Engaging a Good Moving Company: Tips, FAQ, What to expect
Tips for selecting a good moving company
Expertise to move special equipment
Ensure that the professional mover is able to move your items safely and understands different important components of that item. Also, they should have the right truck size and moving equipment such as ramps, lifts etc to handle your items.
Provide protection to your home E.g. floor, items, belongings, walls
Due to the wheels of the trolley or shifting of heavy items, moving may cause dents, scratches and other damages to your floor. Check with your professional whether the floor is protected.
Most companies will have trolley with rubber wheels to minimize the impact on the floor. Some will offer you additional floor protection at additional charge such as creating proper pathways with carpets.
Other parts of your home include walls and doors. A good moving professional will alert you of these potential problems or have preventions packaged in.
Insist on an onsite inspection or comprehensive list of items
A good moving company will ensure that they have taken note of everything that is involved in a moving. That includes the items to move, size of hallway, presence of lift or stairs, distance to the vehicle and many more.
It constitutes into what kind of expertise is required, how long it will take to move, what equipment are required, how much manpower is required, and finally, how much they will charge you.
A good moving company will also provide a binding estimate that will not change unless more items are added.
If they accept a comprehensive list of items without site quotation, ensure that everything else other than additional item will not be charged.
A good moving company will not give a quote without an onsite inspection or a comprehensive list of items. Companies that don’t will usually add additional charges on the day of moving.
Have clear pricing policies
Good moving companies have standard pricing list. For example, there are standard prices for piano moving, number of boxes to move and number of trips required.
They will also ensure that they go through every single moving item and circumstances in your house and in your moving process.
How do you know if they have clear pricing policies? Usually, they will be very certain on the prices and will even provide a table of prices or document to show you.
They will never give “about” prices, only specific prices. Look up their reviews to see what other customers say about their pricing standards.
Ensure they provide the necessary moving services that you require
Some companies provide every service involved in a move, while some companies don’t. Services included in a full fledge move are packing, wrapping, disassembling loading, moving (vehicle provided with driver), storage, unloading, unpacking, unwrapping, assembling and cleaning services.
You may not need all the services required. A good moving company will communicate to you clearly what is included in the service package, and whether not they are suitable for your move.
Top 5 Questions to ask a Prospective Moving Company
#1 How do you charge by?
There are various charging methods. Mainly, methods include per trip, per hour, by items and one-off pricing. Ensure that you are comfortable with the pricing method and that there will be no additional charges unless more items are added.
#2 Is this quotation finalised? What are exactly included in that quotation?
After analysing your house or your list and providing you with a quotation, ask whether the quote is finalised and what are included.
Do not assume that the company will not overcharge and everything you need has been included. The moving company will usually provide a slip of confirmation.
Ensure that everything has been written and accounted for before signing or booking.
#3 How will you handle fragile items? Will the moving crew wrap and protect your furniture to prevent damages?
Ask what exact procedures they carry out or materials they use for different items. Ensure that they use professional protection procedures, materials and tools for your important items.
For example, furniture will be disassembled appropriately, lifted with lifting aids and wrapped with stretch wrap.
#4 Are my items insured? What do the insurance cover? If items are lost, what are the procedures to go about it?
Most moving companies provide insurance coverage from third party providers. There are many insurance types. Clarify with the movers:
- What items are covered?
- When are the items covered during the moving process?
- What kind of situations or accidents will be covered?
- What is the maximum claimable amount?
- What's the procedure to claiming the claimable amount?
- What's the real value of purchasing coverage from a professional mover?
Check also with your insurance agent whether moving is insured and covered in your current policies.
#5 How is your payment like?
Most moving companies require a deposit before moving your house. Make sure that you are comfortable with the deposit.
If you require an instalment plan due to the high fees, confirm with the movers whether they provide instalment plans and the interest rates.
Most movers won’t ask for large deposits up front. The usual deposit rate is from 20 to 30 % of your full moving charge. Ensure that you pay using credit card which will help in protecting against fraud.
Ask also how many days in advance you need to notify them of any cancellation. Most cancellations need to be informed of 2 weeks before. They might be a penalty if you cancel a few days before.
What can I expect when engaging a moving company?
Site view with estimates or quotations
Get a site view about 5-6 weeks in advance of the moving date. This period allows you to get a few quotations and successfully book a moving company that you are satisfied with.
The movers will follow you through the house and look through all the necessary areas for an accurate quotation.
Deposit
Most movers request for a deposit to confirm the date of booking. This is to ensure you do not bail out on your appointment. As mentioned, the usual deposit rate is from 20 to 30 % of your full moving charge.
Delivery of packing materials
If you want to pack by yourself and have arranged packing materials to be sent to your house, the delivery will be made here, much prior to your moving date. Usually a delivery will be additionally charged.
Day of move
Depending on what you have requested or purchased, the movers will be involved in one of these activities: packing, loading, moving, unloading, unpacking, cleaning up.
Usually before the movers start unloading your items, you have to pay for the remaining some of money after the deposited amount.
Post-move
Do a check after they have finished their move. Checks include:
- Checking on any damaged items
- Ensuring everything has been delivered and there is no missing items
- Ensuring no damage has been done to the house
- All services are fulfilled
Clarify any discrepancies and settle any disputes if need be.
Looking for a good moving company?
Head on to this comprehensive list of home movers with reviews for you to assess the quality of each professional.
SGHomeNeeds can also match you to a home mover with your stated requirements quickly and fuss-free!
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