Experienced Van Lines

I paid a down payment of $200 to move in January 2012. On the morning of the move, hours after the appointed time, I was contacted by John and given a cockamamy story about all of the trucks having their batteries stolen & them not being able to do the move that day because it was a holiday and no repair shops would be open. When I called later to cancel the move since I booked with another company, John called back pleading that I not make "his day worse". I was promised a refund and it is now almost June & no refund.

I have called and called and called and somehow, they are always unable to get in touch with John although when I cancelled the move, he called me back within 5 minutes. I have been told to email, call back, all of which I have done and still no money! Not even the decency to just say they do not plan to give it back. There is a name for that - stealing! So now, I will let as many people as I can, know just what my experience has been. Next stop, Facebook.

This was the worst moving experience that you can imagine. When they are trying to get your business, they are friendly, nice, and promise you the world in customer satisfaction, but when moving day actually comes around, it's a different story.

From the moment they entered my home, they began making remarks on how much more this move was going to cost and how many more boxes I had than originally stated. One mover in particular, called me a liar because I had more items than originally stated but said that he wouldn't charge me extra if I tipped him well. I have moved many times and I know what to do. I always tip the movers. It is a hard job and I know that at the end of loading the truck, it is the right thing to do to tip them. But I have never been threatened or intimidated in this way before. I felt that if I didn't do what he asked, my belongings would be at risk.

I refused to give in and called the office. They admitted that they had trouble with this person before but within half an hour had agreed with him to charge me more money because according to them, I had more than originally stated. When I first gave the company the inventory, Alfred, the customer coordinator, told me that if I had any extra boxes, it would be perfectly fine because I was well under the minimum, but when it came to moving day, and they had all my personal belongings in the truck, they changed their tune and charged me an extra $400. This company is a total scam. The upfront quote they give you means absolutely nothing and once they have your things, there's not much you can do about it.

Ten days later, I received a call stating that they were in town and ready to deliver the merchandise the next day. This was a week sooner than they were supposed to arrive. I was forced to rent a storage unit to have my things stored until my home was ready. The good news is that my things actually did arrive and the crew who delivered them were far more accommodating and professional than the crew who loaded in NY. I found out that this is because they don't actually work directly for Experienced Van Lines. They are contracted to drive the truck cross country.

I have never written a review of this nature before, but I felt compelled to tell people who are thinking of using this company about my experience and to highly recommend against ever hiring them for a move. Besides having to spend more money, they were unprofessional, intimidating and I didn't even feel safe in my own home. I think it's a real shame that companies such as these continue to operate and take advantage of people and I certainly hope that I can help others not to make the same mistake I made.

I used Experience Van lines in August of 2011. When I first got my quote, I was given one price and then when they came to pick up my furniture, I was given another price (higher). I understand that at times there are estimates and that if you add things after that to your load, you can be charged more, but I actually had way less then I had originally arranged for pick-up - a whole (7piece) bedroom less, a bike less, a keyboard less, and a few boxes less. I had also given the measurements to the estimator for all my boxes, and I was quoted based on that information.

When they came to pick up the furniture, I was told that I would be charged $70 more to bubble wrap airtight my mattresses and $70 more to protect the mirror and that the price I had been given originally stays the same, even though I had way less items. The people that came spoke very poor English and they said they were from a country named Georgia. These people try to seem like they are nice and your friends, but all they want to do is rip you off. They know that you are stressed out with your whole moving experience changing home, job, school, life in total, and they just want to haggle and harass you regarding the price. I was threatened that they would just leave and leave my things. They know that this is something that had to be scheduled and that you must have been looking for a moving company and trying to decide which one to go with for weeks in advance.

Then finally, when I decide to send the furniture anyway at the same price that was originally given, they wanted to charge me more for the sizes of the boxes, which I had already received a quote on in the past, because they claim that the person that worked for them did not do a good job and is no longer with the company. How is this the customer's fault? When I received my furniture, I was told that I had to pay an extra $75.00 to bring my furniture up a walk up. They told me that if I would not pay, they will take the furniture to storage and then you have to pay for storage. I had to pay it to get my things right there and then. I had to borrow money because I did not have the cash and they don't take checks and want a money order if you don't have the cash. It was a holiday and all places were closed to go get one.

