Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted]. The business has since modified their position and is paying the claim in full and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me.
Regards,
[redacted]
Guardian Relocation is very sorry that the entire shipment did not all fit on the original trailer heading to California. John M[redacted], our certified sales rep estimated the shipment at 2,500#. The actual weight of the shipment was 2,720#. Guardian Relocation load up...
Mr. [redacted] items 3/22/17 and transported the items back to our warehouse in Indianapolis, IN. Our driver was scheduled to load the items out of our warehouse on 3/28/17. The shipment was going to be stored at another Atlas agent in California until Mr. [redacted] was ready for his delivery. The original driver did not have room for all of the items. He was able to load 1,900#on his trailer, before he was full. This left 820# in our warehouse. The original driver delivered his portion to the Atlas agent in California on 4/3/17. Mr. [redacted] then requested his items to be delivered out of storage on Saturday 4/22/17. The agent in California charges overtime for Saturday deliveries. We delivered everything on 4/22 except for the 820# still in Indianapolis. The 820# was delivered to Mr. [redacted] the following Saturday. Mr. [redacted] was not charged for the full weight of his shipment in storage. He was only charged for the actual weight put into storage in California. Guardian Relocation has offered to cut the overtime charges in 1/2. He was not charged for the 820# in storage in Indianapolis while we waited for a driver who had room heading to California. We are very sorry for the inconvenience this delay may have caused. Guardian Relocation still provided the service of moving the items from Indianapolis to California.
This response is in regard to Mr. [redacted]s recent complaint regarding the proposed settlement of his claim for reported damage. Mr. [redacted] moved his household goods interstate from Collierville, TN to Louisville, Kentucky. Guardian Relocation served as the booking, packing, and...
hauling agency under the authority of Atlas World Group.Guardian Relocation constantly strives to provide our customers with the best possible service in every aspect of their moving experience. Unfortunately, we do not always succeed and it sometimes becomes necessary for a claim to be filed for reported damage. Mr. [redacted]s claim had been reviewed and a settlement was proposed; however, he did dispute the denial one item. This item could not be confirmed as transit related damage by our assigned representative, exceptions at the time of delivery, nor by the photos submitted. We have offered Mr. [redacted] the option to submit his own repair estimate for the disputed item in an effort to confirm that the turntable was in fact damaged during his move. At this time, Mr. [redacted] has requested that his dispute be escalated and requests that this item be paid in full. His claim is currently being reviewed by the management team of Guardian Relocation and a response will be forwarded to Mr. [redacted] within a reasonable period of time. Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention and be assured that we will act in an expeditious fashion to respond to Mr. [redacted].
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that the response would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
To address Guardian Relocation’s response:A claim has been filed with Atlas Van Lines via their online form (8/9). It needs to be noted that this is contradictory to what we were directed to do when speaking with Guardian Relocation representatives. We were originally told to supply photos and description of damage to Guardian Relocation and that would be forwarded to Golden Van Lines. Regardless, Atlas Van Lines now has full documentation of our claim and complaint.Regarding the statement for the service premium we were charged - “There is no basis for that type of increase and we would encourage you to contact a consumer advocate council to review.” We were explicitly told this at the time of sale by the Guardian Relocation salesperson. So, I will now certainly proceed with contacting the Chairman and Board members of the AMSA to make them aware of the mis-leading business practices of Guardian Relocation.Lastly, Guardian Relocation and Golden Van Lines have again failed to acknowledge or recognize their service failures for our move. Expressly, not providing us – the customer – the required paperwork and documentation for our move:· Bill of Lading (required by law) – we were never asked to sign and we have never received.· Inventory – we have no documentation. We were not asked to review or sign at the origin (IN) and only asked to sign AFTER unloading finished in CO. Again, we were not provide with a copy.· Freight Bill – the only documentation we have for being charged is the credit card receipt. We have never received the required freight bill. The severe service and process failures and the preceding response that does not address them, now causes me to question the validity of the full amount we have been charged. We have no record or documentation of our move, with the exception of the Estimate and credit card receipt. We have no supporting documentation - that was required to be provided - on our inventory, inventory weight, or a bill that identifies each service provided and a charge for each.As such, we will continue to pursue and escalate our claim and complaints with the appropriate agencies.
