Long Distance Van Lines

Probably one of the worst experiences I've had with moving in my life and I'm a military brat and have moved to different continents.

The sales team is really nice on the phone, very upbeat and reassuring, however, my price changed every time I spoke to someone on the phone. The original quote forgot to mention stairs that I repeatedly said were present. The sales rep assured me that I had plenty of room and put me down for 20 boxes, he didn't say they were 20 small boxes. Also, there were items that I clearly stated I had that were not included in the quote and not realized until I spoke to the Manager who by the way told me that special packaging was required for my glass tables that the sales rep conveniently left off. The sales team tells you "don't worry about your furniture, the movers will take care of it, they know how to package it up" what they don't tell you is that they do provide the blankets but the blankets are secured with packing tape and you have to pay for that tape and if you choose to box your own items to save money that there are certain "requirements" with packaging certain items and they will re-tape as they see fit and I was charged $52 just for tape! I was told at the last minute by the manager that my glass tables needed to be bubble wrapped and then boxed or it was an additional $80/table. Why are the sales people not sharing these costs upfront? My inventory was under calculated as a result my price went up $2k, which is similar to a lot of other complaints about this moving company. The foreman, who seemed like a really nice guy, loaded my things in the truck and told me I needed an additional 150 cubic feet but never let me see the truck empty, which I was told that would be the process, before he started loading my things, when I asked, I was told "oops, I made a mistake I should have shared that with you before loading everything in", long story short, stay away from this company because they intentionally underestimate your move to get you the best price and once you sign that contract and pay the deposit they have you trapped, and they know it. My employer is relocating about 20 of us and I have not recommended this company to any of them based on this experience.

My personal opinion is that they are very dishonest and misleading to get the sale. I wish that I had read some of the reviews before using the service. Lesson learned!

Good luck to all who are in the process of moving and I hope your experience is better than mine.

Service cost: $5000

There are some service providers who ought to be hired out over and over again because your satisfaction as a client is always guaranteed. A relocation company like Long Distance Van Lines seem never to disappoint anyone. Personally, I have contacted them to relocate twice. Two of my close friends have also been relocated by these same people. All of them were successful. There was no single point that we were disappointed l. In fact, they keep on getting better with each growing day and I am so happy because of that!

Service cost: $2300

On our move from Maryland to Vermont this mover gave us excellent customer service. Pick up and delivery went great. Moving is always a challenge and the movers were great to work with. Would refer our friends and family to this company to help with moving. No matter if your move is a short distance or a long distance they will give you a quote. It is nice to know that when it comes to handling your belongings that they arrive in the same condition as they were shipped. We had no problems with any of the job from pick up to delivery.

Service cost: $3500

I contacted some moving companies before I finally settled for Long Distance Van Lines. This was one of my best decisions in 2016. The contact center representatives of Long Distance Van Lines were diligent and insightful as they ensured that everything was set before the move. With such knowledgeable guys, I had a deserved peace of mind and did not stress over the little things. The moving crew showed up moments before 8.00 am and assessed everything to be carried before embarking on the disassembling of what needed to be disassembled, packing and loading. The diligence of the crew ensured that they delivered everything in superb condition. I cannot hesitate to recommend Long Distance Van Lines to others.

Service cost: $9800

In August of 2017, I hired LDVL to move me from Chicago to San Francisco. Their Salesperson was very accommodating and honored (or so I thought) my request to move on a certain date and time if I paid a premium which I gladly agreed to. On moving day, they were to arrive between 8 - 12 noon - they arrived at 4:00 p.m. with two gentlemen to fully pack, load and remove all of my belongings in a 4 story walk-up unit. Needless to say, they did not complete the move until nearly midnight and did a horrible job of packing my belongings and not wrapping any of my valuables. I am a corporate executive and don't own any IKEA-type furnishings. Everything I own was brand new or custom-made.

I subsequently flew out to San Francisco to arrive a day prior to my move-in date. 3:00 p.m. came and no movers, so I called their so called customer service line only to discover that my belongings were still in Chicago and would not arrive for another 2 1/2 weeks (after I paid for expedited shipping). I was furious as I only had the clothes on my back and a small suitcase. I ended up staying in a hotel for two weeks at my own expense - a $3,500 bill which I had not anticipated. Hotels in SF are very expensive.

