Northern Van Lines

Reviews

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1. P

   Patrick M.

   Source: MoveAdvisor

   17 Apr 2012Paid $1,500

   Overall excellent and easy.

   I am glad that I went with Northern.  The pickup was simple and fast, and they fully explained everything.  Scheduling drop off was also very easy.  Pricing is as competitive as can be and I see no reason for myself to go with any other mover if I ever need to hire a company again.  These guys are legit and know what they are doing.

2. D

   D. H.

   Source: MoveAdvisor

   6 Apr 2012Paid $2,400

   5 Star Customer Service.

   I received an estimate for this move that was not only provided very quickly but was also the lowest based on an exact shipment of home furnishings at a very specific weight.  Although my inability to provide a pick up address at the time of my order resulted in some confusion, one call the office netted an immediate response  by a supervisor, corrected the problems and got my move back on track. I have moved with professional movers in the past and they never go completely smoothe but I have never received such a fast response to get problems resolved and everything back on track. The company represenative was not only courteous and professional but responded directly and truthfully about what had caused the problems and resolved them within a matter of 15 minutes.  When the driver arrived I found him to be courteous and professional.  The workers were clean and professional and handled my property with care.  This company gets a 5 star rating for their customer service, as far as I am concerned.  Kudos.

3. J

   Jonathan V.

   Source: MoveAdvisor

   17 Apr 2012Paid $1,800

   Description of services provided by Northern VanLines.

   The move was from Washington state, to Illinois, 2200 miles. Alicia and I discussed thoroughly the estimate with regards to size, pieces of furniture, TV's, and anything requiring special packing, like wrapping the sofa, boxing TV's, etc. as a result, the quote was very close to the actual costs The crew was prompt, courteous, and efficient in packing and loading the truck. The shipment was also delivered on time right to our storage shed as described. Alicia represented the company, their capabilities, and their service very openly and honestly I would recommend their services.

4. S

   Sam

   Source: MoveAdvisor

   17 May 2012Paid $1,400

   Very poor experience so far.

   SO FAR, I'M VERY NERVOUS ABOUT THIS COMPANY. I scheduled a move for friday. they told me a back up day was neccessary, so we made that saturday. friday they called us to let us know we'd need to use the back up day. the movers never came the back up day either; they called me that day 1 hr before the scheduled pick up and said they were stuck in another town. they said they could come sunday between 2 and 4:00. I told them I had to fly home to LA and that would be very hard for me to arrange, and the man on the phone said they would try to figure something out and call me back. they never called. finally monday I spoke with my sales rep Alicia, who was very apologetic and said that they would come do the pick up, and they would arrange it with my contact person in colorado who I had to find to stick around to let them in the unit. she said "tell us a time and we will come." still no pick up, they never called my contact person or me, or called me back even when I called today. they already have our deposit and credit card info. after reading these reviews, im nervous. I will update..

5. M

   Mac H.

   Source: MoveAdvisor

   30 Apr 2012Paid $1,800

   Service and Communication Issues.