Regards,
[redacted]
In response to the formal complaint submitted I would like to begin by saying that we here at Guardian constantly strive to provide our customers with the best possible service. However, issues do arise and can be very upsetting to everyone involved. We apologize for any inconvenience this may...
have caused. In reading through the complaint hopefully we can shed some light on some of the issues that took place. Please note or take into consideration that the proposals that are provided are ESTIMATED costs for the relocation project. There are a lot of variables that come into play just like any other industry that provides proposals based on estimated costs. The Order For Services that is signed by our customers clearly states these are estimated charges and final billing could exceed the estimated costs or even decrease in cost depending on the final weights and packing services provided. Our driver that handled this relocation is a plus 30yr veteran to the moving & storage industry and has executed thousands of relocations during his tenure. He is given the opportunity to choose his labor to help assist as well as the volume of labor he needs to execute the relocation process. I do understand the process took longer than anticipated but not to the Drivers doing. In looking into the proposal it looks like there where some additional packing that was required to items and thus required more time to properly complete this task. In looking into the swing set claim please note this is handled by an outside company that is contracted by almost every major Moving & Storage company locally in St. Louis as well as nationwide. They handle the disassembly and reassembly of the swing set as well as other intricate items that require specialized services. Unfortunately they did not breakdown the swing set far enough for our driver to safely fit the unit into the moving trailer. It then required to be broken down further to successfully fit into the trailer. As mentioned above Guardian relies on them to complete the disassembly as we do not perform this service. This was an oversight on the 3rd party company and while Guardian does contract to them to perform a service thus representing us we do apologize for the service they provided and have since expressed our disappointment with them in this particular situation. Additional charges - We understand that requesting additional money for services provided is awkward and not the most flattering situation to address. In looking into the paperwork it looks like the weight of the shipment was close to 1,500lbs more than what was estimated. We are not sure where the customer came up with 400lbs additionally and the fact she spoke to a Chris here at the office for which we have no one employed here by the name of Chris. Please note that 1,500lbs is not hard to accumulate and can easily sway estimated charges. Also, please take into consideration as mentioned above that the Order For Service that is signed by the customer states that charges can increase or decrease in the customers favor in fact depending on the actual weight and services performed. Overall there were additional packing that was required and additional weight being shipped that caused the $3,000 increase in cost. The Order For Service that again is signed by the customer also states that if there is a discrepancy in pricing that at the time of unloading the customer is only required to pay up to 10% of the additional cost and the remaining balance will be reconciled at another date which is what was offered to the customer and they elected to go that route. In closing we here at Guardian would like to apologize for the experience our customer has claimed. Regards, Guardian Relocation
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that the response would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I have responded to the letter received from Atlas Van Lines on 8/28, which they copied to the Revdex.com, and below is my email response and the attachments are the same attachments in my response. Through this complaint process, I am further discovering that Atlas Van Lines and its agents - Guardian Relocation and Golden Van Lines - have not only admitted to their service failures, but they have also highlighted the instances where they have not complied with federal regulations. I have continued to supply the appropriate agencies (FMCSA, AMSA, Colorado PUC, Indiana Motor Carrier Services) information and details on their noncompliance and deceitful business practices. My email response on 8/30:Marilyn,
We received your letter on 8/28 and your passive-aggressive
attempt to placate us did not go unnoticed and your obvious dismissal of the
accurate details we have painstakingly outlined is insulting. It is
apparent that Atlas Van Lines, Guardian Relocation and Golden Van Lines are
going to avoid acknowledging their failure to perform as required, however I
will not allow you to brush us off as your other representatives have. It
is my right as a consumer to respond and bring attention to the many
deficiencies in your business practices and responses.
Let me be very clear, again, that the letter packet you sent
(attached) with the inventory sheets and elusive Bill of Lading are the FIRST
and ONLY copies we have EVER received. Now having the
required documentation in hand and the ability to properly review it for the
first time, we are able to better clarify the events as they transpired during
our move.
