Tip #2 - Be careful when using Internet mover referrals

You may have seen recent news stories about the proliferation of scam movers who have been abusing customers across the U.S. Typically; they come in with an estimate that is much lower than legitimate movers. However, once these scam movers take possession of your household goods, they significantly increase the price and refuse to unload your possessions until you pay the higher price, usually in cash.

Here are some ways to protect yourself from these rogue movers:

• Never rely on a price estimate over the phone or over the Internet. A legitimate mover will insist on a home survey of your household goods whether in person or on the phone, in order to receive a more accurate price estimate. Magnum will always provide you with a written estimate.
• If the price seems too good to be true, it probably is. Most honest professional movers are competitive, and their prices will differ, but be within a reasonable range. If a mover comes in with an estimate way below all the others, that should be a red flag to examine the basis of the estimate before accepting it.
• Legitimate movers cannot legally ask you for a deposit unless it is for advance packing materials. However, scam movers frequently require large deposits even for the simplest and least expensive moves.
• The majority of legitimate interstate moving estimates are based on the weight of your shipment while some scam movers will attempt to bill you on square footage your goods take up in the truck.
• Household good brokers whose names sound like real movers, which they are not, host many Internet moving sites. These brokers turn over your shipment to a mover, many of which are rogue movers instead of professionals. Be sure to ask if your shipment is being brokered and insist that the identity of the licensed mover be provided prior to doing business with a Web-based broker.
• The principle governing industry tariff specifies that interstate household goods rates (prices) should be based on the weight of your shipment (and that weight should be determined on a scale that has been certified by an official state agency). If the mover you are considering tells you that he is going to base your charges on the number of cubic feet in your shipment (which means there is no way for you to verify the amount you will be charged), you may want to consider using another mover.

Keep in mind that the pricing of local, intrastate and international shipments can differ from interstate shipments. Also, intrastate shipments are governed by state - not federal - regulations. Local and relatively short distance intrastate moves are usually priced by the hourly cost of labor needed to accomplish the move. International shipments are priced on a rate per hundredweight times the total size of the shipment for all services, which includes ocean transportation.