Straight Answers, No Runaround
These are the questions our office answers on the phone every week, written out so you can read them before you ever pick one up. Same answers we give live, same answers we put in writing.
The Answers Most People Want First
Memphis & the Mid-South| How far ahead should I book? | 2 weeks local, 2-4 weeks long distance |
| Deposit to hold a date | $175 per truck local, 10% long distance |
| Cancel or reschedule by | 3 days before your move |
| Guaranteed pickup windows | 8am-10am or 11am-4pm |
| When payment is due | After the job is complete |
| Local minimum | 2 hours |
Booking & Scheduling
Dates go by availability because every crew is made of our own hired employees. We do not fill trucks with day labor, so when a date is gone, it is gone.
How far in advance should I book my move?
Most local customers book at least two weeks ahead. Long distance customers usually book two to four weeks out. Dates are subject to availability, so the earlier you call, the more choice you have over your day and your arrival window.
Do you require a deposit, and is it refundable?
Yes, and it goes toward your move. For local moves the deposit is the same as the service fee, $175 per truck. Long distance moves require a 10% deposit.
Either deposit is fully refundable and fully transferable up until three days before your scheduled date.
What is your cancellation and reschedule policy?
Call us any time up to three days before your scheduled move date to cancel or reschedule. Move your date, get your deposit back, or apply it to the new date. Life changes, closings slip, and we plan for it.
Can you handle a same-day or next-day move?
Yes, as long as we have a crew open. There is no rush fee and no surcharge for short notice. You pay the same published rate you would have paid booking a month out.
What are your guaranteed pickup windows?
We offer two guaranteed windows: 8am to 10am, and 11am to 4pm. Your crew arrives inside the window you picked, and if anything changes on our end you hear it from us first, not from an empty driveway.
When can I get the best rate?
Monday through Thursday is our lowest published rate. Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and holiday dates run higher, and summer is our busiest stretch of the year. If your date is flexible, a midweek move in the off season is the cheapest way to hire us.
Every rate is published on our pricing guide, including the exact hourly rate for each crew size.
Payment & Billing
Money questions people feel awkward asking on the phone. Here they are, answered in public.
What payment methods do you accept?
Credit card, debit card, cash, ACH bank transfer, eCheck, and financing.
When is payment due?
After the work is finished. Payment comes due once the service you requested is complete, not before we start and not partway through the day.
Is my estimate binding, or can the final bill go higher?
Long distance and interstate moves are binding flat rate quotes with a guaranteed price. The number you sign is the number you pay.
Local moves are billed hourly, and the estimate is built from the inventory you give us. If the inventory grows, the hours grow. That is exactly why we push the free survey, virtual or in person, so the estimate matches the job.
Do you charge for travel time from your warehouse to my home?
No. The flat service fee covers the truck, the equipment, all fuel, and travel for the job. There is no separate fuel surcharge and no drive time line item.
Is tipping expected?
Never expected. Tipping is earned, and whatever you feel is fair is fair. Some customers tip cash, plenty of others buy the crew lunch or keep the cooler full. Both get the same grin.
Do you offer any discounts?
If a real estate agent referred you, mention the agent by name and we apply 10% off packing and moving labor.
We also mail out seasonal offers, including one month of free storage and dollars off by move size:
- $50 off moves under $1,000
- $100 off moves from $1,000 to $1,999
- $200 off moves of $2,000 or more
Got a mailer in hand? Mention it when you call and we will apply it to your quote.
Before the Move
What we handle, what you handle, and how to make move day shorter, which on an hourly move means cheaper.
How does the free survey work?
Two ways, both free. We can walk your home in person, or we can do it virtually. Most surveys run 20 to 30 minutes, and honestly the length depends on how many questions you have, which we welcome.
For virtual surveys you can meet us live, or ask for a LiveSwitch recording link and upload photos and video of your rooms on your own time. Either way you get a real estimate built on what you actually own.
What should I do to get ready before the crew arrives?
It depends on which services you booked, but these three help every time:
- Stage packed boxes in one central spot near the front door.
- Tag items clearly if the move has more than one stop or one destination.
- If you would rather handle it yourself, disconnect appliances and take TVs off the wall ahead of time.
If you would rather we do it, we can. Our crews dismount TVs and pull brackets at no extra charge, and we can disconnect and reconnect washers, dryers, and refrigerator water lines, billed by the time it takes.
Can I pack myself? How does that affect price and coverage?
Absolutely, and it is one of the most effective ways to lower your total cost, because packing time is labor time.
The tradeoff is coverage. Moving companies are not required to accept liability for damage inside a box packed by the owner, and we are no exception. If a box holds something irreplaceable or fragile, that is the one to let us pack.
Do I need to empty dresser drawers and filing cabinets?
Not entirely. We pad every piece of furniture we move, which keeps drawers from sliding open and keeps the piece protected in the truck.
We do recommend pulling out anything heavy or loose that could roll around inside and beat up the drawer, plus anything valuable you would rather keep with you.
Do you disassemble and reassemble furniture?
Yes, and it is part of your hourly labor at no extra charge. Every crew leader carries a tool bag as standard equipment. Beds, tables, bunk beds, and the rest come apart at the old place and go back together at the new one.
I am moving into an apartment or high-rise. Who handles the elevator and the Certificate of Insurance?
Reserve the elevator with your building if reserving one is an option. Buildings hold those slots for residents, not vendors.