   We contracted Northern Van Lines, based in Eugene, OR for our move from Seattle to Phoenix. Comparing their rate to renting a truck, gas and some help to load and unload, Northern was about the same. My wife and I decided to hire them and be able to drive the 1500 miles in our car separately, taking a little extra time. The problems began upon our arrival in Phoenix, when it turned out that the statements by the loading crew, who were otherwise very nice, prompt and efficient, were wildly inaccurate. They promised delivery the following week, though the contract gives the DOT approved delivery "window" of 21 days. Upon finding out that that wasn't going to happen, and indeed the mover couldn't tell us at all when our possessions would come, we finally asked them ( a customer service rep) to put it at the end of the window, even later than the end would be OK, so our funds would be in place. We had already paid 2 deposits at this point. The Friday before the week we had arranged for delivery, we got a call from the driver ( a different guy on this end) who was ready to deliver! That weekend! After threatening to either deliver, or put our stuff in storage, he agreed to deliver Monday or Tuesday. We got ready for that; then he called to say he was taking a few days for a personal errand and would call us when he got back. Repeated calls to the company at this point were not returned. He showed up Thursday morning. After questioning the Western Union money orders we were requested to pay with, he asked for and extra $118 (destination fee and carton for our mattress) and $175 for a "long carry fee". I should mention at this point our contract listed a balance owed of $692.50. We didn't have the extra funds, because we weren't expecting them, and finally persuaded the driver to leave our goods on the curb outside the entrance to our apartment complex. We then moved them, with the very good help of our neighbors, into our apartment and an onsite storage unit. Throughout this process, the communication with this carrier has been very intermittent to poor, and we repeatedly asked about the fees in order to prepare for this (what was for us) expensive move. The carrier, their reps, the driver and the dispatcher consistently displayed an attitude of take it or leave it, and I have rarely spent so much and received so little in the way of service. Especially at delivery, the company took the attitude that we were out to cheat them! As I write this my wife and are pretty wiped out from today and the only positive is that our stuff is finally in our apartment. I will be going through out things carefully for any damage. M. Hart This is a follow up to the review I wrote shortly after the movers arrived. After trying to hold us up for additional fees of $300, and threatening us with placing our goods in storage (the contract, it turns out, says we get 30 days of free storage) we had the mover deposit our goods on the sidewalk outside our apartment complex and we finished the move! After 2 weeks of trying to get someone on the phone, I gave up and am sending a detailed letter of my complaints, including some damaged items I have discovered upon unpacking, to the Interstate Commerce Commission, the Arizona Attorney General, the Better Business Bureau, and the American Moving and Storage Association. This particular Northern Van Lines is based in Eugene, OR and I recommend you choose someone else.

6. N

   Natalie F.

   Source: MoveAdvisor

   9 Oct 2012Paid $3,118

   ** Northern Van Lines **.

   On 10/9/12, spoke with US DOT concerning # 1147457 - Northern Van Lines, as of 10/3/12 their license has been REVOKED. ** DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY ** my household goods where picked up on 8/28/12 and still have not been delivered. Today makes 6 weeks without any word on a solid deliver date. No one from Northern Van Lines is returning my calls or emails. The only contact I was able to get ANY information was with the pick-up driver Jared James Anderson @ 541-606-2494 who recently quit and stated my items are being stored at a warehouse in Eugene, OR. Jared James Anderson indicated Jessie Thorn @ 541-520-5173 sub-leased the warehouse together and would be a good contact. No one from this number is returning any calls. I've even sent the Sales Rep at the time Zachary Adams @ 541-255-3339 several emails and still no response. There was a guy named Julian @ 877-221-9355 who at the time was their Quality Assurance and now is a Sales Rep @ 503-895-5539. Julian claimed he would get in touch with dispatch and have someone call me back concerning my deliver date that was on 10/1/12 - still nothing.

7. D

   Dave K.

   Source: MoveAdvisor

   9 Oct 2012Paid $11,496

   Movers - BEWARE.

   This company was late picking up my furniture in Oregon and we were supposed to have received it in Florida on September 24th, but now it is October 9th and we have yet to see our stuff.  They have claimed it is on the road or it still might be in storage in Oregon.  They can't seem to find it and when pressured all the customer support folks do is blame their dispatch.  They will not call back when they say they will and they ignore voice messages.  They don't seem to care about their customers.  I am convinced that when their lips are moving they are lying.  I will update this if I ever get my furniture, but if you are considering a move, don't use these folks.  Their customer support guy "Brad" even told me he wouldn't use his company after the issues we've had with them.  I am about ready to file a theft report.

8. L

   Leeann B.

   Source: MoveAdvisor

   9 Sep 2012Paid $2,595

   This company will rip you off!

