United, Allied, Mayflower, etc... all are a combination of local franchises. Next time you see one of their trucks on the highway, look to see that they will say something like "Rkkwan Movers, Houston, TX" under the "Allied" logo.
And no reason not to use a local company. I used one when moving from RI to TX. I called the "big companies", and they want like a month in advance, while a local firm says they can do it the week after. The actual driver - who was also the one to pick up my stff - owns his own truck and is from Florida.
Really no difference between big firms and small, as long as the local packers are good.
Jun 9th, 2005, 05:33 PM
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We just did a move from Nashville to Atlanta, our first with a professional mover. We'd always done the grab some friends and rent a U-Haul route.
I suggest getting estimates from at least three companies before you decide. That's what we did. Each company (two Allied franchises and one Atlas franchise) sent out an estimator (this is free) to do an estimate of our household and explain what they could do for us. All three came up with different numbers, which I found interesting. All three had no Better Business Bureau complaints filed against them in the past five years.
Ask your friends who moved them and if they would recommend them. Got to www.clarkhoward.com, a consumer advocate site with a link to help on choosing a reputable mover in your area.
We eventually went with one of the Allied franchises. We chose the one whose rep. spent the most time explaining every little detail to us, including every possible extra charge that might crop up. He was an older guy and went out of his way to answer our questions. The other two reps were okay but not nearly as thorough.
For the most part, our move went well.
The only real problem was that they broke my favorite lamp in transit. But we received a check for a replacement within two weeks. All we had to do was file a claim and that was it.
I agree with the other person who said if you see something you don't like going on during packing or loading, stop the process and call somebody at the office. There's no reason you should have to worry about what's going to happen to your belongings. Speak out!
I suggest getting estimates from at least three companies before you decide. That's what we did. Each company (two Allied franchises and one Atlas franchise) sent out an estimator (this is free) to do an estimate of our household and explain what they could do for us. All three came up with different numbers, which I found interesting. All three had no Better Business Bureau complaints filed against them in the past five years.
Ask your friends who moved them and if they would recommend them. Got to www.clarkhoward.com, a consumer advocate site with a link to help on choosing a reputable mover in your area.
We eventually went with one of the Allied franchises. We chose the one whose rep. spent the most time explaining every little detail to us, including every possible extra charge that might crop up. He was an older guy and went out of his way to answer our questions. The other two reps were okay but not nearly as thorough.
For the most part, our move went well.
The only real problem was that they broke my favorite lamp in transit. But we received a check for a replacement within two weeks. All we had to do was file a claim and that was it.
I agree with the other person who said if you see something you don't like going on during packing or loading, stop the process and call somebody at the office. There's no reason you should have to worry about what's going to happen to your belongings. Speak out!