When they took the furniture out of the truck, they left it outside and it started to rain. The furniture got all wet. In the rush of trying to bring it in, they damaged a corner of my dresser and they tried to hide it by covering it with a cloth. I went over to take the cloth off because it was wood and it was wet and I was afraid it would stain. I was busy drying the dresser and had not noticed that it was damaged but did notice that they kept that piece of furniture in my living room when it belonged in a bedroom and they had taken all the other furniture to the bedroom right away. Right before they left, they rushed that dresser into the bedroom so I wouldn't have a chance to see it while they were still here. I noticed it the next day because the wood is very dark and it was a huge damage.

Now, I have to file a claim and try to fight with these people who I feel are not very nice or honest. They did, however, get it to me in time as they said that they would but the boxes were all crushed and my microwave was damaged too. I would not recommend this company or ever use them again.

I called and was quoted a price for pack-up and removal from my home in Delaware, storage for 3 weeks and move and unpack to my new place in Annapolis. They were supposed to come on Saturday, July 30. When I was driving home to Delaware on Friday evening of July 29th, around 5:00 PM, I received a call saying that there had been a slight change to my move!

They advised that, as I needed to move out and in on the same day, it would need to be done on Sunday, the 31st. I pointed out that I did not need to move out and in on the same day. That I needed storage and had already arranged that. Eve, the girl on the phone, said she would call me back and advise. I received no call back, despite my calling several times.

Eventually on Saturday evening, around 7:00 PM, I received a call from the driver saying he would be there on Sunday around 9:00 AM. They arrived and started going over the things that I had and advised me that I was way over what they had quoted for. Eve had forgotten to put my dining table & chairs and several other things, as well as not telling me the boxes should only be 3 feet by 3 feet.

They also charged for each flight of stairs, which I wasn't previously told about. My quote was $1,560 and, in the end, they charged me $4,200 and demanded 50% in cash. As it was a Sunday, I could not get that much out of the bank.

The driver called his boss (they were all Georgian and their English was poor) and he made me sign a paper to say that I would pay in full by certified check the next day. They then demanded a 15% tip. I was on my own and felt threatened by them, so I gave them $400, which is all I had.

They were supposed to deliver my furniture on Friday, August 26. I called them a few days before to confirm and they didn't call me back. But on Tuesday, August 23, I received an email from John Goldstein, saying my furniture will be delivered on Thursday, August 25!

I called him and said that this would not be suitable as I was signing the lease on Friday at 8:00 AM and would not have the keys until then. He started yelling at me and telling me that he had a business to run and that I must be there on Thursday morning. I told him I could not as I was working and had appointments all day Thursday and could not sign a day early. I pointed out that I worked for the British Embassy and that I had never dealt with someone so unreliable and rude. His words were, "God bless the British Embassy. I wish we all worked there and were perfect like you!" I was utterly disgusted with him and told him so. He eventually said they would deliver my furniture on Friday but I had to be there by 6:00 AM.

I ended up driving from DC to Annapolis on Thursday at 5:00 PM to sign the lease and pick up the keys and drove back to DC. I got up at 4:30 AM and drove back to Annapolis to await my furniture. I called the company several times and emailed, but no-one called or emailed back. Eventually, at 11:00 AM, a driver (another Georgian) called me to say he would be there at 12 noon. He turned up at 1:20 PM, started to unload stuff and charged a further $75, as he said it was more than 75 feet from the truck to my door. It is, but he only had to walk 10 feet to the elevator and then another 25 feet from the elevator to my door!

They started to unpack and I showed him that there was damage to several pieces of furniture. Then he turned nasty and did not unpack the rest of the furniture. They merely dumped it and, when I was talking to my husband on the phone, they left. They were supposed to unpack and put my beds together and put the mirror on the dresser, but they did not.

I and my husband have called several times and emailed, but no one has ever responded. There is a lot of damage to my expensive furniture and my cat scratching pole, that I bought 2 weeks before the move at a cost of $125, is missing. They also lost the supports for my king bed.

Half of the total objects were moved. Five pieces were destroyed. They told me to take pictures and send them in. I got no apology. I took several pictures. I sent them to company only to have my email blocked from getting through. It took at least more than a week to get it here from New York to Rhode Island. They also took the shipping material like the tape. They just threw it in the street at the end of my driveway. They are the most unprofessional company I have ever dealt with!

