28 Jul 2014 · MoveAdvisor
1.0 out of 51.0
Let me preface this review with the fact that we hired movers for the FIRST TIME on this move. And knew nothing better than to look online and get some quotes. Several months before our move across the country, we put out a few requests for free quotes and immediately Liberty Relocation was one of the companies to call. I spoke with Patrick. He was very friendly and a great salesman. So much that I found myself feeling fully convinced that their company would take great care of our move. I also felt good about being "local" out of Washington. The price was one of the better prices I had found, so I thought this company was IT. We ended up paying nearly double in the end.. (Now, after the fact, other movers have told us that there is NO way a 4-bedroom home would be quoted that low, and without having seen exactly how much you have. Most moving companies come to your home to get a realistic quote).Fast-forward several months later. I had major anxiety about moving our family of SIX across the country and just wanted to DOUBLE CHECK that everything was to-plan. I would email Liberty and they would eventually email back with a "yes". Or not respond at all. I got online and looked at reviews and got SCARED OUT OF MIND. There were TERRIBLE reviews in the last few weeks, but I hadn't seen anything negative when I booked. I hurried and called Patrick to CANCEL my move and get my money back. I had already paid about $500. He convinced me that those reviews were false and other companies trying to bring their company down. I had some doubts, but believed him. Two days before our move, a woman from Liberty called to confirm that the movers would come "Sunday between 12-2". Sunday morning came and we rushed to take apart our beds, wash our sheets, drapes, and shower curtains. The entire house was entirely packed up. We had our kids farmed out to friends as we expected movers for the afternoon. Alas, 2pm came and went (the last hour they said they'd come). WITH NO WORD.We called Liberty, emailed them, etc. BUT TO NO AVAIL. Finally, I found Patrick (the salesman)'s phone number. I called him. He said, "Oh they'll get there. Don't worry about it.". Okay..easier said than done.I had sold my home and the new homeowners were moving in the next day. The carpet cleaner had to come, the cleaners, etc. Finally Patrick stopped receiving our calls because he had NO ANSWERS. There was NO CONTACT FROM ANYONE. Dead-end lines or voicemails. Not knowing IF we would even HAVE movers the next day, we checked into the hotel nearby (which I guess we wasted money on since we DID have a house but no beds set up). We spent the entire night not sleeping, but instead researching ideas on how the heck we could pack up and move our entire house the next day.. I booked a UHAUL to pick up in case Liberty still never showed. The next day came. We finally got a hold of someone at 9am. They said someone would be there between 10-12. Again, with four small children we waited. Trying to keep everyone happy. Movers didn't come till 3pm. With little to no communication. If they had said 10-12, how did it become 3pm? What realistic timelines are these?Now, the only positive thing about this ENTIRE MOVE was the "SUBS", or moving companies that Liberty hired to move our stuff. Sidenote: Liberty does FALSE ADVERTISING in saying they are NOT A BROKER. They ARE. And they are NOT endorsed by the BBB. But say they are. The "subs", the moving company "All Service Movers" came and they were friendly. They took 6 hours to pack up our stuff very carefully. They did a great job. They have nothing to do with Liberty. ;) However, because of the late start time, our NEW HOME OWNERS had to start moving in as well. It was ridiculously embarassing and such an emotional drain! We finally sent the movers off. We actually pulled our TV, documents, and computer as we were worried we wouldn't see them again.. It was so emotionally wearing. From not knowing at all IF they would come at all, and WHEN, and to entertain and FUND a family of SIX, including two grandparents there to help was DRAINING. MOVING SHOULDN'T BE THIS HARD. I would have loved a phone call or someone saying "sorry", or even a "don't worry they will be there tomorrow". No customer service. NOTHING. Kevin did call a few weeks later after we had called over and over to complain. I know the company was SO sick of us. He is the "moving manager". He heard our complaints and did take a little money off because of the unplanned hotel stay we had to book. On the delivery end, we had July 17th as the date to have our stuff delivered to Nashville (from Seattle). The contract says it can be any day within a 20 day window. So I figured I should plan for it being the worse-case scenario. Because that's normal with them.. The movers came a week after our planned delivery date. Happily surprised it wasn't later.Again, the communication was SO poor. Kevin would respond to an email a few days later with vague statements like, "your truck hasn't been assigned yet". The guy ACTUALLY driving the truck (a driver NOT with Liberty, but just assigned to drive the moving truck) was very nice and called the day before he delivered.He showed up at 5:30pm (a few hours after he said). He couldn't lift anything because he was injured, but had his co-driver and two guys he had found from CraigsList to help. So three guys total to move our 4-bedroom home. My husband did a TON of the moving, including myself. It was getting late and we just wanted to be done. They did a fine job and were nice. Next year when we move, there is NO WAY I WOULD EVER USE LIBERTY AGAIN. The price you put on SANITY during an already stressful move is PRICELESS. I would pay ANY price to not put my family through that stress again. If they want to keep customers, they need to run their company better by being honest about exactly what their company is (a broker), how much things will be, realistic about their timelines, and they need to pick up the phone to call when they are running late, and to pick up the phone when the customer calls. Simple.
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