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North American Van Lines (NAVL) is a full-service moving company with more than 80 years of experience managing relocation assistance nationwide. As a licensed, bonded, and insured business with broker and carrier authority, NAVL provides an extensive selection of moving services for intrastate and interstate moves.
It’s important to find a reputable moving provider that can execute a viable move plan and address your needs. From our team’s ongoing research, we’ve compiled a comprehensive list of the best moving companies. We further reviewed several top providers, including North American Van Lines, to help you understand what sets the company apart from its competitors.
Fast Facts About North American Van Lines
- Founded: 1933
- State availability: 50
- Service model: Full service
- Standout service: Appliance moving and reinstallation
- Get a quick quote: Visit North American Van Lines site
Benefits and Drawbacks of North American Van Lines
Here are our key highlights for NAVL moving services:
| Upsides | Downsides |
|---|---|
|
Has flat-rate moving costs and gives customer the flexibility to customize pricing |
Uses broker authority to outsource some services that it can not cover with its own crews and fleet of moving trucks |
|
Has better support for filing claims than many moving industry competitors |
Has received a notably high number of mixed reviews on Yelp for several of its locations |
|
Stations local agents around the country to assist with a wide variety of move types |
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North American Van Lines Services
North American Van Lines is based in Fort Wayne, Indiana, but has agents across the country specializing in local and long-distance moves. With several packing options, NAVL lets you decide what level of professional assistance you want for your move. You can leave all the hands-on labor to the professional movers or take responsibility for some heavy lifting.
There are also several specialty services to choose from, such as high-end appliance installation, which many competitors do not offer. Further, NAVL has a global network capable of coordinating international moves and transporting household goods cross-country. On the company website, you will find checklists, packing calculators, moving tips, and more to help you prepare for a seamless transition to your new home.
Below, we’ve provided detailed information about NAVL’s services:
Full-Service Packing
NAVL’s packing options include full-service packing and unpacking, allowing you to manage your move without the stress of boxing and relocating your own inventory. The movers can disassemble furniture as necessary and will reassemble each item in the new residence. NAVL also offers shipment loading, unloading, and debris removal to save you time.
If you prefer a DIY approach, you can also select self-packing when booking your move.
Fragile-Only Packing
Fragile-only packing allows you to self-pack everything except for fragile items you want NAVL’s experienced movers to handle. When building your move plan with a NAVL coordinator, you can indicate which items need attention from the movers. You can also request custom crating.
Packing Materials
Customers who choose to self-pack need to invest in an adequate supply of packing materials for their entire inventory. NAVL sells a wide selection of supplies, including moving boxes in multiple sizes, wardrobe boxes, mattress boxes, and protective wraps.
Corporate Relocation
NAVL can help businesses move employees and their families to a new office or headquarters location. You can select from NAVL’s full-service options to streamline your corporate move, ensuring that you can resume normal operations in as little time as possible.
International Moving
NAVL has a network in place to assist with international relocations and hosts valuable resources on its website for preparing for a move overseas. This includes forms for navigating customs in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. NAVL provides international moving services in more than 130 countries.
Military Moving
For enlisted members of the military who choose to conduct a Personally Procured Move (PPM), NAVL is available to assist with domestic or international relocation. NAVL is a General Service Administration (GSA) approved carrier that uses background-checked moving crews to perform all services.
Vehicle Shipping
NAVL offers auto transport services that typically require three to seven days for delivery. You can select up to $100,000 in valuation coverage to protect your vehicle against damage. NAVL uses either an open trailer or enclosed hauler and can ship boats, snowmobiles, and many other types of vehicles in addition to cars and trucks.
Appliance Installation and Specialty Item Assembly
When moving appliances to your new location, NAVL’s crews can uninstall and reinstall the items as necessary, a service few competitors provide. For specialty items such as hot tubs, your relocation specialist can also arrange to include disassembly and reassembly as add-on options.
Shipment Tracking
NAVL has an online shipment tracking system for both domestic and international shipments. This service is available 24/7 to keep you updated on your shipment’s status and ensure that you’re prepared for delivery.
Domestic and International Claims
For customers who choose to enroll in value protection or other insurance coverage when booking a move, you will need to submit a claims form in the event of inventory loss or damage. NAVL provides links to claims forms on its website and has separate customer service lines for domestic and international claims support.
