On Your Moving Day

From an unpacking plan to traveling with pets, everything in this section is dedicated to tips for your moving day. What’s a good idea? What should you avoid? You will have all the information you need.

Be on hand when the movers arrive. Discuss the delivery arrangements fully with your mover. Have beds stripped and ready to be packed. Save your energy - let the moving crew disassemble goods. Read the Bill of Lading before you sign it. Tell your mover how to reach you at your destination. Keep in contact with the mover’s agent at your destination while you are in transit.

Traveling with Pets 

Travel carriers are useful when your pet is traveling by car; they are mandatory when your pet is traveling by air. Your pet’s carrier should be durable and smooth-edged with opaque sides, a grille door and several ventilation holes on each side. Choose a carrier with a secure door and door latch. If you are traveling by air, your carrier should have food and water dishes. Select a carrier that has enough room to permit your animal to sit and lie down but is not large enough to allow your pet to be tossed about during travel. You can make the carrier more comfortable by lining the interior with shredded newspaper or a towel. It’s wise to acclimate your pet to the carrier in the months or weeks preceding your trip. Permit your pet to explore the carrier. Place your pet’s food dish inside the carrier and confine him or her to the carrier for brief periods. Your pet should wear a sturdy collar with ID tags throughout the trip. The tags should have both your permanent address and telephone number and an address and telephone number where you or a contact can be reached during your travels. Carry a current photograph of your pet with you. If your pet is lost during a trip, a photograph will make it easier for others (airline employees, the police, shelter workers, and others) to help you find your pet.

Delivery

Generally, your belongings will be transported in a van along with those of other families in the same general direction. This helps to keep your costs down. Delivery is made on any of the several consecutive days agreed upon before the move began. Make sure the mover knows how to contact you to schedule actual delivery. If you cannot be reached at your destination, the mover may place your shipment in storage to avoid delaying other shipments. This can mean additional charges for storage and handling.

An Unpacking Plan

You’ve made the move to your new location, and now it’s time to unpack. All your boxes were identified and placed in corresponding rooms. So, all you have to do is start unpacking, right? Wrong. Here are some constructive ways from moving experts to approach this chore and achieve the best results. Just keep in mind, unpacking takes a lot of time. Start with boxes containing essential items such as clothes, products and papers you’ll need for your first two weeks. This can include items such as dish soap, sponges, a jar of peanut butter, medication for family and pets, instant coffee, pet food, a radio, a knife, extra light bulbs, pair of scissors, garbage can and a small emergency kit. Next, you’ll want to unpack your kitchen items. By doing this, it will make you feel in control of one major aspect of daily living – eating. Even if you don’t have time to unpack all the boxes, go for the pots and pans, coffee machine, toaster and utensils you’ll need for cooking. Prepare the bedrooms for a good first night’s sleep. Set up each of the beds and unpack the sheets for each bedroom. Try to make each of the bedrooms as cozy as possible. Unpacking boxes for the bathroom is the next logical step. Here, it’s important to unpack and locate cosmetics, toiletries, Kleenex, toilet paper and small appliances you rely on such as an electric toothbrush or a lighted mirror.

Claims

Best practices from the American Moving and Storage Association suggest that if any of your household goods are damaged or lost, report the facts promptly and in detail on the van driver’s copy (original) of the inventory sheet before you sign it. If you notice damage after unpacking, a claim must be filed within nine months after delivery. However, it is to your advantage to report damage as soon as possible. The mover must acknowledge receipt of your claim within 30 days and must deny or make an offer within 120 days of receipt of your claim. When making a claim or considering a settlement offer, keep in mind the amount of liability that you declared on your shipment. For example, if the value declared on your shipment was $5,000, the mover’s maximum liability for loss or damage to the articles in your shipment is $5,000. Claims for more than this amount will be declined because they are in excess of the mover’s liability that you declared on your shipment.