Mayflower Moving: What to Know
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Mayflower Transit, one of the largest full-service moving companies in the country, handles long-distance moves within the U.S. and internationally. It stands out from other movers with its broad geographic coverage, instant online quotes for eligible moves and large roster of add-on services.
Here's what to know before booking.
Services
Mayflower is a full-service moving company, meaning that loading, unloading, logistics and transportation are baked into the total cost. By contrast, if you went with a moving container or pod company, such as U-Pack or PODS, the basic cost would cover transportation and some logistics, but not loading and unloading.
In addition to its own fleet of trucks, Mayflower works with a network of independently owned and operated local moving companies. It also offers several add-on services through third parties, such as cleaning and storage.
You can book Mayflower for:
Long-distance moves: These include moves across state lines within the U.S.
International moves: It handles international moves in more than 150 countries.
Local and intrastate moves: These are short-distance moves and moves within the same state.
Car transportation: You can opt to ship your car to your new home or one of Mayflower’s nearby terminals.
The company also handles military and corporate moves.
How to get a quote
You can request a quote for your move through Mayflower’s website by completing a brief questionnaire. Prices vary depending on the dates, distance and size of your move. For certain moves, you can get a quote instantly online, a feature that many movers don’t offer. For other moves, you may have to schedule an appointment with an estimator to do a virtual or in-home walk-through before getting a quote.
Before booking, it's a good idea to gather quotes from multiple movers to compare prices and services.
Mayflower is owned by UniGroup, the same corporation that owns the major moving company United Van Lines. Both Mayflower and United use the same online moving quote tool and have similar pricing.
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What’s included in the basic price?
In quotes for moves within the U.S., you'll get a basic moving price. That price includes:
A personal move concierge, who helps with the logistics of your move.
Full loading, transport and unloading. After unloading, movers will also place furniture in the room of your choice. Services include disassembly and reassembly of certain items, such as standard bed frames, the company notes, as well as moving appliances such as washing machines or refrigerators.
“Full Value Protection” coverage, which covers certain losses and damage that occur during the move up to a certain limit (more on this later).
You can pay extra for add-ons such as professional full-service packing services, Additional Value Protection, storage, and convenience services including cleaning and the disassembly and setup of personal computers, networks and home theaters. In some cases, these add-ons can be purchased as part of a package. Here are the three lowest-cost packages.
Package | What's included |
|---|---|
Essentials: $195 | Additional protection and no convenience services. |
Plus 1: $395 | Additional protection and your choice of one convenience service (not including move-out cleaning). |
Plus 2: $595 | Additional protection and your choice of two convenience services (including move-out cleaning). |
Current as of July 2020. | |
Mayflower accepts credit cards, so if you decide to book a move, it could be a good opportunity to use one with a long 0% APR period or a large sign-up bonus. A 0% APR period can give you extra time to pay off the balance interest-free, and a big sign-up bonus — which generally requires you to meet a certain spending threshold in the first few months — can be worth hundreds. Alternatively, if you need more spending power than you can qualify for on a credit card, a personal loan for moving expenses can be a good way to pay.
Loss and damage protection
By law, interstate moving companies offer two types of loss and damage coverage for consumers: Full Value Protection, which offers greater coverage and usually costs extra, and Released Value Protection, which covers very little and is generally included. Mayflower includes the richer of these two options, Full Value Protection, in its basic quotes.
Full Value Protection covers certain losses and damage up to a given amount, which depends on the estimated weight of the items you’re moving. With Mayflower, you’ll generally get $6 of coverage for every pound. For example, if you were moving an estimated 10,000 pounds, you’d get $60,000 of coverage.
If you're moving items that are worth more than $100 a pound, you can note them on the company's High-Value Inventory Form so you can get reimbursed for a higher amount if they get lost or damaged. This is in line with what's required of this coverage by law.
Changes and cancellations
You can generally reschedule or cancel your moving reservation up to 24 hours before the move date with no penalty, according to Mayflower. Many other moving companies have similarly flexible policies. However, changing your dates might affect your estimate.
