Moving from one state to another is a lot harder than moving from one side of town to another. This is why most people who encounter such a move choose to hire professionals to help them with it. However, you still need to have an understanding of the process so that you have a good working relationship with your moving company.
Whenever you choose a moving company to work with they will provide you with a booklet that’s entitled “Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move.” Herein you’ll learn about the moving process and how disputes are handled if they arise. The moving company’s liability policy will also be explained in this booklet.
While it’s relatively easy to learn about such things as disputes and liability, determining the overall cost of your move can be more of a challenge. This is because the majority of movers will charge you based upon how much the truck weighs, which you can’t determine until it’s actually packed, as well as how far you’re moving. Of course, if you decide to have any additional moving services, such as packing, you’ll need to pay for that as well.
You can have an employee come to your home and give you an estimate of what moving may cost. If you choose to do so, make sure that you show them everything, even if it’s in storage. The moving company will then offer you a non-binding estimate, which means that they’re not bound by the price they’ve estimated for you. Instead, you may find yourself paying more or less depending upon the load’s actual weight. Anything under a 10% difference will not even be divulged unto you until delivery time. Of course, you can ask about a binding estimate but you’ll find very few companies who are willing to provide one since they have no way of knowing for sure how much your items weigh and thus the moving company could end up losing money.
One last thing that you must be prepared for whenever you’re dealing with interstate moving is that your belongings may actually be shipped with someone else’s. This is the way in which a moving company is able to charge you less. So, whenever you and another family happen to be moving in the same direction at the same time, both of your home’s belongings will share the same truck.