has anyone had luck with upack?

[leolexi 0]

ONE MORE:

TYPICAL AVERAGE COST OF MOVING PLUS PACKING

Size of household

From Washington DC to Los Angeles 2628 Miles

From Baltimore MD to Chicago IL 685 Miles

From Atlanta GA to Dallas TX 783 Miles

From New York NY to Boston MA 210 Miles

1 Bedroom Apartment

$3900-$5000

$3100-$3500

$2600-$3500

$2700-$3200

2 Bedroom Apartment

$5500-$6400

$3700-$4300

$4100-$4600

$3800-$4400

8 Room House

$9000-$11000

$6000-$7200

$6200-$7300

$6200-$7300

9 Room House & Garage/Shed

$11000-$13000

$7200-$9000

$7300-$9000

$7300-$8000

from

http://www.moving.org/before/smartmoving.html

Edited March 8, 2007 by leolexi

[kimmbo 0]

Weve pretty much decided to go with Upack when the time comes..Hopefully the price doesnt change too much by the time we need them..

From Toronto to Las Vegas we have a quote of:

U-Pack (All U-Pack quotes include fuel and taxes)

Terminal-To-Terminal $1933 (US)

Door-To-Door $2167 (US)

versus

U-HAUL: $3323 (CAD) + tax + fuel

[Flames9_RN 358]

wow!! 3323 for a small 10 ft truck, crazy!!

[misa 2]

That is a crazy price for Uhaul!

[kimmbo 0]

So glad to see we werent the only ones that thought that was a crazy price...!!

I also forgot to add the price of the towing bed to tow our car...which I think is something like another $200(CAD), we looked at other places too and UHAUL was actually the CHEAPEST!! I think its because we are moving to Vegas so they are also charging us for their gambling expenses!..LOL

Glad we kept researching and my husband found U-Pack!

[misa 2]

Resurrecting this thread for the benefit of others... I'll try and summarise as much as possible.

Months in advance:

- I decided on what I wanted to get from them (Relocube) and how much stuff I was keeping. The estimates on their website are helpful regarding how much stuff you have and what you'd need to rent from them. Got the quote... $1,100 USD for door to door for 1 cube from Toronto to Richmond, VA. They have options for terminal to terminal as well which can end up costing 1/2 of what door to door costs.

One month in advance:

- I booked it when I got my interview date. Gave them a credit card number (they only charge it when they pick up your PACKED cube or trailer).

2 Days in advance of empty cube drop off - March 20, 2007:

- Called the local terminal in Brampton, ON to schedule the day/time to drop off the empty cube. Even though it's reserved, you still need to call 2 days in advance. I also told them what day and time I wanted them to pick up the packed cube (next day). They also advised me to tell the driver as well since it's the same driver for drop off and pick up.

Cube drop off day - March 22, 2007:

- Scheduled it for 12 noon and the driver was there at 11:30 a.m. Driver was extremely nice and helpful. (Name is I think Coy Billcott judging from his signature on my bill of lading, he was fantastic)

- Driver scoped out the area and dropped the cube where I wanted it. Also confirmed that he would be back the next day at the scheduled time of 10 a.m. He was done completely by noon. He also advised what paperwork I needed to give him the next day.

- We put our own padlock on it overnight. For crossing the border, you can give them your key OR ask the driver to come back on the pickup day with an ABF lock which they will have the key for. They need to be able to open it for customs if asked. We put our own padlock on it overnight and they brought an ABF lock for when it's in transit.

Cube pick up day - March 23, 2007

- Coy returned at 9:30 a.m. It was a tight squeeze to get the cube out of there since it was parked in front of my house and there were illegally parked cars in the way but he successfully did it!

- We signed the bill of lading and I supplied him with 4 things: 1) photocopy of my visa; 2) photocopy of my passport photo/info page; 3) photocopy of my short and long birth certificate; 4) filled out customs form 3299 with the itemised list and value on the 2nd page. He looked over the customs form and gave it the thumbs up and away he went. He also gave me a tracking number on it (ABF Pro Number). You can check the tracking online with your quote number or the pro number.

- Estimated transit time does NOT include day of pick up or final drop off date. It also does not include weekends or holidays.

