Moving Companies

[mikeshana]

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hi everyone. im moving from california to new yor. Any good moving companies you guys reomend?

 

[jwk]

hi everyone. im moving from california to new yor. Any good moving companies you guys reomend?

For starters, use a national company (not Joe Blow and Stepsons).

EVERYTHING in writing, multiple estimates, watch the moving truck get weighed EMPTY, and watch it get weighed again once it's loaded. Get some level of insurance because they WILL mess up some of your stuff.

 

[countingdays]

Anybody use Pods to move?

 

[Tuohy]

I agree-Go with a national company; get at least three companies estimates. The insurance makes you feel better but 9 times out of 10 it is filled with fine print and huge deductibles that you need to pay before they reimburse any damaged stuff. Treat your movers well (ie on the day of your move, buy them lunch; tip them before they leave for NY)-a little kindness/gratitude goes a long way. We have moved a few times and these simple acts are important. Three moves later=no damaged stuff/uneventful moves.

 

[rsgillmd]

I can't say who is good, but I warn you to stay away from Bekins. Long story, but it was a nightmare. Their customer service sucks. The moving company we contracted with was Meyers something. They were a little annoying, but nothing I couldn't deal with. Meyers had decent customer service. They contracted with Bekins to actually do the transport. I'm thankful the group/UT helped me out during the transition.

Later we found out we weren't the only ones -- several people have complained.

We went with Meyers because my sisters friends who had moved across states had had a good experience. However, this is when she was in college in the late '90s. We decided to take a chance but it turned out to be a bad decision.

 

[cchoukal]

There are websites devoted to moving scams (of which there are several), so I would definitely google it. I used Golan's to move from Chicago to SF last year. They cost a little more than some of the national companies (and, actually, they are national in the sense that they go everywhere, but I don't know how easy it is to get a departure from elsewhere), but their fee was all-inclusive without a lot of the hidden fees (many will charge more for certain parts of town, narrow streets, walks more than 75 ft from door to truck, and shuttling in from the outskirts if they "think they can't get the semi into your neighborhood," which is obviously very subjective).

You can maybe negotiate those fees up front, but no matter how cohesive they say their company is (i.e., not subcontracting the actual shipment), the guy who sells you the service and the guys who actually show up at the departure and arrival won't exactly be of the same... character. Plus, once they have your stuff on the truck, you're pretty much at their mercy and if you want your stuff, you'll have to pay whatever they tell you and good luck petitioning the company for an adjustment.

Anyway, lots of scams. So I went with Golan's and it was a flat fee (about $2900 for an avg 1 br apt from Chicago to SF w/ the usual amount of insurance) with everything in writing and specified up front. It went smoothly, they arrived more or less on time, and the only thing that broke was an old TV (and, yes, the claims process is a bitch and was totally not worth it).

 

[aredoubleyou]

In my basic understanding of moving companies. there are the national moving company (which is the brand, probably ownes the trailers), the brokers which you contract with (logistics, etc), and the drivers (who often own the cab and work at negotiated rates with the companies and brokers). So when you call up a moving company, youre actually calling a broker. The quality of brokers can vary greatly, even within a company (Bekins, Mayflower, United, etc). So just because one person had a bad experience with United, its more often related to the broker you delt with. Therefore, long story short, Look for a good experience with a specific broker. And like everyone daid, for a major move, use a national company.

 

[sunnyINphilly]

hey guys, decided to bump this thread since a lot of us are going long distances in the next few months, ahving to decide what to take and leave behind. With considerable debt (and not just loans), any thoughts on what people have done before and what you plan to do this year?

 

[dilaudid]

I would be interested to hear about PODS as well. Anyone use them? Recommend or no? Thanks.

 

[Entgegen]

Not in anesthesia, but I will be moving across the country too. I'm planning on using a POD. They may be more pricey than a moving company (not completely sure...haven't made any comparisons), but I've heard they're awesome.

 

[Ronin2258]

I am going with a national group for moving. Got a bid, and will be packing in the last week of May. I will be paying over the next month or so. I chose this group because they took the time to evaluate my stuff. I don't like the idea of a moving company NOT seeing what I have to move. (had some experience with moving companies when I was in the service.)

The thing that gets me is moving my project car. I have a daily driver, and I have another car that I want to restore as a project. Moving that is going to be a pain, as I want to do this in one fell swoop.

 

[imfrankie]

I would be interested to hear about PODS as well. Anyone use them? Recommend or no? Thanks.

I recommend the PODsters.

 

[ZzzPlz]

Uhaul?

 

[cchoukal]

I looked at PODS and thought they were prohibitively expensive. Plus, there's a method of stacking/storing/securing for a long-haul move that you just aren't going to be as good at as the guys who do it for a living. It's possible, too, that your stuff will be moved on/off that POD several times before it arrives, so your packing job/supplies might not be as sturdy as that done by a moving company (albeit at a cost).

I priced out the UHaul and doing it myself, towing my car behind it, and when you factor in gas (which is much more expensive now than 2 years ago when I did it), hotels, and the hassle factor, it wasn't much cheaper. The upside is no one else is messing with you or your stuff.

For what it's worth, I've moved a dozen or more times using a number of methods over the years, and, granted I have more money now, but for my next move, I will hire a company to do it all (packing, hauling, etc.).

 

[geogil]

WE went with ABF to move across the country for medical school, and are planning on using them again to move for residency. It's upack, but if you do a good job, your stuff will be fine. It's comparable to Uhaul and Penske, when you factor in gas, insurance, and the inconvenience of towing a car behind a truck while traversing teh country. You pay by the linear feet of trailer used, not by weight, so if you can cram all your stuff into fewer cubic feet, it costs less.

 

[Bertelman]

WE went with ABF to move across the country for medical school, and are planning on using them again to move for residency. It's upack, but if you do a good job, your stuff will be fine. It's comparable to Uhaul and Penske, when you factor in gas, insurance, and the inconvenience of towing a car behind a truck while traversing teh country. You pay by the linear feet of trailer used, not by weight, so if you can cram all your stuff into fewer cubic feet, it costs less.

I was pretty pleased with that for my last move. May do it again.