U-Haul

Moving Day or not, if you need to move your stuff, one option is of course U-Haul, truck rental. Davis has two U-Haul locations, Stonegate Self Storage and Davis Carpet Sales. If you have something to say about either of these locations in particular, say it on their individual page.

There is NO SUCH THING as a confirmed reservation with rental companies. Although they call it a reservation, it's actually a "request", because you are not reserving anything, rather, you are requesting a truck and will get one if they happen to have one available. Of course, on moving day, this isn't likely, so make sure you have backup plans.

U-Haul's Website

Some say Budget Truck Rentals is cheaper, but Budget is also known to run out of trucks on moving day. The nearest Budget Truck Rentals is at South Davis Storage (not to be confused with the Budget Car Rentals), and there is another location in West Sacramento. It is noted that renting from further locations cost more in mileage driving the truck to and from the rental center, so be warned.

2005-09-08 17:11:40   U-Haul is way sketchy. They have two separate fleets: one-way and in-town. They do not maintain their in-town trucks at ALL. When someone returns a truck, they immediately turn around and rent it to the next person. They are decrepit and more often than not have more than 200,000 miles on them. They have a tendency to break down frequently. Rent at your own risk. Oh, and they do not honor reservations. Your "confirmation number" definitely does not mean they'll actually have a truck for you. —JoannaHeiple

2005-09-08 18:00:20   I had a confirmed reservation for a truck in Davis the weekend before moving day, going one-way from Davis to Grass Valley. I ended up having to drive to Elk Grove to pick up a UHaul, and then it didn't even have a freaking ramp. Bleah. —SummerSong

2005-10-26 08:48:12   I have been screwed by both UHaul and Ryder making "reservations" and then not having trucks. The whole industry needs a serious regulatory overhaul, as it's totally anti-consumer. /venom —AlexPomeranz

2006-03-09 05:49:30   Penske is more expensive, but if you're driving between states, you'll make up for it in gas savings as all their trucks are newer and well maintained. They are also trustworthy in terms of reservations. Since there's none in town(?), they are only really decent for long haul moves. (? — Maybe... Tar_Zxf, do you remember where I rented that Penske from? Was it Davis or West Sac or Woodland or where?) —JabberWokky

• You said Dixon I think. —TarZxf

2006-09-11 03:36:56   Having worked at a U-Haul store, they do try to honor reservations as best as possible, but some people don't return trucks until days after their due date, making trucks unavailable to other customers. It costs the offending party an arm and two legs, so at least if you don't get a truck, know that the person that has your truck is paying out the ass for it. — Anon

2007-05-24 11:12:43   I just called the covell uhaul, and the person on the phone was litterally *shocked* that I wanted a 24' truck. "We only have 14' trucks!" The larger trucks were not taken, the just do not ever have them she said. Based on her reaction to my truck size request, I must have been speaking Martian! So unless you are a student in a dorm, don't call that uhaul because they don't carry big enough trucks! —PatrickRogers

2009-01-02 23:12:26   Got a u-haul today. Fortunately I did not experience the problems mentioned by others regarding truck availability. The truck was fine but it was a strange experience because the shopowners seemingly attempt to extract money from customers at every turn. Perhaps that's business as usual for moving truck agencies, but the sour attitude of the woman managing the rentals made it intimidating. Some of their more interesting threats are a $1 per blanket folding fee for furniture blankets returned unfolded, and a $25 fee for sweeping the back of the truck. Yes, she actually checked these items when we returned the truck and blankets. I wish they would cover costs by charging a higher base rate rather than creating a sleazy experience for their customers. —AceDarling

2010-06-01 13:46:38   I rented a truck for a morning about a month ago. I reserved online just one day before the Saturday need, and after the comments here was not sure what to expect. But, when I got there at 8am, the truck was available and I was driving away in 10-15 mins. Dropoff was equally easy (we topped off before returning and folded the moving blankets so no extra charges). The place is managed by an older couple, I could see how if you get sideways with them it might not be a happy experience but everything went well for me. I would use them again. —RalphFinch

2012-08-17 08:04:40   By all means rent U-Haul if you want to play a lottery on your moving date. The website will falsely tell you that a truck is available for a given date and location. The two days before your move you will get an email that oups, the equipment is not available/exists somewhere else. Of course you cannot get any other rental at that point at the end of August in Davis. —ZuzanaMajkova