Cube in transit

- March 26, 2007: Cube loaded onto truck in Toronto/Brampton

- March 27, 2007: In transit, landed in Carlisle, PA

- March 28, 2007: In transit, to land in Richmond, VA at 12 noon today. They called the number we provided here (my husband's cell number) to let us know they would drop off between 2-5 p.m. tomorrow. I will call them once it gets to the terminal today to arrange a more specific time.

- March 29, 2007: Cube drop off day.

- March 30, 2007: Cube pick up day (I think you have a couple of days to do it, I'll find out).

I'll keep you all posted on the drop off day and pick up of empty cube.

I'm pretty sure that you need to cross the border before your stuff can follow because on the customs form it asks just that (day of entry and location of entry). I did not need to fax them my I-94 after entry. I'm assuming that CBP could just plug in the K3 number to see it was activated if they needed to do that.

Edited March 28, 2007 by misa

[misa 2]

Re-reading some of this, I wonder why they didn't need my I-94? My cube is just an hour away from the destination terminal and we never got a call about any problems across the border or anything, just a call saying that they'd be ready to drop it off at our place here in VA tomorrow...

I didn't hire a customs broker either, just gave my customs form and photocopies of my visa, passport, birth certificate to the ABF driver. Maybe zyggy will pop by and shed some light on this?

Edited March 28, 2007 by misa

[misa 2]

Cube is at the RVA terminal and they are delivering tomorrow afternoon. They will call me when it leaves and also when the driver is here (our building doesn't have a buzzer).

[lynamon 0]

Cube is at the RVA terminal and they are delivering tomorrow afternoon. They will call me when it leaves and also when the driver is here (our building doesn't have a buzzer).

I'm traveling down maybe June/July/August and have a quote one way to Cleveland Ohio from Hamilton Ontario from UHaul to move a 2 Bdrm apartment for $260.00 plus the cost of fuel ...

[misa 2]

Upack update. I decided to get them to drop it off Friday instead and pick up Monday. It was just easier for me to do so. The dispatcher changed the schedule without any problems.

[EmilyRugBurn 0]

Upack update. I decided to get them to drop it off Friday instead and pick up Monday. It was just easier for me to do so. The dispatcher changed the schedule without any problems.

Wow, misa, it really sounds like they have some excellent customer service. (You hardly hear that anymore!) I'm hoping we are able to purge enough stuff so that we can go the upack route. I sent hubby the link you gave me and he likes their style.

For those who used movers, can anyone recommend a good one (just in case we can't sell our furniture)?

[Krikit 1,163]

For those who used movers, can anyone recommend a good one (just in case we can't sell our furniture)?

I called 4 moving companies for estimates and chose United. Make sure when you're doing your cost comparisons that you read the fine print and check each line item for the rates. Each type of service is charged at a different rate, so you need to compare apples to apples. You'll see what I mean once you receive the estimates. Your best rates will come from the major moving lines, because they can bundle your belongings with other deliveries in order to save on shipping costs.

[EmilyRugBurn 0]

For those who used movers, can anyone recommend a good one (just in case we can't sell our furniture)?

I called 4 moving companies for estimates and chose United. Make sure when you're doing your cost comparisons that you read the fine print and check each line item for the rates. Each type of service is charged at a different rate, so you need to compare apples to apples. You'll see what I mean once you receive the estimates. Your best rates will come from the major moving lines, because they can bundle your belongings with other deliveries in order to save on shipping costs.

GREAT info. Thanks for the advice, Krikit!

[misa 2]

Wow, misa, it really sounds like they have some excellent customer service. (You hardly hear that anymore!) I'm hoping we are able to purge enough stuff so that we can go the upack route. I sent hubby the link you gave me and he likes their style.

Everyone I have dealt with at ABF Upack, from their head office 1-800 number to the terminal and driver in Ontario to the terminal in Virginia have been just fantastic! Very friendly, helpful and accomodating!

[EmilyRugBurn 0]

Everyone I have dealt with at ABF Upack, from their head office 1-800 number to the terminal and driver in Ontario to the terminal in Virginia have been just fantastic! Very friendly, helpful and accomodating!

That's what I like to hear!

Moving (cross-border, no less!) is stressful enough, and to have to deal with rude/incompetent people on top of everything else would just put me over the edge.

Thanks so much for your detailed account of your move and your Upack experience. SO super helpful!