Questions to ask movers in Ottawa before you book

Why a written checklist helps

A phone quote sounds like one number. The invoice is built from five or six: hourly rate, minimum, travel, extras, tax and payment method. Two companies can both say “about $150 an hour” and end up far apart. Ask the same questions in the same order and write the answers down.

Ontario backs this approach. Its guidance on hiring a mover says to gather three or more written estimates from separate companies and to be clear about what each should include, for example packing as well as moving, or only the boxes you packed yourself. The moving cost guide shows the arithmetic.

Questions about the rate

Start with the hourly line. Ask how many movers the rate covers and which truck comes with it. Ottawa firms print the crew and the truck together: OttawaBestMovers.ca pairs two movers and a 20-ft truck, from $129 an hour, with homes up to two bedrooms, and puts three movers on a 26-ft truck, from $175, for three or four. Move-Ottawa Movers charges $150 for its two-mover, 17-ft crew on 1–2 bedroom moves, with a 3.5-hour minimum.

Then ask what the clock includes. Both firms charge a flat hour of travel on local moves. First Rate Movers’ own example bills a pair of movers at $175 for 6 hours: five on the job from 9 am to 2 pm, one for travel. Ask the company that calls you for the same worked example. Rates by crew size are on the hourly rates page.

Questions about extras

Extras explain most of the gap between two quotes. Ask the company to list each one with a price:

• stairs, charged per flight at one firm ($30 for each set of 7 steps, on top of the hourly rate);
• reassembly of beds and shelving ($45 a piece at the same firm, while basic disassembly runs at the hourly rate);
• heavy items: one firm carries anything heavier than 275 lb (pianos, pool tables, oversize safes) for a flat $250, and only between main levels;
• packing materials, which the hourly rate does not include;
• a card surcharge (3.5% at one firm) and HST on top of every figure;
• peak pricing: the same firm says rates can rise on weekends, at month-end and on Fridays before long weekends, and another prices its special rates for the 5th to the 25th of each month.

Questions about the paper

The contract is where answers become promises. Ontario’s Consumer Protection Act puts every moving contract above $50 on paper. On it go the mover’s name and how to reach it, the services and the price of each, the total you pay, the start and end dates, and how payment works. The moving contracts page goes through each clause and the cancellation rights.

With the estimate written into the contract, the bill can rise at most 10% above it, and only extras you approve can push it further. Ask also for crew size, estimated hours, truck size, the name of the insurer and who pays for damage or loss. Ontario lists these as items you can include.

Questions about risk

Ask what the insurance covers and whether it includes things you packed yourself. Ontario raises exactly that point, and suggests checking your home insurance as well, since it may cover items in a move. Ask for references.

Check the company yourself. The province does not license movers; you can search the Consumer Beware List and the Better Business Bureau for complaints.

Questions for specific moves

For a building with an elevator, ask what the property manager requires; see apartment moving and condo moving. For a date near the end of June, read July 1 moving day first, because crews fill early.

Whose quote you are checking

The call comes from one independent mover that got your request from us. Write its answers beside the other two estimates and compare them line by line.