Long-Distance Movers Who See the House First
We categorize long-distance moves as any move over 200 air miles from Louisville, Kentucky.
Long-distance moving has a reputation problem, and it’s earned. The industry-standard bad experience runs like this: a low estimate over the phone, a price that climbs once the truck is loaded, and a delivery window measured in weeks.
As family-owned Louisville, KY movers, Horsepower Moving and Storage is licensed and insured and registered with the FMCSA under USDOT 4474565, moving households to and from all 48 contiguous United States. Long-distance moves start from anywhere in our local area, including Prospect, Middletown, Anchorage, Crestwood, La Grange, St. Matthews, New Albany, Clarksville and Jeffersonville. Our crews are background-checked on an ongoing basis, and we don’t estimate a household we haven’t seen for long-distance moves.
How to Check Long-Distance Moving Companies, Including Us
Do this before you give anyone a deposit. It takes five minutes, and it eliminates most of the risk in this category.
- Ask for their USDOT number and look it up – the FMCSA’s SAFER system is public and free. Ours is 4474565
- Refuse a price given over the phone without a survey – nobody can accurately price a household they haven’t looked at. If an estimate arrives without anyone seeing your home, expect it to change
- Be careful about large deposits – ours is $100, and it comes off your final bill
- Ask whether the company self-hauls or brokers the move – a broker hands your belongings to a carrier you haven’t vetted. Know which one you’re hiring
Any company that objects to you running these checks is telling you something.
A Long-Distance Moving Company, Not a Broker
Horsepower Moving and Storage is a long-distance moving company that carries your belongings on its own trucks with its own movers. We do not broker moves. A broker sells you the move and then hands it to a carrier you have never met. With us, the company that does the estimate also does the move.
Here is what that means on your long-distance move:
- One estimate, one company. The on-site walkthrough, the written price, the loading and the delivery all come from us.
- The same standards as a local move. Furniture disassembly and reassembly are included, mattresses go into bags, and flat-screen TVs are wrapped.
- No cap on boxes or weight. Your belongings only have to fit our trucks. One 26-foot truck holds roughly 1,600 square feet of normally furnished living space.
- Packing and crating. Our packing services can prepare your home for the trip, including custom crating where an item needs it.
- Storage if the dates don’t line up. If your new home isn’t ready, storage can go into your moving estimate.
What Happens Before You Book an Interstate Move
Estimates are free and carry no obligation. For long-distance moves, we do an on-site walkthrough on every job, whatever the size of your home.
You get a written price before you commit to a date. For scale, one 26-foot truck holds roughly 1,600 square feet of normally furnished living space, and there’s no cap on box count or total weight – it only has to fit. The clock and the paperwork are both transparent: your crew chief reviews an itemized Bill of Lading with you at completion.
Protection on a Long-Distance Move
Distance increases handling, and handling is where damage happens. The right protection level matters more on an interstate move than a local one.
Here is how we handle it:
- Options explained before you book – we go through the replacement-value protection tiers with you and put your choice in writing. No surprises at delivery
- Custom plans for high-value items – artwork, antiques, and fragile furniture get a protection plan based on the item’s declared value
- Documentation at both ends – your crew chief reviews an itemized Bill of Lading with you at completion, so every piece is accounted for
If a mover has never asked you to choose a protection level, they haven’t disclosed what you’re actually covered for.
Planning Your Interstate Move
Interstate moves need more lead time than local ones. Book as far ahead as you can – demand peaks between late May and August, and long-distance jobs fill faster than local ones during that stretch.
If you’d rather not pack everything yourself, our packing services crew can prepare your belongings for safe long-distance transportation, including custom crating where the item calls for it.
Deposit – $100, applied to your final bill. Non-refundable, with a cancellation fee within 72 hours of the scheduled date. Submit it once you’re certain of the day
Payment – cash, check, or tap-to-pay card at completion. 3% service charge on cards; cash and check avoid it
Sales tax – Kentucky’s 6% is not included in estimates
Price match – send us a competing written estimate and our operations team will review it and match it
Out-of-State Moving Checklist
Use this list to plan an out-of-state move from Kentucky to any of the 48 contiguous states, from the first call to delivery.
- Book as far ahead as you can. Late May through August fills fastest.
- Schedule the on-site walkthrough. We do one on every long-distance job, whatever the size of your home.
- Choose your protection level. We explain the replacement-value options in writing before you book.
- Submit the $100 deposit once your date is certain. It comes off your final bill.
- Decide what you’re packing yourself and what our packing services will handle.
- Disconnect your washer and dryer, and take TVs off their wall mounts. We move appliances and TVs but don’t connect, disconnect or re-mount them.
- Review the itemized Bill of Lading with the movers when the job is done.