When my belongings finally did arrive, have of my belongings were missing or damaged beyond repair. Once again, I immediately called their customer service department (Paula) who is the poorest excuse of a human being. She was rude, obnoxious, unhelpful, and a down-right "B..ch" to me on the phone. If she was my employee, she would have been fired on the spot!

I eventually filed a claim with over $15,000 in damages - I received $700. It's an outrage!

They should be out of business - DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY! Trust me, these other reviews must have been written by their employees - they are absolute snakes!

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $8000

Long Distance Van Lines is a terrible company. The first people you speak with seem awesome and seem to be giving you a great deal. What they don’t tell you is that they low ball you and if your cubic footage goes over their estimate, you pay double for certain things (ex: packing materials. Price doubles once you go over their estimate). Let’s not forget that they do their estimates verbally rather than sending someone out. Initially the person I spoke with did my estimate incorrectly and 4 business days before Long Distance was scheduled to come out someone else did a second inventory, charged me a $250 fee to make the changes to my inventory, then charged an additional $1000+. I was annoyed but figured whatever..I can’t do anything about this because conveniently enough you can’t cancel and get a full refund unless it’s 7+ business days before your move. I see what you guys did there. Anyway, they came out the day of and informed me that they can’t take any liquids or lightbulbs. I was so angry as no one told me this ahead of time AND arhat isn’t mentioned in any of your paperwork or on their website. I called Lissa from QA the following day and she was beyond rude, giving me an attitude while demanding that she told me this when she called me the week before. She didn’t call me- I called her and she never told me this. If their calls are recorded like they say, you would think they wouldn’t be so rude. Oh! And I had more stuff than they estimated BOTH times so there goes about $250 charge and a total of almost $4000 more than my original quote. The only good part was that my stuff got here the earliest date they guaranteed. However, the movers packed my stuff and didn’t check to see if drawers were empty and ended up breaking things. All of my furniture arrived chipped or scratched. Their insurance doesn’t cover chips and scratches. This company is a bunch of rude, money hungry crooks who should never have ANYONE’s business.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $8700

It got even worse upon delivery (see my 1st review, my 23 year old daughter's move from DC to LA)..the driver said they couldn't fit on her street (a 4 lane road, really??!!), so they would have to unload elsewhere and shuttle her things (for an additional $500!!). BTW, they blamed her for not knowing that! So she tried to line up a U-Haul with less than 2 hours notice to move it herself instead of using their $500 shuttle; they penalized her $150 for being 20 minutes late (!!), and threatened her (!!) with a $1,500 penalty to store it overnight if she couldn't get there on time due to traffic (the driver told her he didn't actually have any more deliveries after hers, he was just "done" and ready to go home and didn't want to wait)! She ended up moving all her belongings herself. WORST EXPERIENCE EVER! THEY ARE HORRIBLE!!

Move size: 1 Bedroom Home Service cost: $3700

Bottom line is, they make promises they can't, and won't keep. I never thought I'd see the day when I was unhappy about having someone else move all of my stuff, but I am. The people doing the packing were very good, no fault with them. But once they had my items they put them into storage, keeping the, there until the day after I requested the items to be delivered. In fact, once it was time to have my items sent to me, I could hardly get a hold of anyone. Calls with messages were not returned. I have had multiple different people tell me when I'm going to be getting my items. First the 15. Now perhaps the 16 or 17. Now they are hopefully going to be delivered the 18. And all this time, the most important thing to them is asking if I have the final balance ready for them. I am incredibly unhappy about using long distance van lines. .

Service cost: $6000

Company was provided a detail list of items, company misrepresented the cost. Representative advised the following: there would be a clear marking in the truck of the cubic feet - there was not. The items would be delivered on October 8, 2014. Granted there was no act of god-as of October 12, 2014 I do not have my items nor do I know when they will be delivered. I was advised that a paid a piggyback paid - my bill is $5800 the same amount of van lines that conducted an inventory. All of my items were not taken and I ended up leaving items. Customer service representative Nina hung up on me. I requested the contact information on the owner and to date still have not received it.

