United/Liberty Van Lines a moving NIGHTMARE
Written: Jun 08 '03 (Updated Jul 09 '03)
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Pros: No "pros," these movers are far from "professional"
Cons: Cons, as in "convicts," and "we were conned"
The Bottom Line: With any big van line, you don't know who you're getting. If you don't like the guys who show up, SEND THEM AWAY!
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| JYankee22's Full Review: United Van Lines |
We have moved at least a dozen times, and over the years we have acquired some nice things, including leather furniture, custom-made tables, beautiful standing lamps, and Scandinavian teak furniture. How three thugs could manage to do $6,000 worth of damage in one move is unbelievable, yet United Van Lines (Liberty Moving, Long Island, New York) was up to the task.
The driver was surly and belligerant, and his assistant was a moron. It was a windy day, and they placed a tall bookcase upright on the sidewalk. I watched it blow over, and I ran outside to see if it was damaged. They whisked it onto the truck after the driver told me he had put it down that way, that it hadn't blown over. I guess he thought I was an idiot. Perhaps he was right. I was an idiot not to send them away the minute they showed up -- they were dirty, angry, pushy, and uncooperative. It literally made me sick having them in my house, touching my things.
Because they didn't take the time to remove the feet from my leather loveseat, it was too wide to safely make it down the hallway, and they bashed it into a door jam, tearing the leather. Only after I suggested they remove the feet did they do so. They broke the frame later in transit.
They turned over our chest of drawers and nightstands, so that the brass pulls were facing down. The pulls, which dangle when put face down, were therefore BROKEN OFF when placed on the truck floor-- three of them (they found them when I asked them to look)! They will need to be welded on!
The bum they picked up in Florida to help them did more damage, scratching the tile floor while putting in a file cabinet. My custom-made kitchen table was dismantled and the legs were badly damaged by the time they arrived. When replacing the legs, the guy couldn't find the correct screws, used different ones which were too long, and ran the screws up through the table top! Not once, but TWICE! And there I am standing, SCREAMING to stop, as he puts the second one in. "Whoops, sorry," says driver Dan, "that's gonna cost us," he says with a smirk. No big deal, it's not coming out of his pocket.
A $185 halogen lamp didn't make it, and I called the next day about it. Dan still had it, it was taking a trip to Disney World. It was then on its way back to New York, someone would deliver it the next trip. Three weeks later, it arrived, broken in two. They had tried to fix it, they said.
Of course, the bookcase they broke never showed up, but they wouldn't admit that. I had three other bookcases, why did I have so many bookcases, anyway? Hmmm, because some people read books, others carry other people's boxes of books and smash them on the ground. Boxes of books, which I had carefully packed, to the top so they wouldn't crush, were crushed anyway. That's virtually impossible to do!
I don't even know if everything arrived, I was so concerned with all the damaged furniture. I took at least 20 calls to Liberty and to United to finally get a claim paid off. I had paid $250 for insurance, had a $250 deductible, and they agreed to pay only $1800 for the well-over $6,000 worth of damage and loss. I was out $4,700, at least, and my already-failing health suffered through the ordeal. Never again!
I'm moving again next week. I haven't settled on a way to do it. We are moving our most valuable and important belongings ourselves, though we haven't settled on a truck. I'm going to hire a moving company to take our already-broken furniture and unimportant, easily-replaceable junk. I've been researching movers for months, but, alas, can't find ONE that anyone recommends. NOT ONE. Nobody I talk to who has recently moved had a good experience. Why can't someone start a CAREFUL, HONEST moving company? There certainly is a need!
Recommended:
No
Punctuality: Showed up on time
Lost Goods: Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 6,000
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Epinions.com ID:
JYankee22
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Reviews written: 4
Trusted by: 0 members
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