10/1 The police are involved now, but I would like to get my money back. My freight is still in Philadelphia.
We hate to say this but if John really want any of the stuff that is (maybe) in Philadelphia, he might be well advised to rent a truck and go get it.
Rolando of Austin TX writes (9/17/01):
I contracted Advanced Moving Systems to move my belongings from Hanover, NH to Austin, TX. Our initial conversation was on Aug 7, 2001. It was then I told Bill Davis, about my interest in a professional moving company. I listed, over the phone, what I had. It was a one-bedroom apartment. I had two bikes, a bed, a couch, a bookcase, a dresser, a large chair, and about 50 boxes. He quoted me $1200 for an estimated 270 CU FT. I also told him I needed the stuff delivered on Sept 7, 2001 and he said it was no problem.
On Aug 28th they arrived and it turns out I had too much stuff -- about 500 CU FT total -- DOUBLING the quoted price. I told the driver in writing I needed my stuff delivered on Friday Sept 7, 2001. He said that was not a problem and the drivers would call me the day before to confirm a time. I called up the company on Sept 7th, and they tell me that it can't be in Austin that day, because they need 7-10 days to deliver it. So I called them up on Sept 10, 2001, and a new story arose -- it's 7-10 days from the desired delivery date.
Mr Davis told me this and asked me repeatedly and loudly "What's 7+10?" implying the latest date it would get here is Sept 17. On Sept 14, one week after arriving in Austin, I called them up and yet another story arose. Now it's 7-10 BUSINESS days from the desired delivery date! That would put the delivery from Sept 18-21, 2001. I called today and they are now saying that Texas is considered WEST COAST and so it won't be delivered until between Sept 24-26.
Because of this late delivery we have had to purchase many things that we would otherwise not need to buy -- air matress, cookware,etc. they also have my computer with all my important documents and programs without which I can't look for a job. So we are expected to be in Austin buying all these things we don't need to, including clothes, not looking for jobs because we can't print out our resumes or cover letters, for alomst three full weeks. Not to mention paying double what we were quoted.
Phil of Herndon VA writes (8/29/01):
I hired Advanced Moving System to move from VA to CA. They arrived 7 hours late and took six hours longer to pack and load my stuff than the estimates they'd given. Worse yet they insisted the truck was 500 cubic feet bigger than actual that I measured with the driver, and they are demanding almost double the price tag. Their sales rep told they'd accept credit cards, but the driver demanded cash only. So far they haven't kept anything their sales rep told me, and they are not even responding to my phone calls.
I have hired this company from the major moving resources on the web which I thought would have screened out some bad movers, but they did not. The Advanced Moving System, Inc has my FREIGHT as HOSTAGE and is demanding cash before they deliver the FREIGHT. They use nice sales talk to get you started and then their front man comes in and contradicts all the terms the sales rep stated, and do not let you talk to anyone else. I tried numerous times to talk to them reasonably but they defy common sense, reasons, and civility.
I now realize the industry begs to be regulated. It needs law and order to stop being abusive and to stop robbing consumers. We are under extreme emotional stress dealing with this company and with uncertainty as to what will happen to our belongings.
Denise of Cincinnati (8/7/01):
By the way, I am not the Denise from Florida who complained about this moving company (below). I moved from Burke, Virginia to Cincinnati, Ohio in January. I was hoping to arrive on that last Thursday in January and was told by Jay and John this would be "no problem, don't worry". However, at one point I spoke to a very grumpy and unpleasant man named Rocky (?) who told me he didn't know why I was being told that because they can't guarantee a single date of arrival - that I had to give them a date and that the furniture would arrive between two days prior to that date and two days afterward.
Still Jay and John assured me the last Thursday in January would be a guarantee. I called them several times because I've never had movers before and had lots of worries, which they constantly told me were unfounded. My main concern was my dining room set, which is a good quality piece of furniture and had been refurbished for a pretty penny not quite a year earlier. They kept telling me it would be no problem, they are professional movers and take care of furniture all the time, that I didn't need to worry about wrapping it or anything, that was all includede in the move.
Then unfortunately my car was seriously vandalized and was at the dealership for several weeks. This was only going to delay my driving to Ohio by one day (the last Friday as opposed to Thursday). I was told this was no problem, that if my furniture was not there Friday it would be there Saturday. Ok, so it is the Monday prior that the movers come - Adam and another man. Adam was very nice and I watched their every move. They were very gentle with my furniture but told me I had to pay for the materials if I wanted them to pad my dining room set. I explained that I was told by Jay/John that they were professional movers and that was included in the move not to worry about a thing.
