Gold Standard Moving and Storage LLC

We used Gold Standard as our broker and was assigned Virgin Moving. The whole process was stressful, confusing and a lot more expensive than we expected. It seems like we got totally screwed by our broker. When Virgin Moving showed up we had to pay an additional $1000 even though my inventory matched what I went over with the broker. Mind you, I already paid an additional $700 to the broker on the quality check day. Why did have to do such an extensive quality check if the cubic square feet was going to be off? I measured everything and my inventory matched the inventory on pick up day. Iwas told by the owner we either had to pay it it or they’d leave because it was no their problem. Mind you, if they left, we would have been out of our $1900 deposit and would have owed redispatch fees and would have had to find another truck. They did wrap our furniture very well and the guys on pick up were nice. The next stressful part was it was very unclear when our stuff was going to arrive we got three different answers from the broker, Virgin moving and the guys at pick up. Thankfully our stuff showed up within 3 weeks. Only 1 bookcase was broken but it was one of those cheap target ones. The boxes were I rough shape but luckily I used heavy duty Home Depot boxes and packed everything very well in bubble wrap. All of our inventory was accounted for. At delivery, they tried to charge us more money saying it was more than 75 steps. We were on a first floor apartment, no steps, and it was a straight sidewalk from where the truck could park. Lesson was- NEVER USE A BROKER!!! Also, book directly with a moving company or simply sell your stuff or drive it yourself.

Move size: 1 Bedroom Home Service cost: $5400

They will jump up the price with the same goods you originally had on your list - stating the 1st guy didn't ask the size of the boxes. Farm it out, then do nothing at all to help you when you have problems with the carrier. Their customer service even hung up on me when I reached out for help getting my goods delivered. It's too late for a refund after they jump up the price, and you're stuck!! Now, after I filed a BBB complaint, all they are doing is quoting industry standards, not the real complaint against them. Would NEVER use them again, nor would I ever recommend them. If I could give 0 stars, I would!!

Move size: Partial Move Service cost: $4800

I would give them ZERO stars if I could.

Moving broker (Gold Standard Moving and Storage LLC (U.S. DOT# 3422711)) and carrier (JG Transportation, LLC d/b/a J. Gentle Van Lines (U.S. DOT# 1977019)) conspired to defraud us of $1,240 while failing to provide any of the services we contracted for. Gold Standard is actually not a moving company; it is a dishonest broker. They collect consumers’ deposits (e.g., $1,240) then pawn consumers off to unscrupulous carriers (e.g., JG).

According to the Better Business Bureau (“BBB”), two moving brokers are operating under the name “Gold Standard Moving and Storage.” Both have a BBB Rating of F (FAIL). The company uses two different business addresses to obfuscate that it is the same entity.

“CURRENT ALERTS FOR THIS BUSINESS / Pattern of Complaints: BBB files contain a pattern of complaints from consumers that allege specifically, consumers alleging prices increased after agreement were made. Some consumers allege that they canceled within the allowed time frame and have not received a refund. Others allege that they have not received their items and are unaware that Gold Standard Moving & Storage LLC would broker their move to another company.”

I can attest that Gold Standard has not taken any meaningful steps to mitigate its deceitful business practices. Based on the complaints filed with the BBB and the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, it appears that Gold Standard is engaged in more illegal business practices than ever before.

According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, as of August 27, 2021, customers filed 285 complaints against Gold Standard, including 69 for Deceptive Business Practices, 55 for changes to Estimate/Final Charges, 17 for holding customers’ property Hostage, etc.

Gold Standard averages 36 complaints per month or more than one every calendar day. That is absurd! At this rate, Gold Standard will have more than 432 consumer complaints for the calendar year 2021.

Estimate/Final Charges: Gold Standard’s business practice includes, among other things, low-balling the binding estimate for the sole purpose of fraudulently inducing customers to contract with the company. Immediately thereafter, customers are required to make a deposit. I made a $1,240 deposit with Jade Wilson.

However, Gold Standard does not accept credit cards or debit cards; therefore, I had to pay via electronic check over the phone (others pay via the internet). According to Jade, this payment method benefits customers because credit card companies take too long to issue customers’ refunds. That explanation was false. Jade lied. Gold Standard accepts payment only via this format to ensure that consumers cannot get a refund if they challenge the charges. My bank explained this to me when I challenged the charges.

Material Change in Price: Despite its name (Gold Standard Moving and Storage LLC), the company does not disclose to consumers that it is a broker and not a carrier (i.e., they are the middlemen who do not do any moving). They also do not disclose that they will outsource your move after taking your deposit. When the actual movers arrive (e.g., JG), they immediately jack up the binding estimate by 55% (from 963 cf to 1,500 cf); 30 minutes later, they raised it again to 1,700 cf (an increase of 77%). Please note, the movers (JG) confirmed that we had no more items than we reported for the original estimate. However, JG claimed Gold Standard underestimated the cf. This is discussed in more detail below. JG also wanted to charge additional fees for “bulky items,” “heavy items,” and a long-distance carry despite describing everything to Gold Standard before the original estimate and before making the $1,240 deposit.

