Universal Van Lines Unprofessional, Fraudulent, Pirates! ripoff Hollywood Florida

I recently moved from Pennsylvania to Arizona and hired a moving company. The moving company I hired was Universal Vanlines, based out of Hollywood, FL. I agreed in an initial contract on 17 March 06 to the sum of $1927.17 with a guarantee in writing that the estimate would remain the same even if the cubic feet exceeded the estimate. They were scheduled to pick-up my goods on 24 march 06 and did not show up until 26 march 06 due to truck problems.

Upon pick-up, they determined that I went over the cubic footage and instead of paying $965.00; I ended up paying $1500.00 for my goods. After observing the item list that they comprised while packing my goods, I noticed that they took items such as tables and a reclining chair apart and charged me for each piece. The contract I signed was for whole items, not pieces. I made it clear that I was upset and was told to take it up with the company. It was a Sunday so there was no way I could handle the situation at the moment.

I had no other choice than to sign the paperwork if I wanted my goods to be picked up. I attempted to contact the company the very next morning, and was not contacted until three days later. Since then I have not resolved the original issue and owed $1487.00 at delivery or my goods will not be delivered. I found a clause which explained that if I pay 110% of what was due at delivery, I could pay the difference thirty days later. The representative I spoke with suggested that this was my best option if I wanted my goods to get to their destination on time.

I was then told that they would possibly refund my money once the original movers had returned to home base. However, I have since been told that that 110% law only pertains if there is a mistake in my order and they have decided that this is not the case. Once again, I must bring up the original pick-up in which they were two days late and overcharged me, even though I was guaranteed I would not be. I think that constitutes a problem with the order, don't you?

Anyway, I offered to pay $569.89 to honor the 110% rule, and then pay the difference of $911.17 at a later date. This offer has been accepted in writing as of 22 Apr 06. My delivery was then confirmed for 12 April 06 when I received a call from the driver en route to my location. I did not receive my goods until 17 Apr 06, once again, I was told they were experiencing truck problems.

I had to take leave and a holiday day from the periods of 12 Apr -14 Apr 06 to cover my work hours and cancel any plans I had for Easter Sunday. I have now used up time I planned to use when Christmas leave began. I would like to know how the company plans to make up for that. When the drivers arrived at my location, I was expected to have a money order in the amount of $569.89 and a postdated personal check in the amount of $921.29.

However, the movers had to do what was called a long carry which means that for every 75 feet they carry the items I would be charged $150.00. I ended up with an additional charge of $450.00 due to this and had to make out a new check for $1270.00. I told them I was claiming 110% law on those charges, but they told me to just include it in the check and postdate it for 01 May 06. The 110% law states that if there are any problems or additional costs at delivery, you have 30 days to pay the difference. I was given no such option.

I then received confirmation from customer service that this payment would be accepted, however, we did not get a chance to discuss the 110% law involving the additional charge. So I paid them because I was tired of living off an air mattress and camping chair, only to find several problems with my goods. The entertainment center, 32 inch television, one of my cocktail tables, and a three foot angel statue was all broken in some way. I have taken pictures of all broken items should I take legal action. The glass for my main coffee table, a soap dispenser, a box full of five X-box 360 games, as well as a super Nintendo with nearly 30 games, a stereo remote, a book written and personally hand signed to me by former heavyweight champion Larry Holmes, and an anniversary present from my fiance, which was a picture from our first date in a very tasteful frame were missing. The picture frame's retail value was probably only 12-15 dollars and the picture itself, probably only a few cents, but to me such an item was priceless; something the company will never be able to make up for.

I informed the movers that I was unhappy with this delivery and they told me that I should take it up with the company, as I will have 90 days to claim any broken or missing items. I would also like to make it known that the company has no inventory sheet beyond that of the boxes and large items as a whole, so they have no collective inventory of items in each individual box. The company has reassured me that they are working the issue, however, the only refund I have received at this point was $50.00 for the movers picking up my goods two days late in Pennsylvania. I do not feel this is nearly enough as they caused me several inconveniences while waiting for their arrival.

I have been in frequent contact with Helen from customer service. She has a record of all phone calls made to the office, as well as everything discussed. She repeatedly informs me that they are waiting for the original movers to return so they can discuss the original item list in order to figure out if I was charged for extra cubic footage and why, even though the company can clearly see they did charge me for extra footage. There also has been no clarification on the company's guarantee that I will not be overcharged even if my cubic footage exceeds the original estimate. This, in any state or any country, would be found to be highly unacceptable. I am the customer and the fact that neither I, nor the customer service representative herself can get clarification on company policies is highly unsatisfactory.

To this point, I have paid this company $3339.89 and certainly have not received the sort of service that should come with such a charge. I have agreed to pay for labor fees and the long carry, but I still demand compensation for time missed from work, lateness of the drivers, and most of all, the cubic footage. It has been almost a month now and these drivers have yet to return to company headquarters. Meantime, I will have to buy furniture such as tables, a TV, and an entertainment center to replace those that are broken or missing.

This company's reckless abandon for customer service has also forced me into debt and it will take me at least two months to catch up with all my bills. And now, for all of the things that are missing or broken, they are only honoring up to 60 cents per lb.!!! (i.e. if a table weighs 30 lbs, you get $18.00) Am I the only one that thinks this is a scam?! In their defense, I do not deny that I signed the paperwork authorizing the pick-up back in Pennsylvania, however, I am claiming that I signed under duress, due to the fact that I could not dispute the matter with the company on that day because it was a weekend, and that I needed to be cleared out of that apartment and on the road to Arizona the next morning. I'm sure any lawyer in the world would salivate at the chance to take this case.

Do not under any circumstances deal with this company!!

Paul
Sierra Vista, Arizona
U.S.A.

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