I have sent Experienced Van Lines a string of emails about the lies, made up fees, and unfulfilled commitments they have given me since I began the service with them.

It has now been eleven days since Experienced Van Lines has taken possession of my belongings and not one person can tell me when it will be shipped. I have been given the run around from answering machines where no one returns my calls and being passed off to George, John and a different George, all claiming that the other is the boss and cannot tell me when my things will shipped.

It is now Saturday, August 20th, and I still have no word on when my items are being shipped and when they will arrive. I have been living in a hotel with enough clothes for four days. Do you have any idea what it is like to do that? I now will have to go out and purchase clothes and shoes for my new job starting on Monday, which I expect Experienced Van Lines will be reimbursing me for due to the fact that all my clothes are in your possession. I am also staying in a hotel at a rate of $97 per night which I also expect them to reimburse me for.

I am still without my property and I have incurred expenses of lodging, clothing, etc. because the company has not handed over my property.

I did not use this company but while they were in the process of moving my neighbor, they reversed into my car, hard, while I was in it. Luckily, I have someone who came forward that witnessed the whole thing. This company hires vans from budget car and van rental, and uses people who are not legally allowed to drive and not listed on their rental agreements, and who would rather leave the scene of an accident than face the police.

The drivers left the scene before the police showed and the girl who used them for her move overheard their conversation that the driver had no license, was an illegal immigrant and had a warrant out for his arrest. He would not give his name or any information even the insurance details, and the manager at Experienced obviously advised him not to as he refused after he'd spoken with him. The people running the show must know the guy's history and wanted to cover up for him.

When I called Experienced to tell them their driver had left the scene, the manager, John, couldn't care less and asked me to come to his office so he could "fix" this. A bunch of crooks. I hope the police investigates this.

It has taken me almost to the limit of claim availability to find the right words to describe the moving nightmare that I experienced using the company Experienced Van lines also listed in some paperwork as Experienced Vanlines. The registration number listed on the initial documentation provided by the company is 11253 with NYDOT T37323 and USDOT 1734378. We decided to go forward with what we thought was a professional moving company because of the time constraint and we wanted the move to be as easy and inexpensive as possible. Unfortunately, neither of our expectations had been met. We found this company on moving.com, a site we found under the new apartments online reference materials at: **.

I had performed an Internet search to check for reviews but I didn't find anything alarming from the search terms I used. I had come across two good reviews with one review that stated they were unhappy with the services which they received. I believe in the service industry, you will find both negative and positive reviews, but the ones I came across were for minor issues so I proceeded to go forward with the company. I sent the email request to moving.com to inquire and began correspondence with recommended moving companies and was soon contacted by Alfred ** at Experienced Van Lines. Contact with Alfred ** occurred both through email and by phone beginning on July 22, 2010.

He had to send us multiple versions of the agreement in order to get the contract wording to correspond what he was promising verbally on the phone. He was initially personable on the phone and the price was a great fit for our small budget so we went forward with the company. Alfred had reassured me about their company even going as far to say, "Do not worry if you have a few extra boxes, there is plenty of room on the truck and his men are experienced and professional movers.

The lies began with this company when they promised me one thing on phone such as free bubble wrap which was not included on the initial contract for one example. We were all so overwhelmed with our son and this was the first of many lies and misrepresentation of what was to come. On the move date Friday, July 23, Lance, the lead mover called to start off stating they were going to be arriving late because of an earlier move assignment. They came to the NYC apartment pick up address at 9:26. Lance initially seemed personable while discussing the paperwork and the contract. While discussing the contract, he told me my version of contract they sent me was incorrect and that was with regards to final payment.

It is expected payment will be made in full when they arrive at the final location (Jersey City) not as it originally stated as after the final item is moved into the new location which was stated on my original contract. At first, I complained, but with no other alternative and the time constraint needed to move to the new apartment in Jersey City, I told Lance that if this move can be done by the time schedule we budgeted for, then it was okay. From this point forward the professionalism of this company left the building. First of all, they were witnessed in addition to us and by other tenants, building employees, family members, and friends, being rough and mishandling our valuable belongings while removing them from our previous apartment to the truck. Second, we had a huge incident with a couch that they spent hours trying to move out of the apartment.