Service cost: $5800

I was sold a real bill of goods!! Spoke with both Frank and Roy, both assured me they were the company to go with(family owned,blah, blah). I gave them an itemized list of what I had to move, even called them back to tell them there were items that I was planning on selling that hadn't sold, so I would be adding to the inventory. They gave me a price that was reasonable, so I went with them. The day of my pick up, the movers arrived late which wasn't a big deal for me, but as soon as Niko arrived, he started complaining that I had way more stuff than what was on the order. I told him I had told them everything that I was taking and his reply was that they always underestimate just to get the job. The entire time the movers were there, all Niko did was complain about how much stuff I had and that I should just get rid of most of my things and just replace them, he points to a table that I had made myself, and asks"well how much did you pay for this?" Not his job to question me as to what I want moved. I should have thrown him out right then and there, but I didn't. So they took about 6 hours just to load the truck, after they stopped for dinner, that they had delivered to my home and sat on my furniture and used the boxes for a table. They also were kind enough to leave their trash and cigarette butts behind for me to clean up. I didn't end up taking some items because Niko kept complaining. Now I was told that an eighteen wheeler would definitely be bringing my things and I needed to check with the storage facility to make sure it could fit. Upon arrival to the facility, there is the same size truck that took my things and two men. The truck was packed so tightly, my boxes were smashed, some were wet, they even OPENED one of my boxes, and split it into two small ones because they said the large one wouldn't fit. After they were through unloading, they had the nerve to ask for a TIP, and when I said I didn't have any cash, they asked for a check!! The nerve!! They turned out to be the absolute worse movers I have ever used!! Also I forgot to say that my moving bill doubled when all was said and done..

Service cost: $6675

This is by far the most unethical and dishonest company I have ever dealt with. We had to pay an extra $2,000 in order to have our belongings delivered unloaded at the destination. They quoted a fair price initially, I received 3 quotes and all in-line. After our items were loaded, the foreman said we will have to pay an extra $2,000 at delivery IN CASH. We immediately disputed this, but it was very difficult to speak with anyone and once we did they were the most disrespectful people, especially Paula and Roy. At delivery, we took photos of the inside of the truck before and after our belongings were unloaded. The inside of the truck had measurements indicating the cubic feet. I have proof that we did not go over the estimated cubic foot in their original estimate. Emails with photos, phone calls, and certified mail was sent to the company, but no response. I also reported them to BBB, but that didn't do any good either.

Moral of the story. DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY and DO NOT TRUST ANYTHING THEY SAY. All good reviews are fabricated.

Service cost: $7400

My move was great. I setup my move with Roy, in October for November 14. The crew arrive at 10 am and start to work , they was very friendly and nice, the head of the crew was explaining everything for that I will get charge, I order full pack service because I didn't have to much time to pack by myself. They finish my 4 bdr house in 10 hours. I was really concern about delivery day because my window was between 7 and 21 days but the truck arrived at my new house in Oregon on 22nd November, the truck driver and his helper unload and unpack everything. Now we can celebrate Thanksgiving Day in our new House.

Service cost: $10573

This Company had moved me from Columbia, MD to New York, NY. Honestly the beginning was pretty stressful . They did show up a little late , and only with 3 guys for my big move. I was really nervous at the beginning ( wasn't sure they will do everything on promised 1 day) but as the move started , I was amazed with the speed of movers. Two helpers , spoke poor English , but the crew leader was excellent in everything. They filled up the whole truck in less than 4 hours ( this guys work like ants lol) and left my place . I have received my stuff a day later than I was promised , but Thanks God everything was delivered with some little scratches on my dresser. This is my 5th move , and I have never seen anybody moving that fast. I recommend this company.

Service cost: $5000

*DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY*   There is nothing good to say about this company.  Everyone you speak to on the phone is rude, dishonest, and unprofessional.  The company will give you a quote that is significantly less than what they plan on charging you the day of the move, and at that point you are stuck b/c you have already given them a non-refundable deposit. The movers were horrible.  They could not speak English, they were disrespectful and careless with our belongings, resulting in a large amount of damage to our property.  The truck the movers showed up with on the day of delivery was severely damaged with a gaping hole in the back left corner of the truck and the back doors did not close all the way.  If it had rained during transport, I am sure all of our belongings would be ruined.   The standard insurance the company has is a joke - 60 cents per pound per item damaged.  As if that is not bad enough for coverage, the fine print on the claim form states that this coverage does not include scratches, dents or chips - What a joke, pretty much every piece of our furniture has been damaged to some extent in this move. Do yourself a favor and do not even call this company.   .

