A move leaves a trail of paper
A local move is lifting and carrying, but it also produces paper: an estimate, an agreement, an inventory, a bill of lading and a delivery receipt. Each of those pages can matter later if a charge or a scratch is questioned. Keeping every one, and reading it before you sign, can make a Waterbury move easier to follow from the first phone call to the last box.
What Connecticut says about in-state movers
Connecticut General Statutes Section 13b-389 says no person may operate a motor vehicle in the transportation of household goods for hire as a household goods carrier without first obtaining a certificate of public convenience and necessity from the Commissioner of Transportation.
The Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection says in-state movers are regulated by the Department of Transportation and must have a Household Goods Carrier Certificate or Motor Contract Carrier permit issued by CTDOT, and must provide a bill of lading after belongings are loaded on the truck.
The certificate question
Put the same question to every company you contact: "Does this move call for a CTDOT household goods certificate, and if so, what is your certificate number?" Record the reply on a page headed with the company's full legal name, its street address, its phone number and the name of the person who answered. If you would like to look a number up, ask the Department of Transportation how that can be done.
On the same call, ask for proof of liability coverage and workers' compensation. Separately, ask your homeowners or renters insurer what your own policy covers while your belongings are in a mover's hands.
Paper one: the written estimate
Invite each company to see everything that is going, in person or on a video call, and open the basement, the attic, the garage and any closet you would rather keep shut. Then ask for the estimate on paper or by email, and read it for:
- the date and the arrival window;
- how the price is figured, whether by the hour, by weight or as a set amount, and what that covers;
- each extra service on its own line, such as packing, crating or taking apart a bed;
- what happens to the price if the inventory grows or the date shifts;
- the deposit, and how it comes back if you cancel.
When a line is unclear, send the question by email, so the answer arrives in writing too.
Measure before anyone lifts
A tape measure can head off trouble at the new address. Measure the sofa, the beds, the dressers, the dining table and any cabinet or appliance that is coming with you: height, width and depth. Then, if you can get into the new place before the day, measure its doorways, stair turns, hallway corners and any elevator door. Jot the figures on a rough floor sketch of each room.
If a piece looks tight, ask the mover whether legs, doors or a headboard can come off, whether a piece can go in another way, and what either would add to the price.
Paper two: your own inventory
The mover may keep a list, but yours is the one you control. Walk through with your phone and photograph each large piece from a couple of sides, along with anything fragile, valuable or hard to replace. Number your boxes, note what is in each in a simple list, and mark the room it goes to at the new home.
Pack documents, medicines, keys, chargers and a change of clothes in a bag that rides with you rather than on the truck.
The truck at both ends
Picture where a large truck can stop at the old address and the new one, how far the crew will carry each load, and whether there are outside steps, a narrow porch or a shared driveway. Ask the city whether parking a moving truck on the street calls for a permit or posted signs, and ask the mover who arranges that if it does. If either home is in a building with a manager, ask about elevator reservations, allowed move hours and any paperwork the building wants from the mover ahead of time.
Paper three: the bill of lading
When the last item is on the truck, ask the crew lead for the bill of lading and read it before the truck pulls away. Look for the name of the company you hired, both addresses, the delivery date or window, the price terms you agreed to and the protection level for your belongings. If anything differs from the estimate, raise it right then and write your question on your copy. Keep that copy with the estimate; it is worth having in hand at the other end.
Where Waterbury sits on the state's map
The Connecticut Office of Policy and Management lists Waterbury in the Naugatuck Valley planning region and the Naugatuck Valley council of governments.
Waterbury's drinking water
Waterbury's water comes from five surface reservoirs in two watersheds in Litchfield County: the Shepaug and Cairns Reservoirs in the Shepaug Watershed and the Wigwam, Morris and Pitch Reservoirs in the West Branch Watershed, with a combined capacity of 6 billion gallons.
Paper four: the delivery receipt
At the new home, stand where you can watch things come off the truck. Tick off box numbers against your list, look at each piece of furniture as it comes through the door, and write any damage or missing number on the delivery paperwork before you sign it. Photograph anything you mark. Ask the crew lead how the company takes a claim and which form it uses.
Accounts and addresses
Set dates to stop and start electric, gas, water and internet service at each address, and file a change of address for your mail. Update your address with your bank, your insurer and anyone else who sends you bills or statements.
The last evening at the old place
- Charge your phone and put the bag that rides with you by the door.
- Clear a path from each room to the exit, and take down anything hanging in it.
- If the refrigerator or freezer is going, ask the mover how it wants it emptied and prepared.
- Put the estimate, the certificate answer and your inventory into one folder.
- Leave a note for whoever comes next about keys, garage remotes and appliance manuals.