Frederick County Maryland Moving: Moving Jargon you'll need to know

If you plan on moving to Frederick MD or within Frederick MD you plan on negotiating a deal with a moving company. If you negotiate a deal, any deal and you don't know what to expect you're not as likely to come away from that deal with confidence that you covered your bases.

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Below is a common industry standard glossary of moving company terms, jargon and nomenclature that could come up in a local or long distance move to Frederick or out of Frederick Maryland.

By the way, studies show that the reason most people are moving TO Frederick MD are doing so because of Frederick MD employment opportunities, and the military base at Fort Detrick is Frederick's largest employer.

Moving Industry Jargon and frequently used terms

The moving industry uses many terms that you may be unfamiliar with. By educating yourself on the terminology, you will be prepared to discuss your move with a professional mover and to understand shipping documents.

Accessorial Services include services other than the transportation of the customer’s goods. Services that are performed at the customer’s request, including: packing, unpacking and extra pickup are performed by the carrier at the customer's request. Charges for these services are in addition to the transportation costs.

The agent is an affiliated moving company authorized to act on behalf of the van line. The agent may handle the booking, origin, hauling and or destination services.
An origin agent is the agent designated in the origin area to be available for preliminary readying of the shipment before movement or to provide information regarding the customer's move.

The destination agent is the agent designated in the destination area to be available to assist or provide information to the customer or the van operator regarding the shipment.

Auxiliary service (shuttle) is used if the assigned over-the-road van is unable to make a normal pickup or delivery because of physical constraints, such as an extremely narrow road, inadequate parking area for the truck, or a weak bridge. An auxiliary service is the use of a secondary, smaller vehicle to complete the pickup or delivery. Charges for this service are based on the weight of the shipment and the area of the country where the service is performed.

The Bill of Lading is the customer's receipt for goods and contract for transportation. The customer's signature acknowledges that the household goods can be loaded on the van and "released to the carrier."

The booking agent accepts the order for the customer's move and registers it with the van line. The booking agent may or may not be the origin or destination agent.

A broker arranges for transportation services, but does not own any trucks and is not a moving company. Brokers must register with the U.S. Department of Transportation to gain authority to broker shipments to carriers.

Bulky articles include such items as boats, snowmobiles, golf carts and campers. These "bulky" items usually carry an extra charge to compensate the hauler for the difficulty of loading and unloading, as well as for their unusual bulk or low-weight density.

The carrier is the moving company providing transportation for the household goods. Carriers must register with the U.S. Department of Transportation to gain authority to transport household goods interstate.

A claim is a statement of loss or damage to articles or items in a shipment that occurred while in the care, custody or control of the carrier or its affiliated agent.

C. O. D. (cash on delivery) shipments are those where the customer pays the moving charges at the time of delivery. For C. O. D. shipments, payment is required in cash or by traveler's check, money order or cashier's check. If a credit card is used, it must be arranged with the booking agent because authorization is required prior to loading.

The customer is the person whose household goods are being moved.

The Department of Transportation (“DOT”) is the federal agency,that governs the interstate transportation industry, including movers of household goods.

An estimate is an approximation of the probable cost of the move based on factors such as the van space required, the weight of the household goods and the origin and destination of the shipment. Generally an agent comes to the customer’s home to examine the customer’s goods and develop an estimate of moving charges. The two basic types of estimates are binding and non-binding.

With a binding estimate, the customer knows in advance what the move will cost, excluding required destination services, regardless of variances in the actual weight (as long as the inventory of the items actually moved is the same as the estimate inventory and additional services are not requested.).

A non-binding estimate is based on an inventory of the customer's household goods and provides the customer with a pricing guideline. Charges contained in non-binding estimates should be calculated based upon the shipment’s actual weight and cannot be based upon volume (cubic feet). Carriers must be able to provide the conversion formula used to calculate actual weight in the event that the non-binding estimate was based upon an estimation of the shipment’s volume. Customers who doubt a carrier’s representation of their shipment’s weight may demand to be present while the shipment is weighed on a certified scale. There is no contractual commitment to this estimate, and the final charges the customer must pay could be higher or lower than the estimated costs, depending on the actual weight of the shipment, the actual services provided and the origin and destination of the shipment.

A high-value inventory is used for items of "extraordinary value" such as antiques, coin collections and jewelry included in the shipment. Items worth more than $100 per pound per article are considered articles of extraordinary value.

The inventory is a detailed list of the items in the shipment and their condition before the van is loaded. The van operator will present the inventory to the customer after the van is loaded and again when the shipment reaches the customer's new home. The customer's signature on the inventory acknowledges that the goods have been delivered in the same condition as received by the mover for transportation.

Non-Allowables are items that should not be included in the household goods shipment, including hazardous materials such as poisons, corrosives and flammables. Unless special arrangements are made, perishables such as refrigerated and frozen foods are not allowed. All non-allowables are prohibited by law.

The Order for Service is a document authorizing the moving company to transport the customer's household goods.

An order number is used to identify the customer's shipment and appears on the upper right corner of the Order for Service and the Bill of Lading. This number should be used whenever the carrier is contacted.

An origin agent is the agent designated in the origin area to be available for preliminary readying of the shipment before movement or to provide information regarding the customer's move.

Overflow happens when articles to be shipped are left behind due to insufficient space on the primary van. A second van is then utilized for transportation and delivery

PBO (packed by owner) occurs when articles are packed for moving by the customer.

Storage-in-transit is the temporary storage of the customer's household goods in the warehouse of the carrier's agent, pending further transportation at a later date.

A tariff is the carrier's provisions, including rates, for services performed, applicable to the customer's move.

Third-party services are performed by someone other than the carrier at the customer's request or required by federal, state or local law (e.g., appliance servicing).

Unpacking includes removing the customer's goods from containers and placing them on a flat surface, as well as the disposal of such containers and packing materials. If ordered, unpacking service must be performed at the time of delivery unless requested otherwise.

Valuation is NOT insurance. It is a tariff-based coverage for a customer's household goods while they are in the care, custody and control of the carrier.

The van operator oversees the loading, hauling and unloading of the customer's possessions.

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