Moving Videos
February 28, 2010 by admin
Filed under Uncategorized
Here is a collection of helpful moving tips videos for you in one place. I will update this regularly as I create new videos.
Reliable Craigslist Movers:
Gas Mileage for Moving Trucks:
Ryder Moving Truck Rentals:
Tipping Your Movers:
Craigslist Moving Help:
Moving Systems, Part I & II:
Penske Moving Truck Rental Review:
U-Haul Moving Truck Rental Review:
Moving Truck Rentals:
Moving Brokers:
Cheap Movers:
Moving Scams:
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Are You Designed To Move? A Moving Company Review
February 22, 2010 by admin
Filed under Moving Company Reviews
Can you trust Design To Move?
Company: Designed To Move
Grade: A+
City: St Clair Shores/Detroit/Port Huron
I first learned of Design To Move from James Height when he wrote to me on FaceBook. Apparently he liked my website and the fact that I exposed the moving scammers that prey on unsuspecting customers. he wrote:
James Height hey just wanted to say I love your web site! calling out the scammers on craigslist is what needs to happen. Its hard for legal movers like us to get ahead with people like that out there. Check out my page its Designed To Move MI and become a fan if you want. if I get any moves in your area I cant fit in I will send them your way.
So I thought that I would review his company. Seems fair doesn’t it?
So let me say this. I LOVE THIS COMPANY!
What a professional moving company. I know that Designed TO Move and James have more than just a Craigslist presence as James, as I said, found me via FaceBook. As a matter of fact I have never seen Designed To Move even advertise on Craigslist. So that is a step up from the rabble and the moving scams. I don’t know if they are also on Twitter but they may be. It would seem logical.
This company is licensed and insured. I have verified this with the government website. So you can rest easy in knowing that would be taken care of in that regard. They are also part of the Michigan Movers Association which has stringent requirements to be a member. So this is another plus-point.
For the full review plus click this link: http://movingcompanyreview.wordpress.com/2010/02/22/designed-to-move-moving-company-review/
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Bekins Van Lines: Bekins Moving Company Review
February 21, 2010 by admin
Filed under Moving Company Reviews
Company: Bekins Van Lines
Grade: F
City: Nationwide
More often than not the perpetrators of moving scams are licensed and insured moving companies, and the majority of those come from the national vanliners. It is unfortunate but true.
I did an informal study a while back where I investigated the complaints of moving scams that were on the internet. I took these reports and looked into the moving companies that were said to have committed these scams, what I found shocked me! I found that almost 80% of the moving scam complaints were not committed by unlicensed and uninsured moving companies but licensed and insured ones…scary huh? Of those, I found that 75% were committed by nationwide vanliners…And Bekins Van Lines was at the top of the list.
Bekins Van Lines or Bekins Moving Company is a national van liners with offices (or hubs) in every state. What these specialize in is moving people across the country. They have set up their operations similar to a franchise. A local moving company becomes and authorized agent for Bekins and they sell Bekins moving services in their state and/or region. Bekins can factually go all over the world to move you. This not a bad business model.
However, Bekins is the worst company out there and should be avoided.
IN going online and googling Bekins I found that not one of the consumer rating websites rate Bekins very high. While Bekins do have their fans and fair share of positive ratings they have far more negative ratings.
J.D. Powers and Associates, a leading consumer rating agency, rated Bekins as one of the worst companies several years in a row.
Many of Bekin’s authorized moving company agents have horrible ratings themselves, including bad BBB reports. The authorized agent for my state of Michigan that operates out of Fraser is a prime example. I personally know that they are being sued by one company for name infringement and yet sued another company for the very same thing. Talk about “talking out of both sides of your mouth.” And I personally know that they spend THOUSANDS to make sure that they have a good BBB report. Yet the BBB freely admits that they have the highest amount of complaints of any moving company in Michigan and far above the normal for a company of their volume…so what does that say?
So in my opinion I would never use Bekins Moving Company…instead I would maybe Mayflower or Movex.
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Reviewing Your Moving Company
February 20, 2010 by admin
Filed under Moving Company Reviews, Moving Tips and Advice
How to review your moving company
Have you ever wanted to comment on the service you had with your movers, good or bad?