Hostage: JG refused to tell us the additional cost. They refused to provide us with any monetary amount. JG repeatedly stated they would take our property first and then provide us with the final number. In such cases, if we didn’t pay the increased amount, regardless of the amount, JG would hold our property (i.e., hostage), whereby they could sell it if we do not pay. You can imagine that most Americans do not have an additional $2,000 - $4,000 of cash readily available on the spot. Given these difficult times, it is even more unlikely that consumers can pay such inflated amounts without any prior notice.

According to the BBB, Gold Standard has been in business for one (1) year. However, it appears that Gold Standard also operates as (1) United American Moving LLC and (2) US Pro Moving And Logistics LLC. United American had 291 complaints, including 67 for Deceptive Business Practices, 54 for changes from Estimate/Final Charges, 15 for holding customers’ property Hostage. US Pro had 626 complaints, including 130 for Deceptive Business Practices, 106 for changes from Estimate/Final Charges, 48 for holding customers’ property Hostage, etc.

These are criminals!

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $4301

Do not use! Gold Standard brokered my small load from Waukesha Wisconsin to Bonita Springs Florida using Lets Move ,inc. out of Illinois to do the actual move.

The initial contact and estimate was fine. 3 days before the move "Quality Assurance called". "Frederick" suggested I add an additional 48 cubic feet to my estimate at 4.75 per so none of my stuff would be left off the truck. He indicated that the movers would measure and I would get my additional money back if the space was not used. My goods fit comfortably in a 4x10x7 storage locker.That is why the initial estimate was 286CF. The estimated cost was about 9 dollars per cubic foot total.

The movers did not measure nor did they seem to know anything about the additional CF. I let the move go ahead figuring I would call Gold Standard that day to discuss. Multiple calls to them including customer service resulted in $1200 beyond the initial estimate for 48CF. Yes, $25 per CF. I was told you signed the agreement so you owe. There was no measurement, no adjustment so I ended up with a small move costing me 3800 dollars. Basically it was my fault for assuming they would be true to their word. There was never an explanation why the cost for 48CF was so exorbitant. I see other reviews with the same complaint. Very deceptive! Do not use.

Move size: Partial Move Service cost: $3829

Gold Standard Moving and Storage told us our household goods would be moved from WA to NY within 7 to 21 business days. It has now been over 54 business days. We have contacted them repeatedly and all they have no information on where are things are or willingness to provide any help. From our point of view we paid Gold Standard Moving and Storage over $3,000 to come and steal our things. Their customer support team told us only their retention team can handle refunds and their retention team claims only the customer support team can do this, both teams claim that there are no managers or people within the company to escalate to. We feel extremely cheated and hope other people do not have to go through this same miserable experience that we did.

Move size: 1 Bedroom Home Service cost: $3385

Absolute scam. They're impossible to get in touch with. The company they assigned to my move had an F rating with the BBB and for good reason. I received a quote from Gold Standard for my move months in advance. The day of my move, the company they hired showed up and presented a new quote that was literally DOUBLE the amount. I was moving from the West coast and so when the company showed up at 5pm PST it was after hours on the East coast and thus impossible to get in touch with Gold Standard. They refused to mediate between myself and the company until my possessions were on their truck, which was unacceptable. Save your time and money.

Move size: Studio Service cost: $5000

I was pressured into paying for a move that I was not 100% sure I was doing. However, to get the "special" pricing and secure a truck, I needed to pay a deposit of $1,403. Of course it is fully refundable. I cancelled the next day, received an email confirming my cancellation within in 9-12 days. Now it is 42 days later and nothing. The voicemail of "Jade" is always full, email is returned as an invalid address, as soon as customer service hears you are calling about a refund and not a sale I am put on endless hold. Currently, I have been on hold for 94 minutes!

BEWARE!!!!!!! Do not give them your bank account number. The bank can not reverse a draft. This is a clear sign of their intent to deceive and steal from you.

So sad that "Jade" has to use her pleasing personality to rip people off.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $1430

Wow. Totally taking advantage of Grampa.

4 weeks after they picked up his things, they finally arrived. TV broken. Pictures broken. Vase smashed. Lamp broken. The drivers/loaders forced him to give them an extra $780 in cash before they'd unload and the bed still hasn't arrived. I imagine they will try to hold him up for more money if and when it does show up.

We are cutting our losses. Keep the bed and consider yet another bad review as payment for the damaged items, since I'm sure they will NEVER pay a claim.

PLEASE DON'T USE THIS OUTFIT.

Seriously, don't even bother with their low-ball quotes.

Move size: 1 Bedroom Home Service cost: $3400

My move was canceled after they promised gold star movers. It was cancelled two days after the scheduled dates. That was so inconvenient for my move from AR to FL. I was approved for a refund on july 5th, 2021. After many calls, being on hold for 20-30 mins or more, was told my request was forwarded to accounting. I even wonder if there is an accounting dept. I actually was refunded, 60 days later. I'm surprised I was not scammed for my $3000. Stop, do not go forward with them. Save yourself the stress.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $6000