Allied Van Lines

A.  I paid over $14,000 for a move from Los Angeles to DC with full EDP insurance with 0 deductible, including door to door car delivery.

B.  I was yelled at, bullied and threatened by the driver in LA. He left a mess in my house and departed without my knowing, without a walk through as he had promised. I did not receive an inventory or any documents. He remained incommunicado with my Allied Move Coordinator for 5 days.

C. Because I was afraid of being alone with the driver, Mr. Waldron. I wrote the President of Allied Van Lines. The Assistant to the President of Allied Servo, Cheryl Gondell, sent a supervisor for the delivery. Ultimately, the driver, Mr. Waldron, did not enter my home. He sent 3 men to deliver and assemble. They were not done in 8 hours, and left items incorrectly assembled. I signed the Customer Checkoff List leaving 20 items unchecked and wrote I was unable to confirm the presence of many numbered boxes. Boxes were stacked high, many rows deep, with green sticker often on the side I could not see. I may also have been looking at numbers of orange stickers, not understanding the difference. Plus some items were left in my storage compartment downstairs. I could not keep up.

D. I ultimately found I was missing two very large boxes. I filed my claim assuming insurance would cover the loss of the contents of the 2 boxes. I had contents itemized in my moving notebook. My claim was denied because the driver, Mr.Waldron, submitted the Customer Checkoff List and wrote “Customer refused to sign”. He checked off every item as having been delivered. He falsified the document he submitted. I have my original signed form. This original version shows I left 20 items unchecked and wrote a comment as stated above. :

E. I explained this and was told that since I had packed items myself, the maximum amount I could receive was $600. My loss is significantly above $2,000

:Upon closer review of my documents, I now see I was charged for Mover packing 8 dish packs and 1 wardrobe box: $488.72. I also see Mr. Siegal also charged me for moving many items that were not moved.

:These services and products were Never received nor requested.

:But if Allied had packed these boxes, according to Allied, I should be entitled to receive full replacement value for missing items.

:If Allied did not pack, I should not have been charged $488 for packing services and for boxes. They can’t have it both ways.

F. I paid for door to door car delivery. I did not receive that service. I had to drive my rental car to Virginia to retrieve my car.

G. I have written documentation of all of the above statements, emails from my Moving Coordinator, Ms. Gomez, emails from Cheryl Gondell, Assistant to the President of Alied/Sirvo, copies of original and fraudulent documents from the driver, Mr. Waldron, boxes with orange and green stickers still affixed to them after all this time.

H: This is why I am warning people off of Allied. They hire potentially dangerous drivers who lie, bully, and falsify documents. They charge for services not received. I recommend you go with the more costly smaller moving companies. In the end, it will it will pay off as you will not have lost items and will have full coverage for breaks and losses. This was the case with a friend who recently moved 2,000 miles.

Move size: 3 Bedroom Home Service cost: $1438

In April of 2023, Allied Van Lines picked up my belongings from our 4 bedroom house in South Carolina, stored them for 7 months, and delivered them to our house in Santa Fe, NM on November 23, 2023. Prior to the move, I told the mover that my belongings included a large number of old and rare books- most of which were expensive and difficult to replace- that needed careful handling. I also bought insurance (extra care protection) for the books with a valuation of $150,000.00, documented in my contract. There were more than 400 cardboard boxes in the move, and the cost of moving and storage was $61,847.

It took weeks to open all the boxes, but when I did, I discovered that 110 of the books were missing, and an additional 21 books were severely damaged. Many pieces of furniture were badly damaged, and many of the boxes had been crushed by the movers.

Allied conducted a trace/search for the missing items, but could not find them. They had lost my items.

Using an inventory of the books that I had made prior to the move, and consulting websites such as Amazon and AbeBooks, I calculated what it would cost to replace the books, which came to $44,289, well under the $150,000 coverage that I had purchased from Allied.

