The Three Biggest Mistakes When Choosing A Moving Company: And How To Avoid Them

Submitted by: Ken Mafli

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tacoma, Washington, United States of America, October 22, 2010. Moving to a new home, neighborhood, or city can be exciting and stressful. Maximizing fun and mitigating stress, however, has always been the Holy Grail of moving. Here are a few mistakes that sap the joy and the pocket book. Avoiding them could make all the difference in a successful move.

Not Getting a Written Estimate from Three Moving Companies

You re busy, stressed, working a full time job, and trying to move all your belongings. Who has time to meet with three movers, have them inventory your possessions, and give you a tailored moving estimate? The wrong answer to that question could cost you, dearly.

By not getting a written estimate based off of an actual inventory, you are telling your moving company they can charge you whatever they want. Every mover is in the business to make money. Having an agreed upon price before the move just keeps everyone honest. Many people have found out all to late that charges jump dramatically from a quote with no physical inventory. So getting your moving costs in writing is not just a luxury, it s a necessity. Remember:

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It is OK: to provide the mover with an inventory via fax or email, just remember to be exact and thorough. Have the written estimate with a physical inventory signed my both you and the estimator.

It is OK: to have a non-binding estimate. Make sure that you have in writing that the charges can only above by a certain percentage. This means the price can be lower, but it can only go over by a certain amount.

It is not OK:for the company to not provide you with a working telephone number and a physical address.

Choosing an Amateur Moving Company

There are a plethora of movers. Strolling through the yellow pages, you see movers of every stripe. Choosing the mover with the biggest ad or the snazziest website could be a costly mistake. Having the biggest ad just means they can throw a lot of money at advertising. It does not mean they invest the same amount of money on employee training. Big does not mean professional. Big means they have a lot of first time customers not necessarily repeat customers.

In this case, making your first stop the Better Business Bureau will give you a wealth of information. Do they have an A rating? How many complaints were lodged against them in the last 36 months? Do they quickly resolve complaints? This will tell you if they deserve their big ad or should be relegated to the one liners in the white pages.

Choosing a Low Ball Estimate

Cheapest price. It sounds good. You save money, the job gets done, and everyone wins. Let s do some math:

Each mover has to move the same amount of goods

Use the same amount of fuel

Use the same amount of personnel

So how do the low ballers normally find the extra money to pass onto you? It s not from the owner s pockets. They normally pay the laborers less money per hour and do not do the regular maintenance on their trucks. This means day laborers, minimum wage workers, and employees on the highly disgruntled list. Does this sound like the people you want handling everything you own? Given the amount of items that get broken or walk off the job, you end up paying the same or more than a moving company that treats their employees fairly and keeps their trucks up to snuff.

There is the short list of things to avoid. Avoiding these costly mistakes will keep your move from going sour. Picking your mover, in many cases, is the start of a long lasting relationship. Doing your homework will make sure that relationship is a good one.

About the Author: For more information on how to find a great moving company, please feel free to visit our website

apexmovers.com

.Ken Mafli, is a content writer and SEO Expert at Encompass Media Group – based in the Puget Sound region of Washington State. visit us today!

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