When it comes to moving, dealing with legit movers must be your priority. It similar to buying an iPhone – you wouldn’t buy a phone that only looks like iPhone but doesn’t have the seal when you are out to buy an iPhone (check out our iPhone app). It’s almost the same with the moving services – you will be paying quite a lot of money to move, so you want to make sure you hire a licensed moving company, not some scammers. We will share with you how to verify if a mover is a licensed one and how to choose a moving company.
Licensed Movers With the Department of Transportation
Today most of us when shopping around for movers start online. So, when you find a few moving companies online you should consider how professional is their website. That’s not going to tell you of course that the mover is licensed. Look around their website to find their DOT and MC license numbers. It should be visible on every page. With these numbers, you go to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s website to check if the movers are registered. FMCSA is a department within the Department of Transportation that ensures the safety and proper management of motor carriers. Thus, they require that all motor carriers are registered with them. You can check the movers’ licensing requirements on protectyourmove.gov. In order to maintain their US DOT number moving companies must comply with all FMSCA safety regulations. That includes inspect vehicles, participate in safety training meetings, keep logs of all trips and undergo annual log audits.
Licensed Movers or Moving Brokers
All moving companies in the USA should be registeres with the US Department of Transportation.
Sometimes when you fill a moving quote on a website, you are contacted by moving brokers and not by licensed moving companies. What moving brokers usually do is to connect you with a licensed mover. Please keep in mind that moving brokers should also be licensed to operate as a broker in order to provide you with that service. Double check that you are dealing with a licensed company. You can also get reliable free moving estimates by professional licensed companies – just fill our free moving estimator.
State Regulatory Commissions When Choosing a Mover
When you are looking for movers, you should also check if they are licensed to perform your type of move. Some companies are restricted to executing only local moves, while others can perform long distance and commercial moves. You can check about the proper operating authority number by contacting the respective state regulatory commission. Therefore, you should be looking for a MC, FF or MX numbers. Most states require all movers to register with them, so you may want to check that. While the moving company is registered with your state, if you are moving long distance, you should check if the movers are registered to perform moves to the state of your destination and all states in between.
Therefore, licensed movers means not only registered with the Department of Transportation, but with the local regulating authority. For long distance moves movers must be registered with the FMSCA in all the sates they operate. Double check their US DOT registration and moving license for the states of their operation. For further references, you should read some licensed moving companies reviews. The license solely does not guarantee quality movers and services. Go online and read licensed movers reviews which will help you decide what movers to hire. There are plenty of places to check consumers ratings and today it is important to consider what other customers are saying for the moving companies.
Let us know if you have any questions and share your moving experience.
