U-Pack and Pods As an Alternative to U-Haul Trucks

For many years, movers had only two real options when it came to a big move: they could rent a U-Haul and do it all themselves, or they could pay for a moving company to do all the work for them. U-Hauls were cheaper, but the moving labor involved could make moving incredibly stressful. A professional moving company had to be vetted carefully, but sometimes a truck still went missing along with a family's entire possessions. Moving was more stressful than it needed to be, for many different reasons.

With options like U-Pack and PODS, you have many different moving options that can make moving simpler and easier for everyone.

1. You Don't Have To Deal With The Truck

U-Haul trucks can break down part-way through a move, leaving you stranded in the middle of nowhere. Finding another truck can be a challenge, and trying to deal with the company to get repairs can be time-consuming and frustrating. By contrast, U-Pack and POD type companies do the driving for you. The container gets packed, and then you get to your destination however you choose. Road trips are much more fun when you don't have to drag everything you own along with you.

2. No Wear And Tear On Your Car

If you rent a U-Haul trailer, you need to play for higher fuel costs for your car during your trip. You can expect to have significant wear on your brake pads, and can find that your transmission and suspension are damaged during the trip.

With a storage container moving service, however, you have a professional driver taking care of all of this for you. Your car gets to stay in great shape; you can have that shipped as well, or take the kind of road trip that's much more enjoyable.

3. No Unexpected Costs

When you get an initial quote on a U-Haul, all that's quoted to you is the price of the truck itself. Mileage overages, fuel costs, insurance, and so forth are all extra. If you're paying cash, you'll need to put down a deposit on the truck.

With PODS and U-Pack services, all of those details are included in the quote. You know what you're paying before you confirm your dates.

4. Only Pay For The Space You Use

With U-Haul trucks, you have to pay for the size truck that will hold all your stuff. Unfortunately, this sometimes means that you need to rent a bigger truck than you really need; the smaller truck won't hold everything, so the bigger truck - and the higher fee - is your only choice.

With U-Pack and PODs, you only pay for the space on the truck that you use. Your items are loaded into a storage container, and then multiple containers are loaded onto a truck. If you only need one, you'll only pay for one. If you need more storage space, arranging that is simple.

Plus, many of the storage containers are the size of a regular parking space, making it easier to put them close to your front door without blocking traffic.

5. Storage Is Simple

Most storage container moving services offer door to door service, but what if you're planning on taking a month-long vacation, or taking a scenic route to your destination, and don't want your stuff to arrive right away? Or perhaps you're moving into a smaller apartment while you find a home. Since your items are already packed in a storage container, storing them is simple.

If you're using a U-Haul to make your move, you'd need to unload your truck into storage - then rent another truck and reload it when you're ready to complete your move. That's a lot of work and expense which can easily be avoided.

6. Full Service Options

Some container shipping companies offer full-service options where they will either pack all of your belongings, or they will load your packed items for you. In other situations, you could hire local movers to do this for you and still benefit from the lower cost of the container shipping rather than the square feet on a big truck.

With a U-Haul, you can often higher movers at both ends of your trip, but you still have to do the driving in the middle, find places to stay every night, and generally have all the lousy parts of a road trip without any of the fun.

If you're just moving a few things from one side of town to another, a U-Haul may still be the right way to get everything where it needs to go. But for longer moves, services like U-Pack and PODS are often the right choice.

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