Regarding
the Bill of Lading – your statement that we signed it at loading is not
true. It was this document, not the inventory sheets as I had
originally thought, that the driver in Colorado presented to us for the VERY
FIRST TIME at the END OF UNLOADING. Additionally, it was
this document that the driver in Colorado made the statement ‘they should
have had you sign this in Indiana’ and further instructed my husband to
sign it and back date it. I suggest you ask the driver in Indiana about
the Bill of Lading as well as the driver in Colorado and his comments
regarding it. If they tell you otherwise, Atlas has done a good job
in training its employees to be deceitful. According to the
‘Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move’ published by the FMSCA
(attached):
“Your
mover is required by law to prepare a bill of lading for your shipment. The
bill
of lading is the contract between you and
the mover for the transportation of your
shipment.
The information on a bill of lading is required to be the same information
shown
on the order for service. The
driver who loads your shipment must give you
a copy of the bill of lading before or
at the time of loading your shipment. The bill of
lading is an important document: do not
lose or misplace your copy.
Have it available
until
your shipment is delivered, all charges are paid, and all claims, if any, are
settled.”
Once again, we were NEVER asked to sign ANY paperwork,
documents, forms etc. ON LOADING DAY nor were we provided with ANY documentation
or copies of ANYTHING. Based on the requirements above, does this
mean that Guardian Relocation and its representatives broke the law? Why
is it that Colorado driver STILL DID NOT GIVE US A COPY of the Bill of
Lading? And why is it that the Bill of Lading you sent me has no
Guardian, Golden Van Lines or Atlas signatures on it? Does a two-party
contract not need both signatures? If it does not have both
signatures, is the contract still valid, and subsequently are the charges to
our credit card even authorized? In hind-sight, we should not have signed
the document as demanded by the Colorado driver. But imagine the
circumstances at this point (as I have previously outlined) - my husband and I
just witnessed our possessions being unloaded into our brand-new home with no
regard; then we were left standing among a crew of visibly disgruntled workers
who had been repeatedly yelled at by the driver; a driver whose only
communication to us was to complain about his crew then abandon his job - only to
return at the conclusion of the unload and proceed to hurry us through a mess
of paperwork and rush away leaving us with copies of NOTHING. The
document was signed under duress.
Regarding
the Inventory – I question why you chose to send this. I have not
disputed the fact that we signed it after the packing team was done on
6/22. However, the document you sent is incomplete and missing
signatures At Destination and it has no record of anything being checked
off or accounted for per your comment ‘Your shipment was handled several
times during the transfer/relocation …’. In comparison, I have
a stack of documentation from when we moved with Guardian Relocation in
April 2016 to Indiana, and the inventory sheets specifically have quantity
marks hand-written next to each item, plus a Customer Check Off Sheet that
was given to me to use to check-off at the delivery. It seems that
at no point did Atlas or its agents validate our inventory during loading,
unloading or the several times it was handled, and this has now been
substantiated by the fact that you sent us incomplete inventory
sheets. Did anyone ever check our inventory at any point during our
move? Why were we not provided with an opportunity or even asked to
check off inventory during the unload? Was it because the person who
was responsible for providing the paperwork (the driver) abandoned the
job? Was it because the driver knew he had left 4 boxes behind and
didn’t want us to know? Did we receive proper service during our April
2016 move because it was a corporate move and Atlas and its agents hold
National Accounts at a higher regard than private moves? Again, it
was not until everything was unloaded that the driver pulled out inventory
sheets that were haphazardly taped together, and again DID NOT PROVIDE US
WITH COPIES. My point on the inventory sheets is another
demonstration of deceit.
Regarding
the 4 missing boxes, I now have conflicting information on this. You
state they got ‘separated from your other items’, yet I have an email from
Ginger M[redacted] from Guardian Relocation on 6/28 (attached) stating the
driver could not get the boxes on his trailer. Which is
correct? Why the deception on what actually happened? Another
demonstration of deceit.
Regarding
the Freight Bill – I am still waiting to receive a copy of this that
reflects the actual amount we were charged and not a sentence in a
letter. According to the ‘Your Rights and Responsibilities When You
Move’ published by the FMCSA:
“At the time of payment of transportation
charges, your mover must give you a freight
bill identifying the service provided and
the charge for each service. It is customary
for most movers to use a copy of the bill
of lading as a freight bill.
Except in those instances where a shipment
is moving on a binding estimate, the
freight bill must specifically identify
each service performed, the rate or charge per
service performed, and the total charges
for each service. If this information is not on
the
freight bill, do not accept or pay the freight bill.”