   Their service was beyond bad; it was criminal.  Beware of this company.  They will rip you off.  Don't just search for company reviews because such searches will generally come back favorable.  Instead, include the word fraud in your Internet search, and you will be astonished at the huge amount of horrible experiences this company has given people.  They are crooks!  They begin very politely--all "yes ma'am" and "no ma'am" and "anything you need ma'am," but they will fleece you in the end.  They didn't even show up until three days after the appointed time.  Then they wouldn't return phone calls or emails.  Then the final balance came in at nearly three times more than the amount I'd expected based on their estimate, and they threatened to hold my items hostage until I coughed up the balance in cash or money order.  To this day they have not returned my phone calls, emails or letters.  I've reported them to the Better Business Bureau, the Oregon Attorney General's Office, and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.  They replied to the first BBB inquiry stating that customers often underestimate the true weight of their items, which results in a cost greater than what they might have anticipated.  However, when I spoke with them and described the items I had, they assured me that industry standards allowed them to give a fairly accurate weight estimate, certainly not one that would be grossly underestimated.  Given that it is their business to know such things, I believe that their actions constitute either blatant incompetence or straight up thievery.  Considering that they refuse to address my dispute, I'm left to believe the latter is true.  STAY CLEAR OF THESE CRIMINALS!!

9. A

   Aaron K.

   Source: MoveAdvisor

   2 Sep 2012Paid $3,600

   Don't even bother.

