How to Vet Packers and Movers: A Verification Checklist

Most moving complaints (surprise charges, damaged goods, no-show crews) trace back to one thing: hiring an unverified mover. Before you hand over your home, run every shortlisted partner through this checklist.

The verification checklist

None of the steps below takes more than a few minutes, and together they cover almost every complaint people bring up after a bad moving experience. Run through this list with every partner you're seriously considering, not just the one you're leaning toward.

1. 1.Ask for the GSTIN and confirm the company is a registered business.
2. 2.Get written confirmation of transit insurance coverage and how the claim process works.
3. 3.Check that there is a real office address behind the listing, not just a mobile number.
4. 4.Insist on a written, itemised quote with packing, labour, transport, taxes and any floor or long-carry charges listed separately.
5. 5.Look for recent, specific reviews across more than one platform.
6. 6.Serious movers survey your goods before quoting. A phone-only estimate is a red flag.

Red flags to walk away from

• Large advance demanded before any paperwork.
• Refusal to put the quote or insurance terms in writing.
• No GST invoice offered.
• Quotes far below every other mover, which usually means hidden charges turn up later.
• Pressure to book immediately without a survey.

Common scams and how they play out

Most moving scams aren't complicated. They rely on a low quote getting your goods loaded, then changing the terms once your belongings are no longer in your control. Knowing the shape of the common ones makes them easy to spot in advance, and most of them share the same weakness: they can't survive a proper survey, a written quote and a quick GST check done before anything is loaded onto a truck.

Questions to ask during the survey

1. 1."Can you confirm your GSTIN, and will it appear on the final invoice?"
2. 2."What exactly is included in this price, and what would make it go up?"
3. 3."Who is the crew that will actually show up, your own staff or a subcontracted team?"
4. 4."What's your process if something is damaged in transit?"
5. 5."Can I get this quote in writing, itemised, by email or WhatsApp?"
6. 6."What's your cancellation and rescheduling policy?"
7. 7."Do you carry transit insurance, and is it included or an add-on?"

Reading an itemised quote line by line

How to actually check reviews

• Look for reviews that mention specifics, a route, a home size, a crew behaviour, rather than generic praise with no detail.
• Check the date spread. A partner with reviews steadily arriving over months looks more genuine than one with a sudden cluster in a single week.
• Read how the company responds to negative reviews. A professional, specific reply is a better sign than silence or a defensive dismissal.
• Cross-check ratings across more than one platform where possible, since a single-source five-star average is easier to manipulate than a pattern across several.

What a written agreement should include

• Full itemised pricing: packing, labour, transport, GST and any conditional charges, each as its own line.
• The exact pickup and drop addresses, with any known access issues, like floor and lift availability, noted.
• The agreed date and a realistic time window, not just "morning" or "afternoon".
• Insurance terms: declared value, what's covered, and the claim process if something goes wrong.
• Cancellation and rescheduling terms, including any fee and how much notice is required.

DIY verification vs a vetted marketplace

Extra scrutiny for an interstate move

A local shift caps your downside at a few kilometres and a few hours. An interstate move puts your goods on the road for days, out of sight, which is exactly why vetting matters more, not less, the longer the route.

• Ask how the partner tracks the vehicle in transit, and whether you'll get updates without having to chase them.
• Confirm they have experience and any required permits for the specific states your route crosses, not just a generic "we do interstate" answer.
• For a long haul, ask whether your goods travel alone or share a truck with other shipments, and how that affects the delivery window.
• Insurance matters more here. A cracked mirror on a local move is annoying; a damaged dining set after a three-day haul is expensive. Get the declared value and claim process in writing before booking.
• Ask for a named point of contact for the destination end, not just the person who took your booking call.

Signs of a genuinely professional partner

• They ask you questions before quoting: floor access, lift availability, fragile items, rather than jumping straight to a number.
• They explain insurance without being asked, rather than only mentioning it if you bring it up first.
• Their quote arrives in writing, unprompted, instead of you having to request it after a verbal number.
• They're upfront about what could change the price, rather than letting you find out on moving day.
• Their crew shows up in branded or identifiable uniforms, with the vehicle matching what was described at booking.

Vetting a mover for an office or business relocation

Business relocations raise the stakes: downtime costs money, and equipment is often harder to replace than furniture. Beyond the standard checklist, ask specifically whether the partner has handled office moves before, how they plan IT equipment and server handling, and whether they can work outside business hours to minimise disruption. A GST-registered partner also matters more here, since the invoice usually needs to support input tax credit for the business, not just serve as a receipt.

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The paperwork you ask for before booking is the same paperwork that protects you if something goes wrong. Skipping it to save five minutes on a phone call is the most expensive shortcut in the entire process.

If you've already booked with an unverified mover

1. 1.Ask for everything in writing now, even if the booking call was verbal. A late written confirmation is still better than none.
2. 2.Request the GSTIN and verify it before move day, so you know upfront whether you're dealing with a registered business.
3. 3.Photograph valuable or fragile items before the crew arrives, so you have a clear before record regardless of what insurance is or isn't in place.
4. 4.If anything feels off during the survey or on the day, such as an unmarked vehicle or a crew that can't confirm basic details, it's reasonable to pause and ask direct questions before goods are loaded.
5. 5.For future moves, compare quotes from verified partners upfront rather than vetting a single option after the fact.

A vetting timeline: before, during and after

Before you book

Verify GST, request a survey instead of a phone quote, read reviews for specifics, and get everything in writing. This is where most scams are actually prevented, since a hostage-load or bait-and-switch operator rarely survives a written, itemised quote and a real pre-move survey.

On moving day

Confirm the crew that arrives matches who you booked, check that the vehicle matches what was agreed, and keep a copy of your written quote on hand in case anything in the final bill doesn't match it.

After delivery

Inspect goods against your inventory before the crew leaves, note any damage in writing on the spot, and start an insurance claim promptly if needed. Most policies have a window for reporting damage, so don't wait.

Verifying insurance before you need it

Transit insurance is only useful if you understand it before something breaks, not after. Ask for the policy terms in writing, not just a verbal assurance that "everything is covered." Confirm the declared value process, since a claim is usually paid against what was declared, not a general estimate of what your goods were worth. Ask whether self-packed items are covered the same way as crew-packed ones, since many policies treat the two differently, and find out the reporting window for a claim so you're not caught out by a deadline you didn't know existed.

What skipping verification actually costs

The pattern behind most bad moving experiences is rarely dramatic. It's a phone quote accepted without a survey, a GSTIN never asked for, a review score trusted without reading a single review. None of these steps takes more than a few minutes, and skipping all of them together is what turns a routine house move into a stressful one, with a bill that grew past the number you were told and no real recourse to push back on it.

How partner vetting works on a marketplace, step by step

1. 1.A prospective partner applies to list, providing business registration and GST details upfront.
2. 2.GST registration is verified against official records before any listing goes live.
3. 3.A physical audit confirms the business operates from a real address, not just a phone number and a website.
4. 4.Background checks run on the company before it's approved to receive leads.
5. 5.Once listed, the partner's Google rating is synced daily and shown on their profile, and a sustained drop puts their listing at risk.

How a marketplace de-risks this

ShiftingHub vets partners before they're listed (background checks, GST verification and a physical audit), and every partner's real Google rating is published on their profile. You compare quotes from multiple verified movers in one place, so the vetting is done before you ever pick up the phone.