I submitted a claim to Allied, but they refused to honor the insurance (extra care protection) that I had purchased from them. Instead of using any reasonable valuation of the books, they calculated their reimbursement as if the boxes contained ordinary household items rather than rare books, and calculated their reimbursment at the rate of $125/box. And they based their reimbursement of the damaged books as if their age prior to the damage made them less valuable - but in fact the opposite is true, old and rare books are more valuable. Their total offer for the missing and damaged books was $5,576, less than 13% of what it would cost to replace the books.

I filed an appeal with Allied, but they refused to rethink their offer.

In other words: I informed Allied that the moved items included a large number of rare, valuable and expensive books; they assured me they would treat them carefully; I bought insurance (extra value protection) form Allied, and told them (in writing) that the valuation of the books was $150,000; they lost 110 of the books and badly damaged 21 books; Allied refused to honor the insurance I bought from them and calculated their reimbursement as if the boxes contained ordinary household objects rather than expensive books, and calculated their reimbursement for the damaged books as if old books were of little value - despite a careful analysis of the replacement costs of the books. Allied refused to change their calculations after appeal.

Allied lost and damaged my rare books, ignored their responsibility to honor their insurance (extra care protection) that included $150,000 coverage, and gave me less than 13% of the true replacement value of the books. They badly damaged much of my furniture as well, and many of the boxes were crushed. Allied did not take care of my belongings as promised, despite knowing that they were valuable, and refused to honor their insurance responsibilities - acts that could be described as deceptive and dishonest. STAY AWAY FROM ALLIED!!

Move size: 4 Bedroom Home Service cost: $61847

We had contact Allied Van movers for a move from Massachusetts to Arizona. We were contacted by marathon movers and Raythemover.net. The mover stated they worked for Allied. We were speaking with Mike, and who stated he was the move consultant. We explained that we had our furniture in storage and we didn’t have an exact weight they estimated around 6000 pounds when it went in storage, the consultant came back with 11,500 pounds. We told him that we were not comfortable signing an estimate contract with that amount due to it was closer to 6000 pounds,per the consultant he stated do not worry about what is listed on the contract. He stated when the furniture was removed from storage that it would be weighed at that point, and we would be issued a refund for any over payment and a new estimate of service and charges would be given. He assured us that we would not have to be liable for anything over the weight it was a price guaranteed. He stated they were doing this because they needed an exact weight for the shipment and as it was in storage, we were unable to give them an exact wait. Though we gave them the estimated weight of what we were given when it was put into storage.He said, don’t worry, this is a guesstimate. It will all be refunded if it’s over.

They charged us $11,977.01. On August 11 they charged our credit card in full but did not pick up the load until August 14. We were never given an updated weight or an updated estimate of services and charges. On August 28 when the shipment finally arrived in Arizona we were told that the actual weight of the shipment was 4640 pounds they over estimated by 6860 pounds.

On that date all we were told is that we would be getting a refund which would be issued through Allied. Finally on September 5. We received an email from Allied’s move coordinator who stated that we would be getting a refund of $1715. That rate was based on their refund of $.25 per pound. We explained that we were charged $1.04 a pound when they initially took the order.

We were then told that that was our problem because we signed for it.even though we explained the move consultant, Mike assured us that it would be weighed and we would be notified prior to shipping,

I have filed a grievance with the department of transportation for price gouging. I do not see how anyone can think by overcharging by 6860 pounds @ $1 .04 is reasonable. This is more than we are disgruntled over having to pay for an additional 100 or 200 pounds, at this point they are not concerned at all. They never even bothered to apologize for the extreme difference of what the shipment weighed and what they charged.

Move size: Partial Move Service cost: $12000

The movers were inexperienced, the damages we had to our furniture were in the words of Allied's delivery team, "The worst they have ever seen." The furniture claims inspector Allied sent who has worked in furniture claims for 30 years "had never seen furniture damaged or packed this poorly."

We took pictures, we have damages that are clear and are not on the bill of lading, and Allied is offering us cents on the dollar. Here is $7000 for your $60,000 in damages. True they have the right to repair, but not items that are not repairable. We have moved with Graebel and we will never use Allied Van Lines again.

Customer service for the claim has been beyond awful.