So Adam and his partner complied and were pleasant about it. They wrapped my table but not my chairs, stating they would personally make sure the chairs would be safe. Friday came and I got to my new apt. in Ohio and I called the moving company. The rude man Rocky, who had originally been the one who told me they couldn't guarantee a date of arrival was now telling me that because I delayed my move by one day that they had to put my stuff in storage and that he had no idea when I would get my furniture. It took 7 days for my furniture to arrive. Again it was Adam and his same partner. Again I watched their every move and they gently unpacked the van. Adam apologized for the storage decision - that he argued with the company but they insisted, and Adam said it was not him that unloaded/loaded into storage.
Well one of my dining room table legs was broken and some of the wood finish stripped off (keep in mind this is very good quality of furniture, not some junky crap from Kmart). In addition, each of my 4 dining room chairs had been scuffed or a piece gouged out. This furniture was in perfect condition prior. Not only that but it was clear that whoever had loaded my stuff into storage (without my permission mind you) had thrown my belongings in there with no regard for it, as evidenced by crushed boxes, boxes upside down, etc. This is not how my things were loaded into the truck from the beginning.
Ok here is what has REALLY made me mad. They are total liars and are now telling me they are not responsible for my furniture because they didn't "pack" it and only things they pack are they liable for. This is totally different than what they told me MORE THAN ONCE on the phone prior to my move. Furthermore, I submitted a claim and whenever I have called them back I am either put on hold for 25 minutes (no exaggeration) or nobody calls back when I leave a message, or they tell me to call back in 2 weeks to check on the claim, but that doing so wouldn't help because their insurance company would contact me directly. I was told this SEVERAL times.
A few weeks ago I had finally had it and got very nasty and told them I would make complaints. Then all of a sudden they "found" the insurance claim and said the insurance company would only pay $40. I continued to be nasty telling them the estimate for repair itself was $50, not to mention the cost of film & developing to make the claim. They then said, well we'll give you $60 but you have to sign a release saying that you will not ask us for money again. I asked to have the release form faxed (but did not sign it) and discovered it was not even from the insurance company but some bogus form they made up themselves.
I spoke to someone named Brian or some such name the next day and demanded a copy of the insurance company's ruling. This person told me twice (I called twice in a week) John would mail it. I never got it, and when I spoke to John he said he couldn't show me proof from the insurance company. When I reminded him that I was told several times that the insurance company would contact me directly, he said, no that wasn't true. They have constantly changed their stories from the get go. I was nervous about them from the beginning but unfortunately I chalked it up to having to move in general.
I bet they aren't even insured, and if they are there is no way in hell he made the claim to them after I submitted my letters and pictures asking for compensation. By the way, i contracted this company through www.VanLines.com who while at one point said they would help me is now changing their tune as well and have been no help whatsoever.
Kate of Seattle (6/26/01):
In March of 2001, I moved from Milwaukee, WI to Seattle, WA to join my boyfriend. To make the move, we loaded up my car with all it could hold and put the rest in a 10x10 storage unit. Then in May, I decided that I was settled and wanted to move the rest of my things out, but didn't want to do it myself as that is a really long drive.
I found Advanced Moving Systems through a search engine -- unlucky me. I was sent an email estimate of $1,125 which seemed very reasonable. They were insured and didn't even need me to fly back to Milwaukee for the loading of the truck. Wonderful, couldn't be easier.
Wrong. I called on the day that the movers were supposed to arrive only to find out that they had not even loaded the truck in Milwaukee as they had underestimated the size. You'd think it would've been easy with the exact upper limit measurements. The woman, Suzanne Schwedhelm, apologized for her mistake, and also for miscalculating the freight charges. The new estimate was $1800, although it was never confirmed with even an email.
Thinking that things were back on track, I settled in, prepared to wait the four days for my storage items to arrive. The night before the movers were to arrive, I received a phone call (after all the banks had closed ... that'll be important in a moment) telling me that the movers would arrive the next morning between 8 and 9 ... and they wanted $2500 in cash. $2500!! They drastically altered their written estimate, and I've never felt more helpless. The police were very friendly, but could only suggest retaining legal assistance.
I was robbed of $1375. Almost everything I owned was held hostage. I feel like I everything I own was taken hostage, and I was forced to pay if I wanted my things back. Breaking a written contract is unacceptable.
Bonnie of Wilmington NC (6/6/01):
I contracted with Advanced to move 900 cubic feet of my household goods and my motorcycle from Michigan to NC, and had to be in NC prior to the movers arrival. At 5:00 am, my partner, Beij called me with the news that the driver reportedly loaded 2300 cubic feet of our household goods on the truck, I told the mover to take a bunch of stuff off the truck to get it down to the agreed upon 900 cubic feet, and he refused.
