The pricing on moves across state lines or what is commonly referred to in the moving industry as Interstate moves is generally based on the weight of your shipment of your items and the distance in miles that the shipment will be traveling from your origin point to your destination. On the day of your move, your driver will weigh his moving truck before loading any of your items to get a base weight of the truck. Upon filling up the truck with your household items, the truck will once again be weighed by the driver and the corresponding result will be the basis of your charges.
You should always obtain a copy of your weight tickets to verify that you are being charged properly. The tickets will reflect the light weight, (tare) and the heavy weight, (gross). Many times the driver may obtain his weights from different scales. For example, this may be necessary if the same scale the light weight was obtained from would not be open for weighing the truck after your goods are loaded. If this is the case, the driver would be required to find a scale at another location to perform the weighing of the truck. This should not be a cause for concern because the driver is generally required to use only certified weight stations.
It is your right to witness the weights at the scale when the driver is obtaining them. One reason that you may want to invest the time to do this is to insure that the actual weights used were just for your shipment. This may be even more important if your shipment is not the only one on the truck. For logistical reasons, very often several shipments from different households may be loaded on the same truck because they have similar routes or final destinations. For your own protection, it may be worth the effort to witness the weight both light and heavy. If you intend to do this, it is advised that you let your moving company know in advance so that they can arrange this with the driver. Again, you have the right to witness these weights and you should not feel uncomfortable in asking your moving company to do so. If for some reason the moving company refuses to offer you the opportunity to see the weighing first hand, it may create some other doubts in your mind about the moving company and may warrant some additional consideration on your part on whether this particular moving company is really the best fit to handle your move.
In the planning stages of your move, you may want to make an assessment of your household goods as to whether certain heavy items are really worth moving. If you have heavier items that you have not used for a long time, it may be better to dispose of them before moving, and reduce the weight of your shipment before the move. Our experience indicates that many families are very surprised to learn that the actual weight of their items is much higher than they might have expected. Today's households tend to accumulate more items than was common years ago and this will translate into higher costs for you long distance move. Simple ideas such as having a garage sale or donating unused items to your favorite local charity still represent very practical tips for reducing the cost of your move and generating some additional income or tax savings through your donations.
