Guides · Vetting

How to Choose a Commercial Mover: A Vetting Checklist

What to verify before signing — credentials, insurance, references — and the red flags that mean it's time to keep looking.

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Short answer: Verify IOMI training and FMCSA operating authority independently, confirm insurance limits and cargo liability in writing, check references from similarly-sized moves, and walk away from movers who can't answer building-access or insurance questions without prompting.

Start with verifiable credentials, not marketing claims

Check IOMI and FMCSA before pricing even comes up

Start with the credentials you can check yourself. Does the mover have IOMI training or certification? Does it hold valid FMCSA operating authority when the move crosses state lines? Both are independently verifiable. You can confirm IOMI training through the mover's own disclosure and through IOMI's records. FMCSA authority is listed in the SAFER system. Neither is something you take on faith from a company website. If a mover won't state its IOMI status or provide a USDOT number for verification, that's a red flag — before pricing should even enter the conversation.

Vetting checklist

Credential check

IOMI training + FMCSA SAFER lookup

Insurance ask

COI limit + additional insured + cargo liability

References

2–3, similar size/complexity

Estimate

Written, based on identical inventory across quotes

Stacked moving boxes in a bright office hallway — Vetting a mover before signing anything

Insurance questions to ask directly

Ask before signing, not after

Ask for a Certificate of Insurance before you sign anything, not after. Confirm the general liability limit — commonly $1 to $2 million per occurrence for commercial buildings — and ask specifically whether the mover can name your landlord as an additional insured. Some can produce a COI quickly; others need lead time, and finding out during move week is too late. Separately, ask what cargo liability applies to your goods in transit: for interstate commercial freight, the default under the Carmack Amendment is often a released-value limitation of a set amount per pound unless a higher declared value is arranged, which can be far less than what your equipment is actually worth.

References and recent project history

Ask about moves like yours, specifically

Ask for two or three references from moves of similar size and complexity to yours — don't accept just any references. A mover that excels at small local moves isn't automatically equipped for a 100-person interstate relocation with IT cutover. Ask each reference specifically about schedule adherence, damage handling, and whether the final invoice matched the original estimate.

Red flags worth walking away from A mover who won't provide a written estimate, who asks for a large deposit well before the move date, who can't describe how they'd handle a freight elevator reservation or building insurance requirement without prompting, or who has no documented process for IT or sensitive equipment handling if your move includes it — any one of these is reason to keep looking.

Getting comparable quotes

Same inventory, same timeline, every quote

Give every mover you're comparing the same inventory, timeline, and building requirements — otherwise the quotes aren't actually comparable. A quote based on an incomplete inventory will look cheaper, then grow once the mover sees the actual job. Our cost of office relocation guide gives sourced price ranges to sanity-check what you're quoted against.

Reviews, contracts, and how many quotes to get

Reading the signals correctly

Online reviews are a starting point, not a verdict — a mover with mostly positive reviews and a handful of specific, detailed negative ones describing similar problems (late arrival, damage disputes, surprise fees) deserves more scrutiny than the star rating alone suggests. Vague five-star reviews with no detail are less informative than a smaller number of specific, verifiable accounts.

Beyond the estimate itself, a contract should specify the exact scope of services, the cargo liability terms that apply by default, what happens if the schedule slips, and a clear cancellation policy. A mover reluctant to put any of this in writing, preferring a verbal agreement instead, is a red flag independent of how the estimate itself looks.

How many quotes, and whether the lowest is a red flag Two or three quotes, built from the identical inventory and requirements, is generally enough to establish a realistic price range. An unusually low quote relative to the others is worth a direct question rather than an automatic decision either way — it can reflect a narrower scope, a mover new enough to the market to be underpricing, or genuinely lower overhead.

A clipboard with a vendor comparison checklist — Comparing movers on paper before a phone call

Frequently asked questions

What credentials should I check first?

IOMI training/certification and, for interstate moves, valid FMCSA operating authority verified through the SAFER system. Both are independently checkable rather than something to take on faith from a company's marketing.

What insurance questions should I ask?

Confirm the general liability limit (commonly $1-2 million per occurrence), whether the mover can name your landlord as an additional insured, and what cargo liability limitation applies by default under the Carmack Amendment.

How many references should I get?

Two or three, specifically from moves of similar size and complexity to yours — a mover excellent at small local moves isn't automatically equipped for a large interstate relocation with IT cutover.

What are the biggest red flags?

No written estimate, a large deposit requested well before the move date, inability to describe freight elevator or insurance handling without prompting, and no documented process for IT or sensitive equipment.

How many quotes should I get?

Two or three, built from the identical inventory and requirements, is generally enough to establish a realistic price range without excessive vetting time. More than three rarely adds meaningful information once the range has stabilized.

Is the lowest quote automatically the worst choice?

Not automatically — an unusually low quote is worth a direct question rather than an automatic decision either way. It can reflect a narrower scope, a mover new to the market, or genuinely lower overhead. Ask what's excluded before assuming it's simply the better deal.

What should a written contract include beyond the estimate?

The exact scope of services, the cargo liability terms that apply by default, what happens if the schedule slips, and a clear cancellation policy. A mover reluctant to put this in writing is a red flag independent of the estimate itself.

How should I read online reviews?

As a starting point, not a verdict — a handful of specific, detailed negative reviews describing similar problems deserves more scrutiny than the star rating alone suggests. Vague five-star reviews with no detail are less informative than fewer, specific accounts.

Sources

Published 2026-09-06. Reviewed against sources current as of that date — see how we rate.