Smooth Transitions Denver, LLC

The details of this matter are as follows:Complaint Involves: Contract Disputes Customer’s Statement of the Problem: *My 80 year old mother is in the process of transitioning into a senior living
community. She hired Smooth Transitions (ST) to oversee the transition,
including sorting, organizing,...

selling, and disposing of her property, and to
supervise the move itself. My mother made the move February 25-26th, but ST failed to deliver
on all contracted services as promised, resulting in a number of snafus,
including moving valuable items that were not supposed to be moved, two of which
got lost (they were recently recovered, though not through the efforts of ST)
and one which got damaged, losing some of my mother’s necessities, and our
efforts at organization were undone by lack of oversight during packing and
moving. And now they refuse to honor the contract and complete the work of
emptying the house.ST Response:  ST contracted with Mom (Client) to move her to a local senior community. Client is still quite
active, works fulltime at one of [redacted]’s major aquatic museum attractions heading
the volunteer program at that establishment, and is able to make sound
decisions. Mom was a very pleasant person to deal with. This complaint was written by the adult daughter who was not a party to
this contract (Daughter). Phase I involved floor planning and sorting with Client to
determine what to move or donate or keep for family.  It then involved packing the items to be
moved to the new apartment, having an employee coordinate with the movers to
get those items moved, and providing unpacking services at the new apartment. Smooth
Transitions is a move management company who assists people with the move
process.  In all cases, the Client has
the option of hiring movers of their choice or using the movers ST
recommends.  In this case, the Client
hired the movers.  ST cannot be liable
for companies hired by the Client. 
Coordinating the move process does not mean ST is liable for actions of
other companies.On the day of move 2/25, instructions were given to the movers by
both ST employee and by Client together. They were told to put family member’s
items on truck first, items for new apartment last and to move the leftover
furniture to the garage that was not going on truck.  Movers also took art work that was loose and
unpacked out to garage.  ST employee
stopped movers and asked Client if that was acceptable.  Client said yes because she wanted her
cleaning person to have access to house for cleaning.The move in process went smoothly. 
The client was pleased with ST services rendered, not only happy to
remit payment, but also generously tipped ST staff. Client indicated to ST
employee that much of her bedroom furniture was not being moved to her new
apartment, that she ordered new furniture, but it would not be arriving for
some time. It was made clear that there would not be enough storage at the new
apartment, no dresser, to be able to unpack all of client’s dresser items. It
was discovered at end of move day, that Client could
not locate her under garments.  A ST employee stayed an additional hour on 2/26 (after closing
invoice of Client’s) to go through the 5 dresser boxes not opened in the
bedroom.  At the time, she asked both
Client and Daughter if items in those boxes (including undergarments) were the
missing items, only to be told NO. So on Saturday, same employee offered to go
to Client’s home and look in boxes left in House/garage to see if they could be
found.  When they were not found, this
same employee offered to go back to the community to look in the 5 opened but not
unpacked boxes on Sunday and Daughter declined. 
(none of this time was charged to Client)On Monday 2/29, same employee went to the community and emptied
those 5 boxes.  The undergarments were
found in those same boxes that ST employee was told NO, that wasn’t the
supposedly missing items.  ST employee
then set up a cubbie system to help Client access her items until a new dresser
arrives. (no charge to Client for this either.)On 2/27, Daughter contacted us again telling us 2 pieces of art
were also missing.  After many calls to
our employees and the movers, we had not located the art work.  On 3/3, in a face to face meeting with the
Daughter at Client’s home, we told her we would need to go through the boxes in
the garage to be sure the art work had not been packed in with donations.  Two people did look in the garage for the art
work, but needed to set a time and date to come back and look further, as Daughter
said she had to leave.  (Client was not
charged for this time)On 3/7/16, Daughter was notified by movers that they had located
the missing art pieces.  An employee of Client’s
chosen moving company had taken the pieces without authorization from either the
Client or the ST employee lead. 
Otherwise, most of the other items claimed as missing were taken by
Daughter’s sister.In the end the move was completed, nothing was lost, and all services
that were part of the agreement had been finished (with further explanation
below.)Customer’s Statement of the Problem:*Both in person and in writing, I have detailed my complaints in
hopes they would address them, and we could move forward without further
incident. (I can provide the detailed list of complaints on request.) ST Response: ST
employees and owners have numerous emails, texts and phone messages back and
forth with Daughter trying to resolve the claimed problems.  All claimed problems were resolved.Customer’s Statement of the Problem:*ST’s response was an immediate withdrawal from the contract made
with my mother without completing the work. (I can provide a copy of the
contract and/or the notice of withdrawal upon request.) They did this with no
prior warning and having never made any attempt at resolution—they have not
offered to refund any portion of monies already paid, made no offer to comp
future services, and no offer to pay for damage to property or assist with
amelioration of its condition. They also ignored questions I asked about their
preparations for emptying the house.ST response: In the
Daughter’s list of complaints, she asked ST to be liable for everything the
movers had put in the garage.  The movers
had been asked to move furniture into the garage per the Client’s request to
clear out the house. Movers had also been asked to box up items marked in
basement for donation.
Again, movers were a company hired by Client, not ST.  When our employee realized that the movers had also put unmarked/
undesignated art work in the garage, she verified with Client that she wanted
it to stay out there.  Our employee
offered to have the movers move it back into the house.  The response from Client was that she wanted
it out there for her cleaning lady to have better access. A second ST employee
heard that same conversation.ST employees did not handle the two pieces of art that were
missing. The ST employee that helped Daughter look in garage for art prints, did
not see damage when they were found.  Previous to the art being moved to the garage,
it was stored in an unfinished utility room and unprotected.  ST did not damage anything, and if the movers
did, Client’s recourse is against the movers. 
