Moving. We are. Are you? About movers...

We have heard an amazing array of mover stories over the years.  Some good.  Many not.  Our own advice has always been to get in-house estimates, never assume the estimate is the gospel with respect to what you will actually end up paying, and try very hard to determine what will REALLY happen if (when) there is a problem.

A caveat:  There are ads in the right hand column of this blog.  Since this post will have "movers" etc as tags/labels as well as other keywords, I'll bet you a buck that google drops an ad or two for "acme movers" et al in there.  We don't know who will be advertised and we have nothing to do with it.  Do not assume the ad is in any way a positive or negative endorsement from us.  Now, back to our post...

There are any number of legitimate reasons for variation from estimate to actual (you decide you will move the piano after all, or find a bunch of "little stuff" you forgot about, etc). However, there are any number of ways to lowball an estimate in order to get the deal, too.  Some classics include simply underestimating weight or the number and type of boxes required (where these are part of an estimate).


A reference is extremely important, but there is rarely a guarantee that you will get the same estimator and crew as the positive-experience referring person. 


A referral that may be even more valuable than "they did a great job" is one about how a company handled a damage claim.  A good mover will almost always do less damage than you would if you did it yourself (be honest!).  The key is how the company handles the problems.


The article below (after the "jump" or "read more" link) came to us from OREA (Ontario Real Estate Association) and we thought it good enough to pass on.  The comment about not taking the lowest estimate may seem self-serving.  Maybe it it, but it is also very true.


Do you have a great mover?  Or a tip?  Or a horror story that you can laugh at now (don't want you to relive the ones that still make you curl up in the corner and cry).