Moving isn’t an easy task at all. There are plenty of things that you need to do and take care of if you want your moving process to be successful. And who wouldn’t want that? That is why a lot of people decide to hire a professional moving company for their relocation. And no matter how big or small your move is, it would be best to hire movers to help you relocate. But not a lot of people have the money for hiring the best movers out there. There are plenty of amazing and reliable moving companies that are also affordable but finding them isn’t very easy. This is a situation a lot of people face and it is how a lot of people end up hiring fraudulent moving companies. If you are scared of dealing with fraudulent moving companies, here is where you are going to find some tips on how to deal with them as well as how to avoid hiring them in the first place.
You need to know what moving scams are
The first step to dealing with fraudulent moving companies as well as avoiding them is knowing what moving scams are. And that is exactly what we are here to tell you all about. So, what are moving scams? Moving scams are any frauds that are conducted by a moving company. You might be thinking about which scams can a moving company make and you would be surprised that there are a couple of them. From luring customers in with prices that aren’t true but are too good to pass up on to not even showing up on moving day.
People have had plenty of experiences with fraudulent moving companies. This is something you really don’t want to deal with. And it is why it very important that before hiring a moving company for your relocation you know about all the ways that you can be scammed. This is the best way to prevent yourself from hiring a fraudulent moving company.
Common moving scams
As we want you to be as safe as possible, it is best for us to tell you about some of the most common types of moving scams. We already mentioned some. Showing prices that are too good to be true has so far been the most common type of moving scams. A lot of people were lured into hiring a certain moving company because the prices that they were displaying were very affordable. And as we mentioned, moving can be expensive and not a lot of people can afford to move with movers. So it is natural that a lot of those people simply wanted to believe that the prices are so affordable. But how does a company do this? Well, these companies usually add some extra hidden fees to the cost of your move and you have to pay for it. So, if the price of your Florida move is too good to be true, it might not be true. Most of the time it isn’t.
A lot of people have had issues with moving companies asking them to pay in advance. And even if the people paid for the whole move, the movers didn’t show up. They usually made them pay by saying that this is the only way for them to secure the date of the move – by having a deposit. And have in mind that no reliable moving company is going to ask this from you. Sometimes people were even robbed. Some moving companies scam by stealing. Some scam by causing damage and not paying for it. There are many moving scams to be aware of.
How to hire a reliable moving company?
Now that you know more about what moving scams are and about most of them that are out there, you have to learn how to recognize whether a company is fraudulent or reliable. And the best way to do that is to follow the tips below.
1. Get a referal for a moving company
The best way to make sure that the company you are hiring is reliable and trustworthy is to have it refered to you by someone you know. Asking the people you know whwther they can recommend a moving company that you can hire is the safest way to hire a moving company. This is also how you are going to hear real experiences from real people. But just asking and hearing about a moving company isn’t enough.
2. Do online research
Whether you find a moving company by asking a friend or no, you have to do a lot of online research before you actually decide to hire someone. These are people who are going to be handling your belongings and it is why it is necessary that you hire someone who you can trust.
Your online research needs to consist of researching the companies in your area. You also need to do proper research on the companies that you hear about from friends and family. Checking the company’s website is very important. The website can tell you a lot about a company. If you can find all the necessary information and nothing seems to good to be true, the company is trustworthy. Reading online reviews on the company’s website and social media is also very important. You need to make time to check forums and read people’s experiences with the company. A lot of people would say that these are very extra measures of precaution but we say that you can never be too safe if you want to have a stress-free move.
3. Get online estimates
One of the ways to make sure that you are not dealing with fraudulent moving companies is to get free online estimates. It takes a company a few hours and sometimes a whole day to send you an estimate based on the information that you put in regarding your move. So, if an estimate arrives shortly after you demand it, it might be a sign of a fraudulent company.