moving company recommendations??

[Nifster]

I need to send some furniture to my daughter in Georgia. It is not a full sized load but rather one room's worth. I want to be sure it gets there as it has sentimental value (and is really nice furniture to boot).

Since I figure that FR is the location of some of the most knowledgeable people around I figured some of you might have a recommendation or two for me.

[Hootowl99]

“The big ones like Mayflower, Allied etc carry the best insurance and actually train their people.”

Yep, that has been my experience also. In order to get full insurance coverage though, they need to do 100% of the packing, which may not cost as much as you might imagine.

One thing way that they can do the one-room move is bring large wood crates and pack the stuff in the crate. This way, there is not a way for this small load to get tangled up with a mixed load of other stuff on the truck.

I used this method once myself for a 4 bedroom house of stuff when there was a gap of a couple of months between when I needed to move from the old house and when the new once was available for moving into. The crates were put into warehouse storage until the moving destination was ready to go.

[2nd Bn, 11th Mar]

What you want is a door-to-door. In my experience (28 years of military moves) most damage occurs when they get back to the warehouse. Then it comes off the van and they repack it into a large wooden crate It will be handled roughly because the owners are not there to overwatch it. Then it’s more or less subjected to the elements, as the crate(s) containing your goods are shipped on an open flatbed trailer. So the door-to-door means it’s delivered from the same van it was loaded onto.

[Lady Lucky]

If you care that much about this furniture, remember the adage, “If you want something done right, do it yourself.”

Amen. I'd offer an example of what can be avoided by DIY moving, but it would trigger my PTSD. Several PTSD's in fact.

[jmax]

It's kinda hard to evaluate something like this, via a public forum. Perhaps it's best to check with the BBB or research the internet looking for NEGATIVES verses POSITIVES, thus weeding out the bad companies. Your question is sorta like asking your neighbor who the best dentist in town is for getting a tooth pulled. The answer may be something like "Go to Dr Jones. Me and my whole family have been going to him for 15 years, but I've heard Dr Smith is pretty good. Dr Jones is a little too rough and doesn't even let the novocain kick in before he starts pulling. Plus, his breath stinks. And, his rates are a little high. But, I'd go to him if I were you."

What's wrong with this answer?

My first question to his response would be "If he hurts you, his rates are high and his breath stinks, why do you go to him?".

My second would be, "If Smith is so much better, and Jones sux, aren't you kinda stupid to go to him when you could get better service and lower rates from Smith?" Most people don't like to admit that they go suckered or paid too much for something.

We've all said or heard similar responses on various subjects. As they say, OPINIONS are like A$$holes.....everybody has one. Plus, "Misery loves company". And, look at me ------> For what it's worth, I have an OPINION. : )

[NEMDF]

I think it was Atlas that moved my husband’s things here 3 years ago. It was probably a couple rooms’ worth, not a full truck. Had no problem, everything went smoothly. I agree with the posters suggesting you have food and/or drinks for the workers.

[Marathoner 244]

I used Allied 15 years ago to move from Cincinnati to Pittsburgh. They broke one of our items and I suggested a way to fix it that would have cost them about $100. They played hardball and I took them to arbitration and won. It was sent out for repair and wound up costing them $900. I’ll never use them again.

[Lady Lucky]

rent a uhaul

And a hell-yeah to that! Let someone else trust YOU with THEIR stuff. If something's going to get banged up, let it be the rented truck. Not your heirlooms!

[ncfool]

email me and I can give you advice

[upchuck]

FWIW, When I moved in 2003 I used a large Penske truck with a towing trailer for my car. I used some guys from a Boy Scout troop to load the truck. Paid them $20 each plus pizza. On this end, paid some guys working on my new house to unload. Everything went smooth as silk, thank the Good Lord.

[MestaMachine]

Ya. I have a couple of those muh own self. Now I figure if I mess up, it’s on me. But someone else doing the messing up is just unacceptable. No one is gonna love your stuff the way you do.

[RobertClark]

I actually run a moving company, we are an agent for the second largest van line in the country. I won’t give myself any shameless plugs, but I would be happy to give some advice:

1.) DO NOT shop on the internet. You will end up with every two bit worthless broker trying to guarantee you unbeliveable rates. They’re unbelievable for a reason.

2.) Stick with the major van lines. North American, Atlas, United, Allied, and Mayflower.

3.) Be sure they include Full Value Protection in the estimate they provide, and make sure it is zero deductible. Ask for it specifically.

4.) I would not take the lowest estimate. Estimators make incorrect calls and it ends up costing in poor service and higher charges at delivery. Get at least two estimates (three is ideal) and count on the average of the three being an accurate representation of your move.

5.) Low cost generally means poor service. Experienced and quality conscious professional van operators will refuse to service cut-rate and underestimated moves. What you’ll end up with is a low experience, grumpy, high-claims driver who will aggravate the daylights out of you.

If you PM me the town you need to move the items from and to, I can recommend one of our top quality agents who can service it, or if I can do so, I will service it myself.

[Lady Lucky]

No one is gonna love your stuff the way you do.

Or if they do, it gets lost in transit.

[Nifster]

Thank you so much for your generous input and thoughtful comments. I knew that Freerepublic was a great place, I just didn’t realize how wonderful it really is. I am learning.