Since they came without any tools to disassemble the couch, they made multiple attempts to move the couch out causing damages not only to the couch, but the hall closet door, entrance door and walls (pictures enclosed). Without my permission, the youngest mover, removed and damaged a hall closet door leaving holes in the door panels and walls. My husband was shocked and told Lance to stop and move the other furniture instead while I had to leave to go to the hardware store to purchase a screw driver for them to disassemble and complete the job. These situations caused an unbelievable amount of damage caused by the movers not only to our belongings, but also the entry way of our former apartment, closets located near the entrance, the door, the neighbor's door, the door frame, dents to the buildings elevator, wallpaper in the hallway, scratches on service floor and wall.

Mid-move from the old apartment, the movers all became unresponsive to our complaint and procedures that were leading to visible damage. Two of the three moving crews claimed to not understand nor speak English. The couch incident had led to an incident with Lance because of my suggestion to go out and buy a screwdriver myself, he became rude and unprofessional, moving at even a slower rate and one of the crew always seemed to be missing in action.

When the loading job neared to be complete, everyone but the movers and my husband proceeded to our new residence in Jersey City. After the movers had moved the last items from the apartment, my husband proceeded to lock up while they went to the truck. When he left the old apartment building, they were closing up the truck and said they would be leaving for NJ. They left the pick up residence around 3:45 PM. The travel time and distance from the old apartment to new apartment was 12.7 miles, which is about 40- 50 minutes with traffic. I was heading toward to Jersey City when I received a call from the former complex about the damages that had been done to the building and that the movers had left some items in the service hallway including the foot board to my king size bed, a wall size limited edition painting, and few other small items. (I was initially going to wait to contact the management until after the contents of our apartment had been delivered, but I was worried about not reporting the situation appropriately since I had never used a service like this in the past.)

I called and spoke to Alfred around 4:30 to discuss the damages to our property, my concerns relating to the movers inappropriate behaviors and actions; and my fears of what was yet to come in the final delivery stage of the job. He was still polite and sounded upset that the damages had occurred, he said he would forward the message to his supervisor and proposed that a discount of some kind may be able to be arranged. I asked him to wait until after the delivery to approach the moving crew about the situation because I wanted to avoid any further delays and/or problems with the delivery of our belongings. I attempted to follow up with Alfred after arriving in NJ three additional times before Lance contacted me. At 5:53 (2 hours after leaving the old apartment) Lance called me to inform me about my complaints regarding their service and the damages they caused and stated he was still in transit.

My husband and I was horrified and very upset that it was taking this long and they are still in the city. I attempted to contact a member of the staff and the movers ten times. They were also contacted by my husband and sister-in-law with little success in obtaining information and whereabouts. At 7:36, he called and was still in transit and hung up. At 7:50 he relayed the same information to my husband. To my dismay it took the movers over four and a half hours which should have been only an hour or so to arrive. We asked Lance what happened. His answer was that it was traffic. Just to note: My husband arrived hours before them and he left after them from NYC.

I approached Lance about the damaged goods and the items that were left behind. He was unreasonable, unprofessional and his demeanor was inappropriate. He took a short walk and came back stating they would pick up the remaining items and deliver them the following day and then he requested the estimated balance due. Either pay the cash balance due or sue for your belongings. I requested the contact information for the manager, George, and immediately called him 8:12 PM, 8:15 PM, and at 8:26 PM, my husband was finally able to get him on the phone.

He forwarded us to the owner, John, stating that he is the person who handles this type of situations. John said they would only charge us for 12 hours of work for the entire job at 8:40. We either pay up or risk suing them in court to get our items back. We never signed the receipt of goods since we never received all the items that were supposed to be delivered. Lance refused to sign a receipt for cash received. We had to go to an ATM to withdraw the remainder of the funds due. The total paid was $1080, the original estimate was $495.

