How to spot a moving scam?

Every business has its set of scams. There is simply no way around this. Banks have their scams, plumbers have theirs, and unfortunately, movers have theirs. But, not all scams are the same. Some can ruin your life while others will simply cause you a minor inconvenience. Well, moving scams are closer to the former type, right? Wrong! A moving scam will not only cost you a lot of time and money but will potentially ruin your move and your items. You may end up spending a fortune on legal fees without having anything to show for it. Finding good moving and storage Columbus is hard enough as it is. Therefore you need to spot a moving scam before it happens.

When looking online

To make it easier for you to spot a moving scam we have divided this guide into two parts. In this part, we will outline certain parameters you need to keep in mind while looking for movers online. Most dishonest movers can be easily spotted online if you keep these tips in mind. This will help you avoid them and therefore avoid moving scams.

Reviews

If a company has worked with people, they have left their reviews of it. Be it on Yelp, Facebook or Google, the company should show up somewhere and they will have people reviewing them. Be careful of any company that only has reviews on their own website. The good thing about sites like Yelp, Facebook, and Google is that the companies cannot easily change their reviews. They can post from fake accounts, but that is a painfully long and often unsuccessful thing to do. If a company is only reviewed on their website you can be sure that they are completely filtering what is being said about them.

Online estimate

Free online estimates are a good thing if you know what they represent. Do not think of them as accurate. They are there to give you a rough estimate that doesn’t have to resemble the final bill in any way. So, if a company says that they only do online estimates and that there is no need to send a representative, stay away. These companies either don’t know how to run their business, or they want to scam you. The latter is much more often then you might think. It’s the oldest trick in the book. They will give you some ridiculously low estimate and then charge you many times over on the final bill. Don’t want to pay? They take you possessions hostage. Fun, right?

Great offer

Does a company say that you are lucky to have called now? That you’ve managed to contact them while they are offering a special discount. Think again. While most of the time this is a simple business strategy to bring in more clients, it can be a moving scam. The bigger the discount the bigger the risk that you are being scammed. Rember, all moving companies are moving people in order to make money. No matter what they say or seem to do, trust us. They are doing this solely for the monetary gain. So if something looks too good to be true, it probably is.

Spot a moving scam in person

As you might know, there is no way to get reliable moving services without talking with the company representative. This segment is really important as it is mutually beneficial. It gives you the opportunity to see what they are like, and more importantly to check them out for scams. And it gives them the opportunity to plan your relocation properly. Therefore, you should never skip this step. Furthermore, you should treat companies that skip it as unreliable and not trustworthy.

Interview

Here is where you really feel our the moving company. If you do your interview properly you will not only spot moving scams but you will know if the movers you want to hire are competent. There are certain questions that you can ask your movers that will show their true colors. They will give you an opportunity to better know who you are dealing with and whether you should let them move you. This knowledge is tremendously important as you should only let reliable and trustworthy movers move you.

Prior experience

Moving is a complicated project which should only be dealt with by experienced movers. The more complicated your move is the more experienced movers you need to hire. That is why you need to find out how experienced your movers are. Talk with your representative about any former experience that they have had. Furthermore, before hiring local movers you can talk with people in your neighborhood to see if they have worked with them. A good review from a neighbor that you trust should be all the quarantine that you need in order to avoid moving scams.

Eager

You can spot a moving scam by how eager their representative is. If they are pushing you to hire them and going along with everything that you say, be warned. They most likely just want to get a hold of your items or make you sign a stingy contract. Most moving scams happen because the client is not paying sufficient attention. Dishonest movers know this and will, therefore, try to rush you into working with them. Take your time no matter how pushy they might be in order to spot a moving scam.

Contract

Your moving contract is your safekeeping. It is the sole document that will force your movers to uphold the law and not pull a fast one on you. Therefore, you need to read it carefully. If any part seems suspicious or if the movers are telling you that there is no need for you to read it, be warned. Get legal advice if necessary and never sign anything that you do not completely understand.