Moving Company Scams: A PCS Nightmare

An anonymous Sailor reached out to us after being scammed by a moving company. She requested to remain unnamed, for fear of reprisal by the company she is still in dispute with but wanted others to be aware of her story.The Sailor was moving bases, with her toddler son, from West to East Coast. However, this quickly turned into a nightmare scenario.The company she chose had decent reviews and gave a reasonable initial quote. Although, when the furniture was loaded on the truck the price changed. In fact, they tripled the price. The stunned Sailor asked for an explanation, and they stated several seemingly made-up excuses. Furthermore, each explanation ended with a promise for delayed service and more charges if she did not comply.Also, claiming the manager threated to keep her belongings in storage until she paid an even high price, and not even complete the move.The Sailor said she felt strong armed into excepting the new price. Particularly, because she was on a time crunch, and the moving company seemingly exploited this. Her move window was outside what the government movers were available for. So, she had to hire a company for a self-move.

Moving in the military

Upon arrival, her belongings were in a new truck, being delivered by a new company. Can you guess what happened next? Probably so. The new company started implementing new charges.Now she was furious and got into a spirited phone conversation with the manager. She informed the manager that he was being recorded, but that did not help his tact. You can hear him insult her, belittle her, and threaten to leave her belongings on the streets. Eventually, one of the movers offered to move her belongings inside for some "money under the table."Tired and frustrated, the service member paid the concession and received her belongings. Can you guess what happened next? Probably so. Many of her belongings were broken or missing.

Unfortunately, this situation is all too common.

The service member said many at her command had similar experiences. Moreover, many of those came from California. Also noting, further inspection of reviews raised serious doubts to their legitimacy. At first glance, the companies she hired had good reviews, but there were many negative reviews with similar stories. Many of the positive reviews even appeared "fake" or suspicious. They were from profiles that only had one review or were nonsensical. The Sailor cautioned others before entrusting all their belongings to a moving company.Has this happened to you? Sound off in the comments below and stay tuned to American Grit for more news, stories, and updates.