Anybody use ABF "U-Pack" for moving?

[DorkProp]

Moving from OH to TX in a couple of months and looking for cheap alternatives to full-service moving companies. I have plenty of able-bodied help for packing and loading. All the self-move companies (Penske, Ryder, U-Haul) quote over $2000 for a 24-26 foot truck. That does not include fuel, insurance, tolls, etc.

ABF has a U-Pack service where they drop off a 28-foot trailer at your home, give you a couple of days to pack your stuff, then they drive it to your new home. Their one-price quote includes everything, including a limited amount of insurance. Their quote for the amount of space I estimate using is only about $1200. And they claim that their fee is based on how much space in the trailer you actually use, $66 per linear foot being the fee, with a $1000 minimum.

Is it me or does this sound like a pretty good deal? I pay less and don't have to worry about driving a huge truck by myself all the way to TX. The Better Business Bureau reports no complaints for this company. Does anybody have any experience with them?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Buford]

I used ABF for a move from Florida to Indiana. I was pleased (generally) with them. They were cheap and there were no hidden fees. I did feel, however, that they took some liberties with the timing of the moves. As I recall, they showed up 4 hrs. later than they said they would in Florida and were also a couple of hours late at the place in Indiana. Not a big deal except for the fact that I had hired some guys to help with the loading/unloading at both ends and was paying them to sit around while waiting for ABF to show up. Other than that- no real problems. They were cheap anyway.

 

[learflyer]

what does ABF stand for? We are planning a move from ny to florida. How long did it take them to get your stuff from fla to indiana? do they have a website?

 

[PonchoMan]

You get what you pay for.

 

[buckdanny]

I used them 2.5 years ago to move from Tennesse to Oregon. Paid less than $1000 for 6 feet; it was plenty for what I had. Awesome service, I was very happy with it. ARe you sure the minumum is $1000 and not a certain amount of feet? Because that's how it was when I did it. Let me know if it has changed, because I was going to use them again in a few weeks, I might have to move back east.

Buck

 

[DorkProp]

I got an online quote a while ago from Massillon, OH to Frisco, TX (about 1200 miles??). I used their handy load estimator and came up with 17 linear feet. The quote said that for my trip length, every linear foot above or below that would be $66 more or less than the initial quote, which was nearly $1200. The $1000 minimum was probably because of the long distance. At that rate, even if I use a full 23 feet (like the largest U-Haul), the fee is only about $1600, far less than what I was quoted for a rental truck. I'm sure there's extras, like the $75 ramp rental and any additional insurance beyond what is included in the price, but it still sounds like a good price. And not having to drive one of those giant rentals and pay for diesel -- Priceless!

Their website is http://www.upack.com . The quote is instantaneous if you plug in your information. I'd appreciate any more opinions if you've used them.

 

[Bluto]

Used them from Cincinnati to the LA area. Overall a good experience, but make sure when you load it the barriers are secure. One of ours was a little loose and when it arrived it had collapsed dumping our stuff all over the place, breaking some of our more fragile stuff. My wife was upset, I still preferred it to the Uhaul route which we used to get out there in the first place. The price is decent and if you are flexible about when it arrives, it works nicely.

 

[Caveman]

I used them and was extremely happy with the service provided. I also recommended them to a friend and they also were pleased with their service. Both me and my friend are retired military. Trust me, we know a little something about moving. ABF is a great product for a very compettitive price. I highly recommend them.

 

[flyifrvfr]

what does ABF stand for? We are planning a move from ny to florida. How long did it take them to get your stuff from fla to indiana? do they have a website?

In the trucking business we had a few quesses as to what ABF stands for. To name a few, All Busted Freight, All But Fast, Alabama Bull Frog, All Black Fags. Take your pick as to what ABF means to you. To be fair, I worked for a company called New England Motor Freight. The sign on the side of the truck said NEMF. We re-named the company to Never Educated Mother Fu<kers, and Never Enoung money on Friday.

 

[P3tarbaby]

ABF - Alabama Best Freight

I used them recently to move form WA to FL. You can't beat the price...especially with the cost of fuel these days. UHaul wanted $2900 for the truck, not including anything else like fuel and my estimate for AFB was $2100. I used more truck space than my estimate but I still saved alot of money and didn't have to drive a truck across country. The only downside for us was that there was a big rain storm right after they dropped the trailer and the trailer leaked. Luckily we only had a few things in the truck and had no damage but take a good look at the trailer. They were very helpful and brought us another trailer the next day, helped me move the stuff from one trailer to the other and gave us an extra 2 days to load before they picked it up. Our stuff made it to FL on time and we had no problem unloading. I'd us them again in a heartbeat and recommmend them to anyone.