Consider this scenario (if it hasn’t already given you nightmares!):
You’d been planning your long-distance move for a long time.- You called three different San Antonio interstate moving companies, all of which seemed reliable, and finally chose the one that delivered the lowest estimate.
- Moving day arrives.
- The moving crew loads your belongings]21] on the truck.
- The truck takes off for your new home.
- And it never shows up. It disappears – as does the better part of your worldly possessions.
Ah, no way! You’re making that up, right? Unfortunately, we’re not. But that is an extreme scenario. What’s more likely to happen with, shall we say, “less than scrupulous” movers is that they won’t purloin a homeowner’s possessions outright; they’ll simply hold them hostage until the homeowner agrees to pay a higher fee. Of course, these are but two of many kinds of moving scams. Sites like
Moving.com and
MovingScam.com reveal more.
So if you’ve experienced any qualms – any nightmares – about something like this befalling you, regard them as a warning: DON’T SIGN ON WITH A MOVING COMPANY UNTIL YOU KNOW THAT COMPANY’S LEGIT!
Steer clear of moving companies that …
- don’t have a physical address. P.O. boxes are a dead giveaway. Consult the phone book. And check online at Google Maps or Google Earth.
- have a bad record with the Better Business Bureau. Visit bbb.org. There you can examine reviews of over 20,000 moving-oriented companies.
- charge a fee to provide you with an estimate. That’s not something any respectable mover would do.
- don’t provide written estimates – or say they’ll figure your charges only after they’ve loaded the truck. Again: that’s just not done by creditable movers.
- hand over an estimate that looks to good to be true. It surely is! (You know the old cliché!)
- make you sign documents that have blank lines to be filled in later. All details should be spelled out in writing and agreed upon before you affix your signature to anything. (Another old cliché you must know!)
- don’t have a current U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) license,
- don’t have a valid Motor Carrier (MC) license, and
- don’t have a DOT or MC number that’s less than 3 years old …
- or aren’t insured. You can check on all this at the DOT website’s Mover Registration Search, https://ai.fmcsa.dot.gove/hhg/search.asp. Remember, all moving companies for hire as interstate movers must be licensed and insured for interstate commerce.
Here’s still another ripe cliché for you: It’s better to be safe than sorry. Exercising a little due diligence up front and ferreting out all you can about the movers you’re reviwing before you hire can save you a lot of pain and woe when your move is underway.
And your best research tool? The Internet! Or it is on the condition that you’re not just visiting the websites of the movers you’re reviewing. Follow the links we provide above for solid, trustworthy third-party corroboration of a long-distance mover’s credentials … or lack thereof.
While you’re at it, we heartily encourage you to use these sites to look into A-1 Freeman Moving Group here in San Antonio also. We’ve been
long-distances movers – not to mention local and intrastate movers – of great repute for many, many years. And we’re glad to present tools like these to help you make wise decisions for smooth moves.
