American Moving of TX All Cities Real Estate - US Moving - Midwest Relocation and Services Used another moving company without authorization Crandall, Texas
In summer of 2007 we moved from LA to TX. We contacted American Moving of Texas (Jason) to set up the move. We were told they had trucks, vans, and 18 wheelers to move our things. We were moving the contents of a 3 bedroom home. We were also in contact with Sherry with Customer Service. They were 12 hours late showing up to our home. Three Mexican guys showed up at midnight to our home in a rental van, one which my husband and I could have rented. The guys were from Homeland Transportation (owner William), a company we've never heard of. All too late we found out that American Moving of Texas are brokers and they sold our move to another company. We followed these guys to Texas. Once we got in Texas, they tried to lose us. They tried many tactics to get us to go ahead of them to split us up. They even said they needed to stop and nap, even though it was just a 5-6 hour drive. After our contents were weighed and we verified the total through Sherry in Customer Service, William with Homeland tried to trump up extra charges, such as our driveway being longer than 50 feet and disconnecting our dryer. We had to threaten to call the cops for them to deliver our things at our new address. After they delivered our things, we had to make them set it back up. We did incur some damages, but we've never been reimbursed despite filing complaints with BBB and TX US Department of Transportation. We even sent photos of the damages to American Moving of TX as well as Homeland, but was told by Sherry in Customer Service to stop emailing and calling them. We were also due a huge discount for the movers showing up late, but never received that either. This was the worst moving experience, and I'm sure they would have tried to hold our things to get more money out of us had we not followed them. I would not advise anyone to use this company. It is extremely suspicious that they keep changing owners and their names. Consider yourselves warned.
I have filed a complaint with the US DOT, Michael Garcia. His address is below if anyone needs it:
USDOT-FMCSA-Texas Division
ATTN: Michael A. Garcia, Safety Investigator
PO Box 451767
Laredo, TX 78045-0043
2 Updates & Rebuttals
BKK
Salisbury,North Carolina,
USA
Info for Reporting Authorities
#3
Wed, September 16, 2009
Hi Jan: I'm a consumer who just went through a similarly horrifying ordeal with a CA to NC move, though not with the same company you reported. I've posted on 9/15 my saga. Can you provide me with any other people you've contacted regarding reporting your plight (e.g. the DOT, the BBB, or any other authorities) ??
Your information would be most helpful !!!
Thanks,
Beleagured mover
Jim
Anaheim,California,
U.S.A.
Not Much You Could Do.....
#3
Tue, September 15, 2009
When you contact a broker, this is typical of what you get. The broker (BTW) is only responsible for setting you up with the mover. Their responsibility ends once a mover is selected, so to complain to American Moving of TX once the move starts, let alone is completed, is a pointless exercise. It's not to say that they should not be named here in a complaint - it's just that they did their part; you needed to do another complaint for the people who actually performed your move. Calling the cops also does nothing for you - if the cops had shown up, all the movers do is tell the cops they're movers and the dispute is between you and the movers. The cops can't do a thing to help you because the mover would be correct.
Insofar as receiving a discount, unless that discount is in writing - you better not hold your breath for that because they won't pay it. And following them would not have stopped them in trying to hold your goods hostage. They would have simply waited until they got to destination, done it to you there, and again there would have been nothing you could have done about it. Now it is against USDOT rules to hostage load but it would have happened anyway.
Now, you had damage. Did you even file a claim with Homeland? I mean it's too late now, so even if you file a claim now, you have at most 9 months from date of delivery to file a claim. If you filed a claim with American, they won't do anything because they're not the mover.
Moving is not an inexpensive venture. Choosing the cheapest mover or a broker will result in the most expensive move possible, including damaged goods, lost items, hostage loads, delays in delivery, and untold hassles - in fact you'll end up paying as much with a scam mover as you would with a reputable mover - without the damage and hassle. Next time, research your mover before your move - not after.