Unfortunately most moving companies do not have a website where you can leave comments about your service. And in fact I advise you not to use any mover that doesn’t have a website. (websites can be made for free these days so there is no excuse not to have one.) But even the moving companies that do have a website, most often than not, there is no place to leave comments about your service. And this is unfortunate.
Testimonials are powerful. Many of you will decide to use a moving company just because of the good reviews that you find of them online. Testimonials and reviews help build trust for moving companies; and any moving company not actively campaigning to get as many as they can and publish them far and wide are shooting themselves in the foot.
After every move that I do I ask if the customer was happy, and if they were (which is usually the case 98% of the time) I have them write a few words about there experience. Lately I have been getting videos of them saying on camera what they experienced. You can see all my testimonials on this website. Just go to the “testimonials” category and you can see hundreds of them. Or just click the videos off to the right and see and hear what a few of my recent customers have to say.
But in lieu of mover not asking for the testimonial or review where can you go to leave a review? Where will it make the most impact? This is the question.
Yelp
Yelp is a website designed just to leave reviews of businesses. All you have to is sign up and start reviewing.
There are people on Yelp that have made careers going into businesses and using their services just so they can review the business. It sounds like a horrible career choice but it does happen. Thing about Yelp is that it ranks very high on the search engines. So if you write a review of XYZ MOVERS that review will show up very early in the search engines for others to see.
Yellowpages
The Yellowpages as we know it: the big, bulky book is outmoded and going the way of the Dodo bird. Everyone is using the search engines to find businesses. Yahoo is partnered with Yellowpages so you can find those companies with internet listings ranking quite high with Yahoo. The thing about the internet listing for Yellowpages (and Yellowbook, Superpages, etc.) is that they have a place where you can leave reviews the moving company that you used. You can leave up to 5 stars for the movers that you chose.
I love Google. As a business person Google makes it so easy for me to have everything I need to create, run and manage a business. They provide all the tools I will ever need. One feature which I am sure that you are familiar with is Google Maps.
Type in the keyword you are looking for like: “professional movers” or “reliable moving” or “movers in (your city)” and a bunch of listing s come up right next to a map. By clicking on those listings you will find a profile page provided by that business of choice. What you may have not known is that that listing page gives you the option to not only read reviews but to leave them as well.
In my opinion, this is one of the best places to leave a review of the moving company that you used.
Yahoo and Bing
Yahoo and Bing also have map listings of businesses. However it is not as easy for business to get a listing on these sites as it is for Google. But like Google; Yahoo and Bing offer a place where you can leave reviews of your chosen moving company.
Ripoff Report
If you go to ripoffreport.com you will find hundreds of reviews left by people like yourself that have used various businesses. However, unlike all of the places mentioned above, you will only find bad reports here. So if you have had a bad review then this may be the place to leave your review; and trust me you will get action if you leave a review here. These show up very high on the search engines and make quite an impact.
But be warned, these reports NEVER disappear. They will always be available to everyone later on down the road.
Of course there are dozens of other consumer review sites out there but none as accessible as ripoffreport.com.
BBB
The Better Business Bureau or more commonly known as the BBB is also another place where you can leave a review. However more often than not and reviews of businesses that are left are usually negative. But you can leave positive reviews for business there as well.
I personally don’t like the BBB because they can be so easily bribed and manipulated by businesses. I know because I have done it.
Despite popular belief the BBB is NOT government operated. Its a ruse. It is a franchise like McDonald’s or Burger King. It is owned by someone to make money, and they make their money by charging businesses that are signed up with them fees for their “services”. If you have a bad BBB report all you have to do to fix it is pay out money to have it fixed. Its really that simple. So I can’t trust the BBB reports at all.
Does your mover have a FaceBook page? It does!? Cool. Do they have a tab where you can leave reviews? If so then leave a review.
You can leave a review of up to 5 stars. What I love and hate about this is: as a consumer I can leave a review knowing that it can never be deleted. So if I leave a bad review then it will be seen forever. As a business person, I hate this. I like to control what is being said about me. Personally I am not afraid of bad reviews and I welcome them as it helps me improve for the next time, but I also know my competitors can leave fake reviews for which I cannot delete. So it is a double edge sword for the business person.
