Choosing a Mover Safely: How to Vet, Insure and Avoid Scams
Vet a moving company with three checks — authority and registration, the right coverage, and scam red flags — and tell an interstate (federal) move from a local one.
Read the guide →The moving library
Better prepared.
Fewer open questions.
24 practical guides to help you plan the work, understand the documents and keep decisions in writing.
24 guides found
How to Check a Moving Company's License and USDOT Registration
Confirm a mover is legally registered before you sign: find and check its USDOT and MC number in FMCSA SAFER and protectyourmove.gov, use state household-goods license lookups, and tell a carrier from a broker.
Read the guide →How to Avoid Moving Scams and Rogue Movers
Spot moving scam red flags before paying or loading. Compare estimates, identify the carrier, check deposit terms and use FMCSA and BBB complaint information.
Read the guide →Scammed by a Mover or Goods Held Hostage: What to Do
Document a mover’s payment demand, request delivery, file an FMCSA or state complaint, and pursue a separate carrier dispute or arbitration.
Read the guide →Moving Insurance and Valuation: What Actually Protects Your Belongings
Understand mover valuation, separate moving insurance and homeowners or renters coverage. Check limits, packing conditions, storage handoffs and policy dates.
Read the guide →Full Value Protection vs. Released Value Protection Explained
Compare Full Value and Released Value Protection, the 60-cent-per-pound limit, FVP charges and deductibles, and the paperwork to check before loading.
Read the guide →The complete moving checklist: plan your move step by step
Plan a household move, compare service responsibilities, coordinate building access, check interstate moving documents, and keep arrival essentials accessible.
Read the guide →Building access for a move: COI, elevator and parking | MoversHere
Arrange building access for your move: request a certificate of insurance, confirm elevator and dock bookings, clarify fees and check truck parking permissions.
Read the guide →Apartment Move-In Checklist for Your First Days as a Renter
Confirm apartment access, document the empty unit, arrange utilities and renters insurance, and follow up on building and dorm move-in tasks.
Read the guide →Change of address and utilities: who to notify when you move
Arrange USPS forwarding, update important accounts, coordinate utility stop and start dates, and track confirmations with a who-to-notify checklist.
Read the guide →How to Build a Moving Document Folder and Home Inventory
Assemble one moving document folder and build a box and home inventory you can rely on: what paperwork to keep, spreadsheet vs app, and the records that matter for taxes or a claim.
Read the guide →Moving-out checklist to close out your rental or sold home
Close out your rental or sold home with steps for notice, cleaning, condition photos, utilities, mail, keys and a gap before your next place.
Read the guide →Moving timeline: a week-by-week countdown to moving day
Plan your move from eight weeks out through your first week at home, with packing priorities, service confirmations and long-distance delivery adjustments.
Read the guide →Moving to Another State Checklist and Interstate Planning Guide
Plan an interstate move with checks for mover estimates and contracts, destination records, utilities, insurance coverage dates and the gap before delivery.
Read the guide →New Home Essentials for a First Apartment | MoversHere
Choose first-apartment essentials to buy now, reuse what you have, and postpone extras. Includes a printable room-by-room shopping list.
Read the guide →New house move-in checklist: first things to do as a homeowner
Secure your new house, confirm utilities and HOA setup, check alarms, document condition and organize your first weeks as a homeowner.
Read the guide →Storage between leases: bridging a gap between homes
Bridging a gap between homes: compare self-storage, portable containers, full-service storage and mover storage-in-transit, and what to ask about access, insurance and cost before you commit.
Read the guide →Moving estimates and contracts: what each document means and what to check
Your moving contract is really a set of documents - the written estimate, the bill of lading and more. See what each one means, which fixes the price, and what to check before you sign.
Read the guide →Binding vs. Non-Binding Moving Estimates: Which One Protects You
Binding, binding not-to-exceed, and non-binding moving estimates compared: how each type affects your final bill and the 110% collect-on-delivery limit on interstate household moves.
Read the guide →Moving Company Estimates: How They're Made and How to Read Yours
What a moving company estimate is, how movers produce it from a survey, the fields a valid written estimate must show under 49 CFR Part 375, and how to read yours.
Read the guide →Moving Company Extra Charges: What to Check in Your Estimate
Check access, packing, waiting and storage charges against your estimate, service changes and work records. Use a copyable request to question an invoice line.
Read the guide →Moving Contracts and the Order for Service: What to Check Before Signing
Check your moving agreement against the estimate, understand order-for-service references, and resolve changes, payment terms and blanks before signing.
Read the guide →The Moving Bill of Lading: What It Means and What to Check
Check your moving bill of lading against the estimate and inventory. Review carrier details, dates, payment, valuation, signatures and missing information.
Read the guide →The 110% Rule for Non-Binding Moving Estimates
Learn what the federal 110% rule limits at delivery, how to calculate the amount, check weight tickets, and respond when an interstate mover raises the price.
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