Whether you are a first-time mover, or you have changed your address countless times – you will still fear the same things. Not having enough time to do everything, forgetting some important items, not packing things properly – these are all very real and very common fears you might be having. However, one of the biggest fear people who move have concerns their professional moving companies in Jeddah. What happens if they are not who they want you to believe? As you already know, good movers will make your move easy, while the bad ones can make it only harder. But what happens when the movers want to scam you or steal from you? How do you recognize and avoid moving scams? In this article, we give you some of the most common red flags you need to look out for. Keep reading to find out more!
What are the signs by which you can avoid moving scams
First, know that, when looking into the red flags, you can never be one hundred percent sure a moving company wants to scam you. Sometimes, what might look unprofessional might just be a moving startup. Other times, there are fraudulent movers who might make you feel comfortable – until your things go missing. Still, there are certain things that, when you notice them, should prompt you to (at least) question how valid the movers are. These include:
- how they present themselves on their website or over the phone,
- the way they address you over the phone,
- the air of (in)experience they possess and
- how much you feel like you will need to avoid moving scams.
Simply put, if there ever is a time during the moving process that you feel uncomfortable with the relocation services in Saudi Arabia, you should address those concerns. Professional, reliable movers will want to talk to you about these and figure out a way to fix their services. However, there are certain things that don’t require you to involve the company itself that can help you make a decision.
Screen the moving company
One of the ways in which you can avoid moving scams is to carefully screen the company before you start working with them. These things include checking the company’s reputation, their licenses, and also taking note about how they handle the estimate and money. Another thing you can do is to learn as much as you can about top moving scams. The more you know, the less you will be prone to fall victim to a fraudulent mover.
Look into a company’s reputation to avoid moving scams
The first thing you should look into is the moving company’s reputation. That is quite easy to do by going online and hitting a couple of review websites. However, even here you need to be careful about the information you find. Obviously, if a company has a huge number of negative reviews, then you are looking into fraudulent movers and should avoid moving scams.
On the other hand, you should not trust all five-star reviews either. Sometimes some fraudulent movers can figure out how to game the system. Remember, it is perfectly normal for a company to have a couple of negative reviews. What’s important is that you address those issues when speaking to a company’s representative.
Look at the company’s licenses
Another thing that you should do is check which licenses company has. It goes without saying that you should not use the logistic services in Saudi Arabia of a company without licenses. Depending on where you live, you can do this by searching the relevant websites which carry this information, or simply ask the company about their paperwork.
While you are doing this, you should check if the company has a physical address, the names it is doing business as, and what type of insurance they offer. Of course, insurance is extremely important when you want to pack and move valuable items. If you do not get any, then you will be responsible for covering the costs of any damage. This is why it’s important you pay attention to the insurance policies that you can work with. Always remember to read the fine print, because some scammers will use bureaucracy to rob you of your stuff.
How will you pay your movers?
Another important detail that you need to pay attention to is how the company handles money. Are they asking you to pay upfront? Then we are talking about fraudulent movers. It’s very important to know that there is no reason to pay your company money before they do any work. Even if they are looking for a deposit and not the whole price – it should still set off an alarm in your mind.
One more thing that can tell you to avoid moving scams is if they want you to pay in cash. A company that doesn’t want to leave any paper trail is suspicious at best. Question their motives when it comes to this.
The estimate tells you a lot about the company
The final thing you will want to look into when trying to avoid moving scams is how the company handles their moving estimate. First, pay attention to how the estimator does their job. Are they thorough and ask a lot of questions? Do they pay attention to even the smallest of your stuff, and look through your wardrobes as well? Then, pay attention to how much an estimate stands out. If it’s significantly lower, you should make a point of checking why it is so. Maybe there are some hidden costs they did not mention. You should also ask why a higher moving cost is like that too.
