Not every negative experience has to necessarily be a scam. It could simply be unpleasant in any way – poor communication, tardiness, quality of service, etc. The prejudice is that this usually happens with new movers in NY. However, in some cases, it’s not unpleasantry but actual deception, regardless of whether you are moving to New York, or within it. You may be deceived by the price, for instance. You’d agree upon one price and during the moving day, the price would change, leaving you cornered and in despair. There are also scenarios where the movers would keep your belongings hostage until they received a better price from you.
New Movers in NY – Potential Threat?
Fraudulent movers are getting more creative with each day. NY moving industry is growing since moving has become a frequent deed for New Yorkers. Given the amount and frequency of people moving – new movers in NY are starting to immerge. And God bless their soul, why shouldn’t they? In order to compete with existing professionals on the market, they have to offer something ‘better’. This better thing can in most cases be the price. They might add a few fun perks such as cool insurance, or special animal relocation vehicles – but it comes down to the same thing.
The biggest problem here is the fact that the new movers in NY will not have any credentials you can check. Since they are new they couldn’t have that many customers. There aren’t that many reviews. You even might be the first customer they get. This can be extremely risky since even they might not scam you they still might provide with a very unpleasant experience. The sad thing is that everyone with a van or a truck can call themselves movers nowadays. However, don’t fret. There still are ways you can determine who’s a risky mover and who isn’t, regardless of their lack of a portfolio.
Determining Reliability
This article is not trying to say that all new movers in NY are scammers. Odds are the majority of them aren’t. However, if there’s an off chance that one of them is we want to help you detect them. New movers or old, there are some things that they share in common in terms of what you can investigate.
We are slightly blind considering that the most relevant source of information about a moving company is their reputation. New movers in NY will have little to no reputation. This is where the other elements go to the forefront of the picture. Here are a few things you must religiously check before considering this young, fresh moving company.
#1 Certification
A moving company, new or old, must have all the appropriate certification and documentation. I personally would never hire a moving company without such credentials. Even if it is an old moving company, with an excellent portfolio. No papers – no go. This is where it becomes irrelevant whether you’re dealing with new movers in NY or old ones.
Checking the certification is rather simple. All you have to do is ask and they are obligated to provide you with all necessary information. But before we get into licenses you should check a few basic things. Basically, stalk the company.
Check Their Website
Having a decent looking website is no longer an expensive, impossible endeavor. If they are a moving company that plans on becoming serious they will have a good looking website. If this basic marketing aspect looks sloppy I personally wouldn’t bother looking in any further. Of course, this does not apply to every single moving company with a sloppy website, it just shapes my opinion and choice.
Once you reach their website, go through their info. See if they own a blog, or are they at least trying to form one. Check out their standard company info – address, phone number, etc.
Check the Company Social Media Activity
Try to see if they have any social media activity. Facebook, Instagram, Tweeter, the works. There are several things that can come out of this:
- you might see pictures of their staff and trucks
- you might see if they have sections where they communicate with potential customers
- you’ll have a fast way to track any potential new deals they might have
Now, if they have no social media – it doesn’t mean they are unreliable. It just means they are not utilizing this technology and that is ok.
Check their USDOT Number
Ok, this is the most important thing you can check for when we’re talking about certification. the USDOT (U.S. Department of Transportation) number represents that they are legally licensed to perform moving duty. Honestly, regardless of how good of a price they offer if they lack this number – it’s a no-go for me.
#2 On-Site Estimation vs Phone Estimation
If a company attempts to do a price estimation over the phone they will most likely turn out to be highly unreliable. Observe this from a logical standpoint – how the heck can they make an even remotely accurate estimation of something they haven’t seen. They are definitely not that experienced – they are new movers in NY. You don’t see movers with 10+ years of experience doing estimations over the phone. It’s as good as guessing.
If your new potential mover offers to come to the site and make an estimation like that – you are probably looking at reliable movers in NY. New or old.
#3 Large Deposits
Large deposits are not only signs of unreliable movers – but usually a red light for moving scams. No new mover on the market will demand large deposits if they are trying to build a good name for themselves. Usually, such efforts lead to a one-time fraud after which they disappear. A reliable mover will never demand large deposits, on the contrary, a reliable mover might not even ask for any deposit – just a signature on a binding paper stating you won’t back off of the initial agreement.