FINDING A MOVER
-> Company public recordsMay 15, 17:55
Question by docs99 (Brooke Dokken)
Moving from Boston to the Midwest, what is the reasonable price range?
Hello,
I am in the process of researching moving companies that offer service from Boston, MA to Lincoln, NE. In doing so, I've come across a wide range of bids for the move (ie. $1300 - $4000). I came across a company called North America Moving Systems, originally out of NJ. Their bid seamed reasonable ($1500) considering the relatively small amount of household goods that I would be moving, and so I began to set their price as a benchmark for others.
After receiving a call back from a moving company out of Florida, I informed them that I had received a much lower bid and was not interested unless they could match it. The individual I spoke with became very concerned and suggested that North America Moving Systems may be a scam. He said that no moving company could offer this service for less then $2300 and that I was likely setting myself up to be ripped-off. He stated that there were many rules and regulations in place that would not permit any company to offer such a deal.
Is this true? Or is it possible that the Florida moving company may have been trying to scare me into paying more money? How am I to know if a moving company may be scamming me?
I read the non-rateable review on North America Moving Systems posted on this site; would they still be considered a risky company to choose?
Any additional info or advice would be incredibly helpful!
Thanks,
Brooke
May 15, 20:08
Answer by alexzehn (Alex Z.)
Lets analyze your case:
1) First, lets take a look at the price range: you believe that your shipment is small, so assuming a case when it is below the minimum that most moving companies have for interstate moves (which is usually 1500 lbs) the price range for your move should be within the $0.90-$1.10 per lbs range, that is $1350-$1650.
Note that this price only includes the pick up and the transportation of the shipment (additional fees such as packing materials or shuttle service might inflate the bill by $200-$700 more if you are not careful during the booking period).
Given that I would say you should be careful about the $1500 estimate - I bet they never came to your house to give you a precise estimate followed by the binding offer.
2) Second, what to do with a non-ratable company: as you probably understand we do not recommend to use any company that was not rated by us or that received a relatively low SOUR (I would say B is the lowest you should consider going with).
Non-ratable company is non-ratable for a good reason - there is simply not enough information about this company, so it could be an A company or an F - the risk is all yours, so why taking it when there are plenty of good companies around to go with.
3) Third - hiring a Florida company for MA->NE move: the question is - why would you consider doing that?
It is a well known fact that Florida is infested with scam movers, and many of the scam moving brokers are located there. I would say for a MA->NE move you better hire a Massachusetts based company (or at least a New England one, or a Nebraska one that has a truck in the area during your move dates) and have them come over for a visual estimate and a binding price offer.
Finally, I haven't heard of any particular regulations that forbid movers to bid low, however there are regulations that force the mover to unload your shipment in case you pay up to 110% of the official estimated price, but in general you should avoid putting yourself in situations like that in the first place.
The best advice I can give you regarding your case is disregard all the estimates that were not given to you in a form of a flat binding price (including all the additional services and fees) by a visual estimator at your home.
That is your tool number one against being ripped off.
Good luck with your move,
Alex Z. @ MovingAnswers.org
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