Loading The Shipment
What is the Uniform Household Goods Bill Of Lading?
This document is the CONTRACT between you and the mover. All movers are required to prepare this document for each individual shipment. The bill of lading is required by law to have the same information on it as the order for service, such as the shippers name and address, cosignee's name and address, agreed upon price, the agreed upon dates, pick-up and delivery, complete description of special services to be provided, the agreed upon liability (insurance), and the maximum amount required by law to be paid to relinquish possession of your goods at time of delivery. Same as with the order for service, if the agreed upon information is not correct, make sure it gets corrected before you sign it. The uniformed household goods bill of lading requires the mover to provide the services you have requested, and you are responsible to pay for the services provided. Make sure the driver gives you a copy. This is your contract and you may need to refer to it at a later date.
What should I do when the movers are loading my household goods?
Make sure all of your valuables, including wallets, pocketbooks, airline tickets, jewelry, cash, etc. are in your possession or locked in a secure place. The movers will be going through the entire home. Do not leave valuable posessions where they have access to them. Too many times valuables are kept in hiding places like the medicine cabinet, mattress, and even left out in the open, and when you turn your back, they seem to disappear. Don't let this happen to you. Keep your valuables in sight at all times. If anything is missing, contact your local police immediately.
Inventory?
The inventory is one of most important documents you will be provided with. Before the movers load your furniture, they must take a physical inventory of all the items to be shipped by placing a color-coded, numbered sticker on each and every item. If you are moving locally, a physical description is not required, unless it is going into storage. You may request an inventory be made if you have any reservations about your movers, however, this will be more time consuming and of course, more costly.
The best way to prevent items from disappearing off the truck between the origin and destination is by placing seals with corresponding serial numbers on all the doors of the truck. When the truck arrives at your new home, make certain that the seal is intact. Should the seal have been tampered with, take pictures immediately!
When the driver completes the inventory, he will request that you sign them. Be very careful to inspect the inventories thoroughly before signing them. You have the right to contest anything you do not agree with. At the completion of the move, the driver will request that you sign the inventories to establish that you have received all your goods in the same count and condition as they were tendered for transport at origin.
Make absolutely certain that all goods are accounted for and that notations be made on all copies of the paperwork regarding loss or damage, should they occur. This will make the difference between collecting on a claim or not!
CROSS-REFERENCE YOUR BOXES
On a standard inventory form, next to the inventory numbers, there is a column labeled cr. ref., which stands for cross-reference. This is the column the driver will enter your assigned box number to the drivers assigned inventory number. Make certain that you prepare your own separate inventory listing all boxes and contents within them prior to moving day, so that the cross referencing is able to be done. Insist that cross-referencing be done.
Ac"count"ability The movers must list every item that they take from your residence, regardless of how small or insignificant you might think this item. For instance a mop, broom, vacuum, 5 pieces of fireplace wood, etc. If the mover lists all your household goods and accidentally or otherwise, omits an item (or items) off the inventory and you sign it, you technically have no recourse if this item disappears. Even though you are reasonably certain that you are dealing with a reputable firm, this does not mean that an occasional bad employee may not be part of the crew that moves you. Moving companies must take on plenty of extra help during the busy season; it is said that 60% of all moves take place between the months of June and September. Understandably, seasonal help is a very necessary evil in the moving business. As an ex-moving company owner, I know that when the moving season hits and labor becomes scarce, I would be forced to hire almost any able-bodied worker I could find.
I have seen many situations over the years and here is just one of them;We hired quite a few new employees for the busy season that year and unfortunately there were a few bad apples in that bunch. We sent out a truck to pick up a rather large shipment going down to Florida and the driver that we sent had been with us for several years and we knew him to be very trustworthy. He took with him a couple of the new guys out of necessity and tried his best to properly supervise them. One of the new helpers got over on him and here is how he did it. While the driver and the helpers were removing all the items from the living room to the truck, one helper asked if he could use the bathroom. He was directed down the stairs where there was a bathroom. When the helper went down the stairs he noticed a 19'' color TV in the den. Through an open door in the den, the helper removed the TV and put it under some bushes in the backyard. We found out months later that he had returned that same night and took off with the TV. Neither the driver nor the moving company knew anything about this, and this item was not listed on the inventory because when the driver got to the den the TV was not there, and subsequently not listed. The customer in all the confusion of moving day never checked to see if all the items were clearly listed on the inventory. The customer did put in a missing item claim but the claim was denied because in checking the shipping documents this item was never tendered for transport in the shipment. They were out a 19” color TV. So you see, technically, if its not listed on the inventory, you have little or no chance of recovery or recourse for the alleged missing item.
Make sure all your belongings are listed on the inventory.
Note: Do not list contents on outside of the carton. Instead, in a large black marker, write the room or area that it goes to at destination such as "master bedroom" or "kitchen". Prior to moving day, you should prepare your own separate inventory listing all boxes and contents within them.
**Reason: I have seen too many cartons disappear or never get put on to the inventory that had written on outside "Silverware", "Stamp Collection", "Coin Collection" etc.
