10 ways to avoid moving scams |
| By Fred Minnick • Bankrate.com |
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You've heard the stories. Movers load up your stuff one day and hold it hostage the next, demanding more money and
threatening to dump your precious treasures if you don't pay.
You believe you've agreed upon a price, only to find out it's going to cost you a lot more than that.
"These salespeople are commission-based and will
do whatever it takes to get a deposit on file and lock the customer
into a signed estimate," says Tom O'Gorman, sales director for Gentle
Giant Moving Co. "Then, when push comes to shove, there's a
lot of gray area around this estimate.
"They will say, 'The estimate was based on moving
only these things. You weren't packed, so it took us four extra
hours to pack.'"
O'Gorman says some of these outfits give the impression
that "you are dealing with a moving company, but you're really dealing
with an online broker who passes the job off to some local moving
company in some region for a commission. So you're not even dealing
with the end user. You have no control over who ends up in your
home."
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| Avoiding moving problems |
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MoveRescue, an organization created by moving companies, says it receives 4,000 moving complaints a year. The Federal
Motor Carrier Safety Association, or FMCSA, says more than $1.2 million in federal moving fines were issued in 2007. However, the FMCSA's information
and investigations are only as good as the consumer complaints they receive.
"The consumers have to be diligent in reporting carriers,"
says Shashunga Clayton, a spokeswoman for the FMCSA. "Because a
lot of them continue with the same poor practices."
While the FMCSA oversees moves from state to state and maintains a federal complaint database, it only handles moves
between states. Moves within states are regulated by the states, and local moves produce even more horror stories.
O'Gorman says disreputable local movers take stuff and
run or "they deliver whenever they choose to. The problem is, many
overbook their schedule and pick the more profitable jobs, leaving
the other customers high and dry."
To help keep this from happening to you, here are 10 tips to keep from being scammed.
1. Ask your Realtor
The general consensus among moving professionals is word of mouth is the best way to find a good mover. While friends and family are
always good sources, O'Gorman believes real estate agents know the ins and outs of the housing industry and are the most reliable
sources.
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