Most buildings also want a Certificate of Insurance from your mover before move day. Ask us and we will provide it. Give us the building contact and their requirements as early as you can so nothing holds up your arrival window.
How should I handle kids and pets on move day?
Pets. Update their tags and request vet records before the move, plan to crate them while the crew is working, and line up a new vet or clinic near the new place.
Kids. Handle school enrollment and transfer doctor and dentist records ahead of time. On move day, pack a bin with toiletries, favorite toys, and phone and tablet chargers so nothing important disappears into a box.
Afterward, set up their room first and let them pick the paint color. It turns a stressful day into something they had a say in.
What We Move, and What We Do Not
Every mover has limits. Publishing ours means no awkward conversations in your driveway.
What will you not move?
For safety and legal reasons, these do not go on our trucks:
- Propane tanks and aerosol cans
- Bleach, fertilizers, and similar chemicals
- Refrigerated or frozen food
- Firearms and ammunition
Plants are fine on a local move, but they cannot cross state lines with us.
What about cash, jewelry, medications, and important documents?
Move them yourself before the crew arrives, or carry them in your own vehicle on move day. Passports, prescriptions, titles, and heirlooms belong with you, not in a truck with 200 other boxes.
What is your policy on gun safes and firearms?
We move the safe, not the contents. The safe must be completely emptied before we load it, and firearms and ammunition travel with you.
Safes are priced from $150 to $250 depending on weight, stairs, and anchoring.
Which items carry an extra charge?
Specialty pieces that need special equipment or extra hands: pianos, gun and personal safes, pool tables, playsets, saunas, hot tubs, and grandfather clocks. Every one of those prices is published on our pricing guide.
Just as important, here is what never costs extra: stairs, elevators, long carries, steep driveways, extra stops, bunk bed disassembly, treadmills and gym equipment, and taking your TVs off the wall.
Do you offer custom crating for glass, marble, artwork, or chandeliers?
Yes, through a crating partner we trust. Pricing depends on the piece, since a marble tabletop and a chandelier are two very different builds. Show it to us during your survey and we will bring back a number.
Move Day
What the day actually looks like once a Big League truck is in your driveway.
What happens if it rains?
The move goes on. Our crews carry rain gear, disposable shoe coverings, and floor runners, so wet weather stays outside where it belongs instead of tracking across your floors.
Do I need to be there for the whole move?
We would rather you were. You know which box is fragile and which room the couch goes in.
If you cannot be there, someone over the age of 18 needs to be present with the crew until the job is complete, with authority to answer questions and sign off at the end.
Will stairs, elevators, or a long walk to the truck cost me extra?
No. Stairs, elevators, long carries, steep driveways, and additional stops are all built into your estimate up front instead of showing up as surprise line items on the invoice. Difficult access is our problem to plan around, not your penalty.
Long Distance Moves
Leaving Memphis, or coming back to it. Here is how interstate works with us.
How is a long distance move priced?
Interstate moves are binding flat rate quotes, typically $3,000 to $10,000 and up depending on the size of your home, the distance, and the services you want. The free survey comes first, then you get an exact number, in writing, before you commit.
Where do you move to?
Anywhere in the continental United States. The only two states we do not serve are Hawaii and Alaska.
One clarification, since it comes up: we no longer have an Atlanta location, but we still move people to and from Atlanta regularly.
What deposit does a long distance move require?
10% of the quoted flat rate, and it applies to your total. Like every deposit we take, it is fully refundable and transferable up until three days before your scheduled date.
Protecting Your Belongings
Nobody plans for damage. Everybody deserves to know what happens if it occurs.
What coverage is included, and what can I add?
Released value is included on every move at $0.60 per pound. That is the federally mandated baseline, and it pays by weight, not by what the item is worth. A 10 pound lamp pays out $6 no matter what you paid for it.
Full value protection costs $10 per $1,000 you declare, with a $50 minimum. Under full value protection, a damaged item gets repaired, replaced, or settled at its actual value. Deductibles are $300 on local moves, and $250 or $500 on interstate moves.
Tennessee does not require movers to offer anything beyond the federal baseline. We offer full value protection anyway, because a real number beats fine print.
What is not covered?
The big one is boxes you packed yourself. Movers are not required to accept liability for damage inside an owner-packed carton, because we cannot verify how it was wrapped or loaded inside the box.
If you want the full protection of coverage on your fragile items, let us pack them, and let us know during the survey which pieces matter most.
About Big League Movers
Who is actually walking into your home.
Are your movers employees or day labor?
Employees. Every one of them. Each mover passes a background check and a drug screening before they are hired, and they are trained by us, paid by us, and accountable to us.
That is also why our calendar fills up. We will not throw a stranger on your job to take a booking we cannot properly staff.
What is your track record?
Sixteen years in Memphis, roughly 3,500 moves a year, and a 4.9 star average across more than 3,400 Google reviews.
The number we are proudest of is zero. That is how many moves we have canceled on a customer in sixteen years.
Are you licensed and insured?
Yes. Tennessee License #2196756 and MC #762341 for interstate authority. If your building or your closing attorney needs a Certificate of Insurance, ask and we will send it.
Still have a question we did not answer here? Call us at 901-486-6897 and ask. If it is a good question, it will probably end up on this page.
Get Your Exact Number, Free
Every quote starts with a free survey, virtual or in person. We look at your move, recommend the right crew, and put your price in writing before move day. No hidden fees. No canceled moves. Just Major League service.
Request a Free Quote 901-486-6897