BestGuy Moving Services is a fully licensed and insured company.
What does it mean?
Licensed: A moving company needs to carry a separate license for each move type that they perform. There are separate licenses for local, interstate and international moves. When checking companies for your specific move, you should ask the moving company to present you with the license, or at least advise you of the license number.
BestGuy Moving Services is licensed to perform all three types of moves and we present the licenses’ numbers on each of our web site pages, and upon request.
Insured: There are a few types of insurance policies that a moving company needs to carry in order to get a license. Needless to say, BestGuy moving carries all of these insurance coverage’s:
- Insurance to cover accidents caused to or by the company’s vehicles.
- Cargo insurance – which covers the moving company (not necessarily the client) if a major damage is caused to the cargo.
- Warehouse insurance. If the company has a warehouse, it must be insured separately.
- Workmen’s compensation – which covers any injuries caused to the movers at work.
- Certificate of insurance – is requested by most high-rise buildings.
A moving company that carries all of the above mentioned insurance policies can state that it is fully insured. However, that does not mean that your household goods are properly covered for damages and that you will be properly compensated for a broken or damaged item.
Here are some moving industry facts:
The coverage against cargo damages that is provided by a moving company is called valuation and not insurance, because the client is not contracting the insurance company directly and does not receive an insurance policy. The valuation terms are stated on the official bill of lading that will be presented to you on the day of the move.
The basic cargo damage coverage, that ALL movers have to provide to their clients for free, changes from state to state and from one type of move to another. For example, in interstate moves, the free basic coverage is $0.60 per lb. per article. This coverage means that if a desk weighing 100 lb. is damaged, the movers will either pay for its repair or pay $60 compensation, whichever is cheaper to them. The basic cargo damage coverage for a local job in the State of NJ is $1.00 per lb. per article. International moves do not have free coverage per damaged item, only for total loss of the whole shipment but you can purchase proper coverage from your mover.
Clients might think that since their moving company is “fully insured” they will get the full value of a damaged item. As explained above, this thought process is inaccurate. The compensation amount directly relates to the coverage stated on the bill of lading.
If your shipment is valuable and fragile, you should consider purchasing an additional coverage. Each moving company offers different packages for different scenarios. It is important for you to check what the deductible amount is in the specific coverage that you choose.
BestGuy Moving Services offers following are options available for valuation and additional valuation for household, commercial, interstate and intrastate moves:
Valuation –
Standard moving valuation provides you with coverage of $1 per pound per article in New Jersey, $0.30 per pound per item in NY and $0.60 per pound per item for interstate moves and no free valuation for International moves. This means that should there be a loss or damage of/to any item(s), it will be valued per pound this valuation is included in the hourly rate at no additional cost.
Full Replacement –
Please contact us so we can tailor the best option that suites your moving needs.
This plan provides for the full cost of repair or replacement of any item that may be damaged while in transit, up to the amount that you declare your household goods to be worth.
Remember – The amount of valuation or full replacement coverage should reflect the value of the entire shipment or be related to a valued inventory made by you.
BestGuy Moving employs only the most professional and experienced movers in the industry and rarely has damages in the moves that we perform. However, damages do happen from time to time. We believe that you should have the option to take an educated decision as whether to purchase an additional coverage for your shipment or not.
