Household Moving Terms: Non-Binding Estimate
In the household moving industry things are done a bit differently than the way they’re done when you’re shipping a car, namely when it comes to paying for the services that they provide. It’s not that surprising, when you think about it; it’s a lot more work to move an entire household’s worth of things than it is to ship a standard car. A 2006 Ford Mustang weighs about the same as a 2014 Chevy Cruze, but a home is something different, and everyone lives differently; with different items and more or less furniture or people than the house next door. Pricing a household move is different because it has to be, and that’s why household moving companies give quotes and estimates differently than car shipping companies do. In this entry of our “household moving terms” category we’re going to be discussing the “non-binding estimate” and how it will affect your shipment.
A non-binding estimate is basically what it sounds like – it’s a rough quote based on some basic criteria in regards to what items you are ultimately needing shipped. A non-binding estimate is not a guaranteed price, not the way a binding estimate or a guaranteed-not-to-exceed estimate would be (read more about those here). With a binding estimate you only pay for what’s on the inventory list you provide, but a non-binding estimate often doesn’t work that way. A non-guaranteed price is issued based on what you’re shipping, often an inventory list, but the price of shipping it might change, and that can affect what you pay for your services.
Not all shipping companies provide non-binding estimates because they end up getting movers into trouble, especially with customers that don’t understand the way it works. Not that there’s anything wrong with a non-binding estimate – all it means is that shippers can charge you up to 10% over the cost of what they said it would cost to move your things. That’s the biggest difference, but on a shipment that costs $2000 that’s $200 more than what you were given. Note that household moving companies have to tell you whether or not your quote is binding or not; if it’s not, you should get more clarification as to why and get more tips on what you can do to ensure that your shipment price stays at what they first quoted you and doesn’t rise any more than it has to.
If you’re interested in getting free household moving quotes from some of the best household goods shipping companies in the industry today, make sure to visit our Household Moving Articles page. On that page is our dedicated household moving quote request form, which you can fill out to get free household moving quotes emailed to you within minutes. You can also fill our free online auto transport quote request form; on the contact information portion there is a checkbox under where it asks if you want household moving quotes as well. If you choose yes, you’ll get both auto transport and household moving quotes emailed to you, effectively killing two birds with one stone – which is always great. If you have further questions or need some help getting your free quotes, make sure to talk to one of our reps by calling us toll-free at 800-930-7417 today.
Since 2007 Dave has written all the content and blogs for American Auto Shipping and during this time added the duties of customer support and transport logistics.
He currently resides in Washington with his three kids and their mom and cat. A fan of Marvel movies and good stories, when not shipping cars Dave can be found working on his novel, enjoying a good book or playing some tournament HALO.
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