Moving Company Recommendation?

[diznee25]

Hi everyone,

Has anyone here used a moving company they would recommend for long distance moving? DH and I moved from the West Coast to the East Coast a few years ago, and had a bad experience with the moving company we hired. (Can't remember the name...)

Anyway we are looking into moving back to Colorado (from Maryland) and wanted to know a good moving company to use.


Thanks!
diznee25

 

[hopemax]

Do you want a full service company or are you okay with doing some work? We've used ABF's Upack service twice, and highly recommend it. But you are responsible for loading and unloading the truck (although you could hire someone at both ends to do it). Cost is based on volume, not weight, so it is much cheaper than full service moves.

http://www.upack.com/

 

[Swimalie]

We've moved from east to west and then back again. Both times the move was our responsibility and we had to pay for it so we went budget but not so much that we worried about getting ripped off. We used United both times. We packed ourselves and had them load, drive and unload. One hint if you use a company is to have them put "not to exceed" on the contract so they can't go any higher than the amount on there in order for you to get your stuff back.

 

[anabelle]

I second UPack, we have used it twice and so have many friends. We have never heard of any bad experiences using them. BUT you have to do the packing. The more you squeeze in the more you save. They only charge you for what you use. We rented lots and lots of moving blankets from U-Haul and used a lot of straps to keep things in place so we didn't have any issues.

 

[Gigi22]

A word to the wise. I supervised a move at work. One contractual requirement was that the movers had to have security clearance. On the first day of the move, about half of the crew the moving company sent failed to get their security clearances. Reason: criminal records. Not saying this is universal, but you might want to inquire before you engage a mover.

 

[NYEmomma]

A word to the wise. I supervised a move at work. One contractual requirement was that the movers had to have security clearance. On the first day of the move, about half of the crew the moving company sent failed to get their security clearances. Reason: criminal records. Not saying this is universal, but you might want to inquire before you engage a mover.

I second that -- do your homework before you hire anyone. My parents moved about 9 years ago and had a local moving company move them. Both houses were about 10 minutes apart and the movers told my parents they could keep everything in their dresser drawers if they wanted -- the movers would move it full and my parents wouldn't have to pack so much.

My mom completely forgot about keeping her jewelry in the to dresser drawer and when they got settled into the house, realized that one of the movers stole her engagement ring & wedding band.

My parents ended up settling with the company in court and were able to get enough money for my mom to get a new wedding set, but it was still a BIG hassle & stress and my mom lost something that meant a lot to her.

ETA: I had friends that just moved that used a Pod. They couldn't say enough good things about the company & the process.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

OP where are you moving from?

 

[bgirldeb]

Do you want a full service company or are you okay with doing some work? We've used ABF's Upack service twice, and highly recommend it. But you are responsible for loading and unloading the truck (although you could hire someone at both ends to do it). Cost is based on volume, not weight, so it is much cheaper than full service moves.

http://www.upack.com/

I second UPack, we have used it twice and so have many friends. We have never heard of any bad experiences using them. BUT you have to do the packing. The more you squeeze in the more you save. They only charge you for what you use. We rented lots and lots of moving blankets from U-Haul and used a lot of straps to keep things in place so we didn't have any issues.

I agree on UPack. If you are looking for a do it yourself type move this is it.

 

[diznee25]

A word to the wise. I supervised a move at work. One contractual requirement was that the movers had to have security clearance. On the first day of the move, about half of the crew the moving company sent failed to get their security clearances. Reason: criminal records. Not saying this is universal, but you might want to inquire before you engage a mover.

Thanks, I will definitely do that.

OP where are you moving from?

We are moving from Maryland to Colorado. (Four years ago we moved from Colorado to Maryland, so now we're moving back to the west coast.)
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It's up in the air whether we're going to move ourselves or have a moving company do it for us. We do have some family in Colorado that would fly out here and help us pack and drive across country.

But if my DH had to be in Colorado sooner to start his job, then it would be easier to hire a company to load the truck, drive, and unload for us. (We would pack and unpack our boxes.)

I'll be searching both options until my DH finds a job. Right now he has applied for a position within the company he works for now; they have a branch in CO. So we're keeping our fingers crossed that he'll be transferred. (However, they won't pay for moving costs.)

Upack seems pretty popular so I'll look into it.

