PODS® Reviews
I moved from a single family home to an apartment. I would not recommend moving with PODS if you are moving into an apartment or from an apartment. I was surprised to learn that they don't do same day drop off and pick up, and they don't pick up on Sunday. My POD had to block the loading dock longer than necessary. If you are moving between homes I'm sure it's a different experience, but I wish I would've used a different service for the apartment move.
When undergoing my latest move, I liked the idea of not having to drive a large moving truck through a new city, so I went with PODS. The entire process was pretty simple and their website allowed me to follow the location of my pod as it was transferred to the new city. The only downsides were the size of the POD and the inconvenience of having to place the POD without much flexibility. As I was moving more than 50 miles, I had to choose between the 8 ft pod and the 16 ft pod. After describing what I expected to be moved within the pod, the customer support person recommended the 8 ft pod. He seemed pretty sure that we would be able to fit everything in there. Once the pod arrived, I was unconvinced. The movers that I hired to load the pod did end up packing everything in the pod, however, once the pod was opened at the new location, there was definitely some damaged pieces. While I understand this is more of an issue with the packing of the pod, having a 12 ft pod option would have offered more space which might have saved some of my pieces. My other complaint is something to be expected: the placement of the pod. Once the pod is delivered, there is obviously no way to move it. This proved to be a bit of a problem when moving into my new apartment. There were not many side-by-side parking spots to sit the pod, so we had to place it rather far from the entrance which was very inconvenient. These are just things to be aware of when using PODS. I really do think that I will be using them on my next move in a few years, but with a better understanding of the process.
Could have been great. The good - pod arrived, was picked up and dropped off at new destination exactly when the company said it would be. Very efficient. The bad - when booking I listed the size of our place and all of the furniture we needed transported. The size container we were told to get was far too small and the company was unable to adjust this at a similar price to that at booking when I later expressed concern (I am suspicious that underestimating container size is intentional as the cost of switching/adding containers is much higher closer to move time). We had to part with a bunch of furniture :(. Also they need to do something about communication - I had no problem booking, but spent well over an hour on hold trying to get info/make adjustments. Overall I'd consider using them again but choose the container size myself. If there is a similar company with better reviews on communication I'd use them instead.
PODS was atrocious. I originally booked they 5 months ahead of the move due to their good industry reputation. They no-showed on my dropoff date, then called that evening stating they could show up in 3 weeks and oh-by-the-way it'll be an extra $500. Ended up having to cancel and go with UHaul, which has been good thusfar.
Their websites states a 2-3 bedroom home will easily fit in their 16 ft container. DO NOT BELIEVE THIS. I had a 2 bedroom apt, with only one bed and only 2/3 of my belongings fit. This required an emergent second order of another 16 ft container (at a much higher price). Both packing and unpacking companies I hired (thru their website) told me "this happens all the time". The delivery also had the orientation of the container wrong with BOTH containers! Finally, after lodging a complaint via phone, I was told a manager would call me back within 24-48 hours. I never received a call. Very disappointing and frustrating.
Good communication, were on time and met all our needs. Will definately use PODS again. We moved to a different state and the communication and service by both PODS centers was fantastic. The cost of everything (pods delivery and pickup, storage, transport to new state, storage there and delivery to new home was less than half the price of a moving company.
POD delivered the container on a Wednesday and the next day Big Boy Movers of Utah arrived and loaded up the POD.I thought I had already scheduled the POD to be picked up the next day on Friday but they told me that they didn't have be scheduled yet. The soonest they could come was 5 days later. I was afraid my landlord was going to have a fit so the POD company put me on a waiting list just in case someone cancelled their appointment time. Much to my shock, I got a call that the POD guy was in my driveway hooking up my container on the day I originally thought I was scheduled. I was so so happy. No one cancelled. The manager asked I driver to simply pick my POD up on his way back from another delivery. My POD is now stored at their Lehi, Utah facility until our home is completed. They were awesome!
My POD experience started with a booking and change in booking to which the consultant got me exactly what I needed. The gentleman who dropped my POD was personable and professional. When he picked up the POD and there was a car parked too close to the POD, he called me and we worked out the situation with no problems at all. Now I am awaiting the drop off in a couple of weeks.