Again, ST performed all the services it was hired to perform, up to a
certain point, as explained below.Customer’s Statement of the Problem:*Not only have there been no offers of compensation, they sent my
mother an invoice billing her for time they spent in discussion with us about
our concerns. I have never before seen a company charge for time spent emailing
or text-messaging a customer trying to work out problems. At the bottom the
invoice "credited" her for this so-called "work," but
sending a bill indicates they think they are actually entitled to payment for
this time. (Invoice provided upon request.) ST response: On 3/8, the
Daughter sent an unreasonable list of requests and complaints. She also stated
she wanted the house emptied by 3/18, which was not possible with our current
move schedule.  ST was originally told we
had until end of March to empty home.  ST
decided that further conversations with the Daughter were futile and her list
contained requests that as business owners, we could not accept.The “invoice” in question was just to account for the number of
hours we helped search for the missing undergarments and art work which totaled
15 hours.  It was shown as a credit for accounting
reasons, showed a zero balance due and we did not expect payment. In addition,
we sent back the Client’s $100 original deposit.  Otherwise, Client was billed only for work
actually performed, and there is no basis for refund or compensation.  Daughter’s complaints primarily involve
further work to be done, which ST would be entitled to bill for.Customer’s Statement of the Problem:*Although they grudgingly acknowledge some things were not carried
out as planned, they have steadfastly refused to take responsibility for any
negative consequences caused by their negligence or failure to provide services
as promised. ST response:  ST made every effort to work with the
Client’s daughter to resolve daughter’s complaints.  This is the first complaint we have had in 9
years, which shows how hard we try to make these moves easy for the Client and
family.  There are no negative consequences
that have not been remedied.Customer’s Statement of the Problem:*Thus far my mother has paid $4,300, yet they are refusing to
complete the work. (The original estimate for the work was $1,200-$1,800.)ST Response: Pursuant
to our contract, ST bills on an hourly basis, not a lump sum basis.  When we offered a range for the packing,
moving and unpack, we expressly said that it was an estimate only and actual
cost would vary based on time spent and volume to move. That is the same for
every customer, and every customer knows the more they ask us to do, the more
it will cost.  ST spent 39 hours packing,
and that included packing for Client’s move and additionally packing multiple
fragile items for Daughter and other siblings that were taken to Daughter’s
home on day of move.  Packing items for
Daughter and siblings was not estimated in original quote.ST also told Client that sorting is variable based on Client’s
ability to make quick decisions. In this case, ST spent 23.5 hours sorting with
Client.  Client had a three story home
filled with possessions.Customer’s Statement of the Problem:*Thus, they not only failed to conduct the first phases of the
work satisfactorily, they are now worsening the situation by unilaterally
backing out of the contract and abandoning the remaining work. This puts us in
an especially difficult bind, because we are legally obligated to vacate the
property on March 31st. Resolution to this matter is therefore urgent. I am
hoping you can assist us. Thank you.ST Response:  Phase I was completed satisfactorily per the
Client.  ST bills by the hour only after
work is completed.  Therefore, the Client
has only been billed for the time spent to date (or date of last invoice).  Client has not been billed by ST for any work
that remains. With Daughter’s dissatisfaction with ST in mind, ST decided it
would not be a sound decision for our business to continue to work with Client
and Daughter.Also, in our estimation clearing out the remaining furniture and
items in the house does not require a move manager (Phase 2).  In Phase 2 all that happens is the remaining
personal property is sold or donated or thrown away. There are no further
decisions to be made on what to keep. There are only a few items left in the
house to pack and a few pieces of furniture which they could call their moving
company to help remove those pieces. ST would have to hire someone to remove
those pieces also. With a few phone calls, the house could be empty and then
there would be no further cost to the Client from ST.   ST offered names of people to look at and
potentially buy some of the furniture. 
To date, Daughter has not been in contact with those people.   *I would like Smooth Transitions to honor their contract with us by a)
completing the work, with the terms of the remaining work and anticipated costs
clearly spelled out in writing; and b) refunding a portion of the money we gave
them to do work they either did incorrectly or did not do at all, resulting in
our having to do or redo it. At this point I believe a refund for half the
amount paid for their work Thursday-Friday, about $1,800, would be fair. If
they wish to back out of the contract without completing the work, then I
believe they should refund all money we have paid them except approximately
$700 for work they did earlier to our satisfaction. In this case, they would
refund us $3,600.  ST Response:  Phase 1 of the contract is complete. The Client
has moved with all the items from the house she chose to take with her.  Her new apartment is set up with all her
kitchen, living room, bedroom and bathroom items that she wanted to bring.  Her bed was made and the pictures she asked
to have hung have been hung.  The
additional items for family members have been packed and delivered to the Daughter’s
house or picked up by family members (all of which added to the cost of the
move, but were completed by ST employees). That is what has been paid for.  ST bills by the hour for work completed. Client
has not been billed for future work. To refund money for a move well done in
which the Client stated she was pleased and generously tipped our team is not
good business practice. Smooth
Transitions’ position is that it does not seem reasonable that the Client’s
daughter would suggest ST continue working for her mother. She, the Daughter,
was clearly dissatisfied and untrusting. It is also not a sound business
decision for ST to place the company in a continued potentially litigious
situation.  Daughter can complete the
remaining tasks herself very easily by simply arranging for donation or trash
pickup.ST
is prepared to engage in the Revdex.com dispute resolution processes if Daughter
continues to believe that is necessary.