Moving can be a stressful event. Whether you’re moving across town or across the country, you want your stuff to arrive safely and securely. But that’s not always guaranteed, depending on the moving company you choose. So how can you avoid being scammed by illegal moving company?
You need a reputable local moving company that understands your needs and helps you achieve them. At Your Hometown Mover in Poughkeepsie, NY, we are committed to providing reliable and affordable local moving services to individuals, families, and businesses.
What Can You Do To Avoid Shady Movers?
Ask Around
Make sure to use some common sense and do a little homework when you are hiring movers. Before you commit to any moving company, do some research. Make sure to check out online reviews, websites, and references.
Usually, if a company does not have the best reputation, there is someone that has written a review online. You never want to take a chance to deal with the illegal moving companies when it comes to your personal properties. If you do your research and due diligence, you will be lowering the risk of you getting scammed by some shady movers and moving with illegal moving companies that are not registered.
Make Sure The Moving Company Is Licensed
What can you do to make sure that you are somewhat protected from these companies? First of all, you will want to check the company’s reputation. Make sure that they have the necessary business licenses to operate, shady movers won’t be licensed most of the time.
It is also important that the moving company would be willing to come to your home to do a visual inspection of all the things that need to be moved. If the company chooses only to give you a quote over the phone and refuses to come to your home to do a visual inspection, that is another red flag that you should look for because illegal moving companies will just take your money without rendering any services.
Make Sure They Have Insurance
Every reputable moving company should have insurance to cover your items while in transport. You should look for a full value protection policy, which may make the moving company a bit more expensive, but will also provide you with peace of mind.
Get Multiple Estimates
Securing more than just one written estimate will give you not only an estimate to compare, but also the communication with the company. Most of the best moving companies will not provide a price online or over the phone. They will provide an estimate free of charge, however.
Do Not Pay In Full Before The Move
As movers, Your Hometown Mover is dedicated to protecting and helping its clients. They suggest to their clients that if a moving company requests that you pay them in full before the move, to run in the other direction.
Even if that company wants you to pay a majority of the invoice upfront, you should beware. A legitimate moving company would never ask its clients to pay them in full before the actual move.
Hold Onto Your Valuables
You don’t need to allow the moving company to move important papers, cash, jewelry, and other valuables. Instead, ship these items or move them yourself.
Don’t Skip the Paperwork
If you simply read the paperwork, you might miss something important. The moving contract may be boring, but you need to read it completely to ensure you understand what you are getting into because there are lots of illegal moving companies out there.
Avoid Brokers
When you decide to hire a mover, you may run into brokers. These are middlemen between you and the mover. They don’t own the trucks or give any moving labor. You want to go straight to the moving company, even if you do go through a broker.
Hire A Licensed And Insured Local Moving Company
Give yourself peace of mind by choosing Your Hometown Mover during your big move. Our experienced moving professionals and our top-of-the-line trucks help provide a moving service that is unique and efficient no matter what the condition of the move is in. If you are ready to sit back and relax while we move your stuff for you, give us a call at (845) 419-3808.
