Things to Consider while Hiring a Moving Company
Are you planning to hire a removal company and are worried you might make a wrong choice?
After all, it is not that easy for a homeowner to know that the selected company wouldn’t break their stuff, charge a fee that’s more than the industry standard rate, or leave you high and dry by not showing up on your doorsteps on the moving day.
No wonder then hiring a removal company is far from easy—but you’ll surely agree that moving your stuff on your own is not an option at all.
To help you make an informed decision when you are searching for a suitable removal company, we’ve compiled a list of instructions.
Just follow them and you’ll be free of stress, as much as we human beings can be of it, both during the process of hiring a removalist and the actual process of moving to the new home.
How far is your new location?
Are you living in Melbourne and now shifting to Canberra or another city? Or are you moving to a new suburb in Melbourne itself?
Not all Melbourne-based removal companies provide interstate house removal solutions. If you are moving out of Melbourne, you need to hire an interstate removalist.
Choosing a local removal company is relatively easier as all Melbourne-based moving companies provide local removal service.
Ask your friends, family members for references
Do you know someone who’s recently hired a removal company? If yes, ask them for references. If not, consider using the strategies listed next to search for a reliable moving company.
Get in touch with local real estate agents and ask them for recommendations
It would be a bright idea to call up a few local agents and ask them if they can recommend names of a few moving companies. Once you have 3-4 recommendations, you can start the process of narrowing down your list to choose the best provider and skip the next two steps related to finding a removal company.
On the other hand, if you haven’t got sufficient or any recommendations, move on to the next step.
Browse through phone book to research moving companies
We know that using Internet for searching anything is in vogue, but we still believe you are more likely to find genuine moving companies listed in a phone book than on the Internet. That’s why we have listed this step first.
Get hold of yellow pages or phone book and go to the “Moving” section. If there are too many providers listed, you can narrow down your search by looking at only those providers who’ve been in the business for, let’s say, 8 years.
Search online
Well, if nothing else has worked, log on to the web and search for moving companies there. You should include your city’s name in your key-phrase to get more relevant search results. For instance if you are located in Melbourne, you might want to use the key-phrase “Removal companies in Melbourne or Melbourne Moving companies” or something similar.
We strongly recommend you to go through the users’ reviews of the shortlisted names. Don’t limit yourself to the testimonials published on the websites because they might be bogus. Instead, look for users’ review on the internet. Look for Google reviews of the shortlisted providers or browse through sites like Yelp. Other users might have left a recommendation or a warning stating the listed company delivers bad service or worst is a scam. If a shortlisted company has bad reviews, simply write it off.
Go to the removal provider’s website
So, you’ve finalized the moving company and are all set to approach them… but wait… have you visited their website, asked for a free quote, and spoken to their past customers?
No…? Then do all the three before you give them your contract.
If you find a company’s website shoddy or filled with incomplete information in fields like about us or contact us, it would be better to give the company a pass. A company which can’t make an effort to present a nice face online (yes, a website is a company’s face on the internet) is not likely to go all guns blazing while serving you.
And if a company has not listed it full physical address or a phone number or an email address, there’s a possibility that it might be a scam.
Ask the company to provide you references (at least 3)
You should ask the shortlisted company to provide you with at least 3 references. Next call these past customers and ask them about their experience with the provider.
Ask for a free online quote
One smart way of finding whether a moving company is genuine or not is by asking them about a free online quote. All legitimate moving companies in Melbourne and the rest of Australia provide a free online quote to their potential customers. It would be a great idea to get the price quote from at least 3 providers so that you might have more options and choose the one offering the most reasonable rates, considering everything else is the same.
Ask them about extra charges
You should go through the fine print thoroughly to ensure the company has provided all fees and that there are no hidden charges.
Ask them what will happen if any of your item(s) is lost or damaged during transit
Moving companies typically have several valuation plans for damaged or lost items. In case you don’t enquire beforehand, the company might attach a plan that’s more expensive to your house moving solution.
Remember Lower estimates can spell trouble
In case one provider has provided you with a price estimate that significantly lower than others, resist the temptation of signing the contract with this provider straightaway. A lower estimate might mean below-par service or might involve hidden charges or at worst might be an outright scam. Therefore first do adequate research, by speaking to company’s past customers, going through their price estimate to rule out hidden charges, and reading online reviews by other customers.
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