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i remember back in 2000 when i moved into the dorm rooms for the first time in college – ahhh being 18 and being able to carry boxes up and down 6 flights of stairs! where have those days gone?!
when i got my first apartment in 2002, i remember my mom and dad helping me move everything in and i distinctly remember my mother saying, “that’s the last move i ever do without hiring movers” – and she stuck to that!!! even as a college student, i hired movers from then on out – going apartment to apartment and then again for my big move in 2006 from Virginia to Connecticut.
it’s been 8 years now since i’ve moved into my house and thus needed movers, but my parents recently decided to hire some to do a partial move from WV to their new condo here in New England and this is where i ended up pulling my hair out for them with all of the corruption that i saw and then personally dealt with. because of that, i think it is really important to do your due diligence when hiring movers, so that you end up with a great, professional company that will help you move without the stress.
here are 3 things to think about when hiring movers:
1 – what payment forms do they take?
if you simply go to google right now and type in “moving companies” and start scrolling, there are, without a doubt, scammers in there. the first company my mother called gave her an AMAZING quote – she gave them a deposit over the phone. when her moving date came closer, she called them – and called them – and called them – you get the picture. they no longer existed and were 100% MIA. and her $1500 – gone with them.
when she finally hired another company (unfortunately one that was just as shady) upon drop off when my parents owed them the second half of the quote, they would only take cash. ONLY CASH?! RED FLAG! when i personally spoke to the supervisor explaining how this policy was simply unacceptable and that we could do a check (since they did take a check previously upon the original pickup), she said, “i’m sorry, but if you’re not going to pay by cash, we will simply take all of the belongings until cash is provided.
did i already say RED FLAG?! a reputable company will take various forms of payment, NOT JUST CASH!!!! ask this on your initial discussion with the company before signing anything or providing any credit card information to be sure you are covered.
2 – what are they driving?
yes – seriously – what are they driving?
so now my mom was scrambling to find someone to pick up her furniture – and unfortunately, she did the same thing – found a random mover online, gave them money over the phone, but this time, they showed up. IN A BUDGET RENTAL TRUCK! if this happens to you, JUST SAY NO! A reputable mover has their own trucks – even if they are a startup company. this is a serious RED FLAG!
while it might be stressful at the moment, tell them to leave. the headache that will then follow if you allow them to pack up your stuff is NOT worth the hassle.
3 – what do the reviews say?
i’m talking about real reviews from real people – not the ones on THEIR WEBSITE! you want the ones from Google, BBB, HomeAdvisor, even Yelp! there are so many external, actual consumer-written-places to leave reviews, USE THEM! and beware! the ones that are 3 lines are probably junk and were also written by someone on their staff since they wrote 100 of them for all sorts of sites. read the longer ones, the ones that are not just 5 stars and see what real people have to say! try and find reviews that match what you’re having done. are they packing for you? read those! are they doing a long-distance haul? find those reviews! just because someone knows how to move your stuff from one state to another, doesn’t mean that they know how to pack! find your needs in the reviews to ensure that they match up to your expectations!!!
remember – moving doesn’t have to be hard. you simply need to do a little bit of homework to empower yourself with the right tools and information to make the right decisions on what works for you!!
happy moving!!!
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