Because I still have not received this, should I question
the validity or authorize what we were charged? Your response to this was
to send us another copy of the Estimate and Order of Service. We have
never questioned these documents and I question why would you send us documents
that do not reflect what we were actually charged? What if I were to be
audited and needed to have supporting documentation for what I had paid?
What if you were audited and needed substantiating documentation, do you have
this information? How did Atlas determine what to charge – was it by
weight and where was it weighed and where are the weight receipts? Was it
by the size of truck/trailer and which truck/trailer was it since our belongings
were ‘handled several times during the transfer/relocation’? Is the
reason you did not provide this because you don’t have it? Until I
receive supporting documentation on what we were charged, I will report this to
the proper authorities and update the appropriate compliance agencies with this
information.
We acknowledge we have been reimbursed only for the damage
to our belongings (attached) and at this point, our complaint has escalated to
bringing attention to the deceptive business practices of Atlas and its agents
with the proper agencies and authorities. You have made excuses and
continue to condone the service we received because of the ‘busy season’.
However, you have rightfully admitted that your service is subpar with the
statement ‘unfortunate situations happen and we are not always successful in
every relocation’ – but I cannot grasp why you, as a company, think this is
ok. Perhaps it would be beneficial to add that language to your
estimates, contracts and marketing collateral. It only seems fair that
your customers know what to expect and not expect for their move with Atlas and
it would certainly have forced us to select a different mover.
Unfortunately, we put our trust and confidence in using Guardian Relocation
again because of how they handled our corporate move a year ago.
As for next steps, I am requesting to not hear from you
again Marilyn. Your research and review of our complaint is superficial,
inaccurate and one-sided. Should there be any other Atlas representative
that would like to speak further and accurately about our move and what should
have been done, I would be happy to have that conversation. Otherwise, I
will take my next steps with the proper compliance agencies and authorities to
further investigate the events of our move.
Regards,
[redacted] & [redacted]
Cc: Scott M[redacted] President, CEO AMSA
John M[redacted], Chairman AMSA
Donnelly E[redacted] Indiana Movers Association
Colorado Public Utilities Complaints Division
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
Indiana Motor Carrier Services, USDOT and UCR Services
Regards,
[redacted]
Please see attachment our letter to the US Department of Transportation.
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted]. The business has since modified their position and is paying the claim in full and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me.
Regards,
[redacted]
Guardian Relocation is very sorry that the entire shipment did not all fit on the original trailer heading to California. John M[redacted], our certified sales rep estimated the shipment at 2,500#. The actual weight of the shipment was 2,720#. Guardian Relocation load up...
Mr. [redacted] items 3/22/17 and transported the items back to our warehouse in Indianapolis, IN. Our driver was scheduled to load the items out of our warehouse on 3/28/17. The shipment was going to be stored at another Atlas agent in California until Mr. [redacted] was ready for his delivery. The original driver did not have room for all of the items. He was able to load 1,900#on his trailer, before he was full. This left 820# in our warehouse. The original driver delivered his portion to the Atlas agent in California on 4/3/17. Mr. [redacted] then requested his items to be delivered out of storage on Saturday 4/22/17. The agent in California charges overtime for Saturday deliveries. We delivered everything on 4/22 except for the 820# still in Indianapolis. The 820# was delivered to Mr. [redacted] the following Saturday. Mr. [redacted] was not charged for the full weight of his shipment in storage. He was only charged for the actual weight put into storage in California. Guardian Relocation has offered to cut the overtime charges in 1/2. He was not charged for the 820# in storage in Indianapolis while we waited for a driver who had room heading to California. We are very sorry for the inconvenience this delay may have caused. Guardian Relocation still provided the service of moving the items from Indianapolis to California.
This response is in regard to Mr. [redacted]s recent complaint regarding the proposed settlement of his claim for reported damage. Mr. [redacted] moved his household goods interstate from Collierville, TN to Louisville, Kentucky. Guardian Relocation served as the booking, packing, and...
hauling agency under the authority of Atlas World Group.Guardian Relocation constantly strives to provide our customers with the best possible service in every aspect of their moving experience. Unfortunately, we do not always succeed and it sometimes becomes necessary for a claim to be filed for reported damage. Mr. [redacted]s claim had been reviewed and a settlement was proposed; however, he did dispute the denial one item. This item could not be confirmed as transit related damage by our assigned representative, exceptions at the time of delivery, nor by the photos submitted. We have offered Mr. [redacted] the option to submit his own repair estimate for the disputed item in an effort to confirm that the turntable was in fact damaged during his move. At this time, Mr. [redacted] has requested that his dispute be escalated and requests that this item be paid in full. His claim is currently being reviewed by the management team of Guardian Relocation and a response will be forwarded to Mr. [redacted] within a reasonable period of time. Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention and be assured that we will act in an expeditious fashion to respond to Mr. [redacted].
