Complaint Review: PACIFIC ATLANTIC FREIGHT - WESTLAKE VILLAGE California

This is all very interesting,,,,,,however.

PAF has NOT sent me documentation ( certified/notarized proof, as I have requested numerous times.

Their response has been silence.

They did, along with notification of the extra charge,  send a unsigned copy of the original shiping document, unmodified from the one that they originally sent me.

Judy of PAF e-mailed  on Aug 10  information that it was a mistake by PAF and that it was not a weight issue, but a freight class issue.Later she even said that she was seeking a credit of $404 from the carrier. Guess what. That never came from the carrier.

I repeat that what I said is true, and the actual sculpture weighted 30 pounds, and the whole container weighted less than 50 pounds, and I have proof.

According to my information, UPS FREIGHT NEVER AUDITED THE SHIPMENT, AND never WEIGHTED IT.

It is impossible that it could weight 500 pounds, as it weighted only 50 at most.

Further UPS FREIGHT HAS A MINIMUM QUOTE FOR CLASS 150, OF $600 undiscounted, for all weights of 500 pounds or less.

PAF PREPARED THE SHIPPING DOCUMENT, and listed the shipment as freight class 150 weight 50 pounds.

NMFC#100240, SUB3. This class is for  household goods that have  a value  of 10 cents to 20 cents per pound. PAI had insured the article for $5500, making it's actual value $185 per pound. Talk about misrepresentation. I submitted it as a freight class 400, based on the actual weight and volume.

These guys are good/skilled at what they do . They have been at this for many years.

I am still wondering where the 500 pounds came from, as well as the extra $655 came from. If PAF IS SO ETHECIAL, WHY ARE THEY NOT TRYING TO FIND OUT WHERE THE ERRORS ON THEIR END CAME FROM?Why have they not sent me the proof for which I have been asking.

They always point to their right to change prices it there have been changes by the carrier. I repeat that there is no evidence that UPS FREIGHT either audited the shipment, or weighted it, and if they had ,it would have weighted less that 50 pounds.

In stead, it is they who are making it seem that I did something wrong.The only thing wrong that I have done is contract with them to arrange for shipment of my item, a light weight alumimum sculpture.

Mr. Jones told us his shipment weighed 50 pounds but when the carrier picked it up and weighed it, it was actually 500 lbs! Since the carrier bases their charges for transport on weight, the shipping price went up substantially from the original quote which was based on 50 lbs,per the customer informing us so. As per the terms and conditions in the
freight shipping agreement Mr. Jones signed, the client is responsible for any additional charges from the carrier associated with the transport of their shipment, including additional charges resulting from incorrect information provided by the client, such as incorrect weight or freight class or any additional services not requested that are needed to facilitate the transport of the shipment. This is standard protocol with every freight company and is fully disclosed in bold font on our schedule shipment form, before they pay, as well as in the terms and conditions he signed.

The carrier charged us for the transport service based on the actual weight of 500lbs and we simply passed these charges on to the client, per the freight agreement/terms he signed. We also provided Mr. Jones with the documentation from the carrier to proove the weight he claimed was incorrect (it weighed 10 x what he claimed) and the additional charges we were charged for by the carrier because of this. Everything was and is always fully disclosed. The carriers always confirm weight and class after pick up and charge for transport according to the actual class and weight they discover and this is also disclosed in the terms he signed in order to deter anyone from trying to take advantage of our freight carriers by providing false information.


Here is the bold font paragraph on our schedule shipment form that was fully disclosed before Mr. Jones ever paid or booked his shipment:

I authorize you to charge my credit card provided above for all charges associated with the transport of my shipment, including any additional charges if the carrier determines that the shipment information I have provided (which my original quoted price was based on) is incorrect (such as weight, freight class, NMFC #, description of goods or dimensions etc) resulting in an increase to my shipping price OR if additional services are needed to transport my shipment (such as a lift
gate or inside pick up/delivery etc.) resulting in additional charges. Freight company agrees to notify me in the event this occurs and provide supporting documentation to verify charges such as weight certificates and class verification from carrier. I agree and authorize you to charge my credit card, provided above, for the quoted shipping price plus a
credit card merchant fee of 3% of the quoted price ($5 minimum) and any additional charges associated with the transport of my shipment as determined by the carrier after shipment delivery. I agree not to dispute charges for transport services already rendered.

It is also listed again in the terms and conditions he signed.

In addition, Mr. Jones did receive our discounted broker rate, had he been charged the full retail rate from the carrier it would have been much much more. The additional 2nd charge is so much more then his original quote because the original quote was based on 50 lbs and the shipment actually weighed 10 x what he claimed. He claimed 50 lbs and it
was 500 lbs, we trusted him and booked it at 50lb but the carrier weighed it after pick up and therefore he was charged for 500lbs from the carrier through our account with them at discounted rates. As mentioned above, all this was fully disclosed before he booked or paid and also in the terms he signed at booking. Mr. Jones authorized us to
charge his credit card for any additional charges associated with his shipment for situations such as exactly what happened, incorrect weight provided by him! Now he is upset that we did so. Seems like this was intentional on his part and he was hoping the carrier would not catch it (by weighing the shipment) and he would get away with it. However, they did. Mr. Jones is the one pulling the bait and switch on us and our carrier with the weight. We are an honest and ethical company and fully disclose everything up front, as you can clearly see by reviewing our website and booking forms. If we were out to scam people we would not have been in business for over 25 years.