How Sure Are You of Your Moving Service?
When selecting a moving services, feeling good about the moving quote is not enough. Making sure that the company keeps a good record only takes a few clicks in the Federal Motor Carrier Administration Website. But how would you know from there that moving company are legit and have good reputations? Just make sure that the following are indicated in the website.
- The name, phone number, address of moving companies should be present, and should correspond with information given to clients.
- The number of power units (trucks) and drivers should also correspond with what the moving service says.
- The “Out of Service” field should indicate “no.”
- The following should also be marked with X:
- The “Safety Rating” section should have a “Satisfactory” result
- Do the following steps:
“Auth. for Hire” under “Operation Classification”
“Interstate” under “Carrier Operation” if it is an interstate move
“Household Goods” under “Cargo Carried”
- Go to the bottom of the webpage
- Click the FMCSA Licensing and Insurance link
- Go to View Details and look for the “Motor Carrier Details” page which may either be under the “Report” or “HTML” button.
- Look for the “Common”, “Contract”, and “Broker” listings under “Authority Type”
- One of the listings should be indicated as active in the “Authority Status” and “No” should be indicated in “Application Pending”
- Scroll down and look for “Household Goods” This should be marked with “Yes”
- Look for the bottom table which shows insurance information. Bodily injury and property damage (BIPD) insurance with a minimum 750,000 should be filed. Cargo insurance should also be indicated with a “Yes”
Finally, ask the secretary of state for other charges filed against the company. Government’s online databases may show a list of complaints filed against moving companies.