   I started my search of movers getting quotes from several companies. From experience, I didn't want to go with the cheapest but also didn't want to pay top dollar. Northern Vanlines was my 3rd call for a quote. In talking with Chris, everything seemed professional. I had told him that I was getting quotes and he had asked me what companies I was considering. I told him of one company and he advised me I shouldn't use them because they sublet the work and are brokers, not a moving company. He informed me that in using Northern Vanlines, I would be working with them, their trucks and employees which would all be clearly marked with Northern Vanlines name. This did make me feel more comfortable that I can put my trust in one company. He gave me a quote, which was a little higher then the rest but figuring I would be working with a moving company and not a broker, I felt I would be handled on a more professional level. We were on a timeline and he reassured me that my belongings would be the last on the truck headed for Arizona and it would only take 6 days to get there. We were driving down ourselves and were planning a 5 day trip. Perfect! I gave the required amount for a deposit and the deal was made. The day of my move, the truck did not show up. I recieved a call from the mover stating the air brakes on the truck were out and they could not make it that day but he assured me they would be by the very next morning. The next day, two hours later then expected, I get a knock at the door. Three guys are standing outside the door with a clipboard, I look past them and also see a rented Uhaul truck. They explained they were with Northern Vanlines and were there to get my stuff. The only thing that had any evidence they were indeed with Northern was the paperwork with my quote. After assencing what all was being moved, they added extra packing charges to the sum of $275 for the packing and wrapping of some furniture and the TVs, which Chris had informed me they would pack and it was already part of the charges. All the furniture was new which I purchased 2 years prior when I bought the home. While taking apart my bedroom set, the mover had informed me that he didn't have the right tools to disasemble my bed but after 2 hours, he somehow managed. He also told me that whoever put my bed together had used the wrong tools (which was the delivery guys from the furniture store). The move seemed fairly smooth from there, except when they got to my dining room table (my expensive dining room table). They had wrapped the table, legs and all, as one piece. Which was too wide to get out any door in the house. I mentioned it to the one that seemed to be the team leader and he measured and found this to be true. They unwrapped the table so that they could take the legs off. I had some things I was taking with me in my vehicle to still pack so I headed up stairs to handle that as they took care of my table. Later, I go outside as the are loading the UHAUL and see my table, wrapped up again, with the legs still on it. They said they managed to fit my 42" table out the 36" door. That's when I noticed that two of the legs were bent. I asked about it and they told me they loosened the legs to get it out and when they got to the distribution center they would get the tools needed to fully remove the legs. All is loaded and off they go with another $850. We arrived in Arizona on time (March 31st) and was eager to recieve our furinture in the new house which would be arriving the next day (April 1st)! Nothing, I call Chris and no one answers or returns my calls. Next day, more disregarded phone calls. Finally after three days I get through to someone (john). I get a story about the truck having air brake issues and the wouldn't be able to go through the mountains safely but that it was resolved and my items were on the way. He apologized for the inconvience but my stuff would be here by the 7th. The 7th, nothing! 8th, nothing and again can't get a returned call. Then the 9th I get in touch with another person who tells me my belongings haven't left Oregon! I'm in a rant! The manager, Amy calls me and tells me how sorry she is but that whoever told me I would get the things by the 7th was misinformed. Also, Chris would have NEVER told me my stuff would be there by the 1st! He's a team manager and wouldn't make a promise like that. I was then told that my stuff was either still in Oregon or in the Tennesse distribution center?? Tennesse? From Washington State to Oregon to Tennesse to Arizona?? After multiple calls and tracking, and more calls I talked with everyone in the office at least 3 times each. I even found out that John isn't really John, it's a name he uses some times, an alis if you will. My belongings arrive on the 19th of April, 18 days after I was promised. In a moving truck labeled ZEFFY Trucking. Yeah, Not a Northern Vanlines truck! They removed all my items to the driveway, all the battered boxes to the garage (of 42 boxes, 9 were undamaged). When everything was laid out, I noticed some things were missing and I was assured by the driver that everything was there and I would see this when he unwrapped everything. I walked to the back of his truck just to look and he blocked me and told me that he has everything unloaded and to "just wait". That's when I saw more boxes and other items still in the back! I started pointed and they unloaded the rest. They too had NO tools to reassemble my furniture, I had to borrow from the neighbor I didn't know. The bed they was "put together wrong" was broken and the side boards which hold the matress up could not be put back together, firewood now. The dining room table glass top was chipped in 2 corners and when they went to put the legs back on, it seems the legs were just snapped off and could not be put together. I called Amy right away, nothing! I still had to pay for the rest of the delivery but I really wanted to talk with her first. Nothing, so the driver suggested we write everything down on the reciept and he would sign that all was damaged. After all this, the driver (in front of his guys) says to me.."so, are you going to tip us?" After days of calling, I decided to try my wife's phone since I never called from it before and it was answered the 2nd ring! They seemed to be screening the calls since not 1 minute ealier I had called from my phone 3 times with no answer. I was told by Amy that she believes I am intitled to some form of reembursment to which I never saw, and she and the company was never heard from again. I filed a claim with the insurance company from the movers and after $3200 worth of damage was offered $96! You value what you have, DO NOT use Northern Vanlines for your move. I KNOW I can't be the only one! In fact, during one of my coversations with one of the sales guys John, or whatever he calls himself, and Amy the manager, they both told me that over the past couple months they seem to be getting a lot of complaints and are working on it. Honestly, the only thing I feel they are working on is perfecting the LIES, and collecting YOUR money!   At Northern Vanlines: You know who I am! You know what you've done and you know what you promised. This will NEVER die until I feel everyone is informed.

10. S

    S.g

    Source: MoveAdvisor

    30 Aug 2012Paid $3,200

    Do Not Use.

    By far the WORST moving experience I have ever had. They delivered my goods TWO MONTHS LATE. During this time customer service was NO help I couldn't get honest answers from anyone about my belongings and why it was taking them so long to deliver it. Amy at customer service never returned my phone calls and Carlos the supervisor at dispatch was beyond rude and lied to me constantly. When we finally received our belongings which again was two months after our promised delivery date, of course stuff was missing and broken. On top of that the driver showed up with one guy to do all of the unloading so my husband and a friend had to help unload. And the driver kept giving us other peoples belongings and when I would refuse them he would tell me to "just take it, its on your list" I did not take it and was very worried that my stuff had been given away as well. I strongly discourage anyone from using this company your move will be a nightmare. I wish I would have seen these reviews before my move! STAY AWAY from Northern Van Lines!