I moved from Orlando to Las Vegas.\r
One star is the lowest you can rate, or it would be -10.\r
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Good Points:\r
The movers in Florida were nice and one even admitted to me that 90% of the people he has moved have the same exact problems I was having with the surprise fees.\r
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Bad Points:\r
Lying salesman. \r
Lie 1) ""Your price is guaranteed."" I paid $850 more than my estimate, even though I left half of my stuff behind and declined other services.\r
Lie 2) ""We insure .60 to the dollar. "" The written contract...the binding one...states that they pay .60 cents to the POUND of a damaged article. If they destroy your dresser (and they did), you'll get about $12 for it. \r
Lie 3) ""Your 36 square foot cedar chest won't affect your square footage much."" At 5.67 per sq. ft., that's $204.\r
Lie 4) ""This includes all your packing materials and boxes for electronics."" I paid $475 for packing materials. \r
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My salesman was ""Mike."" He sold me (conned me) on a so-called guaranteed price. I told him exactly what I had, and he gave an estimate based on the square footage of my belongings. He told me that I had three days before the move to add or subtract things on my list in order to guarantee my price. I called two weeks later to tell him about an item I had forgotten about, and he replied, ""That's not going to change things much, so I won't even add that in there,"" leading me to believe that my price wouldn't go up. \r
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Moving out day: The foreman informed me that there was a window of error that could be anywhere from 10-100% of what my estimate was!!!! A WINDOW? They don't tell you that until moving day because if you cancel 48 hours or less prior, they charge you fully anyway. Of course, I panicked and started unpacking boxes, but they started moving boxes before I had a chance to get to any more. Longer story short, I left behind half of my belongings and STILL had to pay $850 extra over my estimate. (My first estimate included packing my entire kitchen for me, but I ended up doing that myself.)Talking to management was to no avail, they apparently hire people who's job it is to harrass dissatisfied customers.\r
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Moving In Day:\r
They showed up on the 11th day, at night. It had been raining, and my friend started laying cardboard on the floor so they wouldn't track in dirt. They wouldn't wait for her to finish, just walked right by her!! My carpets are ruined! I had asked about some missing parts to my furniture, and he said, ""If I find it, I'll mail it to you."" Yeah right. AFter they left, I started to notice knicks on my belongings, and then when I got my broken floor lamp rigged to stand up, I saw the extent of the damage. Everything they moved was marred, scratched, dented, or detached. Entire boxes are missing! To this day, I am still searching for items that never made it. The movers that you see are careful in front of your face, but when they transfer things to an 18-wheeler, forget it. No one there to see them ruin your stuff! (And yes, I tipped each mover and remained polite to them.)\r
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Lesson: If moving cross-country, paying American Van Lines East is like buying everything in your house all over again, only you are paying for damaged goods.\r
Poor, poor, poor. \r
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Pros: The movers were nice
Cons: shady salesman, rude management, damaged belongings
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