Your moving company doesn’t have a FaceBook page? Doesn’t matter because you can still leave a review on your own Facebook page.
Angie’s List
Many people use Angie’s List to review moving companies and other businesses. The problem with Angie’s List as compared to Yelp is that you have to pay a monthly membership fee for it.
I know that I am not going to dole out hundreds of dollars a year just so I can read a review of a company or two, especially when I can do that for free with Yelp, Google or the other places mentioned here.
The plus point however, is that it is far more reliable than the free places. So if you find a good review of your chosen moving company then it is probably a good chance that it is a good company.
So there you go. Several places that you can go to leave comments and reviews of your experience with your moving company. So whether you are leaving a good comment or a bad one you have choices to be heard and have your count (unlike the presidential elections.)
But I caution you: If you leave a bad comment for any moving business make sure you do it when you have cooled down, and only report the facts. If you leave and angered filled terse review it will be looked upon as if you are the crazy person. Angry people never tell the truth.
Reviewing your moving company and the experience is easy. It only takes a little of your effort and time to do it. If you have something nice to say then please say it. It means so much to the people that work so hard. Of course if you have had a bad experience then you also are obligated to make sure that is know as well.
So no matter what your experience is or was it is always best to leave a few words for the next down the pike to hear what you have to say.
Lastly, you are always free to leave any reviews of your experiences with your moving company with me on this website. I welcome them all. the bad, the ugly and the Great. I will published them unedited for the world to see if that is what you want. Of course you can tell that you don’t want it published and I will honor that as well.
Thank you and good luck with your move.
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Damage Control For Moving
February 11, 2010 by admin
Filed under Moving Tips and Advice
This video gives some great advice to preventing a bad move or being scammed.
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Two Small Men With Big Hearts Moving Review
February 4, 2010 by admin
Filed under Moving Company Reviews
Company: Two Small Men With Big Hearts
Grade: F
City: Across Canada
I can’t tell you how many times that it is the large well known moving companies that actually committ the majority of the moving scams: Starving Students, Bekins, Americarrier and the lit goes on. And this is the case with Two Small Men With Big Hearts. The fortunate part is that I don’t hve to do the review; I only have to cut and paste from a news article.
Large moving company faces charges, upset customers
Two Small Men with Big Hearts apologizes for failure to address complaintsLast Updated: Wednesday, February 3, 2010 | 6:30 AM PT By Kathy Tomlinson CBC News
Shelagh Bruhn shows the wardrobe unit she says was dropped and broken by movers. (CBC)
Canada’s largest network of independent moving companies is coming under fire from some customers for its business practices.“I’ve moved a number of times and it was probably the worst move in 20 years,” said customer Shelagh Bruhn. “They have no hearts, as far as I’m concerned.”
According to the Better Business Bureau (BBB), Two Small Men with Big Hearts receives more complaints than any other moving company in B.C. — 50 in the last three years. The BBB has given “F” ratings to the company’s B.C. locations in Surrey, Richmond and Kamloops.
Bruhn complained to the management in Surrey after her move in June of 2009. Bruhn said the movers, who are paid by the hour, took several hours more than they estimated.
“I was quoted a certain amount every hour and we figured about six to eight hours. Instead it took 11 hours,” said Bruhn. “They deliberately dragged it out. They were ill-equipped. They were inept.”
Bruhn said the movers lost her ladder, broke a large piece of furniture that they dropped and chipped and scratched several other items.
“I picked this company based on its name — Two Small Men with Big Hearts,” she said. “It was just one disaster on top of the other.”
Toronto operators facing charges
TSM Canada started as a Vancouver company with one owner in 1981. It now has more than 30 franchise offices across Canada, “working as one, a collective organization,” according to the company’s national website.
Operators based in Toronto are facing charges after consumer complaints were filed about overcharging and broken promises.
In March 2009 the Ontario government filed several charges under the Consumer Protection Act against a North York, Ont., location of Two Small Men with Big Hearts. Company representatives Jeff Green and Brent Witte are also named in several counts.