Storage Services
NAVL offers short- and long-term storage options for residential and commercial shipments. The company caters to local and long-distance moves for its storage services and uses secure storage facilities to protect your household goods.
North American Van Lines Cost
To get a quote from North American Van Lines, you will need to use the online form and wait for a move coordinator to call, or you can contact the company over the phone. NAVL does not provide instant online quotes and will want to schedule an in-home estimate or a virtual survey to review the items in your home that you intend to ship.
NAVL uses a flat-rate pricing structure with several available options. This includes not-to-exceed pricing, ensuring that you will not pay more than your estimate, even if the weight of your inventory proves greater than predicted. If the inventory weight is lower than estimated, you will owe a reduced moving cost. You can also choose a standard binding estimate or customize pricing to guarantee certain rates and leave flexibility for last-minute add-on services.
What Homeowner Reviews Say About North American Van Lines
Here are some third-party customer reviews we found for North American Van Lines:
“Jeff Daly and his crew provided excellent service for packing/unpacking and moving. When we arrived at our destination, he was also very accommodating to our schedule. We will definitely call on him for our next move.” —Mark N. via Yelp
“We contracted North American Van Lines for our move from Northern California to the Atlanta region in Georgia. The preparation of the move and the execution of the transportation went well. Driver and his crews did a fantastic job of getting our stuff from West to East in one piece. The issue is with the customer service department. They invoiced for items/services that were not performed. When I pointed that out, it took them several months to get me a partial refund, but there was no explanation of why the remaining 40% of the refund wasn’t paid. They then just waved me off and sent me to the general Customer Service department, which is operated by Sirva. You get an automated reply saying that they will respond within one business day…It’s now been two months, and I still haven’t seen a reply or the rest of my refund. So the three stars are earned by the hard working movers. Their Customer Service department sadly robbed them of the last two stars.” —Leo V. via Yelp
“Had to move from the West Coast to the East Coast quickly. Jay and Tracie did an outstanding job walking me through the process and turned a horrible situation and made it manageable. I will always be grateful. Highly recommended. I will be using them again.” —Michele W. via Yelp
How North American Van Lines Compares to the Competition
Here’s an overview of how NAVL compares to other moving services:
Our Recommendation
Whether you’re planning an interstate move or local move, hiring a professional moving company requires an immense amount of trust. North American Van Lines is one of several professional movers we’ve extensively researched. Through that process, we’ve managed to identify the company’s key benefits and drawbacks.
NAVL has implemented measures to create a more customer-oriented moving experience, promoting a predictable pricing model and streamlining the insurance claims process. We noted NAVL’s flexible approach to its flagship services, allowing customers to choose full-service packing, self-packing, or a partial-packing option. The company does broker some services, and mixed reviews are not uncommon.
We recommend gathering at least three quotes from different companies before settling on a provider to assist you on moving day. This gives you a chance to compare services and costs to ensure that the company you choose is right for your moving needs.
North American Van Lines FAQ
What are the benefits of North American Van Lines?
Some benefits of North American Van Lines are the company’s global availability, straightforward insurance claims process, and predictable pricing model.
Can I track my move with North American Van Lines?
North American Van Lines offers 24/7 shipment tracking for both domestic and international shipments.
How do I file an insurance claim with North American Van Lines?
To file an insurance claim with North American Van Lines, look for the claims forms at the bottom of the company’s webpage. You will find separate links to domestic and international claims. North American Van Lines also has dedicated customer service to answer your claims questions.
How We Chose the Top Moving Providers
We researched and analyzed dozens of full- and self-service moving companies and formulated a moving review methodology based on a number of factors, including package options, pricing, and reputation. We also identified customer pain points based on customer-review analysis, proprietary consumer surveys, and interviews with former and current moving professionals.
Speaking directly to a representative at each company, we determined the number of package options available, the coverage provided, the types of moves available (long-distance, local, and international), and any extra perks offered, such as mobile apps, moving checklists, and 24/7 customer service.
We also gathered pricing data from each of the companies and determined whether they provide ballpark estimates or binding quotes. To determine reputation, we evaluated companies based on their rating with the Better Business Bureau as well as their overall score on Yelp.