The moving companies I'm contacting are sending me subcontractors with many former complaints against them---help! (local moving company, North American)
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Hello,
I need good, reputable nationwide mover references, please!
I've contacted several large companies, but then a subcontracted mover contacts me..which would be okay, but...when I look up the subcontracters, I'm finding loads of complaints against them.
How do you choose a reputable mover and protect yourself from bait and switch scams? Could use some advice on this from others who have gone through the same thing!
by "nationwide movers" are you referring to the likes of Allied, Atlas, Mayflower, United, etc. etc.
These van lines have "agents" who actually do their moving, much like John Doe is an "agent" for State Farm, Farmers, etc. So they are not really bait and switching you. They are just referring you to their local agents who represent them.
Keep in mind also that if you contract with "Local Moving Co. agents for Big Van Line" that at the day of the move your goods may not be loaded by Local Moving Co. but by a driver for "out of town moving co. agents for Big Van Line" who will then haul them to your new location. (Local Moving Co. may provide loading help in this case).
Okey Dokie is correct. Depending on their size, reputable national van lines can have hundreds of agents throughout the U.S. that act has local representative of their brand and provide transportation service for their customers using a network of thousands of independent owner-operators.
Licensed move brokers, however, have no drivers or equipment qualified by the FMCSA and subcontract all moves to other companies.
It sounds like they may be trying to broker the move as well. This is perfectly legal if they have a broker's license for HH movers. You should deal with the National moving companies "agents" closest to where you live. Ask for their Certificate of Authority and Certificate of Insurance paying particular attention to the amount of "cargo" insurance they have, not just general liability.
If they "broker out" your move, then you must make sure the "brokered carrier" has supplied YOU with each certificate as well.
In other words, if you hire Allied Movers, and they send ABC Movers, then you must demand their current insurance certificate and certificate of authority issued by the FHA for ABC Movers. You must be named as the insured on the original certificate of insurance and accept nothing less.
Brokering is common in the trucking industry, and if this is the case,you may get a better mover than Allied or you may get a worse one. What is important is that you are present during the loading and the unloading. Make sure the driver signs for the goods received in good order, or note exceptions if something is already damaged, on the bill of lading, so if there is any damage during transit, you can note that on the bill of lading at the receiving end. The bill of lading is your only legal instrument on which to make these notes that will stand up in court should you need to make a claim for damage during handling or transit. Good luck.
And don't assume Insert Any Name Here Moving and Storage is the same company as Insert A Name Here Moving and Storage. Unless they have a federal trademark on the name, many use similar sounding names to confuse unsuspecting customers. There have been post about a specific company only to find out they are talking about some broker somewhere else who is using the same sounding name.
I contracted with Hillside Van Lines as an Agent of United Van Lines in an intrastate move, and received all sorts of United Van Lines sales literature describing the services they provide through their Agents. However, I later learned that United Van Lines has NOTHING to do with intrastate moves and that Hillside Van Lines acts under its own authority in intrastate moves. In addition, without disclosure to me, Hillside subcontracted the move to another local moving company which has nothing to do with United Van Lines or the level of services they provide through their Agents, such as professionally trained crew, among other things. This to me looks like bait and switch.
We've used Atlas and Bekins and had favorable results.
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