I just had two estimate’s for my move from California to Las Vegas and both of the companies said I need to pay 1/2 the cost up front and the rest when they deliver.
My Mom has moved many times and she said she has never paid money up front, only the full amount when they unload.
Should I trust this company? It is North American Van Lines and they seem trustworthy?
There have been a number of well-publicized ripoff scandals involving interstate movers in the last few years. Even with a well-known name you can’t be too sure.
Contact a central office, and ask them their standard rates and fee-collection policies. THen call some of their competitors.
It amy simply be that that is how the legitimate companies operate in your area, but it can’t hurt to be sure.
We’re in the process of moving interstate at this moment (we’re moving from Omaha to Oklahoma City), and they also asked for 1/3 up front deposit, refundable up until like a few days before the move. We had to add weight this past week though, so the amount we have given them now is 50% of the total. Our company is actually a broker type I think, we pay them, then they contract the move out to a company, but are responsible for anything that goes wrong, and are members of the BBB. This company is Moving Cost, we are not sure of the moving company name yet.
My mom told me to steer away from North American due to some problems her friend had with them, but I don’t have specifics, I don’t think it was scam related, merely problems with the move, not to scare you or anything. At any rate, I think a deposit up front is fine, but we paid by credit card, so I suspect there is some leverage we have if there is a scam (not that I think there will be).
Vis
Note that North American, Allied, etc. are basically franchisers. What matters is the quality and reputation of the franchisee. There have been a lot of rogue movers over the years. Some claim affiliations that have been revoked by the parent company, etc.
Start doing a BBB search on the franchisee. Now.
I’ve searched about 20 times now and I keep getting an error message from the BBB website and my own local BBB website 
I’ll keep trying because I obviously agree it’s an excellent idea to check up on them. Thanks.
Could someone do me a huge favor and run the company through the BBB website? I’m on dial-up and I’ve been trying for hours with no luck.
The name of the company is
NELSON MOVING & STORAGE INC.
25742 ATLANTIC OCEAN
LAKE FOREST CA 92630
(949) 582-0380
(800) 582-4434
Thank You in advance!
I got:
Msngr: Disconnecting - all agents are currently busy, please try again later. (5832)
Maybe you could do what they used to do in olden time – Use a telephone.
See, now that is what the SD is for! To tell you things you really should already know but don’t :smack: 
Thanks DrMatrix , I called and it got a Satisfactory report with no complaints.