Hiring a moving company lightens your workload a bit, but it doesn’t mean that you don’t have anything to concern yourself with. Moving companies can vary in quality, and if you’re not careful, you could end up with one that causes more stress than relief. These are 10 essential questions to ask before hiring a moving company.
1. What’s Your Estimate?
Before you hire a moving company, you need to get a good sense of their fees. Your price will depend on how much you have to move, how many people you’ll need, the weight of your items, and the distance travel. You also need to factor in a tip from the movers.
2. What Sort of Insurance Do You Have?
Per federal law, all moving companies need to have some sort of liability insurance. Ask them to send you a copy of their insurance policy and review it carefully. If you know a lawyer, you might pay them to review it to make sure that it’s fair.
3. How Many People Will There Be?
Once the moving company knows about the extent of your moving job, they’ll able to estimate how many people they need. You may have imagined a certain number of people that aren’t met by their estimate. If you want to ask for more people, consider how it might affect the cost. If they’re planning to bring more people than you think are needed, politely ask them how they came to that number.
4. What Can’t You Move?
There are some items that certain moving companies won’t move, such as pianos. There are also things that just about no moving company will move, such as explosives. Ask moving companies for a list of things that they can’t move and ask for any clarification you might need.
5. How Much Time Will You Need?
Moving companies shouldn’t give you any guarantees that they’ll be able to get everything packed up in an hour or less. However, they should still be able to gauge how long the task will take. You can help shorten their work time by having packed items as close to the door as possible so they can quickly retrieve and pack them.
6. Do You Charge a Deposit?
In order to keep people accountable for their reservations, Cheap Denver Movers says some moving companies charge a deposit. These may or may not be refundable. Jot down the deposit amount and consider whether you’ll be able to afford it.
7. Do You Have References?
Moving companies will be sure to speak highly of themselves, but you might still want to hear from someone else about whether they’re worth your time and money. Ask if they could refer you to a few recent clients. Send these clients a message and ask if they could describe their experience with the company and whether they would use their services again.
8. What’s Your Weather Policy?
You might have to schedule your move before you know what the forecast will be for that week. A bit of rain should affect things too badly, but a torrential downpour means you’ll almost certainly have to reschedule. Try to get a few backup dates in case of a weather-based cancellation.
9. What’s Your Cancellation Policy?
You need to stress that you don’t expect to have to cancel, but in the event of an emergency, it’s good to be prepared. Most moving companies will require at least a few days’ notice. Otherwise, you may be subject to a cancellation fee.
10. What Do You Need From Me?
Most moving companies have likely dealt with customers that are oblivious to their personal responsibilities. Any company you call will greatly appreciate you asking how you can make their job easier. Besides packing things in advance and putting them near the door, there could be other reasonable requests from the company.