A moving estimate frequently bears little resemblance to the final invoice. The gap follows from how the two kinds of move are priced and from the type of estimate a customer accepted.
Local and long-distance moves are priced differently
Moves within a state are typically billed by the hour, covering a crew of a stated size plus travel time to and from the origin.
Interstate moves are priced principally on the weight of the shipment and the distance traveled, with additional charges for specific services.
The pricing basis therefore changes at a state line, which surprises customers who expect a single approach to apply to all moves.
Weight is measured, not guessed
Long-distance shipments are weighed on certified scales, with the truck weighed empty and loaded, and the difference becomes the billable weight.
Customers may observe the weighing and may request a reweigh if the figure seems wrong, a right disclosed in federally required documents.
Because the estimate was based on a visual survey of household goods, an inaccurate survey produces an inaccurate estimate regardless of the mover's intentions.
Three kinds of estimate exist
A non-binding estimate is a good-faith projection that may rise with actual weight, subject to limits on how much can be collected at delivery.
A binding estimate fixes the price for the listed inventory, with changes only if services or items are added.
A binding not-to-exceed estimate caps the price while allowing it to fall if the shipment weighs less, and it is generally the most favorable form for a customer.
Added services generate most surprises
Long carries from door to truck, stair charges, shuttle vehicles where a full-size truck cannot access a street, and storage in transit are billed separately.
Packing materials and labor are also separate unless included explicitly, and they can amount to a substantial share of a total.
These conditions are frequently unknown at survey time, particularly at the destination, which the mover may never have seen.
Regulation differs by jurisdiction
Interstate household moves fall under federal oversight, with required disclosure booklets, registration numbers and dispute procedures.
Moves within a single state are regulated by that state, and requirements vary considerably, including whether movers must be licensed at all.
Verifying registration and reading the bill of lading before loading are the practical protections, since the document signed at pickup governs the transaction.