How To Hire Movers in Vancouver – Redux

Hiring a mover in Vancouver is like going to the dentist, no one enjoys the process. But in the same way that preventative maintenance lessens dental pain, a thorough and pragmatic search can lessen chances of a poor move. All movers in Vancouver advertise their services in various media. Some for example rely on the print medium, internet or both. Within these advertisements are the clues required to begin solving the question; how do you find a good mover?

The first question a consumer should ask themselves is this; do I need a professional mover? If the answer is yes, your search has already cleared one hurdle. The next question: who are the true professionals?  The clues begin within their advertising and use of words like licensed. This is a good start as it shows the company has registered with City Hall, providing a mailing address and an owner’s name.

Second, does the company offer insurance ? This is a bit of a tricky issue in terms of assessment. Many companies will advertise they offer a ‘free basic insurance of .60 cents per pound,’ for your move. If they were to drop your 80 pound flat screen tv you will receive $48.00 compensation (.60 cents x 80 lbs ). The difficulty with this coverage is that it doesn’t cover things of value, and a deductible might be assessed too ( you may have to pay a $200+ deductible). Insurance for you move is best understood by an insurance broker. Your needs combined with their experience can help show if your moving company has the right coverages.

Third, the Better Business Bureau. Many companies draw attention to their membership or rating at the BBB, but what does it mean to the consumer? A positive aspect of being on the BBB`s files relates to transparency. Customers know who owns the company, and where they do business. Additionally the BBB keeps a list of complaints against a company, and there lies a valuable clue. A significant number of complaints (BBB member or not) should serve as a warning that all is not well. Remember too, the BBB has no skills assessment category, for members or non members. When you see a company ’A' rated, it is not their furniture moving skills being exhorted.

Fourth. If you found your prospective mover on the internet, it is likely you will discover more than just advertising, as every company has testimonials too. While we have covered this issue in a previous article there are a couple of points worth mentioning. 3rd party review sites which feature testimonials are businesses. And like all businesses based on the web, they need new content to stay relevant on search engines. This combined with the hyper competitive nature of the moving business has led to testimonials as a growth industry. So how do you separate the wheat from the chaff? My suggestion is to look at testimonials as you look at BBB complaints; scrutinizing the negative ones closely, as they are more likely to contain grains of truth.

The points above, besides earlier posts give you a comprehensive outline to finding a good moving company. Remember, you can learn a terrific amount about a company through attention to their advertising, followed up with the resources of the internet.

Is Three a Crowd?

Hiring a moving company is a daunting process with a multitude of choices. Each company highlights what they believe a customer is looking for; some draw attention to their price, others to their service. Inherent within the price and service consideration is the element of manpower: how many men does your job require? Generally an apartment move requires two men and a truck. However, recently I have seen advertisements which promote three men as standard instead of two. How can you assess the needs of your move?

There are several circumstances under which you can benefit from a third man. For example, if you have a one bedroom apartment (550-800 square feet) on the top floor of a three-story walk up, a third man could be beneficial. Why? First is the aspect of endurance - especially on heavy items. Two men go upstairs with a heavy sofa, next, one subs in and the other two go up: this cycling allows the pace to remain steady. An added benefit of a third man relates to time management. Perhaps you’ll move out of a three-story walk up and go to a building with an elevator booked for your exclusive use (e.g., noon till two pm)? Extra personnel can be beneficial in keeping to this strict schedule. Sheer volume of items to be moved is another third man indicator. If your apartment is a two bedroom (800-1200+ square feet), an extra man should be a careful consideration – especially with stairs or time restrictions. One last issue combined with those above is your moving date. If your move occurs at the end of the month, your mover has worked numerous jobs before yours; moving has a cumulative affect on a person and it is likely your mover is fatigued.

Remember, the devil is in the details. If you choose to have a third man on your job, it is important to clarify with your moving company the extent of his involvement. Sometimes a third can be a driver only, or, in the back of the truck when the other two work. By clearly establishing the role of the third man you ensure value for money.

How To Hire a Mover

It’s moving time and you are looking for a bargain. Who can blame you, the economy is in a downturn and people want the best value they can find. So you turn to the internet and you find a 100 or so listings  for ‘Movers’. But where do you start since they all appear similar at first glance? Here are a few valuable tips that will help you navigate the choices.

First, don’t bother responding to an ad without company name or contact phone number.

Second, be careful not to be a ‘price’ shopper alone – there are many ways to slow a job down, and you can best believe if you hire the cheapest they know all the tricks.

Third, beware of the silky smooth person answering the phone – you know, the one who promises you the company is always on time ( untrue, especially for afternoon bookings ), all the workers are all highly skilled and professional ( moving is a difficult job and turn over is often high – many swampers ((the helper)) have little hands on experience ) and the trucks are fully equipped ( many companies’ trucks are devoid of professional moving equipment ).

Fourth, look around to see which companys’ on the internet  have paid advertising elsewhere. Free ads are a nice bonus but paid advertising shows a  commitment to investing in themselves.

Fifth, check  on the companies you are interested in. For example, go to the Better Business Bureau website and search the company name. You can search the name on Google too.

If you follow these basic suggestions you will have a better chance of getting a good mover from the internet. They are out there, you just have to hunt for them. For more information on our company, please surf around on our website (CityMOVE.ca),  as it provides a comprehensive review of our company and service.