Moving is one of the most stressful events in peoples lives, and many questions arise during the process. Below you will find a list of questions commonly asked of Golan’s, and the answers given to customers. Click on any of them to take you directly to the answer.

Selecting a Mover
What services do you offer?
What credentials should I look for in a moving company?
When should I call a moving company?
Do I need an estimate?
What exactly is ‘travel time’?
Getting Ready to Move
When is the best time to move?
How long does it take to move?
How big are your trucks?
How and when will I pay?
Can I pack clothes in my dresser drawers?
Am I protected against loss or damage?
How should I pack my belongings if I am doing it myself?
There is no loading area at my building. Is this going to be a problem?
Is my building going to want to know anything about my move?
Is there an additional charge for elevators or long hallways?
Can my possessions be stored temporarily?
Should I move jewelry and other valuables myself?
Move Day Questions
It is raining/snowing today, is this going to be a problem?
Can I ride to along on the truck?
Will you unpack my belongings and clean up after?
Am I supposed to tip the movers?
After Your Move
Unfortunately one of my items was damaged or lost, what should I do?
You did a great job, is there somewhere I can leave positive feedback?

What services do you offer?
We offer a full range of packing, moving and storage services. This includes: local moves, long distance moves, short-term or long-term storage and full packing services. If you are packing yourself we can provide boxes.

What credentials should I look for in a moving company?
You should look for only licensed, certified and bonded moving companies. Golan’s has all of these numbers available as should any other real company. Take the time to look them up online and make sure they are not just using fake numbers to appear that they are legitimate.

When should I call a moving company?
You should call a moving company as early as you can. We can only accommodate a certain amount of people a day, and if you want a specific time slot this is the best way to make sure you get it. With that said, there are often times that we can perform moves the day that you call. It all depends on availability.

Do I need an estimate?
Yes. For small moves, you can get an estimate over the phone from one of our relocation consultant. For larger moves, upon request, a Golan’s representative will give you a written “Estimated Cost of Services” after a visual survey of the goods to be moved. There is no charge for the estimate.

What exactly is ‘travel time’?
In local move, travel time is the time it takes us to get to and from the job site(s). It is charges as a flat time based on the location of the job site(s).

When is the best time to move?
There is no “best time” to move because everyone is different in what they need, however, the summer season is always the busiest time of the year. Golan’s charges a small premium for local moves between and including the 24th and 1st of every month. You can save money by moving outside of these dates, but whatever works best for you is still the “best time” to move.

How long does it take to move?
This depends on many factors, including the time of year, weather conditions, size of your shipment, size of the elevator, time required to load and unload, and the direction and distance your shipment is traveling.

How big are your trucks?
Our trucks we use for moving are 26 feet long. Our relocation consultants can determine how many trucks will be necessary for your move. There is no additional charge for needing more trucks.

How and when will I pay?
We accept all forms of payment except personal checks. This includes, but is not limited too, certified money orders, cash, and all major credit cards. For local moves we must take payment at the end of the move. For long distance moves we take half upon pickup and the other half at the destination prior to unloading.

Can I pack clothes in my dresser drawers?
In general, we recommend that you empty items from all bureaus, desks, dressers, chests, armoires, etc. Lightweight clothing-sweaters, shirts, blouses, lingerie-may be left in light dressers. Do not fill drawers with heavy items, which can damage the piece of furniture during transit.

Am I protected against loss or damage?
Yes. There is a basic valuation that is included with all moves, as well as a few options for increasing this. Please see THIS page for more information on local valuation, and THIS page for long distance valuation.

How should I pack my belongings if I am doing it myself?
If you choose to do some or all of your own packing in preparation for your relocation, it’s especially important that you be familiar with the techniques that will best protect your possessions. Boxes should be packed tightly with padding after items are inside to prevent shifting during transportation. You can use anything like newspaper, blankets or linens to pack these boxes tight. We’ve prepared Packing Guide Page to share with you those methods which our professional packers use every day.

There is no loading area at my building. Is this going to be a problem?
We can park on the street based on availability. We do have the option of getting you a parking permit through the city of Chicago for a small fee. This allows us to have a parking spot sectioned off for us on the day of your move.

Is my building going to want to know anything about my move?
Most buildings with elevators are going to require that you get authorization for a specific time that you can use them for your move. You should look into this immediately to make sure you can get the time you want. Additionally, most buildings managers are going to want to see a “Certificate of Liability”. At your request we can have this sent to them.

Is there an additional charge for elevators or long hallways?
No. Golan’s charges the same rates whether you live in a house or on the top floor of a high rise.

Can my possessions be stored temporarily?
If you are unable to take immediate possession of your new residence, your belongings can be stored at reasonable cost in our local state of the art warehouse.

Should I move jewelry and other valuables myself?
While Golan’s can move valuables such as money, jewelry, or other items of extraordinary value, we recommend that you carry irreplaceable and expensive articles with you.

It is raining/snowing today, is this going to be a problem?
No. All of your furniture is going to be wrapped in padding or shrink wrap so you do not need to worry about them getting wet. Additionally, we have carpet film and plastic floor covering that we use to protect any flooring from damage.

Can I ride to along on the truck?
We cannot allow people other than movers to ride in the truck because for liability purposes.

Will you unpack my belongings and clean up after?
On a local move we can unpack your boxes. You will not be charged additionally, but rather just on the time it takes to complete. We will always clean up after ourselves.

Am I supposed to tip the movers?
Tipping is not required, but many people do. You should decide based on the quality of the move that you receive. Those that do tip tend to give either a small percentage of the entire move, or a small dollar amount per mover per hour. In the end, you should only tip an amount you are comfortable with.

Unfortunately one of my items was damaged or lost, what should I do?
We are sorry that there was a problem with your move. Unfortunately it can happen in a service industry. Give us a call and we will inform you as to what you should do.

You did a great job, is there somewhere I can leave positive feedback?
We always love to hear about the great jobs our movers do. Feel free to click here and take a brief survey. It won’t take more than 2 minutes.