Starving Students rip-off scam hires illegal aliens hires ex-cons Los Angeles California

It's clear that "afraid to say" had a bad experience with Starving Students and for that I apologize. In the interest of fairness I thought I'd bring up a few points about the moving business.

We do 1,000 moves a week at Starving Students and 97% of them do not result in a claim. We're far from perfect, but much better than average in our industry.

We do thorough criminal background checks on all of our movers. We have over 800 hard-working people carrying heavy furniture for modest wages and it's an insult to them that "afraid to say" calls them ex-cons and illegals.

There are hundreds of moving companies in CA that employ laborers they picked up on the corner that morning. We insure all of our people are fully licensed and pay lots of taxes to the state of California.

Regarding some specific gripes:

All movers in the state of California are required by law to charge "double drive time." This means that instead of charging the time from our branch to the origin of the move and for the time back to the branch from the destination, instead CA movers double the time between the origin and destination. This isn't just Starving Students, it's the state law.

Claims are settled, often at 60cents per pound because this standard valuation in moving contracts. This means that people often get less than the value of their damaged goods. Every customer has the option of buying additional valuation, but most customers choose not to. For 97% of them that decision not to spend the extra money pays off.

Sometimes moves take longer than expected. We charge by the hour so if "afraid to say's" move cost more than he expected he may well have had more stuff or lots of stairs, or a long walk from apartment to moving van, etc.

Sorry for the trouble, "afraid to say," I don't know exactly what happened on your move but I can say with confidence that the vast majority of our moves are performed without a hitch.

Bear Barnes
Director of Sales and Marketing
Starving Students

Mr. Barnes,
I ask you to prove what you say. First off, Mr. Butler told me he was here illegally and awaiting his working visa and that your company was the only moving company who would hire him since he was an illegal citizen here. So, I say, prove it to us that he's a US Citizen with the proper paperwork. Scan it and put it here on the site. Naturally, I would expect you to blank out his address, phone number, etc. but PROVE to us that he's legal. So maybe you didn't pick him up off the corner but you certainly did NOT run a background check. You say your workers are "fully licensed?" Why don't they display these licenses you claim they have? I never saw one.

As for the double drive time issue, I don't mind that it's charged, but what I mind is that they drive very, very, very, very slowly so as to make that drive time nearly tripled!! As I wrote above, in a 30 mile an hour zone, Mr. Washington drove exactly at 15 mph for 6 miles. And that's how they make more money - by driving at a snail's pace.

My move should have taken less time than I had originally expected because I wrapped many things myself - my microwave, cabinets, etc. Your movers move at a snail's pace!! There were no stairs involved in either the place I moved to nor the place I moved from, so that excuse does not apply here. If you consider 40 feet a long walk, then you need to check the distance on a measured area.

I'd like you also to prove that "97% of your moves are successful." Let's see the numbers, Mr. Barnes!

My move was a complete nightmare and I will never use your company again and I'm advising others that if they want to avoid the nightmare also, to go elsewhere.

Mr. Barnes,

You can cut the crap; the BBB report on your company says it all and we all know the BBB isn't exactly the most accurate or stringent protector of consumer interests:

We rate this company as having an unsatisfactory business performance record.

Complaints allege movers are inexperienced and untrained; failure to keep scheduled ppointments for picking up goods; delayed deliveries;
or furniture is lost or damaged during the move. Some complaints allege quoted prices are not honored or goods are held until additional
charges are paid. Most complainants also encounter difficulty obtaining settlement of claims.

The company responds to some complaints by giving refunds, offering discounts on services or reviewing claims. Some complaints are
unresolved, meaning the customers are not always satisfied with the company's response. Many other complaints remain unanswered.

On September 13, 2000, The Utilities and Transportation Commission for the state of Washington issued an Order to Show Cause and
complaint (Docket # TV-000695) charging the company with more than 600 violations of rules relating to tarriff rates, bills of lading, and safety issues. A proposed settlement agreement was reached by the parties.

The agreement recognized the company had already implemented certain management and opertaional changes which were designed to remedy future non-compliances. The company acknowledged violations
of State law and Commission Rules, and agreed to financial sanctions as well as specified performance standards and operational restrictions.

To settle a suit filed by the Los Angeles City Attorney and the Attorney General in late 1992, the company agreed to make refunds to
customers who used its services between June 1990 and November 1992. Customers were charged a $20 surcharge not authorized by the California Public Utilities Commission. On July 8, 1993, the California Public Utilities Commission approved a settlement between the Transportation Division and Starving Students. The order placed the firm on two years probation, imposed a fine of $100,000, and instituted a 30 day actual suspension.

The company is required to resolve any customer claims within 90 days. This ends a two year investigation by the CPUC, which documented complaints of damaged goods and excessive billing
charges. The investigation also led to allegations of deceptive advertising, and disclosed a number of California Highway Patrol
citations for unsafe vehicles.

Mr. Barnes, there are complaints about your company all over the internet. Your
company is blacklisted with good reason.

Thank you Kay for that revealing BBB report.

These reports continue to this day on this site and others (Yelp!). They are alarmingly consistent across the US. In addition to padding bills, driving slow, and similar unethical practices, there are numerous reports of criminal practices (assault, extortion, drug and alcohol abuse, vandalism).

I was shocked to see the company as a member in good standing with the California Moving and Storage Association. The CMSA played dumb when I asked them. They must know, but they are passing this problem on to the consumer.

The California PUC has prolific documentation about investigation in 2002. It is not clear (to me anyway) what the current status of the case is, but CMSA says Starving Students is in good standing with the PUC too.

The consistent reports span many years, cross country, and they have not changed in the slightest since the 2-year investigation ~2000-2002. Who can we trust?