I've been informed that he violated the law by taking my belongings AFTER I told him to reduce the load. I told him in NO UNCERTAIN TERMS I would NOT pay that ridiculous amount; that all of my belongings could easily be replaced for much less than $11K; and that he could start trashing my bed, couch, microwave, TV etc. just to reduce cubic feet. He left with all the stuff and told me to call the headquarters.
Each time I have spoken with a "supervisor," I was put on hold and then told to hang up and call back in 20 minutes. Phone communication has not been successful. We had to pay a cleaning service $100.00 to remove all the trash, boxes, etc. because Beij was unable to do so without making his injuries worse. Beij DID take pictures of the debris left by the movers so they cannot deny the mess they left. WE clearly have pictures of OUR empty boxes that the movers left. This company's behavior borders on extortion.
I moved everything I owned on February 2, 2001 and gave a detailed accounting of all that I have. I have no doubts that the inventory I discussed with Suzanne is accurate and know that I sold and donated several items I told Suzanne would be shipped reducing the shipment even more. Since I knew I would be moving again in May. I only unpacked a minimum of my belongings. There were many empty boxes available to finish packing Beij's office stuff and the remaining kitchen items. Beij told Lior not to buy boxes, and Lior assured Beij that they were needed for the next move- not ours. There was, and is no justification for purchasing the boxes, tape, or mattress covers to move our belongings. Regardless of what the mover wrote on the "Bill of Lading", I can prove with witness testimony, pictures, and the truth, that this "Bill of Lading' is fraudulant.
Beij does report that when the price was presented, the person helping Lior reacted with looking ashamed and being quiet. Previously, this person shared with Beij that he makes $600.00 per week regardless of how much work he does, and that he works like this (around the clock) for about 3 weeks at a time and then has 3-4 days off and starts over. It seems to me that working those kind of hours and trying to rest in a truck do not contribute to efficiency, safety, or good decision making.
Denise of Sunrise, FL, writes:
On Saturday, August 19, 2000, I phoned Advanced Moving Systems to get a quote on moving my dying Grandmother's one-bedroom apartment full of her items from Sunrise, Fl. to Orlando Fl. which is where she just moved to stay with my mother and father-in-law for around-the-clock care.
They gave me a price over the phone of $550.00 plus a $5-$15 charge per box, if needed, and told me that was a good deal because they already had a truck going to Ocala and had room on the truck for a one bedroom apartment's things. I described everything in my grandmother's aparment and again was reassured that they had enough room.
The movers arrived on Sunday, August 20th, at 10:15 a.m. in a Ryder truck. My immediate concern when I saw the truck, knowing that they already had other items on it to take to Ocala, if there was going to be enough room. The three movers came up to the apartment and reassured me again that it should all fit.
Approximately three hours later they phoned me and said they were done and I could come to lock the aparment up. When I arrived they couldn't fit everything on the truck, leaving a dining room set, four chairs, lamps, a recliner, a hutch that the microwave sat on, the coffee table (which a piece of the glass had been broken, as well as misc. items. Then when I looked at the contract they had put a total figure of $1,157.00 for the price of the job.
I immediately wanted to talk to their boss. The bosses got on the phone, were rude to say the least, and then took off with most of my grandmother's possessions in their truck. My best friend and I pursued them and called the police from our cell phone. Three officers arrived and gave me an ultimatum which was pay the movers $600.00 to put everything back in my Grandmother's apartment or pay a total of $950.00 to take what was in the truck to Orlando.
To my disgust and without much of a choice, I agreed to the $400.00 price jump just to get the items to Orlando. The main item on the truck which was of most concern was my Grandmother's very expensive hospital bed. The movers show up at my in-laws house at 9:00 p.m. demanded the money before they would unload the truck. My father-in-law gave them $600.00 cash and a check for the remaining $350.00. The started to unload the truck which was two boxes, the bed mattress, the bed footboard and headboard. Then, the owner called the driver of the moving truck and told them to leave because they wouldn't accept the check. So, they got paid $600.00 cash and took off with everything but the above-mentioned items. This is complete elderly fraud on a dying woman who more than anything needs her hospital bed. Everything now is being held for ransom of an $900.00 additional fee. Any and all help would be greatly appreciated.
Without any kind of written agreement, Denise is pretty much at the mercy of the movers. This is why no one should even think of engaging a mover without a written agreement that very clearly spells out what will be moved, when and for how much.
