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moving from ny to miami, thinking of using PODS. Move date is sketchy and like that they will store my things till i'm able to get to miami. Has anyone used them? Any other suggestions?
PODs, PackRat, Relo-Cubes, etc are all about the same. They bring a mini container to your home, drop it off (most are curb level so no ramps or lifts are needed), you fill it, they pick it up, they transport it to your new location, they drop it off, you unload it, they pick up the empty container. They can store it as long as you need, they can have you unload some things and store whatever you dont need. Many options.
I used pods to go from southern TX to Iowa (about 1,200 miles). It took about a week for the POD to arrive, we had it in storage for about 50 days and the local owner was great with allowing us access, even if something came up at the last minute (or even past the last minute). There was no damage to the items in any way, and the pod itself was sturdy and secure. When we bought our house here PODs delivered straight onto the driveway, a day later they picked up the empty unit and we were done!
We really could not of made the move without them and still have all of our stuff. They were great all along the way, definitely would use them again. Just be sure to take any items you need right away with you, unless you could go 2 weeks or so without them.
Before you get too far along in your relocation planning, check to make sure the companies you're considering service the areas you're moving from and to.
Many state and metropolitan traffic regulations, community covenants, and real estate lease contracts prohibit the placement of mobile/portable containers or unattended trailers on public access thoroughfares, state operated roadways and privately owned parking areas.
I considered PODS for my next move. I've been researching the last few weeks as I prepare for my next big move and all my research on PODS I've found an over whelming number of complaints. I'm looking hard at ABF's relocubes as so far I'm finding most of the talk is good. They have a good reputation with the BBB among other things. I'm not done researching, but so far everything i've read has me scared to use PODS and has me leaning heavily on Relocubes. With that said, this just my opinion based on research, I have never used either. Yet.
Where are you doing your research, Ankhharu, what size container(s) are you considering, and what is your criteria for acceptablity?
Both ABF and PODS have good reputations for the types of business they specialize in.
ABF is a general freight common carrier that developed a mobile/portable storage container product that it markets as a moving service. Their ReloCube comes in only one size.
PODS is a mobile/portable container storage product that it markets as a moving service. They offer three sizes of containers. Transportation is arranged through a variety of general freight common and contract carriers.
Both moving services are cheaper than normal full service movers approved by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) because both rely on their customers to provide their own material, equipment and loading/unloading labor to use their moving services.
uPack offers Full Value Protection for articles packed and moved using their containers, but only if the customer agrees to pay to have an affiliated labor service provide the manpower for both loading and unloading.
This increased level of motor carrier liability is similar to that required of regular licensed household goods movers, but, as a general freight common carrier, ABF ISNOT required to comply with the FMCSA's federal consumer protection regulations for the transportation of household goods in interstate commerce as outlined in 49CFR375.
We are using PackRat to move from South Carolina to Florida. The scheduling process has gone very well so far (we move in June). Our household goods need to put into storage for 1 or more months and using containers seems like a good idea to avoid handling things twice. PackRat provides one month free climate controlled storage which was the deciding factor for us.
Where are you doing your research, Ankhharu, what size container(s) are you considering, and what is your criteria for acceptablity?
Both ABF and PODS have good reputations for the types of business they specialize in.
ABF is a general freight common carrier that developed a mobile/portable storage container product that it markets as a moving service. Their ReloCube comes in only one size.
PODS is a mobile/portable container storage product that it markets as a moving service. They offer three sizes of containers. Transportation is arranged through a variety of general freight common and contract carriers.
Both moving services are cheaper than normal full service movers approved by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) because both rely on their customers to provide their own material, equipment and loading/unloading labor to use their moving services.
uPack offers Full Value Protection for articles packed and moved using their containers, but only if the customer agrees to pay to have an affiliated labor service provide the manpower for both loading and unloading.
This increased level of motor carrier liability is similar to that required of regular licensed household goods movers, but, as a general freight common carrier, ABF ISNOT required to comply with the FMCSA's federal consumer protection regulations for the transportation of household goods in interstate commerce as outlined in 49CFR375.
I don't have a comprehensive list of all the sites I read, but I did a google search on each one using various search phrases. Here are a few to get you started.
DO NOT USE PODS for anything other than local storage or local moving.
They will charge you out the behind for a cross country move... they wanted over $2000 just to move my POD from Omaha to Louisville! I had to fly back one-way to Omaha, rent a Penske truck, load it at the PODS warehouse, and drive that to Louisville... for half the price that they wanted! Even the full service mover I used from Tucson to Omaha was less than half of the cost of PODS!
I hear much better things about other relo-cube companies, though, so check those out. Always ask for quotes... PODS was very shifty about giving me a quote from Omaha to Louisville... they wouldn't give me any sort of estimate for the move until after they already had my stuff in storage since I couldn't just give them a zip code for them to give me an estimate.... I unfortunately had no choice as the move was getting closer fast and I was running out of options.
So stay away from PODS... there are much better options!
DO NOT USE PODS for anything other than local storage or local moving.
They will charge you out the behind for a cross country move... they wanted over $2000 just to move my POD from Omaha to Louisville! I had to fly back one-way to Omaha, rent a Penske truck, load it at the PODS warehouse, and drive that to Louisville... for half the price that they wanted! Even the full service mover I used from Tucson to Omaha was less than half of the cost of PODS!
I hear much better things about other relo-cube companies, though, so check those out. Always ask for quotes... PODS was very shifty about giving me a quote from Omaha to Louisville... they wouldn't give me any sort of estimate for the move until after they already had my stuff in storage since I couldn't just give them a zip code for them to give me an estimate.... I unfortunately had no choice as the move was getting closer fast and I was running out of options.
So stay away from PODS... there are much better options!
My cost was around $1,800 to go the 1,200 miles and there was nothing shifty about them. They gave me a quote over the phone at the very beginning, I just told them what city I was going to and they replied with the cost asap. Yeah the price was high, but there was no other way to make the trip with all our items/animals.
Regarding the PODS negative review on BBB website - I read those before too and was a bit nervous about it. However, the claims such as bug/rat infestation getting into the pod seemed impossible with the unit we had atleast, MUCH more likely the guy had eggs infestation or rats hidden away. In fact I noticed a sticker in the unit that recommended bug bombing before you store it and checking for roddents stowing away - my wife and I looked at eachother and laughed and referenced that Guy on the BBB site. The complaints about horrible local owners seems very possibly, as each location pretty much is on its own (setting hours, etc from what I gather). Luckily our local Pods Guy was superb and very willing to help us out.
There's a lot of negative on that site because people like me who had a good experience haven't gone out of our way to write a positive one up. I've been meaning to add our experience on there but haven't gotten around to it, in fact I forgot about it until I saw this thread.
And there's more people like me out there!
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