Thanks for all the replies!

diznee25

 

[dakcp2001]

We used U Pack ABF relo cubes. we also hired " movers helpers" at the to and from. We got those off of the usual website.

 

[YO's Mom]

Whether you do it yourself or hire “professionals”, you have to be there and supervise (read “micromanage”) everything about your move. I have moved waaaay too many times, and honestly no one cares about your stuff more than you do! But, family and friends care more than professional movers! Honestly, if I ever have to move again, I would do a U Pack. I’ve had too much stuff ruined by the so-called professionals. At least your friends and family expect you to manage the move and won’t tell you that you aren’t allowed on the truck for insurance reasons, so you can’t see that they are stacking hundreds of pounds of stuff on top of your dresser – which they put in upside-down. Then, they wouldn’t take responsibility for the broken drawers when it was unpacked.

Wow, I obviously have moving issues! Wonder is there is a support group for that?

 

[JB2K]

It should also be noted that moving companies are franchised operations carrying familiar national names such as Allied, United/Mayflower, etc.

What is meant by that, for example is the company's "quality" can vary from location to location.

 

[YO's Mom]

It should also be noted that moving companies are franchised operations carrying familiar national names such as Allied, United/Mayflower, etc.

What is meant by that, for example is the company's "quality" can vary from location to location.

We so need a "like" button!

 

[jedijill]

I used Graebel on my move from Missouri to Denver 4 years ago. They did a great job of packing/moving my stuff. I got bids from 3 different "national" companies and I had the best gut feeling about Graebel and their price was competitive. I normally move myself but I had less than a week to completely pack and move and it was totally worth the money to pay someone else (plus I got a moving package...although it was cash so I could have kept more for myself if I had moved myself.)

Welcome back home!


Jill in CO

 

[lc1965]

I can't advise who to go with, but I can advise AGAINST Oz. I moved from NY to FL & had to speak with about a half-dozen different people. Unfortunately, only one was any good. They were a week late getting here & my wooden furniture all came damaged.

 

[rock_doctor]

We use "All My Sons Moving" and they broke nearly everything we moved. And worst then that some items that they broke they hid and we did not catch... So we are still finding stuff hidden in weird places. So make sure to skip them. We in the past use fogerty van lines and they were quite good. Good luck

 

[Tinker'n'Fun]

I worked for Mayflower for many many years. If you choose to use a professional moving company, here are a few hints. PM me if you want the really long list.

1. Have three companies come in and get "BINDING - not to exceed" estimates. All interstate (across state lines are considered interstate). This means that your estimate will not exceed the bottom line.

2. There are two types of moves. One you pack your items and take the risk, second the moving company packs (very expensive). You whole shipment will be values at .60 per pound UNLESS you pay for additional insurance. TOO many people think that homeowners covers this, biggest mistake I have witnessed in my whole life. Say you have a nice kitchen table. Nice wood, family treasure. It weighs 100 pounds and if you do not take additional insurance you are stating it is worth - $60.00. You can't even repair an item at that amount.

3. At destination take your inventory and go through it when the items come off the truck. You are signing off to the condition with your signature.


Hope this helps a bit.

 

[lc1965]

Thanks, Tink, for this insider info. It truly is appreciated & I will keep in mind when I move (as soon as humanly possible) back home. Still, isn't it sad that to have a good experience w/ an entire industry, you need insider info & a really long list of tips? I realize that moving isn't easy & involves some risk, but whatever happened to taking responsibility? Okay, getting off my soapbox now....

 

[Jedana]

Do you want a full service company or are you okay with doing some work? We've used ABF's Upack service twice, and highly recommend it. But you are responsible for loading and unloading the truck (although you could hire someone at both ends to do it). Cost is based on volume, not weight, so it is much cheaper than full service moves.

http://www.upack.com/

We used ABF when we moved from Phoenix to Las Vegas in 2001; and again when we moved from Las Vegas to Florida in 2007. Also, used them to move a short move in Florida, from one city to another--on that move they picked up at our old place and dropped at our new the same day.

Picked up on time; delivered on time, every time.

No one could get into our stuff, because we lock them with our own locks. No holding you hostage for a change in price--it's all upfront and in a contract.



(Could have been a different company back in 2001. I want to say it's ABF, but it's been so long, I forget. We definitely used them in 2007/2011.)