The allegations include making false and misleading statements, renegotiating prices while in possession of customers’ goods and exceeding estimates by more than the 10 per cent of the maximum increase allowed under provincial rules.
“There are probably reasonable grounds for not moving with a company like that,” said John Levi of the Canadian Association of Movers. Levi represents several Canadian moving companies, but TSM Canada is not a member of his group.
“By the time you add up your time, your losses, your damage and the estimated cost plus the overcharges — you are at a significantly higher cost than you would have been with a reputable mover,” said Levi.
Bruhn was charged $1,500 for her move. In September, she said she reluctantly agreed to settle for $186 in damages, which she said is far less than her real losses. Despite that written agreement, Bruhn said the company has not paid her a cent.
Operators in Toronto are facing charges of unfair practices. (CBC)
“They suck you in — and they have you believing they are going to do the best job they can for you. Then, once they have your money — $1,500 later — they drop you like a hot potato,” said Bruhn.
“Almost every day I can find something else that was wrecked.”
Resolution promised
Stu Starkey, who took over the Surrey, B.C., franchise after Bruhn’s move, said he will now do whatever he can to resolve her complaint.“I can only handle problems case-by-case and make sure our customers are now satisfied at the end of their move,” said Starkey, who said he is also moving out of the rundown location.
“We want to clean up the appearance a little bit. We’re going to paint our trucks and put new ones in and get a brand new yard.”
Representatives from TSM Canada, the franchiser, refused a request for an interview with CBC News. Ben Hanuka, a Toronto lawyer who represents the company, sent a statement.
“TSM Canada takes its customers and reputation very seriously and regrets the inconvenience that was caused to them,” Hanuka wrote.
“The root cause of these problems is in large part inadequate customer communication and insufficient administrative oversight on the part of TSM Canada’s local offices and movers.”
The London location also has an “F” rating with the BBB.
Bradley Lang won his court claim against Two Small Men, but still hasn’t been paid. (CBC)
“I lost almost half of my things — gone, broken or smashed. There were boxes that had been opened and things pulled out of them,” said Lang. “I literally was picking up boxes that rattled — and all there was were large chunks, broken.”Lang said his shipment arrived almost a month late, after he was told it was left sitting for several days on a loading dock in Toronto.
His box spring and mattress has to be thrown out because of severe water damage, he said, while several items were missing, including a leather jacket and irreplaceable pieces of art and pottery.
“It breaks your heart — when you’ve got all those things and you’ve spent so much time collecting,” said Lang.
“I also lost coats. I lost pants. I lost boxes of clothes — so I hope they enjoyed them.”
The company admits it has customer-service problems that need to be addressed.
“Avoiding such customer complaints requires better training and supervision of TSM Canada’s local office representatives. This is not an easy task for us. There are over 30 Two Small Men With Big Hearts Moving offices in Canada, which together handle between 25,000 and 30,000 local and long-distance moves every year,” read the statement from the lawyer.
Court-ordered damages not paid
Lang’s move happened in 2003. He then spent four years trying to get the company to cover the damages. In 2005, after failing in several attempts to get a settlement, he filed a suit in small-claims court.“When I took it to the lawyers they said, ‘Oh this will be no problem. We’ve seen these people before,’” said Lang.
B.C. court records show 150 lawsuits have been filed involving Two Small Men with Big Hearts since the early 1990s. The majority are small claims against the company by customers.
Two Small Men with Big Hearts has three dozen franchise offices in Canada. (CBC)
In 2007, the court issued a default order directing TSM to pay Lang $8,582.65.By then, longtime company owner Glen Buckler had sold his interest in the company to six other operators. Buckler appeared in court to argue that because of the 2004 sale, he was no longer responsible. In addition, Buckler said the company’s legal name had been filed incorrectly.
“The court said I needed to re-file more papers — that my lawyers needed to file the last set of papers with an amendment to this name,” said Lang.
Faced with more legal hassles, Lang decided to give up.
“For the years that I’ve been going after this — that I have made myself sick over this — it was easier just to let it go.”
