Ellen Phillips photo for ConsumerWatch column that runs every Sunday – Please use this photo from now onQ: I’m in somewhat of a moving crisis and am really frustrated. I’ve talked to a couple of moving companies and their services either cost more than my budget or they weren’t able to answer all questions to my satisfaction. Are you aware of any reputable local movers who will load (and unload) my rented truck? I really think I would prefer a more family-oriented company. – Alan Anxious
A: I love when a reader asks a question and I’ve recently obtained an answer! Perhaps what you need is a “liaison” organization, such as HireAHelper. After speaking extensively with PR Specialist Troy Hirsch and CEO Mike Glanz as well as with a somewhat-nearby satisfied customer. HAH may be a top choice should I move again within the area (although I’ve always sworn my next move will be only to the crematorium). For a full picture of the company and all its services, visit HireAHelper.com.
In a nutshell, HireAHelper provides easy access to a large pool of companies and local moving professionals (amount obviously depends upon location) who’ll load a truck or pod on one end and unpack at the other. No more cold calls to full service moving companies, no Internet searches, no traveling to movers’ locations and scouting out their facilities, no more opening your home for several representatives to come give estimates, and no more spending thousands on big name companies. Instead, the HAH website is your one-stop shop, where the prospective customer finds lots of info about HAH’s recommendation(s), service area, cost and qualifications.
HireAHelper’s model is quite simple. Let’s say you’re like Andrew Marks, whom I interviewed for this article, a Texas resident (and a very nice guy to boot) who bought a vacation cabin in the remote Georgia mountains. Before packing and driving his truck himself, Andrew contacted HAH to unload his belongings on the other side of the country. He initially discovered online that the service providers are either professional labor-only moving companies that specialize in loading/unloading only or full-service movers who agree to send their workers out on labor-only jobs. Once Andrew decided which service he preferred, he loaded up, set out and then met the employees at the other end. “Accommodating, reliable, timely and professional” are just some of the superlatives he used to describe both HireAHelper and A1 Movers. (By the way, the latter is the same company we in the Chattanooga area would use. Though a strong recommender of HAH, Andrew isn’t sure he would use the service for a monster move with a full household of belongings and traveling a fairly far distance. On the other hand, he certainly intends to do so for any less far-flung locations.)
I’m reminded of our move from Northern Virginia in 2007. Readers can only imagine how I scrutinized every aspect of the top three movers in the Washington, D.C., area and, even after all my research and hands-on physical searches, I ended up in Chattanooga with too many disappointments. (Long story short, the company is no longer federally or state-licensed, thanks to yours truly it clearly messed with the wrong customer.) According to HireAHelper CEO Glanz, while the moving industry is heavily regulated, it’s still crucial for consumers to understand the Professional Movers Theory: College students and a truck usually are not the key to a professional move. Those few hybrid moving companies like HireAHelper compete with professional moving companies because the former pay a decent salary and work with the market’s best of the best. In fact, HAH lists 2,000 workers who have purely their own and HireAHelper’s customers’ best interests at heart.