Moving Resources & Guides
Every move includes coverage. The question is which level fits what you're moving. Here's exactly what Basic Liability, Full Value Protection, and Item-Specific Coverage mean in real dollars, and how Minnesota's rules work, before you book.
Your Three Options
Basic Liability is available on every CPM move at no extra cost. Full Value Protection and Item-Specific Coverage are upgrades you can add depending on what you're moving and how much it's worth to you. We go over all three with you before move day.
Whichever option you choose, it's spelled out in writing in your moving agreement before we lift a single box.
Option 01 · No Extra Cost
Basic Liability, also called Released Value, is the lowest level of mover liability and costs nothing extra. It's a fine fit for some moves, but it's important to understand what it actually pays out.
If an item is lost or damaged, reimbursement is 60 cents per pound of that specific item, not what you paid for it. A 50 lb TV worth $2,000 would be reimbursed about $30. A heavy but inexpensive item is covered more than a light but valuable one.
You don't pay anything extra. Under Minnesota's rule for household goods movers, choosing 60 cents per pound is something you confirm in writing on your bill of lading, so we walk you through it before you sign. Read more in what "licensed and insured" actually means.
Smaller moves, moves without high-value items, or moves where most items are easily replaceable at low cost — like a basic apartment move with standard furniture.
Option 02 · Recommended for Full Moves
This is real, comprehensive protection. If something is lost, damaged, or destroyed in the move, CPM is responsible for repairing it, replacing it with a like item, or reimbursing you at current market value.
Minor damage gets repaired. A destroyed or lost item gets replaced with one of like kind and quality, or you're reimbursed at current cash value. You're not stuck with a payout that doesn't match reality.
Unlike Item-Specific Coverage, this applies across everything on the truck — furniture, boxes, electronics, all of it — based on the total value you declare.
Full household moves, moves with a mix of valuable and everyday items, and anyone who wants to move without thinking twice about what happens if something goes wrong.
Option 03 · For Your Most Valuable Pieces
You don't need to insure your entire household at replacement value just to protect the one thing that actually keeps you up at night — a piano, a piece of art, an antique, a safe. Item-Specific Coverage lets you declare a value for that individual item and cover it for a cost of 5% of that value, while the rest of your shipment stays on Basic Liability or Full Value Protection.
You and your move coordinator agree on a fair declared value for the specific item before move day — no guesswork after the fact.
Your coverage cost for that item is calculated as 5% of what you declared it's worth. A $2,000 item runs $100 in coverage.
Item-Specific Coverage protects that one piece. The rest of your shipment is still covered by Basic Liability or Full Value Protection — whichever you've chosen.
Pianos, fine art, antiques, safes, and other individually valuable items. Heavy pieces like these are what our specialty moving crews handle.
The declared value and coverage terms for that item are documented in your moving agreement before we touch it.
Mention the item when you book. Your move coordinator will walk you through declaring a value and confirming coverage before move day.
Common Questions
Still not sure which option fits your move? Here's what clients ask us most.
Talk it through with your move coordinator and lock in the option that fits your home — before move day, in writing, no surprises.