Protect Your Move

Posted by David Piotrowski

Whenever you move your household, you want to make sure you protect your move by taking appropriate and prudent steps to minimize the possibility of problems. To help protect your move, you should do the following before deciding on a moving company:

• Get your estimate in writing.
• Get moving estimates from multiple moving companies.
• Protect your move by asking your sales rep to clarify and questions you have before the move day.
• Ask the mover to provide you with their delivery timeframe.
• Find out of your estimate is binding or non-binding.
• Protect your move by asking if your mover will provide a visual estimate. This is required unless an exception applies.
• Protect your move by reading and following this moving checklist.
• Visit the Protect Your Move website. This is a website published by the FMCSA.

The Protect Your Move website says, “Moving to a new home is a significant event that is often stressful, and the U.S. Government, in partnership with the moving industry, law enforcement and consumer groups, is arming consumers with the information they need to protect themselves against one of the most stressful situations that can plague a household move: being taken advantage of by a dishonest or rogue mover.”

The Protect Your Move site offers valuable ways to help protect against moving fraud and offers helpful information on making your move less stressful.

Movers Charging By Cubic Feet

Posted by David Piotrowski

Two of the most common ways movers like to charge is 1) by weight (price per pound) and 2) by cubic feet (calculated by the amount of volume the shipment takes up). Both options are legal in certain instances. Many moving companies and consumers, believe that cubic feet charges are illegal at worst, or misleading at best. So long as the mover is reputable and trustworthy, charges based on cubic feet are perfectly legal and reasonable in many cases.

In order for a mover to charge based on cubic feet, the following must apply:

1. The mover must have a provision in their interstate moving tariff that allows for charges based on cubic feet.
2. The written estimate that the moving company provides to the customer must be binding (if the estimate is a non-binding estimate, then the mover may not charge based on cubic feet).
3. The written estimate must state that the estimate is based on cubic feet.
4. The cubic feet charges should be based on the accurate volume of goods, based on a physical survey (unless a physical survey exception applies).

In sum, movers may charge their customers based on cubic feet so long as the movers tariff allows for it, the estimate is binding, the estimate states the the estimate is based on cubic feet, and the cubic feet charges are based on an accurate measurement of the goods.

Household Goods Moving Claims

Posted by David Piotrowski

The question is often asked how to file an interstate household goods moving claim and what is the process of doing so. Please follow this link to read the article on household goods moving claims. Please note this is a PDF file and it will open in a new window. The article explains how to file an interstate household goods moving claim, as well as the timelines involved for both the shipper and the carrier.

Hiring a Moving Company

Posted by David Piotrowski

This view offers some helpful advice and information on what to look for and inquire about when hiring a moving company. The video was created by ServiceMagic, a company that provides moving leads.



The video discuss proper packing methods, brokers, moving company estimates, valuation coverage, and more.

Define: Order for Service

Posted by David Piotrowski

An Order for Service is one of the required documents that moving companies must issue to their customers. Federal law states that before a moving company receives a shipment of household goods, an Order for Service must be prepared and the Order for Service must include the following elements:

1. The name and address and the FMCSA U.S. DOT number assigned to the mover who is responsible for performing the service.
2. The individual customer’s name, address and, if available, its telephone number(s).
3. The name, address, and telephone number of the delivering mover’s office or agent located at or nearest to the destination of the shipment.
4. A telephone number where the customer may contact the moving company or its designated agent.
5. One of the following three entries must be on the order for service:
(i) The agreed pickup date and agreed delivery date of the move.
(ii) The agreed period(s) of the entire move.
(iii) If the moving company is transporting the shipment on a guaranteed service basis, the guaranteed dates or periods for pickup, transportation, and delivery. The moving company must enter any penalty or per diem requirements upon the agreement under this item.
6. The names and addresses of any other motor carriers, when known, who will participate in interline transportation of the shipment.
7. The form of payment the moving company and its agents will honor at delivery. The payment information must be the same that was entered on the estimate.
8. The terms and conditions for payment of the total charges, including notice of any minimum charges.
9. The maximum amount the moving company will demand at the time of delivery to obtain possession of the shipment, when the moving company transports on a collect-on-delivery basis.
10. The Surface Transportation Board’s required released rates valuation statement, and the charges, if any, for optional valuation coverage. The released rates may be increased annually by the carrier based on the Department of Commerce’s Cost of Living Adjustment.
11. A complete description of any special or accessorial services ordered and minimum weight or volume charges applicable to the shipment, subject to the following two conditions:
(i) If the moving company provides service for individual shippers on rates based upon the transportation of a minimum weight or volume, the moving company must indicate on the order for service the minimum weight- or volume-based rates, and the minimum charges applicable to the shipment.
(ii) If the moving company does not indicate the minimum rates and charges, then the tariff must provide that the mover will compute the final charges relating to such a shipment based upon the actual weight or volume of the shipment.
12. Any identification or registration number the moving company assigns to the shipment (booking number, job number, reference number).
13. For non-binding estimates, the moving company’s reasonably accurate estimate of the amount of the charges, the method of payment of total charges, and the maximum amount (no more than 110 percent of the non-binding estimate) that the moving company will demand at the time of delivery to relinquish possession of the shipment.
14. For binding estimates, the amount of charges the moving company will demand based upon the binding estimate and the terms of payment under the estimate.
15. Whether the individual shipper requests notification of the charges before delivery. The individual shipper must provide the moving company with the telephone number or address where the mover will transmit the notification.

An interesting piece of information regarding an order for service is that by law, a moving company must provide the individual shipper the opportunity to rescind the Order for Service without any penalty for a three-day period after the customer signs the order for service, if the customer scheduled the shipment to be loaded more than three days after signing the Order for Service.

An Order for Service is one of the documents moving companies are required to provide to their customers, along with an estimate, an Inventory List, a Bill of Lading, and this information.

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