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Review content:
I contacted American Vanlines East Inc. (MOVERS) to move my furniture from my storage and condo to my new house. I worked with Mike to understand the hourly rate and extra costs. While solidifying the contract rate and services to be performed I provided on the phone to Mike the list of items that would be moved to the final destination.\r
Mike sent me an estimate via Email and told me that glass would need to be wrapped and that I could do that myself to save costs. I was told that I could purchase my own bubble wrap and cardboard for my mirrors/tvs/tables; and that is what I did. I was provided an estimate of 5 hours (this, I was told, would be on the highest end of the estimate and it shouldn't take this long. I was also told I was in charge of the move time and I could end it at any time). My estimate was for $79 an hour with an hour of travel time at $79=474. With any extra wrapping--I was EXPECTING a move around $500. I initialed the contract and returned it. I also provided a 79 deposit to secure my moving date. The night before the move I called the company to ask one final time if there were ANY extra costs? I was again, only told about bubble wrap and cardboard. I asked how much it would be if the company had to wrap something for me in the event I ran out of my personally purchased bubble wrap. The person on the phone did not know the ""exact"" cost and told me I would be fine with what I purchased. I asked if there were any extra fees and I was told a flat ""NO.""\r
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Problems began on the morning of the move, 6/15/10 at 8am. Upon arrival, the team of 3 men greeted me at my storage unit, and then began doing a complete estimate. No team members even knew the likenesses of the locations we were going to--asking if they were houses/condos/apartments, etc. The ""foreman"" sat down in my storage unit and provided me with several contracts to sign--as an academic I read everything--and there were things I was not comfortable with signing. Some of the contract language suggested that the move time could be grossly underestimated and that I was responsible for paying for the new move as the online estimate was just that--an estimate. \r
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I then asked the foreman how many hours he thought my move would be--and I was told 7-9. Of course by initialing the online Email with Mike the week prior, I waved my option of an on-site estimate--as classic ""catch-22"" by the company, and an unethical business practice. I was willing to deal with this--until the foreman began estimating my ""PACKING COSTS."" The foreman had a list that I did NOT find online --which included wrapping my mattresses at $25 X4, my couches in plastic (not mentioned in the estimate or phone calls, etc). After adding up this list it was an EXTRA $272. So, now my move was $983. At this point I refused to initial anything (which infuriated the foreman who called the manager), and I cancelled the move BEFORE it started. \r
At this point I was put on the phone with the office manager, Gill, who haggled the price down for me--waving the wrapping charges that were supposedly mandatory, bartered with me on time--telling me, ""I could end the move at any time if I felt it was taking too long!"" What right-minded person is going to end a move when half of the things are in the moving truck, a piano is on the front lawn, and the move is incomplete???--of course the customer is ""stuck"" when the move is half-done--and forced to complete the move to get things off the truck by paying for it. I told Gill that we would not do the move and he told me he was going to run my 350 ""move in progress cancellation fee"" so I might as well just use the guys. He also was not going to remove from the bill the hour of time that it took for all the haggling (it was now 9am). The company ran my card for 350, even though the move NEVER STARTED.\r
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The company purposefully underestimated the move to double the price and used classic tricks to continue the move. This is unethical & I want my $350 back.\r
Pros: on time to rip you off...
Cons: bait and switch, catch-22, unethical, confrontational
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