Liberty Federal Savings & Loan Assn

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 6, 2016/03/15) */
Contact Name and Title: Rhonda D[redacted]
Contact Phone: [redacted]
Contact Email: [redacted]@raymoving.com
RE: Property Damage - The complainants remarks that the company, [redacted], has not been paid for the property damage repair...

is false. [redacted] was paid with check #[redacted] $465.00. Payment verified as received by "[redacted]" at [redacted].
RE: Cargo Damage - The complainant submitted her claim on January 13, 2016, 68 days after the date of delivery. Settlement was offered on March 8, 2016. The tariff in which she moved allows the customer 9 months to file a claim. The same tariff allows the carrier 120 days in which to offer settlement. Her claim was completed in 55 days, well within the allotted timeframe.
The freezer was denied as mechanical malfunction. "Mechanical malfunction" is a term used to refer to electronic items that do not work properly after being transported. Manufacturer's defects, worn parts or the age of the item can cause mechanical malfunction. In addition, in some cases, the vibration during transit will be such that an electronic item no longer functions properly. Such jostling due to the usual transit vibration is beyond the carrier's control. No exterior damage or other evidence was found to support a claim that this malfunction was a result of carrier negligence or mishandling. Mechanical malfunction is excluded from the carrier's liability as noted on the back of the contract Bill of Lading. In addition, the carrier's operating tariff, NC Utilities Commission Maximum Rate Tariff No.1, provides that the carrier has the right to inspect every item claimed as damaged before any items are repaired, replaced, or discarded. The complainant's claim was not submitted until January 13, 2016 and the receipt supplied by Appliance & Repairs show repairs were completed on November 10, 2015 before notifying the carrier of damage and/or filing her claim. For this reason and based on the tariff in regards to mechanical malfunction, liability was denied.
Finally, in regards to requesting full reimbursement for her claim; unfortunately, based on the level of valuation she selected, the carrier's liability is limited to $0.60 per pound, per article, rather than full value replacement and/or repair cost. This claim was adjusted in accordance with the released valuation level declared on her contract, Bill of Lading and although she is not entitled to the full market value of the damaged goods, she received the benefit of lower transportation charges.
In closing, settlement was offered on all items claimed with the exception of the ice maker which was denied based on the explanation above. We regret that this claim could not be resolved to the complainants satisfaction.

Ray Moving & Storage, Inc. strives to process all claims as quickly as possible.  The time frame depends upon many factors, including, but not limited to, the complexity of the claim, the time that has passed prior to receiving the claim, the availability of repair company, scheduling...

issues, the availability of damaged items for inspection, research and verification of documentation of items claimed, and valuation of items claimed.  Normally, the longer it takes to file the claim, the longer it takes to complete a claim settlement.  In this case, the claim was filed 4.5 months from delivery and settlement was sent out May 17, 2017, approximately 3.5 months after receipt.  The following e-mail dates are on record for Ms. E[redacted] contacting Mr. [redacted] (unless otherwise noted, the e-mails appear in later e-mails, so all were received):  Confirmation of claim receipt 2/20/2017 , Notification of Inspection Company 3/6/2017, Notification that Inspection Company could not reach customer by phone and offer to give customer Company's contact info 3/6/2017, Notification that inspection company was unable to contact customer and inspection company contact information provided to customer 3/7/2017, Notification that the inspection report had been received and a settlement was being formulated for review and authorization 4/10/2017, Apology offered to customer for delay due to extremely high work load and notification that settlement had been completed and awaiting authorization 5/3/2017 (not confirmed received by customer, but no delivery problem notification received).  The status of the claim has been communicated throughout the process, as acknowledged by Mr. [redacted] when he requested "updates" to the prior claim status.  Ms. E[redacted] states she has responded to each e-mail (see above) and returned each phone call except for 2 made before noon on 5/16/2017.  The settlement was sent out the next day.