How to Avoid Moving Scams

Picture of a Moving Truck Not to Hire

Hi world wide web. Just wanted to say, as I was reading through moving-related news today, I noticed most the articles were about moving scams. What frustrates me the most is that we’re now going on decades of this behavior without a clear end in sight. You’d think at some point the criminals would be caught and locked up leaving the rest of us a little less stressed about our next move. Moving is stressful enough even if it all goes perfectly. So I put together a quick note with some tips on how to avoid moving scams. Read more of this post

Local Truck Rental

Renting your own truck is the alternative to hiring a full service moving company. By renting your own truck, it will require a bit more work on your part but you will also be saving money.

There is a lot of information to take into consideration when it comes to renting a truck for your move. From picking the right rental truck company that fits your needs to considering the cost of fuel charges. If you have to compare moving trucks, there’s a great free website here that will help you compare pricing from all the major competitors.

Some of the major things you will want to find out when choosing the right rental company is can you drop off the truck at a different location if you are making a long distance move. Find out what kind of insurance you should get through the rental company or what your own insurance covers. And what size truck you will need to make sure all your items will fit. There are several different truck rental companies to choose from.

  • Penske-Whether your needs are for households moves or business moves, Penske covers it all. With 40 years of growing business, Penske has more than 1,000 locations and 200,000 vehicles worldwide. With this, they guarantee rental trucks will be ready for pick up. Moving is a stressful time, so Penske is here to help make things as easy as possible, eliminating some of the stress. They are prepared and equipped for those unexpected events that may arise. With Penske, the customer can select a different pick-up and drop-off location for one-way trips or use the same location for round-trips.
  • Budget- Budget Truck Rental’s business is processed by a collection of over 2,800 locations, almost 1,100 employees, and about 30,000 trucks. The locations are comprised of corporate, dealer, and franchise offices. The trucks all under-go regular 10 point inspections to ensure a reliable and safe truck rental experience. The Budget moving truck organization maintains one of the most current truck fleets with trucks averaging between 2 to 2.5 years old. At Budget, you are able to do one way rentals or round trip rentals.
  • Ryder- Ryder currently has a fleet of almost 126,400 trucks; however, part of the fleet is used for commercial leasing contracts, and the rest – approximately 30,000 trucks – are rented out for moving individual customer items and furniture. Ryder has over 480 truck rental locations across North America and the UK with just over 28,000 employees. All Ryder trucks must be returned to the location they were picked up from. Several different truck sizes are offered.
  • Enterprise-  Helping your with your car rental for vacation needs or truck rentals for your household move, this is the company that has multiple options available. For commercial use, trucks can be reserved for daily, weekly, or even monthly basis and in any quantity from one truck to a fleet of several hundred. Whether your current vehicle is in the shop and you need a one day replacement or you need a delivery done, Enterprise can provide all types of trucks to cover your needs. Rental truck sizes range from cargo van to 24′ box truck.

FAQ’s

Just remember, some things will change depending on which rental truck company you use so make sure to ask specific questions to the company directly.

-Who can drive the moving truck?
Usually require 2 forms of ID. Additional drivers can be added to rental agreement.

-What insurance should I get?
Each person must check with their own insurance company to see what is covered as far as renting a truck. If your insurance does not cover it, you can purchase insurance for an additional cost with the rental truck location. Each plan verifies depending on which rental company you are using.

-What if I need equipment?

You can rent or buy equipment with your rental truck.
-How do I pay for my rental truck?
If booking online, a major credit card may be required to hold your reservation.

-What size truck should I rent?

Size of Truck # of Rooms
26′ moving truck 4+ bedrooms
24′ moving truck 3-4 bedrooms
17′ moving truck 2-3 bedrooms
14′ moving truck 1-2 bedrooms
10′ moving truck apartment

Representing Your Company

The simplest things you do end up representing your company.

  • Answering Customer Questions:
For example, how you answer the phone and your tone of voice on the phone. It is important to know the company’s policies so you can answer any questions the customer may have. For example, the cancellation/return policy and the forms of payment that are accepted. Asking questions is a way for the customer to learn more about the company, so the more effectively you can answer questions the better.
  • Believe in what you are offering:
If you have confidence and believe in what you are selling, then the customer will have confidence in that product as well. Part of that confidence is being able to answer all the questions that may arise.  If you are unsure, the customer is going to sense that.

  • Customer Service:

Customer service is an important part of any business. It can even be the key component. There is some situations that come up that may be out of your control, but you can control how you handle each situation via customer service. How a company handles situations, reflects on that company. Familiarize yourself with all the ins and outs of the company and the product being sold. Whether it is an actual item you are selling or being a customer service representative for a company.

Making Your Website Easy to Use for Everyone

There are websites that we visit everyday and are more familiar with like Gmail, Facebook, and Google. But there are some sites we visit that we don’t use on a daily basis. So make sure you website is easy to maneuver through, so whether someone is a first time customer or repeat customer, anyone can use it.

Determine what you want viewers to see first. A blurb about the company or an immediate call the action like a “Get Quotes” button. When first coming to a website, visitors should be able to quickly understand what your website is about and easy to use. If people are looking for something in particular and Google has produced hundreds of result, they are only going to spend a couple minutes at each one. So when they land on your page, it needs to be immediately self explanatory to make them stay. If they don’t understand, they will go back to their Google results page and click on another link. So just decide, what you want the first thing for customers to see? What you think will make them stay at your website longer.


For example, HireAHelper.com is a marketplace for moving labor. Not everyone has moved before. So we want to make our site is usable for those who have moved dozens of times and those that have never moved before. When landing on our home page, there is a “Compare Prices” button and an explanation of the services offered.

Movex

“You Load, We Drive, You Save”, that is what Movex is all about. Movex is a company that will provide the truck and driver for all long distance moves from any two states. This provides customers with convenience when it comes to planning a move. Not everyone wants to drive a big rental truck across country. With Movex, you don’t have to worry about that. Movex will show up to your location with a truck and professional, experienced driver to take care of the long distance portion of your move. With Movex, you rent by amount of space according to the size house or storage unit you have. The cost is based on the space you use in the trailer. So whether it is a studio apartment or a 4 bedroom house, all you need to do is reserve the space you need.

For even more convenience, use HireAHelper.com to find local movers for loading and unloading the truck. That way you have taken care of the load, unload, truck, and driving. It is that easy! The best part is both companies are helping the customer to save by giving an alternative to full service moving companies. HireAHelper and Movex are helpful resources for customer’s looking to plan a move.

Receive free quotes for the truck at Movex.com and for the movers at HireAHelper.com.

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