Service cost: $6500

Got bad service all around. We were lied to about our quote, also lied to us us about the fact that they promised us that the same people picking it up would be the same people dropping it off. The movers who dropped it off were rough with the furniture which are now damaged, missing pieces, they did not assemble it all completely. Broke some of our things that are now not usable, there are boxes missing. The after all of that they had the audacity to ask for a tip even though we already tipped the movers who picked up our shipment. -who were also supposed to deliver it. So they tried to get 2 tips out of us. Our shipment was 3 days late of the guaranteed latest date. I defiantly don't recommend this company to anyone. If you try to get a hold of a rep. on the phone they just tell you "there's nothing we can do" to every complaint you have. Claims dep. want you to jump through hoops just to file a claim. The want receipts and dates of purchase of all missing times. Some of the items were antiques and don't have receipts and most likely older than me. DO NOT CHOOSE THIS COMPANY!

Service cost: $4100

While many aspects of the move were good in the end we had a valuable computer stolen and several pieces of furniture destroyed. In addition several mattresses and box springs that didn't belong to us showed up and we had to send them back - I feel sorry for the family that lost them. I was disappointed with the fact that there was no real way to be compensated for the loss of the valuable items. The very small amount per pound that they allow is not worth the submission of a claim. In addition they require so much documentation that is not generally available for sending in that it would be impossible to get any of the few dollars they would give us anyway.

Service cost: $15000

Long Distance Van lines worst Moving company I have ever used in the 30+ years, I have moved with moving groups at least 6+ times over the 30 years. To start off the company got great reviews, and Michael at the beginning was helpful and saved me some money. We had planned the move over a weekend and the idea was that we had so much stuff it will take two days to load for storage.
Michael was accommodating. The movers did not show up at 7-8 AM Saturday morning as planned but around noon, they were short staffed and more people did not show up until mid afternoon. The company was to pack our stuff ( which I paid additional $6K +) and load to store. About 4 hours into the move I noticed that the beds were the first to be loaded. I told the head guy that this was going to be a two day pack and load and Nicholi ( missed spell his name) indicated no this was a one day load and we have already packed the beds so you cannot stay the night. Also, we will not be finished until late. This was not our plan since we had no accommodations for evening and the plan was for the family drive to down to Texas. I was told by Nicholi he had another job staring in morning and the matter was closed, very rude and direct. At this point more people should up to pack. I noticed that items were being no longer wrapped and placed into boxes but simple thrown into boxes. The employees were complaining on that there was too much stuff. We noticed pictures were being thrown into boxes unpacked. Glass ware as well placed in boxes not packed. We also had a rain shower in the afternoon which slowed down the progress. Now the loaders were walking into the house tracking mud an water every where on the wood floors and carpet. The team finished up at about 12midnight to 1 AM. The house was a mess and trashed on the front porch at least 6 feet high. I not only had to mop and clean the house but had to get rid of the trash. We finish up sometime around 3AM in the morning and still had to drive to hotel that I had to paid a premium rate.
Nicholi also handed me a evaluation form and demand that I fill out and sign In addition Nicholi surprised me that there was more stuff that estimated from 4500 to 5200 therefore I owed and another $5K . I had to pay the additional amount not knowing if this right or wrong. And give this guy my evaluation sheet , which was would have been horrible, and have this idiot change or throw it away.

