Long-distance moving from Denver: what to know before you sign

First: in-state or interstate?

A long drive inside Colorado is still a Colorado move. The Colorado rules apply, and a PUC permit is what to check.

What a long-distance move from Denver costs

Only two of our sources print long-distance figures, so treat them as orientation, not a budget. What moves the price:

• Weight or volume of the shipment. This is the biggest factor, and the reason a careful inventory matters.
• Distance and the route.
• Valuation. Full Value Protection carries a charge; released value does not.
• Access charges at either end: stairs, elevators, long carries, or a shuttle when a full-size truck can't reach the door.
• Packing and materials.
• Timing, including whether you need a guaranteed delivery date or can accept a window.
• Storage in transit, if your new home isn't ready.

Binding and non-binding estimates

A move out of Colorado falls under federal rules. The mover must survey your goods on site or by video unless you waive it in writing, and give a written binding or non-binding estimate with the booklet "Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move". On a non-binding estimate, paying 110 percent at delivery gets your goods unloaded. (49 CFR Part 375.)

The survey and your inventory

Federal rules require the mover to survey your goods, on site or by video, unless you waive the survey in writing. Waiving it saves an appointment but weakens the estimate. During the survey:

• Show every room, closet, the garage, the basement and any storage unit.
• Point out anything that is not going, so it is not counted.
• Mention access at the destination: stairs, an elevator, a long walk, or a narrow street a large truck can't use.
• Ask the mover to list what it will pack, and what you will.

Valuation: Full Value Protection or released value

Worked numbers and a calculator for both options are on the valuation and insurance guide.

On an interstate move, Full Value Protection is the default and must be included in the first estimate; the minimum valuation is $6.00 per pound times the shipment weight. Waiving it leaves released value: no more than 60 cents per pound per article, at no charge. (49 CFR Part 375, Appendix A.)

Here is the difference in practice. Take a 4,000-pound shipment. Under Full Value Protection, the minimum valuation is $24,000 ($6 × 4,000 lb), and the mover must repair, replace or pay for a lost or damaged item. Under released value, a destroyed 60-pound television is worth $36 to the mover, whatever it cost new.

Checking an interstate mover

For a move that stays inside Colorado, the PUC check is on how to verify a Colorado mover; warning signs are on moving scams in Colorado.

1. Get the numbersThe USDOT number (and MC number, if any) from the estimate or website.
2. Search FMCSAOpen the SAFER company snapshot and search the number.
3. Check authorityLook for operating authority for household goods, not only a registration.
4. Match the nameThe legal name on the record should match the estimate and the contract.

An interstate mover needs a USDOT number with household goods authority from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration; look it up in FMCSA's company snapshot before you sign. Verify on fmcsa.dot.gov (fmcsa.dot.gov refused our automated requests; confirm there directly.)

Carriers and brokers

A carrier owns or runs the trucks and moves your goods. A broker sells the move and arranges for a carrier to do it. Both can be legitimate. Before you pay a deposit, know which one you are dealing with, and which company will actually arrive. Ask:

• Are you the carrier, or a broker? If a broker, which carrier will move my goods, and what is its USDOT number?
• Who gives the estimate, and who is bound by it?
• Who do I call during transit, and who handles a claim?

Pickup and delivery windows

Long-distance shipments often share a truck, so movers commonly agree on a pickup date and a delivery window of several days, not a single day. Get the agreed dates in writing. Ask what happens if delivery falls outside the window, and how you will be told the truck's arrival time. If you need goods on a specific day, ask what a guaranteed date or a dedicated truck costs.

If your new home won't be ready, ask about storage in transit: the daily or monthly rate, the warehouse handling charges, and how the delivery is rescheduled.

Leaving Denver in winter

Routes west and south out of Denver cross the mountains. From 1 September to 31 May, commercial vehicles over 16,000 pounds must carry chains on about 1,400 miles of Colorado highway, including sections of I-70, CO 9 and US 40, 50, 160, 285 and 550. The fine for not carrying them is $500. (CDOT.) Moving trucks above that weight are covered by the rule.

Denver's average first measurable snow falls on 19 October and the last on 28 April. The 1991–2020 seasonal normal is 49.0 inches, with 8.8 inches in March. If you are leaving between October and April, build slack into your dates, and ask the mover how it handles closures and delays on I-70 and US 285.

Comparing long-distance estimates

The quote comparison worksheet on the cost guide totals each estimate line by line.

After you arrive

Moving here rather than away? The newcomer guide to moving to Denver covers the DMV deadlines, utilities and winter.

• Check the inventory as each item comes off the truck, and note damage on the paperwork before you sign.
• Keep the estimate, the bill of lading, the inventory and the photos until any claim is settled.
• If you are moving to Colorado instead: New Colorado residents must transfer an out-of-state driver license within 30 days of establishing residency, and title and register a vehicle within 90 days, in person at the county motor vehicle office. You become a resident by working in Colorado, running a business there, or living there for 90 consecutive days. (Colorado DMV.)

Common questions about long-distance moves from Denver