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that the response would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
To address Guardian Relocation’s response:A claim has been filed with Atlas Van Lines via their online form (8/9). It needs to be noted that this is contradictory to what we were directed to do when speaking with Guardian Relocation representatives. We were originally told to supply photos and description of damage to Guardian Relocation and that would be forwarded to Golden Van Lines. Regardless, Atlas Van Lines now has full documentation of our claim and complaint.Regarding the statement for the service premium we were charged - “There is no basis for that type of increase and we would encourage you to contact a consumer advocate council to review.” We were explicitly told this at the time of sale by the Guardian Relocation salesperson. So, I will now certainly proceed with contacting the Chairman and Board members of the AMSA to make them aware of the mis-leading business practices of Guardian Relocation.Lastly, Guardian Relocation and Golden Van Lines have again failed to acknowledge or recognize their service failures for our move. Expressly, not providing us – the customer – the required paperwork and documentation for our move:· Bill of Lading (required by law) – we were never asked to sign and we have never received.· Inventory – we have no documentation. We were not asked to review or sign at the origin (IN) and only asked to sign AFTER unloading finished in CO. Again, we were not provide with a copy.· Freight Bill – the only documentation we have for being charged is the credit card receipt. We have never received the required freight bill. The severe service and process failures and the preceding response that does not address them, now causes me to question the validity of the full amount we have been charged. We have no record or documentation of our move, with the exception of the Estimate and credit card receipt. We have no supporting documentation - that was required to be provided - on our inventory, inventory weight, or a bill that identifies each service provided and a charge for each.As such, we will continue to pursue and escalate our claim and complaints with the appropriate agencies.
Regards,
[redacted]
In response to the formal complaint submitted I would like to begin by saying that we here at Guardian constantly strive to provide our customers with the best possible service. However, issues do arise and can be very upsetting to everyone involved. We apologize for any inconvenience this may...
have caused. In reading through the complaint hopefully we can shed some light on some of the issues that took place. Please note or take into consideration that the proposals that are provided are ESTIMATED costs for the relocation project. There are a lot of variables that come into play just like any other industry that provides proposals based on estimated costs. The Order For Services that is signed by our customers clearly states these are estimated charges and final billing could exceed the estimated costs or even decrease in cost depending on the final weights and packing services provided. Our driver that handled this relocation is a plus 30yr veteran to the moving & storage industry and has executed thousands of relocations during his tenure. He is given the opportunity to choose his labor to help assist as well as the volume of labor he needs to execute the relocation process. I do understand the process took longer than anticipated but not to the Drivers doing. In looking into the proposal it looks like there where some additional packing that was required to items and thus required more time to properly complete this task. In looking into the swing set claim please note this is handled by an outside company that is contracted by almost every major Moving & Storage company locally in St. Louis as well as nationwide. They handle the disassembly and reassembly of the swing set as well as other intricate items that require specialized services. Unfortunately they did not breakdown the swing set far enough for our driver to safely fit the unit into the moving trailer. It then required to be broken down further to successfully fit into the trailer. As mentioned above Guardian relies on them to complete the disassembly as we do not perform this service. This was an oversight on the 3rd party company and while Guardian does contract to them to perform a service thus representing us we do apologize for the service they provided and have since expressed our disappointment with them in this particular situation. Additional charges - We understand that requesting additional money for services provided is awkward and not the most flattering situation to address. In looking into the paperwork it looks like the weight of the shipment was close to 1,500lbs more than what was estimated. We are not sure where the customer came up with 400lbs additionally and the fact she spoke to a Chris here at the office for which we have no one employed here by the name of Chris. Please note that 1,500lbs is not hard to accumulate and can easily sway estimated charges. Also, please take into consideration as mentioned above that the Order For Service that is signed by the customer states that charges can increase or decrease in the customers favor in fact depending on the actual weight and services performed. Overall there were additional packing that was required and additional weight being shipped that caused the $3,000 increase in cost. The Order For Service that again is signed by the customer also states that if there is a discrepancy in pricing that at the time of unloading the customer is only required to pay up to 10% of the additional cost and the remaining balance will be reconciled at another date which is what was offered to the customer and they elected to go that route. In closing we here at Guardian would like to apologize for the experience our customer has claimed. Regards, Guardian Relocation
