How Trunk Verifies Movers

Trunk independently researches moving companies across four primary sources: FMCSA federal safety records, Better Business Bureau profiles, Google review analysis, and direct pricing surveys. No mover pays to be listed on Trunk. Verified partners have rate card pricing sourced directly from the company. Surveyed movers are researched using publicly available data with no commercial relationship.

1. FMCSA SAFER Database

Every mover profile on Trunk begins with a lookup in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's SAFER database. This provides:

• USDOT number and operating authority status (active, inactive, or revoked)
• Crash records and reportable incidents
• Inspection out-of-service rates for vehicles and drivers
• Fleet size (power units and drivers)
• Insurance filing status and coverage amounts
• Interstate vs. intrastate operating scope

2. Better Business Bureau (BBB)

Trunk checks each company's BBB profile for accreditation status, total complaint count, complaint resolution history, and customer review ratings. BBB letter grades are recorded but not treated as a standalone quality signal. A company can hold an A+ rating while having multiple unresolved complaints. Trunk flags this discrepancy when it occurs.

3. Google Reviews

Rather than relying on aggregate star ratings, Trunk manually analyzes 1-star and 2-star Google reviews to identify recurring complaint patterns across independent reviewers. A single negative review is not actionable. Repeated, specific complaints from unrelated customers (pricing disputes, damaged items, late arrivals) are treated as meaningful signals.

4. Direct Mover Surveys

Trunk collects actual pricing data through phone surveys and online quote tools operated by the movers themselves. This data is used to build pricing baselines for different move types, distances, and home sizes.

5. Review Integrity Analysis

Trunk cross-references publicly available data to assess review authenticity. Indicators include: FMCSA-reported annual mileage compared against total review volume (a small carrier with thousands of reviews warrants scrutiny), detection of non-disparagement clauses in contracts, and identification of review pressure tactics such as offering discounts for 5-star ratings.

Pricing data is updated periodically. The date of the most recent update is displayed on each mover's profile page.

Trunk flags the following patterns when supported by evidence across multiple sources:

Movers are matched to cities based on the service radius from their headquarters or primary operating location. A mover headquartered in Arlington, VA with a 50-mile service radius appears in results for Washington, D.C. and surrounding cities within that range. Service areas are confirmed through FMCSA records, the mover's own website, and direct communication when available.