On the following day, July 24, 2010, I called Experienced Van Lines main line at 8:38 am and a man claiming not to speak English answered stating to call back after 9 am. No one answered at 9:04 am and mailbox full. I called Lance at 9:09 am and left a message. I called George at 9:06 am and left a message. At 9:10, I called John and left a message. Then at 9:30 am, my husband spoke to him and he claims to no longer be the owner. At this point we had no idea how to proceed. On July 28, 2010, I called the main line again and spoke to a woman by the name of Doreen and she forwarded me to John then to George who before hanging up stated we would get pennies back from small claims court if we pursued the matter. I called back and Doreen who stated John's message was to come in to the office and settle the dispute.

On the original contract, they stated the following statement warning about broker companies also referred to as scam companies:

"Beware of Brokers: There are companies that contact you to provide you with a price, and they are not the actual moving company, they are brokers. These companies schedule moves by taking 30% deposit off the estimate and give the job to an actual moving. You will have no idea as to which company is doing the move until you schedule. No way to check out the company's record beforehand. Now the 30% deposit, the broker keeps for himself even though the price that he gives is so competitive with the other mover. The actual movers must apply additional charges to make the move worth doing and the customers end up paying more than expected. All prices are guaranteed according to the provided inventory list. We are not brokers or subcontractors. We are the actual company handling your move from start to finish. Please feel free to call me back anytime to discuss your move further!

Unfortunately, I feel as if Experienced Van Lines have the same business mind as the brokers they described in the above highlighted section. Experienced Van Lines also misrepresented themselves and were misleading through advertising and quotes to my family, and from what I have researched, there are many others like us. They are blackmailing customers while withholding their belongings and those of their kids.

I am disgusted by the actions, lies, and lack of business ethics of Experienced Van Lines. As you read further, our experience was a true moving nightmare, and unfortunately, there are a multitude of other consumers who have experienced nightmares of their own hire this company, some stories sound verbatim to our story and looking back I have to wonder if they are intentionally working slowly and inefficiently in order to guarantee an increase in the final cash amount due prior to the delivery of items in the new residence. Since they arrived after 8 pm, we were unable to use a money order for proof of payment, and unfortunately, our final balance was paid in cash. They went out of their way to cover charges and deceive my family as the consumers, in addition to damaging and losing property and goods.

They work so ever slow in order to guarantee they are coming home at end of the day with at least triple the cash fees compared to their fictional estimate. If you search prior to hiring them, depending on how you arrange the words of the company's name, i.e. Experienced Van lines or Experienced Van Lines, you could also search those two same examples with the ending letter. You will find some reports with what I now believe to be bogus reports; you will only find one entry on these sites most likely made up in order to lure an innocent victim. There are quite a large number of similar consumer stories relating to this particular moving company and their unprofessional and unethical business practices. I have listed some sites with information about other consumer responses. **; http://www.consumeraffairs.com/movers/experienced_van_lines.html.

Inventory of damaged goods: Deep scratches to both the foot and head board to King Size bed; Scratches to master bedroom dresser; Damage to standing \jewelry box; Broken plates and stemmed glassware; Damage to queen bed frame; Left multiple items still wrapped in their moving blankets; Damages to 2 parts of the sectional sofa; Damage to the initial move out location that we were forced to pay to have repaired; Left multiple items behind in service hallway including painting and part of king size bed; Broken toolbox.

There was thousands of dollars of damage to our prior complex. Our security was not returned because the damages were in excess of over $3000. There were scratches and dents to the interior of a padded elevator, ripped wallpaper, damaged entry doors (2), damaged and removed closet doors (2), and scratches to the floors.

Movers were hired through brokering company of Budget Van Lines. Original Binding estimate was for $1824.00. A 488.00 deposit was paid. When drivers arrived, they had not weighed the truck. When asked to do so, one of the drivers was gone for 2 hours while another started loading my belongings. Upon his return, the driver stated he was gone so long because the weigh station was closed. This was lie #1. After loading the truck, they insisted I pay them $4000.00. I began calling Budget Van Lines to intervene from 9 am that morning until 9 pm that evening. I was always told that they were "checking in to the problem and would call back." Never received a call.

After much arguing with the drivers, they agreed to go get a second weigh on the loaded truck. Upon their return, as I compared the ticket to the one obtained in the morning, I noticed that there was -0- weight next to "trailer axle" on the first ticket and 3,060 lbs. next to "trailer axle" on the second. I proceeded to call the weigh station who informed me they had not been closed at all that day and if there was a weight next to "trailer axle" then the drivers had to pull a car or trailer behind the truck up onto the scale. After the drivers knew this was discovered they started saying, "We have to go, we need to get on the road." "You can work out the price with Melissa ** at Budget tomorrow." They left.

