Pam Morse is the second-generation owner of Morse Van Lines LLC, an independently owned and -operated company that’s been the go-to name in moving services for over 60 years, offering service to clients looking for a knowledgeable, capable, professional firm that’s cost conscious, but sensitive to their needs.

PAINESVILLE – If you’re considering a move any time soon, be aware of unscrupulous businesses and scammers who are looking to take advantage of shippers who are looking to minimize moving costs.
For over six decades, Morse Van Lines has been the go-to name in moving services for clients looking for a knowledgeable, capable, professional firm that’s cost conscious, but sensitive to a client’s needs. The business started with Bill Morse, the father of current owner Pam Morse, doing local moves in a pickup truck with a top his brother had made

Morse Van Lines offers free estimates for clients and can conduct estimates virtually via Zoom or Facetime.

Morse said it’s also important to inquire and book moving services at least two weeks out for local moves, and three to four weeks out for interstate moves – particularly if the move is 1,000 miles or more one way. International shipments have a much longer transport time than in the past so also take that into consideration when scheduling an out of the country relocation.

The peak season for moving services runs from May 1 through Sept. 30 and it can be hard to find openings, she said. The summer is like Easter Week for the airlines, no available space on any trucks.
Morse related an anecdote about referral of a woman in Florida who paid a $3,000 deposit for a move to Mentor Ohio, only to have her belongings not delivered. When Morse helped find the lady’s mover, she learned her things were placed in storage while the so-called mover tried to subcontract the job out for the long-distance delivery because they weren’t licensed to operate outside of Florida. The customer contracted with Morse Van Lines who picked up and delivered the items to Ohio within the week.
Often people contract with one mover, only to have a sort of “bait-and-switch” pulled on them, when one company takes a large deposit on a move, usually a broker, they then try to find a subcontractor to pick up the load and upon arrival at destination they ask for much more money.
“This has been a problem ever since the deregulation of the moving industry,” Morse said.
Looking for the lowest price for a move online is tempting, but those low prices come at a cost in reliability, according to Morse. Instead, she said anyone considering a move should ask around among their friends, find out if the mover has fulltime employees and if they own their own trucks.

Moving is one of the four most stressful events in an adult’s life, according to Morse, who said making sure you can entrust your mover with everything makes an already difficult situation somewhat easier to deal with.

In the past, Morse advised people thinking of a move to make sure a mover is licensed and bonded and to get their DOT and ICC numbers as well as public utility numbers for their home state and to ascertain that the licensed movers have a brick-and-mortar location.

In the transportation business, you may also have to consider the weather. Morse said her trucks are currently not able to deliver to some locations in the Southeast because of the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, which has ravaged a good deal of the East Coast from Florida to Virginia.

Morse gave another anecdote of a man moving from Concord to Punta Gorda, Florida. When he arrived, a hurricane had wiped out his house. Another move from the Florida to New Orleans had to end in storage with Morse Van Lines when the condo they were moving to was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.
Even local moves can be complicated by bad weather. Moves during the wintertime can be complicated by snow, ice and winds. Moves to the Sun Belt can pose problems with heatstroke and wildfires – though Morse said it’s happened locally as well when the heat and humidity are bad enough.

“We encourage anyone to call,” Morse said. “We can spend on hour on the bullet points of your move whether it is local or out of state we also like to review with you all of the ins and outs of moving.”
She added that Morse Van Lines can also help you to know what to pack in your own car, rather than putting in the truck.

Morse Van Lines is located at 83 S. State St. in downtown Painesville. For more information or to get a quote, call 440-352-2600, email pam@morsevanlines.com or visit morsevanlines.com. Operating hours are Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-8 p.m. and Saturday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.