Moving company scams and your rights in an interstate move

Moving to another state is stressful enough. The last thing you need is a mover charging you double on arrival or holding your things on a truck. Federal law gives you clear rights in an interstate move, and this guide explains them: how to choose a registered mover, which estimate to ask for, how much you can be charged at delivery, how to protect your things and how to file a claim if something goes wrong.

Of a non-binding estimate: the most you can be required to pay at delivery

110%⁴

Per pound per article: all the free protection pays

60 cents⁵

From delivery to file your claim in writing

9 months⁵

Choose a registered mover

The first step is the most important one. The FTC explains that movers that handle interstate moves must be registered with the Department of Transportation (DOT), and that you can check their registration and details on DOT’s website.¹ The federal booklet adds that you should avoid movers and brokers that are not registered with FMCSA, the DOT agency that regulates moves, or that refuse to see your things in person.⁵

Be careful with brokers. A broker is a company that arranges your move with a registered mover, but does not move your things. It can give you an estimate on a mover’s behalf only if it has a written agreement with that mover and uses its tariff.⁵ Always ask: who will drive the truck and load my things? That name should appear on your papers.

Before you hire, the FTC recommends:¹

• Looking on the mover’s website for a local address, contact details and proof of its registration, licenses and insurance.
• Reading reviews and searching the company’s name with the words “complaint” or “scam.”
• Getting written estimates from several movers.

The estimate: binding or non-binding

The mover must do a physical survey of your things and give you a written estimate based on it. You can waive the survey, but only in writing and by signing before loading.³ The FTC puts it this way: a serious company looks at your things in person or asks you to describe them fully before sending a price.¹

Before you sign the transportation contract, the mover must tell you which type of estimate it is:³

Two types of estimate

Guaranteed price

Binding

• Guarantees the total cost for the items and services listed
• The mover may charge for it
• At delivery, the most is 100% of the estimate, plus what you added later

Estimated price

Non-binding

• What the mover believes it will cost; the final bill is based on actual weight
• You cannot be charged for it
• At delivery, the most is 110%; the rest is billed after 30 days

With either one, ask for the estimate in writing, signed and dated.

Other estimate rules that protect you:³

• The mover must tell you which forms of payment it accepts at delivery.
• You and the mover must sign the estimate, and you must get a dated copy.
• The estimate cannot be changed after your things are loaded.

With the estimate, the mover must also give you, on paper or by link, two DOT booklets: “Ready to Move?” and “Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move.” And before you sign the transportation contract, it must give you notice that you can see its tariff, a summary of its arbitration program and of how it handles complaints, with its main phone number.²

Moving day: the inventory and the papers

At loading, the mover must make an inventory: a list of your things that notes any damage or wear they already had. You and the mover must sign every page, and you have the right to note anything you disagree with. Before you sign, check that all your things are listed and that each item’s condition is correct.⁵

You will also sign the bill of lading, which is the transportation contract. Check that it has the pickup and delivery dates you agreed on. And one key rule: do not sign blank documents.⁵

Practical tips for that day:

• Take photos of your most valuable things before packing, and of how they were loaded.
• Keep your important documents, medicine and money with you, not on the truck.
• Keep a copy of the inventory with the bill of lading: it is your receipt.

At delivery: how much you can be charged

This is when many scams show up: the truck arrives and you are asked for a lot more money to unload your things. Federal law sets a limit. The most a mover can demand at delivery is:⁴

• 100% of a binding estimate, or 110% of a non-binding one,
• plus additional services you requested after signing the contract,
• plus, if they apply, impracticable operations charges (for example, when the truck cannot reach your door), which cannot exceed 15% of all other charges.

If you pay that, the mover must give you your things. If it does not, it is holding your shipment hostage, in violation of federal law.⁵ Anything still owed on a non-binding estimate is billed after 30 days from delivery.⁵ On a non-binding estimate, the mover must also weigh your shipment and give you the weight tickets with the invoice.⁵

Careful: if you cannot pay 110% at delivery, the mover may put your things in storage at your expense.⁵ That is why it helps to have that money ready, in the form of payment the mover said it accepts. To figure out how much to set aside, put the moving payment in your family budget, and if you will also rent, the move-in cash calculator adds up the deposit and first month’s rent.

Example with real numbers

A family with a non-binding estimate

An example in words, not a real case, of how the 110% limit works.

Their estimate

Non-binding, in writing, after the mover saw their things

On arrival, the shipment weighed more than estimated

The mover can demand only 110% of the estimate at delivery

They asked for an extra room to be packed after signing

That service can be charged on top of the 110%

The rest of the bill

Is billed after 30 days from delivery

If they pay 110% and the mover will not deliver

The mover is holding their things in violation of federal law

The rules come from the federal moving regulations.⁴⁵ Use the family budget to plan how much to have ready.

Run it with your numbersFamily budget

Protect your things: Full Value or Released Value

Every interstate mover is liable for the value of your things, but there are two levels, and the difference is huge:⁵

• Full Value Protection. It is included in the estimate and applies unless you waive it in writing. If something is lost or damaged, the mover repairs or replaces it. It raises the cost of the move; the minimum valuation used to price it is $6.00 per pound times your shipment’s weight.
• Released Value (waiving the protection). It costs nothing, but it pays only up to 60 cents per pound per article. A 10-pound item worth $1,000 would be paid no more than $6.00.