Service cost: $18000

Just had the worst moving experience ever. After 25 years of working with the Army, multiple international and local moves with no more than broken light bulbs, I unfortunately went with Allied/Coleman moving. The most inept bunch of movers I've ever seen. I packed myself, they only had to wrap my furniture and load. That took them 12 HOURS!!
THEN they came 3 days later than they promised. Then, unloading with a smashed TV, broken 150 year old Chinese book case. Plus, two smashed oriental lamps, and a broken lamp my daughter got me when she was 8. The only things broken, so far, was what they wrapped. One guy on the crew was Impossible. . Did everything the hardest way possible. Stay away from this company.

Service cost: $5464

This was a move that was from 1 side of Florida to the other. From a house to condo; condo on 3rd floor of building and accessible via elevator and/or staircase.
4 bookcases were invoived in this move. 2 bookcases stand about 6 feet tall 2 1/2' feet wide. These bookcases were delivered with no problems.
The other 2 bookcases are museum style bookcase; they do not come apart (shelves were removeable); doors have glass fronts and are removeable as well. they stand 7 feet tall and 4 feet wide. The ceilings of the condo are 8 feet tall.
When bookcases were picked up; it was requested by the mover to have the doors removed and packed since they were glass. That was not done. When they were delivered, one door had been broken, The movers refused to deliver these bookcases. They determined that there was no way for them to delivered either via the elevator or the staircase. We had multiple conversations with the movers and they refused to budge on this point. They insisted that it just "isn't possible for these bookcases to come upstairs". At this point they refused to work until payment had been made.
We paid them, they brought in the rest of the furniture, etc. and the bookcases were relocated to storage on site. My daughter called our contractor and some of her friends and they determine the bookcases would be able to come up the stairs. They removed the doors (as we had requested) and between the 4 guys, they managed to get both bookcases in the condo in about 15 minutes. Allied said, there is no way it can be done; well it was done no thanks to them.
Also, some furniture has been damaged and pieces missing. We will not recommend this moving company to anyone we know. They are not easy to work with and lazy when it comes to moving "big" furniture items.
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Service cost: $3500

The worst moving experience I have EVER had. I’ve moved states 3 times prior. And moved 5 times within the state.

Dale Morgan (Westheimer Transfer & Storage) came out to walk my house. Most of our stuff was boxed and sitting in my garage. So, to me it seemed very clear how much we had and what needed to be loaded. He saw everything and gave me a quote. We received 3 bids and went with Allied.

Loading day: The truck showed up with a prior load so the crew was unable to get all our stuff loaded. After trying to contact the office unsuccessfully, I was assured by the crew they’d get the rest on another truck the next day.

Allied showed up the next day with a box truck (REALLY?!?) STILL unable to load everything. I needed to leave so I could meet the driver in Utah to let him in our house to unload. Again, after being reassured they get everything I left. About 3 hours into my drive to Utah I get a call from Dale Morgan who then tells me that I need to pay a third party to come take apart our weight gym. THIS WAS THE FIRST I HEARD OF THIS. (Remember he walked my house and SAW everything) So, I ended up paying $300 to a third party to come take apart the weight gym while I was driving. I felt taken advantage of because I was backed into a corner. Hire the company or they wouldn’t load the gym.

5 days later the first truck showed up in Utah. Took about 6 hours to unload. 2 guys to unload and driver were excellent. Didn’t realize UNTIL AFTER THEY LEFT that they left a mattress standing up in my garage. 2 beds arrived out of 5 so my kids slept on the floor. I had to go buy a mattress so my kids had something to sleep on. (I was reimbursed – because we bought the full coverage insurance)

15 days later the SECOND truck shows up. (My kids first day of school in a new state, new school, new friends – they should have been done before they got home from school, right?! NOPE!) Took 3 guys 10 HOURS to unload. The driver worked hard. The 1st guy acted like he didn’t know anything so I stood outside most of the time reading boxes to him. The 2nd guy slept on the front lawn for 6 hours! Yes, you read that right 6 hours! At 8 pm I made a call to corporate to complain. (I missed EVERYTHING great about my kids FIRST day of school) They claimed they couldn’t get a couch through the front door so they left it in the garage.

