The company we contracted with was Alliance Express, and evidently they subcontract with G&G Best Moving and Storage. I don't know if our experience is typical for the moving industry, or if G&G is a particularly horrible company, but this is our experience.
My wife was looking at the rates for various moving companies vs renting a U-haul and since Alliance bills by the cubic foot she needed an estimate of volume. So she talked to them about what all we had and they came up with an estimate of 700 cubic feet. For this amount, it was pretty much a wash to go with the moving company versus driving the U-haul ourselves. So we did, and boy do we regret it. All the initial contact was over the phone so we never actually got to see a detailed contract with the rules until they showed up at the door.
I cannot say that the method they used for for the estimate was completely fraudulent, but the driver said that the initial volume estimate is *always* way under the estimate. How convenient for Alliance/G&G and horrible for the customer that was trying to make a rational choice based on price.
First off, they were supposed to show up on Monday or Tuesday... and they showed up Wednesday morning.
We were told that things needed to be boxed but it turns out the rules are much more strict than what were were lead to believe on the phone. So stuff that was sealed in laundry baskets needed to go in boxes (which they conveniently sell to you for a massive fee). We went to the U-haul and got more boxes and got that straightened out.
No liquids. We were not told about this rule in advance. So into the trash goes a bunch of cleaning supplies, toiletries, etc. That was expensive. Why is there a no liquids rule? Because they are going to beat the %^#@!! out of your stuff and stuff is going to break. Liquids will make a mess... so no liquids. Evidently this is easier than, say, not breaking your stuff.
The way they pack things, they won't nest a box of books inside a bookshelf. How convenient that they charge by the cubic foot.
Insurance. Over the phone we were told that they provide moving insurance in case things break, etc. However, the insurance they provide is '60 cents per pound per article.' Your stereo weighs 10 lbs, so it is worth $6 if they break it. The surprise we found out on moving das was that even this paltry insurance only covers items that the company packed into boxes.
Over the phone, we were told that our effects would show up at the destination 3-5 days from the date of pickup. Turns out the actual rule is that it will show up within 21 days of your first available date of delivery. So now we are stuck without any of our stuff for at least 2 weeks (for the current estimated delivery date). Thus we had an expensive trip to Target to get enough stuff to get us through the next couple of weeks.
Over the phone we were told that the 'First flight of stairs is free' which is great because our new place is two stories. Yet again, Alliance/G&G finds a way to screw over the customer and defines a flight of stairs as 6 steps, which is completely ridiculous.
Unfortunately Alliance/G&G Best Moving and Storage has proven to be a scam more than anything else. My wife and I are extremely pissed that we ignored our gut instinct to cancel the contract when they were a day late and didn't have the backbone on moving day to refuse the contract.