Think carefully before you waive Full Value Protection. The FTC also recommends asking each mover what it charges to insure your goods and what it pays for damage.¹ If you have renters insurancerenters insuranceRenters insurance, also called tenants insurance, protects your belongings and protects you when you rent. The landlord's insurance covers the building, but not your furniture, clothes or electronics. It usually includes three coverages: your personal property, even if it is stolen away from home; additional living expenses if a covered loss forces you to move out for a while; and personal liability if someone is hurt in your home. A standard policy does not cover floods, which are insured separately. Some landlords require it.See the full definitionClose or homeowners insurance, ask your insurer whether it covers your things during the move; our renters insurance guide explains what it covers.

If something arrives broken or missing: how to file a claim

At delivery, check your things against the inventory. If there is new damage, write it on the inventory and ask the mover to note it on its copy. Do not sign the final receipt until it is accurate, and do not sign anything that releases the mover from all liability: the rules do not allow it.⁵

Your claim, step by step

1. 1. Note the damage at delivery

   Delivery day

   Write it on the inventory and ask the mover to note it on its copy.⁵

2. 2. File the claim in writing

   Within 9 months

   Send it to the mover or its insurer, with photos, receipts and the inventory.⁵

3. 3. Wait for the acknowledgment

   30 days

   The mover has 30 days to confirm it received your claim.⁵

4. 4. Get the decision

   120 days

   It has 120 days to pay, decline or make an offer; if it needs more time, it tells you in writing.⁵

5. 5. If you disagree, request arbitration

   After the decision

   The mover must have an arbitration program and cannot charge you more than half the cost of starting it.⁶

FMCSA cannot resolve your claim for you. If you cannot reach a settlement, you have the right to request arbitration from the mover; arbitration is required for the mover, but not for you.⁵ And if your whole shipment was lost, the mover cannot charge you for the transportation, unless the loss was your fault.⁵ For small disputes, your county’s small claims courtsmall claims courtSmall claims court is a state court for money cases that stay under a limit each state sets. The rules are simpler than in other courts, and many people represent themselves. In California, for example, you cannot bring a lawyer to the hearing, although you can ask one for advice beforehand. The judge's decision carries the same weight as a judgment from any other court. But if you win, it is usually up to you to collect the money: the court does not collect it for you.See the full definitionClose may be another option; ask free legal aidlegal aidLegal aid is the free civil legal help that nonprofit organizations and their lawyers provide to low-income people in civil, not criminal, matters. In housing, that includes representing families facing eviction or foreclosure, alongside matters such as custody, child support, protection from domestic violence and access to benefits. In the United States, the Legal Services Corporation, created by Congress, funds a nationwide network of these organizations; its finder points you to the one in your area. Each sets its own income limits.See the full definitionClose.

Report problems: if the move was interstate, to the Department of Transportation; if it was a scam, also to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.¹ If you already paid someone who disappeared, our guide I was scammed, what now? explains what to do first, and the complete guide to housing scams covers other scams that show up during a move.

If this is you

Your whole family is moving to another state

Get three written estimates after they see your things, and check each mover's registration.¹

You have little money for the move

With a non-binding estimate, have up to 110% ready; if you cannot pay it, your things may go to storage at your cost.⁵

The truck arrived and they want more money

The most is 100% of a binding or 110% of a non-binding estimate, plus what you added.⁴

You are leaving a rental apartment

Take photos of your things and the inventory; they will help with your claim and your deposit.⁵

You are offered a very low price by phone, without seeing your things

Be wary: the mover must do a physical survey, unless you waive it in writing.³

They demand full payment in cash up front

The FTC says not to hire anyone who demands cash or a big deposit.¹

Mistakes that cost you

• Mistake: Hiring based on a phone price without the mover seeing your things.

  Instead: Ask for a written estimate based on a physical survey.³

• Mistake: Signing the bill of lading with blank spaces.

  Instead: Do not sign blank documents; check dates and amounts first.⁵

• Mistake: Choosing the free protection without thinking it through.

  Instead: It pays only 60 cents per pound per article; compare it with Full Value Protection.⁵

• Mistake: Paying whatever they ask so they will unload.

  Instead: The most is 100% or 110% of the estimate, plus what you added.⁴

• Mistake: Signing the final receipt without checking the inventory.

  Instead: Note the damage on the inventory before you sign.⁵

• Mistake: Waiting more than 9 months to file a claim.

  Instead: File your claim in writing within 9 months of delivery.⁵

• Mistake: Hiring a broker thinking it is the moving company.

  Instead: Ask who will move your things and check that company's registration.⁵

What to do this week

1. List three movers and check their registration on the Department of Transportation’s website.¹
2. Ask each one for a written estimate after they see your things.³
3. Ask for the “Ready to Move?” and “Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move” booklets.²
4. Decide which protection you want and ask for it in writing.⁵
5. Figure out how much to have ready on delivery day in your family budget.⁴
6. Read Moving to another state: checklist for the rest of your moving tasks.