Understanding Your Moving Quote

Unless you are very lucky, most people have to move from one place to another at least a couple of times in their life. A key part of moving is understanding your moving quote. You need to know what you are paying for, what the move includes and if there are any hidden fees that would apply to your situation.

Local moves, for obvious reasons, are generally less expensive than a long distance move. When doing a local move, the estimate will likely be based on how many people will be needed to move you. There is usually a set price per crew member, so for example if there were 3 movers at a rate of $125 each, you would pay $375. With a long distance move, it is important that you have a thorough understanding of your moving quote.

It is a typical policy to charge someone by the weight of the shipment when moving long distance, as well as charging for whatever additional services might be requested. Going over your estimate and making sure you have an itemized list of charges goes a long way in understanding your moving quote. Normally, moving companies are busier in the summer, which means you will likely be able to get a greater discount if you move during the winter months.

One thing that could mean a higher quote would be packing charges. Sometimes, especially with a long distance move, you might require that certain things be packed by the moving company prior to them loading it on the truck. This could involve a packaging fee, as well as an unpacking fee if they also have to unpack the items when they get to their destination.

Another charge to be aware of to help you in understanding your moving quote is transportation charges. These quotes will always be different for everyone because the charge depends on the origin and destination of the move. The farther your destination is from where you are leaving, the more you will have to pay. While these transportation charges along with the other charges talked about previously can be discounted by the moving company, there are other charges which may not be able to be discounted.

Charges that will not be able to be discounted are the fuel surcharge, insurance related surcharges, valuation and third party services. Third party charges are incurred by your mover when they have to contract someone to do work on your behalf that they can not perform. Things such as reassembling a swing set or the disassembling of exercise equipment are just a couple of examples of these kinds of charges.

Fuel charges have been something that many trucking companies are now allowed to charge, but there is no standard, so be sure to find out when you receive your quote how much this charge will be. Insurance surcharges are not to cover your goods, but is just a fee charged by the moving company to help offset their insurance costs. Valuation is actually the charge that covers your property, and once a value is determined the moving company will charge a fee to cover the property based on that amount.

While the information needed to move may seem overwhelming, it really is very basic. Understanding your moving quote isn’t difficult if you just pay attention to what you are given. All of the above mentioned charges  must be included on your invoice. Pay attention to that and you shouldn’t have much trouble understanding your moving quote.

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