I wanted to rent a U-Haul, wish I had!
Jason
Submitted this review about
federal moving systems
Review made Live: 12/10/2010 6:22:00 PM
What follows is only a small portion of the total complaints against FMS as space does not allow for a detailed breakdown of events. We have compiled 2 documents (6 pages each) that specify dates and incidents. Verbal promises during sales process that were not honored
*Movers did not arrive on the day of the move nor the backup day (they arrived one day later. Third truck arrived 4 days late from original move date)
*30 days to pay overage (we were forced to pay $500 before the third truck would be loaded, and pressured to pay the rest early) Written promises during sales process that were not followed
*Payment was supposed to be with a down payment (something like 25%?), 50% of the remaining balance on the day the goods were picked up, and the final 50% the day the goods were delivered. The final 50% was charged to my credit card at the same time as the first 50% - the day of the move.
*From the fedmove.org website: "Our movers go through extensive hands on training, and only the most skilled and proficient can become a foreman." - Most of the movers that we interacted with were not professional movers. This can be seen from their limited physical abilities, along with not taking the necessary steps to protect our homes and furniture from damage while moving items.
*From the contract "
*Disassembly and re-assembly of any standard furniture" - The movers of the final truck refused to disassemble saying that it was not a part of what they do. Federal Laws broken during the move
*From http://www.protectyourmove.gov/consumer/awareness/faq/faq.htm:" What If My Mover Increases the Agreed Price? If the mover increases the price you are not required to pay more than 100% of the binding estimate or 110% of the non-binding estimate. The mover is required to bill any additional charges 30 days after delivery of your goods." - We were forced to pay $500 in overage charges before the third truck would be loaded. We were pressured to pay the other overage charges at time of delivery.
*Poor Service
*Incomplete load was delivered while we were still waiting for the rest of the load to be picked up. This was not arranged in advance. I happened to be at the new home while my wife was at the old home, so I was there to receive it, however I was threatened that it would be put in storage and I would be charged for storage if I did not receive it right away. There was also an issue about paying for the load, when it was not a complete load, however that became a non-issue when I realized they had already charged my credit card for the delivery on the day they picked up the load.
*Drivers insisted on money that was not due them, and in manners other than what was agreed. On the day of pickup, I was told I had to have several thousand dollars in cash available even though I had was told I could pay by credit card. While transporting the goods to my new home, the subcontractor told my wife that the overage payment was going to be twice the negotiated rate on the contract. Subcontractor wanted overage payments on day of delivery. Federal resolved the issue, but I eventually gave in later, due to subcontractor pressure. Loaders of third truck refused to load truck until they received $500 cash. This occurred during off hours so Federal was not available to resolve. Subcontractor tried but the movers didn't listen to him. We ended up paying them the cash.
*Third truck was loaded 4 days after the original date, and the goods were not delivered until 18 days after that.
*Third truck was packed in a haphazard fashion and several items were damaged. In addition, several items were just plain missing.
*Both old and new houses received damage by the movers.
*While FMS would normally answer the phone (M-F between 9 and 5), they would often say that they would call dispatch and call us back, but they usually failed to call us back. The subcontractor ignored most of our phone calls the final two weeks.