ITEM DESCRIPTION
The individual preparing the inventory will describe not only the item that you are shipping, but they will make a notation of the "CONDITION" of that item. However, unless you are very astute and thoroughly scrutinize the inventory you wonít understand it because its written in code or what is called "Exception Symbols". This code is translated on the inventory, but in over 25 years in the moving business and moving tens of thousands of families, I find it to be a rare occasion that these symbols are ever questioned.
Inventory Control?
The movers will use inventory control tape, a.k.a. inventory stickers, which looks like a roll of colored & numbered scotch tape. These stickers come in six different colors; white, yellow, orange, red, blue, & green. The tape contains two separate numbers on them, a lot number and an item number. The lot number is a constant that distinguishes your shipment from all others on the truck. The item number will usually start at 001 and go to 500. Each item that is removed from your home will have an item number on it that will correspond to a written description on the inventory sheet. The driver will usually use different color tags for each shipment on his truck for easy identification.
Do I Tip The Movers?
Like all over service businesses, tipping is not required. A tip is a reward for a job well done. Do not feel obligated to give a tip if you feel it was not deserved. If you are satisfied with your movers, a tip is very much appreciated. An average tip for the crew is approximately $15.00 for every 1000lbs of goods you are moving, or 15% of the transportation charges. You may feel inclined to give the foreman of the job a little more because he is the one who orchestrates the move and is ultimately responsible for your relocation. For ex. If your move were 4000lbs, at $15 per 1000lbs, the total tip would be $60.00. Divide that amount amongst the amount of workers on the job. On a long distance move, tipping is usually performed at both origin and destination.
Items not to be moved (non-allowables)?
Before your possessions are packed and loaded, it is important that you understand which items cannot be shipped because they represent a hazard or are perishable. Listed below are some common non-allowable items that you will need to address prior to your pack and load dates:
HAZARDOUS MATERIALS - items that are flammable, corrosive or explosive.
Examples include: Aerosols Fireworks Nail Polish Ammonia Gasoline Nail Polish Remover Ammunition Household Batteries Paint Thinner Car Batteries Kerosene Paints Charcoal Lamp Oil Pesticides Charcoal Lighter Fluid Liquid Bleach Poisons Chemistry Sets Loaded Guns Pool Chemicals Cleaning Solvents Matches Sterno Fertilizer Motor Oil Weed Killer
PERISHABLES - food, plants or living things that may die or spoil in transit. *
Examples include: 1. Frozen Food Plants Refrigerated Foods 2. Open or Half-Used Foods Produce * For shipments moving less than 150 miles and delivered within 24 hours of pickup, carriers may agree to transport perishables that are properly packed and require no servicing in transit. Note: You should empty your refrigerators and freezers and keep appliances doors open for at least 24 hours in advance of loading. This will allow the appliance to dry out and prevent the growth of mold. ITEMS OF PERSONAL IMPORTANCE/SENTIMENTAL VALUE - This third category of “non-allowables,” while not representing a physical threat, can create problems, should your shipment be delayed or items lost. The impact of a loss or delay can be lessened if irreplaceable, sentimental items are carried with you and not packed with your shipment.
Examples include: Address Books Financial Documents Professional Files Airline Tickets IRAs/Deeds/Tax Records Research Projects Car Keys Jewelry/Furs School Records CD’s Medicine Software Backups Checkbooks Personal Video Tapes Sterling Silver Computer Disks Photographs/Photo Albums Stocks/Bonds
Transporting Firearms?
The Brady Bill enacted in 1994, contains provisions governing the transportation of all firearms by common and contract carriers. The following procedures should be observed for all household goods domestic and international shipments containing any firearms, including (but not limited to) handguns.
No markings should be made outside of the box or container indicating that a firearm is housed inside. If the shipper has marked the box to indicate the presence of firearms, there is no need to cover those markings. Gun cases do not need to be concealed in another container even though it may be obvious a firearm is contained within. The Brady Bill enacted in 1994, contains provisions governing the transportation of all firearms by common and contract carriers. The following procedures should be observed for all household goods domestic and international shipments containing any firearms, including (but not limited to) handguns.
Firearms must be listed on the descriptive inventory, including make, model, and serial number. If more than one inventory line is used to list the descriptive information, connect the multiple lines with a bracket to indicate they apply to one item only. Void the additional inventory tag numbers -
see sample. The Brady Bill enacted in 1994, contains provisions governing the transportation of all firearms by common and contract carriers. The following procedures should be observed for all household goods domestic and international shipments containing any firearms, including (but not limited to) handguns.
At the time of delivery of a firearm, a written receipt must be obtained. On the exception portion of the descriptive inventory corresponding with the description of the firearm, the van operator must write “received”, both the customer and the van operator will then sign that line on the inventory, as well as the appropriate signature blocks at the bottom of the inventory -
see sample. If a firearm is noted as not having been delivered or is noted as missing by the receiving party on the exception sheet, notify the Claims Department immediately. A firearm that can not be located must be a documented and traced immediately. To report this kind of problem, contact a member of Claims Management.
These procedures also apply when shipments containing firearms are delivered into SIT or permanent storage. |
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