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that the response would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I have responded to the letter received from Atlas Van Lines on 8/28, which they copied to the Revdex.com, and below is my email response and the attachments are the same attachments in my response. Through this complaint process, I am further discovering that Atlas Van Lines and its agents - Guardian Relocation and Golden Van Lines - have not only admitted to their service failures, but they have also highlighted the instances where they have not complied with federal regulations. I have continued to supply the appropriate agencies (FMCSA, AMSA, Colorado PUC, Indiana Motor Carrier Services) information and details on their noncompliance and deceitful business practices. My email response on 8/30:Marilyn,
We received your letter on 8/28 and your passive-aggressive
attempt to placate us did not go unnoticed and your obvious dismissal of the
accurate details we have painstakingly outlined is insulting. It is
apparent that Atlas Van Lines, Guardian Relocation and Golden Van Lines are
going to avoid acknowledging their failure to perform as required, however I
will not allow you to brush us off as your other representatives have. It
is my right as a consumer to respond and bring attention to the many
deficiencies in your business practices and responses.
Let me be very clear, again, that the letter packet you sent
(attached) with the inventory sheets and elusive Bill of Lading are the FIRST
and ONLY copies we have EVER received. Now having the
required documentation in hand and the ability to properly review it for the
first time, we are able to better clarify the events as they transpired during
our move.
Regarding
the Bill of Lading – your statement that we signed it at loading is not
true. It was this document, not the inventory sheets as I had
originally thought, that the driver in Colorado presented to us for the VERY
FIRST TIME at the END OF UNLOADING. Additionally, it was
this document that the driver in Colorado made the statement ‘they should
have had you sign this in Indiana’ and further instructed my husband to
sign it and back date it. I suggest you ask the driver in Indiana about
the Bill of Lading as well as the driver in Colorado and his comments
regarding it. If they tell you otherwise, Atlas has done a good job
in training its employees to be deceitful. According to the
‘Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move’ published by the FMSCA
(attached):
“Your
mover is required by law to prepare a bill of lading for your shipment. The
bill
of lading is the contract between you and
the mover for the transportation of your
shipment.
The information on a bill of lading is required to be the same information
shown
on the order for service. The
driver who loads your shipment must give you
a copy of the bill of lading before or
at the time of loading your shipment. The bill of
lading is an important document: do not
lose or misplace your copy.
Have it available
until
your shipment is delivered, all charges are paid, and all claims, if any, are
settled.”
Once again, we were NEVER asked to sign ANY paperwork,
documents, forms etc. ON LOADING DAY nor were we provided with ANY documentation
or copies of ANYTHING. Based on the requirements above, does this
mean that Guardian Relocation and its representatives broke the law? Why
is it that Colorado driver STILL DID NOT GIVE US A COPY of the Bill of
Lading? And why is it that the Bill of Lading you sent me has no
Guardian, Golden Van Lines or Atlas signatures on it? Does a two-party
contract not need both signatures? If it does not have both
signatures, is the contract still valid, and subsequently are the charges to
our credit card even authorized? In hind-sight, we should not have signed
the document as demanded by the Colorado driver. But imagine the
circumstances at this point (as I have previously outlined) - my husband and I
just witnessed our possessions being unloaded into our brand-new home with no
regard; then we were left standing among a crew of visibly disgruntled workers
who had been repeatedly yelled at by the driver; a driver whose only
communication to us was to complain about his crew then abandon his job - only to
return at the conclusion of the unload and proceed to hurry us through a mess
of paperwork and rush away leaving us with copies of NOTHING. The
document was signed under duress.
