Consumer Moving Rights & Responsibilities Explained
If you’re hiring a company to move your household furniture, goods, and other items, and it’s to either another state or another country, there are certain documents that must be given to you by the movers. This article will explain some of the information in the primary document, Your Moving Rights and Responsibilities, as well as some of the other literature that movers are required to give you. The Rights and Responsibilities document is about 25 pages long so this will serve as a brief overview.
Moving Rights, Responsibilities, & Documents
Aside from your Moving Rights and Responsibilities, there are a few other documents that movers must also provide you with. As a consumer, your primary responsibility is to read and understand all of the literature, which includes the following:
- An estimate in writing
- Ready To Move brochure
- Claims handling & arbitration procedures
- Your Moving Rights & Responsibilities
- Tariff information
Some of these terms may be foreign to you so we’ll take a moment to explain them in basic language. Clearly, you should know the estimate, cost, or price quote with the key being that it should be given in writing as part of the contract.
The Ready To Move brochure is a simple document that explains who to contact if you have any issues or questions and it also has a moving checklist with helpful tips. A link to the PDF of the brochure is provided at the bottom of this page under the resources section.
Claims handling and arbitration involve how payment is made and what happens in case of a dispute. Both processes should be clearly laid out in certain terms by the moving company or movers.
Your Moving Rights and Responsibilities is a longer document than the Ready To Move brochure and goes into more detail regarding what movers and shippers are required to do. This article sums of the major points, but you can click here if you’d like to read the PDF in its entirety.
Tariff information essentially just means the price you’ll be charged for the services provided. All services and associated costs should be listed and itemized in a way that is obvious and direct. Liability, loss, and damages are detailed as part of the tariff information so make sure you take a good look at it.
If you plan to relocate internationally or make an interstate move, contact us today at the number at the top of the page! We provide FREE estimates to all parties, both over the phone and by email, and our staff is happy to answer your questions!
Customer Responsibilities When Hiring A Moving Company
As a consumer, you’re responsibilities are straightforward and are mainly there to help ensure that everything goes smoothly. Let’s briefly go over the expectations of the movers and what you can do to make sure everything goes off without a hitch.
It’s important that you read and understand all documentation presented to you. Some companies are differentiated by what’s mentioned in the fine print. It goes without saying that you should be prepared for both pickup and delivery when the time comes.
If there are any changes to the service you need, however minor, communicate the information to the driver or shipping company as soon as possible. This also applies to availability and time/date changes for delivery and pickup. And finally, if there are any claims due to damages or contract stipulations that weren’t met, be sure to file them as soon as possible. The longer it takes to get a claim filed, the longer the case will take be resolved.
Moving Resources
- Ready To Move brochure - The Ready To Move brochure has a moving checklist, an explanation of the terms you’ll need to know when hiring movers, as well as information about how best to research moving companies.
- Selecting A Mover - This resource is also from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and it covers the basics of how to choose a mover. Topics covered include important things to keep in mind and how to use their database to find a registered mover.
Written By:Joe Webster
Joe Webster began his journey in the auto transport field by attending the University of Southern California (USC), where he graduated with a Bachelor of Business Marketing.
After college, he started his career in the auto transport industry from the bottom up and has done virtually every job there is to do at A-1 Auto Transport, including but not limited to: Truck Driver, Dispatch, Sales, PR, Bookkeeping, Transport Planner, Transport Manager, International Transport Manager, Brokering, Customer Service, and Marketing. Working with his mentor Tony Taylor, Joe Webster has learned the ins and outs of this industry which is largely misunderstood.
With over 30 years experience in the industry, we've been helping people ship their vehicles, motorcycles, RV's, heavy equipment, household goods and more across the country or overseas without a hitch. Ask us anything.
