- Report: #1460168
Complaint Review: US National - FL West Palm Beach
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US National
1750 N Florida Mango Rd Unit 106 FL, 33409 West Palm Beach, United States
Phone:
844-372-4435
Web:
www.USNationalMovers.com
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US National TR Moving Systems charged us over $6,800 more than our SIGNED contract FL West Palm Beach Florida
We hired US National Movers in June of this year to help us with a state-to-state move and were quoted $3,255 for the move, however, a week before the move they contacted us with another quote that was missing over half of the items from our original quote and stated that this was OUR fault for not disclosing all of the items we were moving. When I referred the representative to the original quote that included the items that they took off of the 2nd quote, they told us that they would be charging us an additional $2,000. They also told us that our items would be stored in a LOCKED trailer in a SECURED storage facility in Kansas City and that, when we were ready for our items to be delivered to our new home, they would pick them up and bring them to us.
However, US National contracted our move to TR Moving Systems who contacted us to tell us that we had to pay them $6,799 in cash or USPS money order or they would not deliver our items to us. We contacted the district attorney's office, the US DOT and the Better Business Bureau and also hired an attorney who told us to pay the crooks and then we would go back and file a claim against the company afterward - just to ensure I received my items. The TR Moving Sytems driver called us over 10 times to say he would be dropping our things off, only to either not show at all - or to call and say that he "didn't believe" we had his money so he would not be delivering our things. This is blackmail and harassment. He also told us that he had loaded and unloaded our things from the truck "many" times. When I told him that he was in breach of the contract we had with US National, he said he didn't have anything to do with the contract we had with US National.
When they finally delivered our items, we signed the money orders over with "paid in protest" written on each check (per our attorney's recommendation) only to find that most of our items were damaged, ruined or completely missing! We had several items that were not even delivered to us: tv stand, sewing machine, nightstand and bookshelf. There were holes and stains on our mattresses and over 20 boxes of broken dishes and family heirlooms. When I asked the driver how he could possibly pay us back for all of the damages, plus the exacerbated delivery fees, he said, in very poor English, "Your insurance pay." We filed a police report and filed additional disputes with the DA's office as well as the Better Business Bureau and are working with our insurance company and attorney to recoup the damages/stolen items.
Regardless of whether we receive compensation for the thousands of dollars owed to us, our goal is to ensure no one ever experiences the kind of pain, anguish and financial distress that we experienced with the two companies mentioned.
1 Updates & Rebuttals
Jim
Beverly Hills,California,
United States
Largely This Is Your Fault
#2Consumer Comment
Tue, September 11, 2018
However, US National contracted our move to TR Moving Systems who contacted us to tell us that we had to pay them $6,799 in cash or USPS money order or they would not deliver our items to us. This should hardly have been a surprise. If you had done any research on the DOT website, you would have known US National is a moving broker - they have no trucks, no moving license, and no capability of moving your items. In fact, this statement is on their own website:
Please note that US National Movers (MC#992460 / DOT #2936759)*** is a properly licensed interstate Broker, and when acting as a Broker will not transport an individual shipper’s household goods, but will coordinate and arrange for the transportation of household goods by another FMCSA authorized motor carrier, whose charges will be determined by it’s published tariff. (underline is mine)
I have to tell you - at least they're honest about it - many companies won't even tell you that. So what does a broker do for you? Very little. They take your items submitted and find someone who will move your items from origin to destination. Therefore, the contract you signed with US National was not binding on anyone. You end up with a new contract with TR Moving for more than $6700. They were well within their right under Federal Law to do exactly what they did.
When I told him that he was in breach of the contract we had with US National, he said he didn't have anything to do with the contract we had with US National. Absolutely 100% correct for all of the reasons I just stated. They have nothing to with that. A moving broker finds the mover, and once the mover takes your move, the broker's responsibility is completed. If the mover doesn't show up, it's now an issue between you and the mover, not the broker. BTW, the broker gets a commission from the mover.
When they finally delivered our items, we signed the money orders over with "paid in protest" written on each check (per our attorney's recommendation) only to find that most of our items were damaged, ruined or completely missing! It would not matter what your attorney told you about writing those words on a check - they won't help you for reasons I will describe later. Your attorney also likely assumed the broker and the mover were the same entity; the advice he gave you would be consistent with that assumption. However, since they're not the same, the advice the attorney provided was not entirely correct. However, he was correct that you needed to pay the full amount.
We filed a police report and filed additional disputes with the DA's office as well as the Better Business Bureau and are working with our insurance company and attorney to recoup the damages/stolen items. The police won't be able to help because the items were not stolen, at least from a criminal perspective. The police can do very little. Your insurance company will likely not cover you for damages during a move - that's generally an exclusion under a homeowner's insurance policy. Your attorney won't be able to sue because of the Carmack Amendment - a Federal law that prevents consumers from suing a moving company for anything like, fraud, negligence, additional damages etc... I suspect you can file a claim against TR Moving for valuation under your contract, which limits your liability to $0.60 per pound (standard) and that's pretty much it. Carmack will prevent you from collecting more than that.
The moral of the story is this: Moving is not an inexpensive venture. Anyone who says it's cheap is lying to you. Choosing a mover off of the internet based on price often results in things like this happening. Choosing a legitimate mover in your local city, where they can send someone out to view what needs to be done and what needs to be moved, is more expensive in the short-term, but can be cheaper in the long run when faced with a household full of damaged or missing items. If you truly want to stop movers like this, then your best advice is to stay off of the internet when finding a mover.
Best of luck to you...
