<p>Anyone have experience with the company that students use to pack up and store their stuff at WashU over the summer rather than shlepping it home? Does it have a good track record of reliability or do things get lost or stolen? I've heard the insurance at other campus moving places is shoddy, with fine print requiring you to make claims against your own homeowners insurance first. So, anyone who has already been through this, do you recommend using the campus moving company to store things like bedding, winter clothes, snowboarding gear, lamp, wastebasket, etc. over the summer or not?</p>
<p>My transfer peer mentor had a horrible time with UTrucking this past summer. Her experience might be unique though. Apparently they "lost" her stuff and didn't know where it was. So she had to go out and buy some bedding and such to get through the first couple of weeks until her stuff was "found."</p>
<p>Most people seem to do well with UTrucking. My RA told me great things about it. It's a bit pricey, but considering that they'll take all your boxes, keep them secure, AND deliver them back to you in the fall is a big plus.</p>
<p>I haven't heard anything negative about them yet besides the price.</p>
<p>Thanks for the replies. S is determined to use them, rather than trying to carry too much home by plane (he's traveling on his own) and I can't imagine that using Fedex for a snowboard would be less expensive than storing it (assuming it doesn't go missing.) Anyone with horror stories better get them in fast; I think he's getting packed up Wednesday.</p>
<p>hi jazzymom, he'll be fine with UTrucking. My d's roommates last year used it and had no problem. As mentioned above, you will pay more but they do come to you with boxes, pick up, and deliver back in the fall. For a less expensive option, you can always rent a storage unit which my d did with several others but you need a car or u-haul to get the goods over to storage.</p>
<p>Did your son resolve his housing issue?</p>
<p>I'm just paranoid about that snowboard because it's not packed in a box --- too large --- but in a travel case with a luggage tag on it and it's just the sort of thing that can get "lost." We are just going to have to risk it, though. He can't humanly carry all the stuff he's bringing home and a snowboard and we're not flying out there to accompany him. Thanks for the reassurance, though.</p>
<p>So far, he has not been told anything about his housing situation. Last time he spoke to res life, they indicated that the longer he was willing to wait, the more likely he would get a spot on campus, so we're trying to be patient. My hovercraft is on standby right now. :)</p>
<p>It is a huge pain to store things yourself: there aren’t elevators in most dorms, you have to rent a truck, deal with rediculous traffic during move out, you have to buy boxes, there is no insurance, you must sign a storage contract at some place, etc. I did it my freshman year with 2 other guys and it wasnt a pleasant experience.</p>
<p>With that said, I would highly recommend Utrucking. They have been around since before I was a freshman, and my sister said she used Utrucking when she went to Wash U 9 years ago! Their prices are average for full service summer storage and shipping, but their care and service have been great! I didn’t use them freshman year (regretted it), but used them every year since with no problems. </p>
<p>Most importantly, I came to Wash U to study and do well in my classes. Moving all my stuff out myself I thought was a poor use of my time, when I could/should be studying.</p>
<p>Their website is <a href=“http://www.utrucking.com%5B/url%5D”>www.utrucking.com</a></p>
<p>Possibly a dumb question, but I gotta ask…is there snowboarding in/near St. Louis?</p>
<p>princessbell - what does that have to do with moving and storage??? LOL</p>
<p>There are a quite a few references to moving a snowboard to/from WashU.</p>
<p>LOL, LOL. You are funny. Anyway, it does snow in St. Louis, and there are some decent hills in Forest Park, but I wouldn’t think it would be much of a challenge to real snowboarders. There used to be a ski slope (artificial snow mostly) in West County about 20 miles west of WUSTL, but I don’t know if it is still there.</p>
<p>Your response is exactly why I asked my question…is there really a point to bringing the snowboard?</p>
<p>I truly can’t imagine one, unless you are going to fly right from Wash U to Colorado during a break.</p>
<p>I echo what many others have said. We’ve had positive experiences both in getting our son’s items to school in the fall of freshman year and in storing items over the next two summers. <a href=“https://www.utrucking.com%5B/url%5D”>https://www.utrucking.com</a></p>
<p>This is the no hassle way to go. They have been reliable, responsible and have done the work for our student so that he could concentrate in his studies during the spring finals. They provide the boxes, the lifting and the redelivery in the fall and they do it according to your schedule. </p>
<p>While it may be a little cheaper to rent a storage unit and the truck to get it there and to pick up your stuff in the fall - you need to do the labor and have the time to do it on top of packing and unpacking.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, now that airlines charge for bags, UTrucking becomes an even better deal. If you ship via UPS or Fedex - you still have to get your items to the shipping point and pick them up in the fall - Utrucking does that “schlepping” for you - especially when you don’t have elevators.</p>
<p>We plan to use this service again this summer for our other son who will be a freshman this coming fall.</p>