Sell it all, move and buy new before using Atlas!
Written: Dec 30 '03
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Pros: None, Nada, Zip, Zilch, etc
Cons: There are too many for just 15 words!
The Bottom Line: I will never use Atlas and would not recommend them. My experience was that they are cheats and liars, and not even very good movers.
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| ampmom's Full Review: Atlas Van Lines |
We were going to get a U-Haul, hire moving men in GA to load the truck, and hire some more in VA when we got to our new place. But no! We decided to "splurge" and hire movers because it was supposed to be about $1000 more, but with 2 small kids, we figured that would mean less hassle and headaches for us. Oh my, we couldn't have been more wrong!!
First off, I had several reps come out to give estimates. These were binding estimates, which mean the price was guaranteed and could not be any more. All of the people were in the same ballpark, with the exception of one who estimated our weight much higher, thus the price much more. The Atlas rep came out from Daniel Moving Systems in Atlanta, GA. It was her turn. Aside from knocking the competition, which I felt was unprofessional, she was a grandmotherly type who took to my kids and seemed very friendly. I pointed things out to her that she didn't seem to notice, like the fact that our entertainment center is deceptively heavy. And we have 11 steamer trunks, all full, and there were 12 cartons in the attic (which she did not go see), and things in the garage, etc, etc.
In the end, I wanted to go with another company but they did not take credit cards. Let's face it, if you're going to pay that much, and you have a credit card that earns points (or in our case, Disney rewards), you want to use that card! We opted for Atlas since they did accept credit cards.
At the time of her visit, we were about a month out from actually moving. I had packed a lot, but there was a lot to be done. Since I was packing it myself, I made sure to pack it very well since anything broken would just be a loss, not covered by the expensive insurance we'd also purchased (and very good thing we did! But that comes later).
There was very little communication between that point and the day of moving. I was a little worried they wouldn't show up since it all seemed to vague for my usual taste. But, come moving morning, they arrived. They had a truck partially filled with someone else's goods. We were up bright and early that morning and began to move boxes and containers outside in preparation. I'm the type, too, that I can't sit by and watch someone work in front of me, moving my possessions, and not do a thing. So, during the day, my husband and I alternately took turns taking things out. Mostly me, because that's easier than watching a 2 year old. The movers took frequent breaks - more so than I did. But then it's my "stuff" so I seemed to care more anyway.
All in all, it took them 11 hours to load the truck. I'd be willing to bet at least 2 hours of that were breaks - not lunch types either, just sitting around types. I'll give them a little here. Moving heavy items has to be hard work. And one of the men was extremely overweight and the other was a bean pole. I understand they need to rest from time to time. Let me back up here and mention that the driver said he thought Shirley's estimate was wrong and it was going to be more like 15,000 lbs instead of 10,000 like she quoted.
So, we watched everything we owned in the world drive away. We were exhausted; it was a long day for us, too, and we still had 3 hours to drive to my in-laws for the night. Two days later, we headed for our new home in VA to wait on the movers to arrive on Monday.
Monday came. The movers came. They brought an attitude! A really BIG attitude! The driver said our items weighed 19,000 lbs - nearly twice the quote. He said something about getting moved for "free." Long story short, they refused to move anything into the basement unless we paid them an additional $700. They had been told beforehand that most of the items would be going into the basement (Shirley, the rep, was also told when we out to give the estimate) because this house is a temporary location until we find our own home to purchase. My husband and I ended up moving most of our possessions inside the house because I refused to pay $700 more. This left our 2 small kids to find their own pasttime and us to try and oversee them as we lugged trunks, boxes, furniture items, etc around to the basement, in the garage, and into the house. They ate potato chips and cake for lunch because we were busy since the movers only brought our belongings off the trunk and into the driveway.
Now, if that wasn't enough to make me mad, being called a liar was. We were told by Atlas that there's no way Shirley was that wrong, and we must have unloaded a storage unit before the movers got there, but after Shirley had given her estimate. That would also explain all the boxes in the driveway, they reasoned. Not true at all! I was so offended and angry at this suggestion, I literally couldn't see straight! In my own defense, I wrote letters to the Atlanta BBB (not that they cared), and to Atlas corporate headquarters (no response there either) and to Daniel Moving Systems. I sent the other quotes we'd be given, including the box count and itemized lists. In the end, I still believe they think we tried to cheat them. In fact, I would say most definitely it was the other way around.
Now, on to the actual moving and handling of our possessions. We ended up with nearly every piece of wood furniture damaged in some way. Luckily, we purchased the insurance. The most expensive option, where there was no deductible. I highly recommend you do this! We originally thought our homeowners insurance would cover our belongings. It does if the truck crashes and all is lost. It does not cover their damage to it, as we realized when we read the "fine print." I filed the appropriate claim forms and waited.
Atlas HQ in Indiana called to set up an appt with a somewhat local furniture repair place (there is not much "local" in this town). He was late getting here and almost forgot to do all of the work. One particular item was my daughter's antique iron bed. We had purchased the bed several months prior, and had it redone. It was stored in our home because she was still in her baby/ toddler bed. The movers had put that bed on the outside of the truck, uncovered. It was filthy with scrapes and scratches all over. At this house, it was stored in the basement. I offered to take it outside, but the repairman said he could manage it inside just as well. Having a curious 2 year old who was not accustomed to 2 levels in a home, I could not wait around and watch him. He suggested most of what I was seeing was dirt and touched up the other spots.
Here's another point to remember: if a repairman comes to your home and upon leaving, has you sign a paper, be sure of what you are signing. He told me it was to say he'd been here and done the work. I was later told that meant that I was satisfied with the outcome. So, after he'd gone and I went downstairs to remove the dirt from the iron bed, only to discover that all of the spots had not been touched up, I was initially told "tough." Then, when I took the bed upstairs to inspect it better, I found he'd touched up an off white bed with pure white paint!
I called Atlas HQ to complain when we couldn't reach the repairman or his boss. I explained to the (at that point) friendly rep, and she seemed to understand and empathize. She said she'd find someone else to come out and do the work properly. An appt was scheduled and who should come out but the first repairman! He did very little. The Atlas rep was becoming annoyed with us on the subsequent calls. She said that she could offer us $300 to fix the bed.
Another point to remember: If you have to file a claim and they ask about the cost to repair or replace, make it high! I had no idea about most of these questions, like how much something weighed, or the cost to repair it or replace (in the case of items no longer available).
Long, long story short, we ended up filing a claim on every single little thing we could find wrong because they were not willing to fix 2 items that we were unhappy with. They sent out a different repairman (hmmm, from a closer area than the original, so why didn't he come out in the first place?!?!?!) to review our claims and validate them. They ended up sending us a different settlement, enough for us to fix the major problems.
We had never been to this area before we moved. We left a very prosperous area with many things in a short distance for a town with practically nothing and an hour away from everything. That was a shock in and of itself, but the movers made this big move more traumatic and unsettling than was necessary. I believe they are in the business to cheat people and do so every chance they get. I will never use Atlas again, nor would I ever suggest to anyone that they use them either.
Recommended:
No
Punctuality: Showed up late
Lost Goods: No
Amount Paid (US$): 3800.00
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Epinions.com ID:
ampmom
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Member: Terri Powell
Location: Winchester, VA
Reviews written: 95
Trusted by: 7 members
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