What a military move involves
Orders set the clock. Your report date fixes the day you must be at the new duty station, and every other date, including pack, load, and delivery, is worked backward from it. Your weight allowance depends on your rank and whether you have dependents, and weight above that allowance is charged to you rather than to the government. Your installation transportation office is the authority on what you are entitled to. The carriers on our list are not, and neither is 8 Top Movers.
For a standard PCS, the DoD household goods program assigns a carrier and you schedule through that system, so you would not normally need a comparison service at all. A commercial mover you hire yourself comes into play in a narrower set of situations, and those are the moves this page is for.
- A personally procured move (PPM, formerly called a DITY move), where you arrange the move and are reimbursed afterward
- A partial PPM, where the government ships most of the household and you move the rest
- A retirement or separation move you choose to arrange yourself
- Goods that fall outside your entitlement, such as a second household, a family member's belongings, or items over your weight allowance
- A move on a timeline the program cannot meet, or a long-distance move that is not covered by orders at all
What a licensed carrier handles, and what is optional
The core of any interstate move is the same: the carrier loads, transports, and delivers your household goods against a written inventory, and provides basic released-value protection on the shipment. On an interstate move that basic protection is 60 cents per pound per article, which covers very little of what most items are actually worth. Full-value protection is available on interstate moves, and it is the option to ask about if you want the carrier to be responsible for repair or replacement at the item's actual value.
Everything beyond loading and hauling is optional and should appear as a separate line on the estimate. That includes packing and unpacking, custom crating for a piano or a framed piece, storage in transit if your housing is not ready, shipment of a personal vehicle (often handled by a separate auto transporter the mover arranges), debris pickup after unpacking, and any shuttle service where a full-size trailer cannot reach your door or your gate.
Two items are specific to military households. First, base access: the carrier's crew has to clear the gate, which usually means valid identification for every crew member and sometimes a visitor pass or sponsor arranged in advance. Ask each carrier how they handle it and what they need from you. Second, firearms and ammunition: ammunition is a hazardous material, and you should expect every household goods carrier to refuse it; each carrier sets its own policy on unloaded firearms. Ask before you assume anything is going on the truck.
How to compare estimates for a military move
Interstate estimates are normally based on weight and distance, and the useful ones are built from a visual or video survey of what you own rather than a room count. The estimate should say plainly whether it is binding, non-binding, or not-to-exceed. A binding estimate holds the price to the goods and services listed; a non-binding one is the carrier's opinion and the final charge follows the actual weight; a not-to-exceed estimate caps the charge while letting it come in lower. Ask which type you are being given and why.
Then read the line items against each other. The delivery spread is the window the carrier commits to, and a wide spread can matter more than a small difference in the total when you have a report date. Accessorial charges such as stairs, long carry, and shuttle service vary from carrier to carrier and are easy to miss. Packing materials, storage in transit, and valuation are the other places where two estimates that look alike are not.
- The carrier's USDOT and MC numbers, and whether the company you are talking to is the carrier or a broker arranging one
- The estimate type, in writing, with the survey it was based on
- The delivery spread and what happens if it is missed
- The valuation option you chose and its deductible, if any
- Confirmation that certified weight tickets will be provided if you are filing a PPM claim
- A copy of the federal booklet Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move, which interstate movers are required to give you
Weight tickets, orders, and the paperwork that pays you back
On a personally procured move you are reimbursed after the fact, and the reimbursement rests on documented weight. That means certified scale tickets for the vehicle empty and again loaded, with the vehicle identified on each. If a carrier is hauling your PPM shipment, get their commitment in writing that they will weigh the truck at a certified scale and hand you the tickets, because a claim filed without them is a claim you will have to argue. Keep every receipt for packing materials, tolls, and rented equipment alongside the tickets.
Keep a folder with your orders, the entitlement counseling paperwork from your transportation office, the signed estimate, the inventory, and the bill of lading, and carry it with you rather than sending it on the truck. PCS season concentrates in late spring and summer, when licensed carriers book up early, so the sooner you have orders in hand the wider your choice of dates and carriers will be. If orders are still pending, say so when you request estimates and give the date you expect; carriers can quote against it and firm up the schedule once your dates are set.