68 days later the THIRD truck showed up. Half my stuff looked like it was stored outside. (Even after being reassured that it was being kept in a climate-controlled storage unit in Houston)

So, Original contract stated our stuff would arrive in 7-10 days BUT they took 68 days…………………………

The people I dealt with lied continually about the status of our stuff, never answered or returned my calls, made promises that clearly, they never intended to keep. BUT WERE PAID IN FULL THE SAME DAY ¼ OF MY STUFF LEFT HOUSTON. I’ll spare you the long list of lies I was told by Dale Morgan and Angie and the few others that work in the Houston office.

This ALL could have been a delightful experience IF THEY WOULD HAVE SHOWED UP DAY 1 WITH AN EMPTY SEMI TRAILER.

3 loads and with each load different items were left in my garage claiming they couldn’t get it through the door. I had to hired a local moving company 3 TIMES to move items into my house. Things were damaged along the way.

The company they hired to come out to fix broken, ripped or damaged items were great to work with. This was an awful experience, awful!! I wouldn’t use this company to move if it was gifted to me. Please save yourself the stress and heartache and HIRE a different company.

Move size: 4+ Bedroom Home Service cost: $17000

Preparing to move, my family and I rented a large UHaul to transport some furniture and essentials. We knew there would be an unavoidable risk of breakage en route, and accepted that some of our things would be damaged no matter how well packed. However, we hoped that hiring professionals who do this very thing for a living, and present their unique training as cause for specialized retention and payment, would mitigate that risk We were gravely mistaken in choosing Allied Van Lines (through Alliance Moving Systems, in Gypsum, CO) and write this to hopefully save someone else the same heartache.

On load day, I provided plenty of boxes, packing blankets, wrapping paper, tie downs and plywood sheets. I explained to the movers that this load would be going across the county and traversing several mountain ranges, so I needed firm security. While loading, I noticed they were wrapping all the furniture in only a bit of cellophane, and they refused my request to use the blankets, obliging me to call their supervisor. I was told essentially to mind my own business, but the blankets were indeed utilized—to wrap pillows! The majority of the wood furniture was carelessly protected, the boxes were stacked haphazardly without regard to weight order; many heavy boxes were stacked up high, and only a few horizontal straps applied, while most of the plywood sheets were stacked inanely on the side.

This and more were discovered when we began unloading. A full stainless steel grill was demolished due to collapse of top heavy loading, and heavy boxes were found to have been loaded on its flimsy, unsupported wings; a curve-armed wooden loveseat was stood on end, and heavy boxes fell on the ribs en route, bursting them; glass shelves to a curio cabinet were wrapped in a few pieces of paper, stood on end loose against the wheel well and were discovered shattered; dumbbells were placed randomly throughout load, and one 20lb weight was found sitting on a naked wood armoire into which it had gouged a hole, and many other boxes, pieces of furniture and equipment suffered damage ranging from crush injury to utter destruction, which were too varied and numerous to warrant specific recording. Meanwhile, again, the blankets I provided went to wrap pillows, the boxes I had collected went unused, etc. Thus, all my efforts to prevent the worst by providing supplies were disdained, my respectful concerns were met with deplorable customer service, our belongings were treated with downright contempt, and we ultimately suffered excessive--and needless--loss.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $1300

Allied Van Lines damaged my brand new sofa pretty bad during the delivery, that plus other damages. Without even trying, the moving crew decided that the sofa was too big to use the elevator. Instead, they decided to bring it up to the third floor using the stairs without any extra protection further than the plastic film used to protect from dust. They ripoff pieces of the sofa by strong friction against concrete walls, cement floors, and roof. Their settlement letter, in regards to the sofa; $125 plus $500 dollars that come out of my pocket (deductible) after choosing their standard full value protection for carrier liability. The amount offered is to cover a cheap and very poor patch-up solution that consists in pulling up the fabrics to cover the ripoff pieces, according to the sofa manufacturer, this will leave the item below quality standards subject to unevenness, tearing, tension on the fabric and leave visible areas where the upholstery will not be consistent. They damage and they push the costumer to receive peanuts. Certainly a moving company to avoid!

Move size: 1 Bedroom Home Service cost: $2784