Kate Wittaker and James Carter moved from Port Elgin, Ont., to Sooke, B.C., in November 2009 and have filed a complaint with the BBB.
They claim TSM Canada arbitrarily inflated the price of their move by more than $700, including a surprise “fuel surcharge” of $283.80, after their belongings were picked up.
“What your company has done is unconscionable,” Wittaker wrote in a complaint to representatives in the B.C. booking office. “You cannot quote a customer one rate then once you pick up their stuff, inflate the rates and add additional charges.”
Tips on hiring a mover from Ontario’s Ministry of Consumer Services:
•Get the contract in writing.
•If an estimate is provided, the final cost cannot exceed the original estimated price by more than 10 per cent.
•Check the ministry’s Consumer Beware List: complaints received and charges laid are disclosed.
•Remember that the lowest price may not be the best choice — you get what you pay for.
TSM responded by telling Wittaker her belongings would not be delivered until the higher price was paid in full.“If you don’t pay your bill, it will go into storage and you will have to pay that before we deliver your goods,” a company representative wrote in an email. “If you are reporting to the BBB and government agencies, it seems you don’t want to pay your bill.”
Wittaker said she was more than willing to pay the amount originally quoted. However, she said, after the threat of having her belongings put in storage, she eventually relented and paid the charges.
Stu Starkey is taking over the Surrey franchise and says he will resolve any complaints. (CBC)
“We were on the phone every day for a month trying to find out where our stuff was, before it finally showed up,” said her husband.Apology from head office
“TSM Canada will be certainly reviewing these issues in an effort to learn from the past and avoid such customer complaints in the future,” wrote Hanuka. “TSM Canada apologizes for these delays and overall failure to address these three particular customer complaints in a timely manner. ”“As a result, TSM Canada is prepared to offer full compensation to Shelagh Bruhn [her claimed amount is $160] and Kate Wittaker [her claimed amount is $300]. TSM Canada will mail out the cheques to these customers this week.”
As for Lang’s longstanding claim for more than $8,500, the TSM statement indicated the company wants to settle with him, too.
“TSM Canada would like to have an opportunity to investigate this matter and attempt to resolve it with Mr. Lang with a suitable settlement offer over the coming several days.”
Hanuka also told CBC News he is also currently handling the allegations of unfair practices by TSM in Toronto, which are before the courts.
A spokesperson for the Ontario Ministry of Consumer Services said it could not comment on the details of the complaints. Company representatives could be fined up to $50,000 and the corporation up to $250,000.
Related posts
Moving Scams Cry “Foul”.
January 24, 2010 by admin
Filed under Moving scams
As a service to you I put me neck on the chopping block to expose the moving scams and those that commit to do them. As a result I have a lot of moving scam “moving companies” screaming mad at me, and you know what? ….I love it!
I know that I am doing my jobs when the people that are defrauding you of your hard earned money are screaming foul.
I one “moving company” owner that is a complete coward. This person lives over a 100 miles away from me so thinks by calling incessantly telling me how he is “going to kick my ass” or informing me that he knows where I live scares me. Well first off it is very brave (said sarcastically) to tell me you are going to engage in physical violence when you are 100 miles away. Two; telling me you know where I live is not a threat. I clearly have already told the entire internet when I posted the address on my website and over the web. And three; seriously! You thinking harassing me over the phone, childish threats and empty promises really intimidate me? It only makes you look as unprofessional as I have already told everyone you are.
Another person claiming he is a mover is crying foul. This time it is from someone that I exposed as having a fraudulent moving company and illegal moving ads posted on the internet. So what does he do? he post on Craigslist this following post:
It does not matter if I use a 14×7 enclosed trailer to move a 3 bdr house. So what if it takes 2 or 3 trips. Dont target me because im out there tryin to make money. I am licensed, and I am a pro. I dont hide behind a fake website, tryin to piss people off. Watch who your talking about! You should take my name and ad off your web page.
No joke.
The person can’t spell. Horrible grammer and he admits that he has to make multiple trips when he does a move.