The entire next day after repeated attempts to Melissa ** and Experienced Van Lines, absolutely no one would return my calls. Finally on Weds. 5/20/10, I got in touch with John ** (manager of Experienced) who informed me my stuff was in New York (destination was the West Coast) and he would auction it off if I did not pay 3300.00. After getting in touch with Mr. Brody ** and Mr. Bernard ** with FMCMA, I finally got some help. My stuff has since been delivered to WA State, however, every single piece of furniture delivered was either scratched, dented, or broken. I am missing my patio furniture (table and four chairs), a floor lamp, mattress and box springs, parts to a pedal car, and 5 boxes. I contacted the moving company and spoke to "Kathy" who assured me someone would call me back. Am still waiting for that call. In the meantime, I am in the process of filing a claim. I have over $8500.00 in damages. Update: Moving company says they have none of my missing belongings! I have over $8500.00 in damages, and over $3000.00 in missing items!

Experienced Van Lines: Don't trust this company! They changed the price from 1,495 to 2,200. I read all the reviews before choosing this company and I know that mostly, every company has at least one bad review but this company trains its workers to lie (told to me by a secretary who actually works for the company) They re the biggest liars in the moving game. I originally spoke to a man named John who was as sweet as pie and told me that they are honest and trustworthy, and that what he says he means. He is a car salesman, "Don't believe what he says. Now for me, trust was very important because I was already in California and the pick up would be done with my mother in NY, he assured me that everything would be just as we discussed and I was stupid enough to believe him.

On moving day, the drivers showed up 4 hours late, without a phone call, but this didn't even make me mad, what did was as they walked in I was told that the price would increase because it looks like more stuff, and it was downhill from there.

They gave my mom a bill for 800 more dollars than the price on the phone and they put items on the list that were not actually there. I tried to call but John had suddenly left the office and I had no choice but to tell my mother to sign it, thinking I will talk to the nice guy John later. Later never came because when I called back I was told that John was on a two week vacation and would not return for weeks.

Here is an example of how they scam you: On my original list, I put queen size bed with headboard, foot board, and 4 posts. He told me that all the details weren't necessary because a queen bed is a queen bed. However, when the mover put the list out he put many additional items of bed pieces on there and said that there are more items, and that I would be charged by the amount of pieces that make up the bed, not the actual bed. They did this with all the other items too, like a desk that was disassembled. Instead of putting one desk, they put 5 desk pieces and called it 5 items instead of one. When I finally got someone named George on the phone who claimed to be a manager, as did John, he told me that my mother signed for it and there is nothing I can do about it now. He also said and I quote: If you don't pay, I will hold your ** stuff in storage and charge you for the storage fee, and if you don't pay the price, I tell you I will auction off all of your things. He told me to get it through my head that you have no ** choice.

One of the secretaries, who answer the phones finally told me, secretly, that they do this all the time, she told me that they are told/trained to quote a price at least 700 less than what it is actually going to be then jack it up once the stuff is in hand. (I wont mention her name because she is the only person in that company who actually told me any piece of truth).

The delivery was just as nightmarish as everything else. The driver called me to say, he would be there between Saturday and Tuesday, 2 weeks later than the estimated delivery date. I had planned on the delivery during my 2 week vacation but they did not show up on time. I told the driver that the afternoon will be fine but that I work during the day and would not be available until the afternoon, he then told me that if I was not there whenever he arrived, he would put my things in storage and charge me for re delivery. I called back the company and spoke to someone named Alfred who was very rude to me on the phone and told me he would call the driver and call me back, which he never did. I told him that this company has been a disaster from start to finish, he laughed at me on the phone and told me to suck it up, I could hear laughing in the background as though he was performing for everyone in the office. These are the most rude, unprofessional, nasty people I have ever had, the displeasure of dealing with. The Driver left and did not deliver my things. Save yourself the heartache and do not use this company. So far, I'm out $600 and still have not received my things, now I'm told that I will have to pay for storage and redelivery because the driver left.