4 Jan 2017 · MoveAdvisor
1.0 out of 51.0
This was the absolute worst moving experience of our lives. We have been moved several times over the past 20 years, but Preferred Relocation was by far the worst. Some "low lights" are as follows:
1. They arrived late, EVERY single day of the 4-5 day experience.
2. They packed as if they were maliciously careless and/or utterly incompetent. Examples: tape was wrapped around ANTIQUE (!) wood furniture, lampshades were crushed by being stuffed into wardrobe boxes with electronic equipment and books, china was improperly packed and many pieces broken, and artwork was mangled. They brought no book boxes, despite having been told that we had hundreds of books to move. Many small items were tossed into wardrobe boxes along with large heavy items; some of these items were fragile and irreplaceable, and were damaged or destroyed.
3. At times, we had difficulty reaching the company (or anyone there who could help) by phone.
4. They destroyed the top of our antique china cabinet, likely by placing heavy items upon it while in the large moving truck. (We discovered this only after the cabinet was placed in our new home.)
5. We were coerced into having to rent an additional smaller truck as a "shuttle" because of our long driveway with a turn at its beginning. We went along with this, but have since determined that this was unnecessary, as we have had many large trucks and trailers traverse our driveway. This cost us several thousand dollars extra because they were either gouging us for more money, or their driver was incompetent, or both.
6. The moving team leader repeatedly asked for a HUGE tip ($1000) for his team. This felt like extortion, and was in no way deserved. We bought the team several lunches in good faith, BEFORE we realized how disastrous this move would turn out to be. The packing/moving crew was also occasionally crass or rude.
7. Over multiple years, with multiple forms, letters, and nearly 100 photos of damages, we were not compensated by the company, or their "claim clearinghouse" Anthem. After a round with the Better Business Bureau, we nearly gave up, since the company would only compensate us approximately 20% of the actual several thousand dollars in damages we incurred. They also wanted to place a "gag order" on us, and accept zero responsibility for any wrongdoing. We filed a complaint with the NJ Division of Consumer Affairs, but at this point, four years after the nightmare, we are not hopeful.
I am sure that I could find more things to write, using materials from the file of documents we have for this horrible move, but I simply do not want to think about this any more.
We strongly suggest that you AVOID this company!
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