Do the math. A professional mover with the right equipment can do an average size house or apartment, from start to finish in about 3 hours. This person has to do it about 6 hours. I have checked what he charges for the moves he does and he charges $60/hr. So 6 hours times $60 equals $360.
I charge $95/hr. I will do the same move in 3 hours. So lets add this up: $95 times 3 hours equals $285.
So who really is cheaper? And who really is the professional here?
But this person has to make himself right by claiming I harming him. Maybe. But he is harming you and making my industry look bad. He is not a professional mover in any shape or form.
He claims to me that he is licensed and insured. He blatantly lies. Maybe he is licensed and insured for his vehicle but not as a mover. I know as I personally called him and I asked him for his USDOT and MPSC numbers. He didn’t even know what they were nor the fact he needed them.
So I know that I am doing good in this world when bad people and fraudulent “movers” are called out and exposed and they are upset for it.
So remember this! Moving scams will scream foul when exposed. They cannot stand the light of truth. They kick and scream and carry on like a spoiled child but in the end they remain the same as they have always been. Slick con artists and bullys.
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Moving Scams And Identity Theft
January 20, 2010 by admin
Filed under Moving Tips and Advice, Moving scams
It is known that moving scam companies will hire criminals and sex offenders as I have already reported on. Now you can add to that mix identity theft.
I found this great article about a new threat to using moving scammers. Check it out below:
As if there weren’t enough worries about identity theft in this era high-tech, password/encrypted technology, we have to remind ourselves that identity theft still happens because of the hard technology and documents you expose to the world.
Consider the case of William Pollock, a young man from Texas who was looking to find a solid moving company to help move his family to Pennsylvania.
Pollock shopped around for a few different movers, as most of us would do, and when he wasn’t happy with their price quotes, he turned to Craigslist. There he found Moo-Ving.com, a company with a professional enough web site and, what’s more attractive, a far lower price quote.
Caveat emptor. As it turned out, the company took Pollock’s $5,000 in upfront cash and started making demands, telling him that they wouldn’t move his belongings unless he paid their fees. Eventually the company stored his belongings in a secret location, essentially holding his private property hostage.
This kind of theft isn’t as cut and dry as “routine” identity theft. You know not to give out your credit card number unless the person taking it has a good reputation and the interaction is secure. But what about private dealings with companies that appear to have good web sites?
List of Red Flags
Let’s consider some of the red flags Pollock could have considered:
* He found the moving companies on Craigslist rather than through more traditional methods.
* He didn’t do a lot of research into the reputation of the company.
* He paid upfront in cash.All of these elements, put together with a company like Moo-Ving.com, spelled disaster.
How to Protect Yourself
How can you avoid this type of mistake? Simple: work with reputatable businesses when you entrust your belongings to someone else, and make sure that you pay after a job is well done, not before.
If you’ve become a victim of a company like this, you can turn to MoveRescue – an organization funded by some of the larger moving companies that provides legal help and assistance to consumers stuck in this situation.
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Moving Scams On Twitter
January 20, 2010 by admin
Filed under Moving Tips and Advice, Moving scams
Moving scams are very prevalent on Craigslist.com and other classified ad websites. This is well known, but I have seen a growing trend with the moving scams that have me a little disturbed: Moving scams on Twitter and other social media websites.
With a free profile and the ease in which you can build a huge following on Twitter it is not surprising to see moving scams companies using the power and legitimacy of Twitter to further their “moving companies”.
Having said that, though, not all the moving companies on Twitter are moving scams. Quite the opposite.
One thing that I find with the moving scam companies is that they do tend to be internet phobic. Meaning they only flock to the internet websites that are easy to use. Harder to use websites like YouTube, Facebook, LinkedIn, Redgage etc you will be hard pressed to find moving scam companies.
So when using a moving companies that are found on Twitter make sure that you follow my advice on this website and do your research. Do this and you will avoid the moving scams on Twitter.
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Friendly, Fast And Didn’t Mind Working In The Snow
January 8, 2010 by admin
Filed under Testimonials
Very friendly, fast and didn’t mind working in the snow and cold.
I was very happy with the job they did for me. I highly recommend their services.
Harrold Ecker
7 Jan 2010