Mayflower Moving Service

[SillyMe]

Ever hear of them? Any good or bad experiences? I need to find a mover and a family friend told me they were great and inexpensive, but I never heard of them.

 

[golfgal]

We used them once, worst move we ever had. The thing with moving companies is that it isn't so much the NAME as it is the reputation of the local office. The ONLY way to get a good recommendation about moving companies is from people that have used that ACTUAL agency. A good recommendation about one company from someone in say Minnesota isn't going to carry over to someone in California. The BBB isn't any help because if you are going to sue someone you can't report them to the BBB so they could have 100 lawsuits and a good rating at the BBB.

 

[SillyMe]

That makes sense. Thanks. I did get a good recommendation about our local company. I just had never heard of them before.

 

[cherylp3]

I used them when moving from MA to FL. they were great and our quote seemed reasonable so we used them

 

[Micca]

Mayflower is one of the oldest movers, but Golfgal is correct about the local agency--it's all on them. We're in the middle of a move right now. The packing and loading seemed to go well, we'll see how it goes at the other end later this week.

 

[SunFloridaDisney]

I always thought Mayflower was a local mover in my area. Never had any experience with them, but, I agree with others, check around.

 

[ducklite]

Because they are a franchise, experiences with the various franchisees will vary greatly. Ask around, ask a lot of people, and don't rely exclusively on any references they give, because you'll only hear from the satisfied customers.

Anne

 

[SillyMe]

Thanks for the replies. I think I'll call and have them come in to give me an estimate. I'm only moving one mile up the road from a 400 sq.ft. apartment into a house. I don't have that much furniture.

 

[SillyMe]

I called them. Apparently they used to be Mayflower, but are now operating under a different name. They have both names in their ad.

Anyhow, I think they're a rip-off. Our friend used them just a few weeks ago. When she called them, they came right out to give her an estimate. They charged her $500 to move all her stuff and she had alot more than I do. She moved pretty much the same distance I'm moving...staying within the same town she already lived in.

The lady I spoke to quoted me...over the phone...$600 for a minimum of 4 hours (and I WILL be charged $600 if it takes less than 4 hours). More if it's over 4 hours. She told me they don't send anyone out to give you a quote unless you're moving long-distance, then they charge by weight.

I found someone else to move me.

 

[Becky2005]

The lady I spoke to quoted me...over the phone...$600 for a minimum of 4 hours (and I WILL be charged $600 if it takes less than 4 hours). More if it's over 4 hours. She told me they don't send anyone out to give you a quote unless you're moving long-distance, then they charge by weight.

I found someone else to move me.

That's definitely different! I am pretty sure it was Mayflower we used (can't remember as it was awhile ago! I KNOW it was one of the people we called! Every company came out though for an estimate). We were LITERALLY moving one street over from where we live. We just had lots of heavy furniture that we didn't want to move ourselves. The guy came out and did a walk-through, gave us an estimate of time. I really liked how they did it. In our case, they gave us an estimate of time but told us they don't tell the actual movers the estimate of time because in their experience, the movers will then take however much time is allotted. For example, they may give an estimate of 6 hours & if the movers knew that...they would MAKE it last 6 hours no matter if it really could have been done in 4. I think our min. was 1 hour and we paid for actual hours. We had a bizarre situation in there as there was lag time between the closings. We knew we would have to pay for the time the guys were basically sitting around doing nothing. If I had known how fast they were going to actually be during the move, I would have had them actually take everything! They were very fast & efficient. We had moved a bunch of small boxes over ahead of time.

They earned their pay though, as we had a refrigerator that needed to go in the basement and after DH taking the railing off and much manuvering they got that refrigerator down there!

 

[SillyMe]

That's definitely different! I am pretty sure it was Mayflower we used (can't remember as it was awhile ago! I KNOW it was one of the people we called! Every company came out though for an estimate). We were LITERALLY moving one street over from where we live. We just had lots of heavy furniture that we didn't want to move ourselves. The guy came out and did a walk-through, gave us an estimate of time. I really liked how they did it. In our case, they gave us an estimate of time but told us they don't tell the actual movers the estimate of time because in their experience, the movers will then take however much time is allotted. For example, they may give an estimate of 6 hours & if the movers knew that...they would MAKE it last 6 hours no matter if it really could have been done in 4. I think our min. was 1 hour and we paid for actual hours. We had a bizarre situation in there as there was lag time between the closings. We knew we would have to pay for the time the guys were basically sitting around doing nothing. If I had known how fast they were going to actually be during the move, I would have had them actually take everything! They were very fast & efficient. We had moved a bunch of small boxes over ahead of time.

They earned their pay though, as we had a refrigerator that needed to go in the basement and after DH taking the railing off and much manuvering they got that refrigerator down there!

See, it just seems a little odd to me that they would charge a flat fee. I'm moving 2 beds, 2 dressers, sofa, loveseat, coffee/end tables, computer desk, kitchen table/bakers rack, patio table, washer dryer and refrigerator only one mile down the road. And they want to charge me the same amt as someone who had a whole big house? Something isn't right.

 

[Chicago526]

Why not just do the move yourself? Rent a U-Haul truck, get some friends to help you load/unload, and be done with it. DH and I moved from a 900 sqft condo to a 1300 sqft house this way. The truck rental was less than $200, I think. If you don't have friends that are willing or able to help, you can hire help for the day, I think U-Haul has a partner company called emove.com (I think) that you can use to find helpers in your area.

 

[golfgal]

See, it just seems a little odd to me that they would charge a flat fee. I'm moving 2 beds, 2 dressers, sofa, loveseat, coffee/end tables, computer desk, kitchen table/bakers rack, patio table, washer dryer and refrigerator only one mile down the road. And they want to charge me the same amt as someone who had a whole big house? Something isn't right.

I would say that sounds about right mainly because if they are moving your small amount of things they can't be moving someone else's stuff so they are going to charge a base price to cover the lost time, that is pretty standard. Our last move was about a 150 mile move and it was about $6000. They aren't going to want to tie themselves up for a $200 move if they can make $6000.

What I would do in your case is hire a couple football players from a college or high school, pay them $20/hour and have them move your things. You can rent a U-Haul or borrow a truck.

 

[SillyMe]

I found someone else to do it. A friend. I just thought it was odd that they were telling me something complete opposite of what they just did for a family friend of mine.