All Point S Van Lines ripoff Pacoima California
Although the contract I have is with All Points Van Lines, Inc. the original company I requested the quote from and dealt with was West Point Relocation. Therefore, when I received the contract with the All Points Van Lines letterhead from the people who picked up my belongings, I was surprised. I did a lot of research before deciding upon a moving company. However, it is really difficult to check up on a company (West Point Relocation) when there are no complaints about the company at all. It is also daunting to find that that's really NOT the company who was moving your stuff.
We moved from California to Hawaii. We were given a quote of $2,950 for our home belongings and $1,195 for the car. I asked the representative Chris B to send someone out so that they can give me a better estimate. He told me that it is my right to ask for that, however, it is not necessary because they do this all the time and can 'eyeball' it.
I called many times asking many questions and because we wanted to lower the cost of our shipment, I said I'd try to sell some bulky items. Chris B told me that the cost is based upon the cubic feet so naturally, the less bulky items I had the cheaper it will be. So, I proceeded to sell our washer/dryer, beds and other furniture which I had originally quoted to Chris B.
The first down payment I had to pay was for $1,668. After I had sold the stuff, I called Chris B and told him I had substantially less things now and wanted him to give me another quote. Again he reassured me that when the movers came, they can judge better because they can see it. He said that naturally it would cost less if there was less stuff than I had given him.
The day the movers came, they showed up in a Budget rent-a-van. There were 2 guys. We didn't really have much stuff at all considering, yet it took them almost 2 hours to do the work and in the end, quoted me more cubic feet than ORIGINALLY quoted even AFTER I had sold most of our furniture. They also charged me for packing materials which they insisted MUST be used so that things would ship well and wouldn't break.
When I spoke with Eli, another representative of West Point Relocation, he told me that our things (and our car) would arrive in about 3 weeks. The movers came on Dec 19th 2005 and took our stuff away. I called them today (January 5, 2006) and inquired about our belongings. We were told that they are en route and that the estimated date of arrival would be January 23, 2006. That's 2 more weeks than promised.
That aside, now I'm worried that we might experience everything everyone's written about on here, worse yet, never see our things again. Because of this, we are having to rent a car for another 2 weeks, which in Hawaii, costs an arm and a leg. If they had been honest about the time of arrival, I would've been able to better plan our move so that it wouldn't have cost as much as it already has.
My concern is that the company I originally went with, West Point Relocation, somehow has sub-contracted the move to All Points. This is fraudulent to say the least because when you search for complaints on West Point Relocation nothing pops up, while All Points garners too many hits to mention. Even the emails I received from the reps are from West Point Relocation, NOT All Points. How can consumers make good choices when information like this is kept from them?
Right now, all I'm praying for is that my things arrive on the 23rd and that not too many items are damaged because from reading the posts here, I doubt I will get reimbursed for much if they are. Why is a company like All Points still allowed to stay in business?
Anita
Mountain View, California
U.S.A.
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5 Updates & Rebuttals
Anita
Mountain View,California,
U.S.A.
West Point has contacted me and have sorted everything out.
#6Author of original report
Fri, January 13, 2006
I finally found a way to get back onto my original account. Anyway, hopefully the one I sent out earlier would've been updated by now and that you know that West Point has contacted me and have sorted everything out.
I would like to delete this posting but am not able to do so, therefore the best I can do is to say that Eli of West Point Relocation has been extremely accomodating in helping us -- our belongings have apparently arrived in Hawaii -- and hopefully our car can be picked up today. He also stated that should we not be able to get our car today, West Point will pay for the extra days incurred from our rental car, which is very good news since we've already spent too much in rentals.
Thanks to the people who have rebutted with more information. I think the companies should read those and deal with those issues on their own. For me, I'm glad my possessions have arrived and I look forward to being acquainted with them shortly.
To West Point Relocation, thank you for making the effort to help us as best as you can. I appreciated that very much especially after the stress I've been under since the move. It certainly lessen my anxiety after speaking with Eli today.
Anita
Mountain View,California,
U.S.A.
Update He assures us that West Point Relocation
#6Consumer Comment
Fri, January 13, 2006
Thank you to those people who responded. For some reason I was unable to access my original account so I have to use "rebuttal", once I sort that part out (I've already been in touch with ripoffreport.com) I'll take care of it.
Both Chris and Eli of West Point Relocation contacted me on different occasions and I finally was able to speak with Eli this morning. Apparently our things have arrived and he is doing everything to help us pick up our car and have our goods delivered. No doubt I was very relieved to hear that our belongings have arrived.
I want to say that Eli has been more than accomodating today in getting this situation sorted out. He assures us that West Point Relocation will do everything in its power to make me (the consumer) happy. I'm very pleased to hear that and am looking forward to getting our car as well as our belongings very shortly. He even offered to pay for any extra days accumulated on our rental car until we receive our own car, which is really a good act on their part.
