Hiring professional movers can save you a lot of work and aggravation, especially when everyone understands what’s involved. The best way to ensure that situation is for all parties to communicate effectively.
From the mover’s point-of-view, having a contract that is clear and agreed upon is the number one way to achieve success.
In Ontario, service agreements with moving companies come under the umbrella of Consumer and Corporate Affairs. When we provide you with a written quote in person, by law we cannot charge you greater than 10 per cent over the amount stipulated in the contract – unless you change the conditions of the move.
At TWO MEN AND A TRUCK Canada, we price by the hour, whatever it takes. If you call and ask to have 100 boxes moved and we show up to find 200, of course we have to charge more than what we agreed upon. That is considered a change to the conditions of the move.
Moving takes time, and there are many unexpected situations that might cause a delay and make your price go up. For example, the person who moves out of your apartment building before you may be running late, and the elevator is tied up longer than you planned. For a mover, the meter is running the entire time.
Sometimes customers neglect to tell us that they are giving a large furniture item to a friend or relative and want us to drop it off on the way. This is a change to the conditions of the move and will cost more. The most common glitch is that the key to the new home isn’t available when it should be and someone has to drive somewhere to get it. We bill from dock to dock, so anything that increases the time also ups the price. When one of these unexpected happenings occurs, the mover will pull out a form called “Revision to Estimate” to explain the change and everyone signs it.
Occasionally we get college or university students asking to quote on moving them from or to separate addresses. This is do-able, as long as they understand they pay for our crews’ time. It may well be more cost effective than hiring movers separately to have a number of student’s belongings on the same truck.
We hire our own staff rather than causal or day labour. Our employees are trained moving professionals who are bonded and insured.
Make sure you hire a reputable mover whose crew members are covered by Workers Compensation and who has a bona fide phone number linked to their office to call if and when you need to, especially on moving day. When all is said and done, customers should check with reliable sources to ensure they are hiring a bona fide professional moving company.
At TWO MEN AND A TRUCK Canada, we use the latest in technology when it comes to hardware and software to help with estimating. A contract lets you and your mover know where you stand. Read it carefully and ask any questions you have. An informed consumer is always a happier one.