Regarding
the Inventory – I question why you chose to send this. I have not
disputed the fact that we signed it after the packing team was done on
6/22. However, the document you sent is incomplete and missing
signatures At Destination and it has no record of anything being checked
off or accounted for per your comment ‘Your shipment was handled several
times during the transfer/relocation …’. In comparison, I have
a stack of documentation from when we moved with Guardian Relocation in
April 2016 to Indiana, and the inventory sheets specifically have quantity
marks hand-written next to each item, plus a Customer Check Off Sheet that
was given to me to use to check-off at the delivery. It seems that
at no point did Atlas or its agents validate our inventory during loading,
unloading or the several times it was handled, and this has now been
substantiated by the fact that you sent us incomplete inventory
sheets. Did anyone ever check our inventory at any point during our
move? Why were we not provided with an opportunity or even asked to
check off inventory during the unload? Was it because the person who
was responsible for providing the paperwork (the driver) abandoned the
job? Was it because the driver knew he had left 4 boxes behind and
didn’t want us to know? Did we receive proper service during our April
2016 move because it was a corporate move and Atlas and its agents hold
National Accounts at a higher regard than private moves? Again, it
was not until everything was unloaded that the driver pulled out inventory
sheets that were haphazardly taped together, and again DID NOT PROVIDE US
WITH COPIES. My point on the inventory sheets is another
demonstration of deceit.
Regarding
the 4 missing boxes, I now have conflicting information on this. You
state they got ‘separated from your other items’, yet I have an email from
Ginger M[redacted] from Guardian Relocation on 6/28 (attached) stating the
driver could not get the boxes on his trailer. Which is
correct? Why the deception on what actually happened? Another
demonstration of deceit.
Regarding
the Freight Bill – I am still waiting to receive a copy of this that
reflects the actual amount we were charged and not a sentence in a
letter. According to the ‘Your Rights and Responsibilities When You
Move’ published by the FMCSA:
“At the time of payment of transportation
charges, your mover must give you a freight
bill identifying the service provided and
the charge for each service. It is customary
for most movers to use a copy of the bill
of lading as a freight bill.
Except in those instances where a shipment
is moving on a binding estimate, the
freight bill must specifically identify
each service performed, the rate or charge per
service performed, and the total charges
for each service. If this information is not on
the
freight bill, do not accept or pay the freight bill.”
Because I still have not received this, should I question
the validity or authorize what we were charged? Your response to this was
to send us another copy of the Estimate and Order of Service. We have
never questioned these documents and I question why would you send us documents
that do not reflect what we were actually charged? What if I were to be
audited and needed to have supporting documentation for what I had paid?
What if you were audited and needed substantiating documentation, do you have
this information? How did Atlas determine what to charge – was it by
weight and where was it weighed and where are the weight receipts? Was it
by the size of truck/trailer and which truck/trailer was it since our belongings
were ‘handled several times during the transfer/relocation’? Is the
reason you did not provide this because you don’t have it? Until I
receive supporting documentation on what we were charged, I will report this to
the proper authorities and update the appropriate compliance agencies with this
information.
We acknowledge we have been reimbursed only for the damage
to our belongings (attached) and at this point, our complaint has escalated to
bringing attention to the deceptive business practices of Atlas and its agents
with the proper agencies and authorities. You have made excuses and
continue to condone the service we received because of the ‘busy season’.
However, you have rightfully admitted that your service is subpar with the
statement ‘unfortunate situations happen and we are not always successful in
every relocation’ – but I cannot grasp why you, as a company, think this is
ok. Perhaps it would be beneficial to add that language to your
estimates, contracts and marketing collateral. It only seems fair that
your customers know what to expect and not expect for their move with Atlas and
it would certainly have forced us to select a different mover.
Unfortunately, we put our trust and confidence in using Guardian Relocation
again because of how they handled our corporate move a year ago.
As for next steps, I am requesting to not hear from you
again Marilyn. Your research and review of our complaint is superficial,
inaccurate and one-sided. Should there be any other Atlas representative
that would like to speak further and accurately about our move and what should
have been done, I would be happy to have that conversation. Otherwise, I
will take my next steps with the proper compliance agencies and authorities to
further investigate the events of our move.
Regards,
[redacted] & [redacted]
Cc: Scott M[redacted] President, CEO AMSA
John M[redacted], Chairman AMSA
Donnelly E[redacted] Indiana Movers Association
Colorado Public Utilities Complaints Division
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
Indiana Motor Carrier Services, USDOT and UCR Services
Regards,
[redacted]