I believe that West Point is trying to regain the confidence I have lost for them during the course of the move and right now, they are succeeding. I want to thank them for trying and making me feel a lot more secure about the fact that I chose them as a moving company.
Sharon
Alexandria,Virginia,
U.S.A.
Clarification...
#6Consumer Suggestion
Fri, January 13, 2006
So when you contacted All Points to get their side of the story, did you just yell across the desk, or actually have to get up and walk across the room? How often do you use companies that you do not own or share an office with?
I especially love that you are writing as West Point Relocation, but sign your name as All Points. Duh!
Anita, All Points Van Lines has an F rating at the the BBB, as I'm sure you're aware now. They know you never would have hired them directly if you had known who you were getting. West Point has no BBB record, although I'm hoping a complaint from Anita will fix that. Also note that West Point Relocation, broker's license number MC519021, has had its license revoked twice since April of 2005. That's close to a record! Its status as a Freight Forwarder does not even exist. They applied for a license at the FMCSA in October 2005, but do not have the Cargo insurance required to cover the loads. Just what do you expect to do if the ship goes down? All Points Van Lines is not licensed to ship things internationally, either. Neither company is licensed by the Federal Maritime Commission as a NVOCC or a Freight Forwaarder.
Anita, cross your fingers! Your move is illegal! I hope it makes it OK.
All Points
Los Angeles,California,
U.S.A.
Your Move
#6UPDATE Employee
Thu, January 12, 2006
We would like to apologize for any misunderstandings caused during this move. We at West Point acted within our rights when we sold the job to All Points and they handled the job from that point forward. We sometimes must use different companies to handle our jobs and we have never experienced a problem with All Points. Nevertheless, we understand your concern here and we hope this response will ease those concerns. We have contacted All Points to get their side of the story.
The estimate and price given to you was based on the cubic feet you provided to us. If you had less cubic feet, you would be charged less. If you had more cubic feet, you would be charged more. When the movers arrived at your house, they conducted an on-site survey. You were shipping additional cubic feet than what you had informed the estimator. The movers informed you of this on the day of the move before they began loading and said they could not move all of your goods at the estimated price. They gave you the option of not shipping all of the items or signing a rescission of the original estimate and a new estimate that would take precedence over the old estimate and included the additional cubic feet you wanted to ship. You signed this new estimate agreeing to allow the company to ship the extra cubic feet in return for paying a little extra.
As to the Budget rental truck, moving companies sometimes are fully booked on a given day and must rent a truck to handle the overflow jobs. This is normal and the company is still handling your job.
The amount of time it takes to load your belongings does not affect the price you pay. Your estimated price included loading and you would not be charged more if it took 1 hour or 5 hours to load your goods. 2 hours for loading is a very reasonable time.
Regarding packing materials, you were under no obligation to purchase packing materials from the company. You could have wrapped your belongings yourself, or you could elect to ship the goods without packing. However, a prudent person would definitely want to pack their goods on an overseas shipment such as one going to Hawaii. Also, if you refer to your estimate, it clearly states that packing, if you request it, will be charged an additional fee.
As to delivery time, please refer to your moving documents. It lists, multiple times, the estimated transit times on shipments to Hawaii. The company is well within those times for delivery. Also, please pay careful attention to the Bill of Lading, where it states, Any oral promises made regarding delivery or pick up dates and times are mere estimates. It also says, This time frame may change based on the time of year Note the many holidays during the past couple of weeks may cause a short delay but your delivery should still occur within the time frame listed on your paperwork.
Be assured that you will receive your belongings. They are currently in transit and are expected to arrive shortly.
We hope this has addressed your comments and concerns. We were definitely concerned when we saw this report because we have never had this types of complaint with any moves in the past. We will re-evaluate what companies we do business with. We are currently attempting to contact you via phone to see what can be done to resolve any of the misunderstandings.
Please call us as soon as possible.
Thank you,
Customer Service
Courtney
Baltimore,Maryland,
U.S.A.
Re: All Point S Van Lines ripoff Pacoima California
#6Consumer Suggestion
Fri, January 06, 2006
Anita,
You may want to check the laws in your state. I thought that there were specific laws about moving companies in regards to how much over they allowed to charge you. Due to so many moving companies fleecing people by taking their stuff "ransom", I thought they passed a federal law that said a moving company is not allowed to revise their quote more than 10% higher than the estimate once your possessions have been taken by them.
As far as West Point "brokering" out the job- it's possible they really are a broker, or they may just be a "front" for All Point. I noticed a little similarity in name there. Has West Point responded to your questions, or are you getting the run-around? What do they say about All Point picking up your stuff? I'd suggest doing a little research on West Point and All Point and try to see who they are owned by... might be same company. They may be trying to avoid their bad press by using a different company name.
As far as them demanding your stuff be packaged in a certain way- I have seen that before. They are essentially taking responsibility for your stuff, and if it comes up broken, you would be coming after them.