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The Ultimate Guide to Choosing the Best Long-Distance Mover

Larry Armstead
How To Choose the Best Long-Distance Mover
When it comes to a long-distance move, there are many obstacles to overcome. Using long-distance movers can smooth the process and make it less stressful. When moving cross-country, hiring movers is undoubtedly the best option, but knowing what to look for in a moving company can be tricky. Ideally, you want to choose movers who keep the entire process organized and streamlined.

Long-distance movers are professionals who transport household goods and other possessions over significant distances, such as moving to a new state. 

While local moves are typically within 50 miles and generally consist of a simpler operation, long-distance moves require greater coordination and planning. The main distinctions between local and long-distance moving are distance, location, transportation modes, and cost.

While local movers often base their final cost on an hourly rate, long-distance movers use total weight and distance as the primary factors in pricing a long-distance move.

If you’re considering a long-distance move, use the tips in our ultimate guide to help you make the right decision.

What the Long-Distance Moving Company Should Include

Moving is never simple. No matter if you’re relocating from coast to coast or to a neighboring state, it’s a difficult event with many components that require careful planning, organization, and, of course, heavy lifting. A long-distance moving company should facilitate the ease of your move and not be a financial regret or burden during the process. 

In order to choose the right long-distance mover for a successful move, we suggest looking for an experienced company that is licensed and insured, offers excellent customer service and communication, trained and professional movers, and has flexibility without the customer being penalized. 

Customer Service

When selecting a moving company, look for those with excellent customer service records, including positive customer reviews and good standing with the Better Business Bureau (BBB). You should never feel as if you’re planning your move alone. 

The best companies for long-distance moving should make it easy for you to reach the customer service team, either by phone, live chat, email, or in person, so you can work with its agents to help you make an effective moving plan. It’s also important to know you can speak to someone if plans change last minute.  

Good communication

From the moment you engage with a long-distance moving company to obtain a quote up until the last item is safely delivered and unpacked, your moving company should be consistently checking in with you. 

You likely already feel overburdened, flustered, and stretched to the limit when making such a drastic change. Your moving company shouldn't add to these feelings. Instead, they should help reduce them through expert and transparent communication. 

A good moving company will clearly communicate with you to ensure they have the correct moving date, pick-up, and any special packing requirements. Further, they will make sure you’re clear on final pricing, including when payment is due and how to pay.

Should you have any questions or need to make any changes, it’s important that the moving company can provide answers and facilitate any plan alterations.

Flexibility

The best long-distance moving companies should offer a fair level of flexibility to accommodate date or plan changes. You should ask the moving company if you have to schedule their services months in advance, whether or not they can accommodate your exact moving date, how often changes can be made, and if they can offer additional services, like the use of short or long-term storage.

Find a company that lets you make changes when you need to and still puts you at the top of their list of priorities. They should be willing to accommodate your needs, thereby making the moving process go much more smoothly.

Professionalism

For a top long-distance moving company, professionalism is essential. Not only do they need to supply the labor and transportation, but they also need to ensure that everything is done in a timely and professional manner.

When checking out whether or not a long-distance moving company is professional, look to see if they are registered with the US Department of Transportation (USDOT). Do they have positive customer reviews? In addition, do they employ full-time trained movers, or do they use contractors?

Licensed and Insured

For a worry-free move, verifying a company’s credibility is a no-brainer. 

Searching the Federal Mover's Database to find insurance details and other helpful information is a great way to do this. Additionally, any reputable mover's website will have a USDOT number listed that can be used for searches.

Don't forget to ask if your belongings will be insured during the move. Even if movers are bonded and insured, that doesn't mean your items are covered during loading, unloading, and transit. 

A reputable moving company will also offer full-value protection. It may cost extra, but the company will pay for the full cost of replacing or fixing any item that gets lost or broken while in their care. 

Additional services

For a smooth and trouble-free move, look for a company that provides a wide range of options, such as professional packing and unpacking, disassembly and re-assembly of items, piano moving, car shipping, storage options, and debris/trash pickup at your former location. 

Choosing a Long-Distance Mover

Before you choose a long-distance moving company, make sure you know your budget so you can properly assess what rates are within your price range. Inquire about any hidden fees that might not be immediately apparent, and steer clear of cost estimates that sound too good to be true. 

It’s worth shopping around and obtaining quotes from a number of different moving companies or using online quote tools and having sales teams contact you.

You can determine how reputable a moving company is by reading customer reviews on Trustpilot and comparing overall ratings. It’s also a good idea to check with the BBB to see if the moving companies you are considering have been given a high rating. 

Alternatively, ask friends, family, and work colleagues if they have used a mover in the past and what their experience was like with that company. 

Check the movers' USDOT number to ensure they have the appropriate licenses and insurance coverage required to conduct business legally within the US. It's also smart to see if the movers you're considering are ProMovers with the American Trucking Association (ATA).

Conclusion

Now that you know what to look for when choosing the best long-distance moving company, you can avoid working with one that falls short. A successful relocation requires the help of licensed, experienced, and professional movers.

It’s important to do your homework before settling on a long-distance moving company. Choose a company with top-notch customer support, transparent and frequent communication, and the correct credentials, so you can rest in the knowledge that your possessions will be cared for and you can enjoy a successful move.

Larry Armstead
Larry Armstead holds a BSc in Information Technology and has worked in tech management for 20+ years. When not writing for Top10.com, Larry is a technical support manager and lead trainer for Questionmark, an award-winning assessment and proctoring platform based in New York.