Now we are on the receiving side in Texas and the nightmare continues. I had made calls to Paula that we need to have our stuff delivered in about two weeks. She indicated that she would work on it. After a week and no calls or emails, I called back this time with another person from Long Distance Van Lines, and she indicated that the delivery date will be sometime in November. I could not believe what I was hearing that I would have to wait a month for my stuff. I called back and got a hold of Paula. She indicated that she would work on date, this was on a Friday. Sunday afternoon not only 48hours later I get a call from the movers saying your stuff will be delivered Monday morning. After finally screaming at the driver and his boss that I cannot take the deliver until Tuesday since I was not available on Monday. I asked the supervisor of the mover would he like to be treated the same way and be given only 16 hour notice to deliver two truck loads of goods on a Sunday afternoon, and he would not answer , just continued the drivers will be there in the morning so get ready. I had to finally tell him that no one will be there to accept the goods, and if you deliver it and drop it off on my driveway I will sue you and the company. I get a call from Paula apologizing for the problem and the delivery will be on Tuesday . She indicated that there will be two trucks one truck early Tuesday morning to deliver the furniture and one midday to deliver the boxes. The nightmare continues, both trucks arrive early Monday morning with about 6 people. My wife and I could not keep with the unloaders. and they were unloading at a very fast pace because one of the drivers had another deliver and had to leave in a couple of hours. Most of the boxes were unmarked which required opening. When I could not keep up they simply started stacking in the house and garage at random. The driver that had to leave in one hour was in such a rush I watched him unload a very expense piece of marble that goes on an Antique piece of furniture and drop it and broke of a large piece. He simply said I guess you will have to file for that one, like get ready there will be more damaged goods. The problems continue the driver in a rush would not assemble furniture for us . I had to put the beds together myself. Such as the sleep number bed the boxes were not marked and it took we a week to find all the parts of the bed, another 5 hours to assembly by myself.
There are more than I can write here. The damage was significant to our furniture. Part of the second bed has never been found and that was a bed that my father built by hand out of walnut, a family heirloom lost. I lost a 40 inch TV. There were chairs legs broken beyond repair, table legs broken, china cabinet glass shelves only 3 out of 10 made it. Mirrors broken. Countless dishes and cups broken. And to claim $.60 per lb per item , my guess if I can fill out the paper work, maybe get back $600-700 but the loss to us I would put into the many thousands. I wish I had stuck to a United or top mover and paid the additional amount to move. Our total cost to move was around $30k and my loss to damage goods could be $5-8K and some pieces of furniture were priceless family heirlooms lost forever. I hope this message gets out to stay away from Long Distance Van Lines , which I will classify to be the worst mover on the planet.

Service cost: $28000

Delivery was guaranteed in 3-10 business days. At pick up, the person in charge told us that it was going straight up to NY and would be delivered in two days. Relying on his word, we made arrangements for my elderly parents to arrive after the delivery was to arrive. 5 days later, I'm contacted by the company and informed by dispatch that the delivery will arrive on either the 9th or 10th day, which is after my parents were to arrive at the house. I informed them what we were told at pick up and that this was a huge inconvenience. They denied that we were told at pick that it would be two days and said "a contract is a contract" and essentially accused us of lying about what we were told at pickup. They refused to apologize. Did I also mention that once the items got on the truck we received an invoice that was significantly higher than the original estimate? They also wont take anything off the truck until they are paid in cash and make you sign a contract saying that you wont dispute the credit card charge for the deposit. They also charge us over $700 for "packing materials" to move a small two bedroom house. How many boxes, bubble wrap and tape can one buy for $700? Beware of this company!!

Service cost: $12443

DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY   I really believed I had done my research and chosen wisely.  I was not going to be relating horror stories of my moving experience.. and yet here I am.   This company will tell you anything to get you to sign up; Stacey was very good at figuring out what to say to reassure me; it was a family business, they don't contract out; estimate was so reasonable, etc.  I got cold feet and decided to cancel after reading bad reviews on Yelp.  I called and was reassured by Michelle and Paula that these were exceptional cases and they were working with them to resolve issues.  I guess I wanted to believe so I went forward.  After walking through my house and listing every item to be moved I was given a $4000 quote.  I was downsizing and felt it was a fair estimate.  After the estimate and before the move I decided to sell a number of large items: 4 piece bedroom set, 52" TV, etc.  I was sure I would be way under the estimate.  Even without those items I reached my full capacity quickly.  I was shocked that I had to leave my washer/dryer, baker's rack, boxes, etc. (all of which were in the original inventory).  I was told later (the one time I actually got a call back out of at least 15 calls) that I had more items than I originally said.  Of course I did; the original inventory list said: 1 bed; the moving inventory list said: 1 box spring, one mattress.  original: 1 table; moving list; 1 table top, 1 legs of table.  Get the idea?  Anyone would have more items if they break items down to their component parts.  Of course, I could have paid twice the estimate to move the items that did not fit in my original allotted space but I am now making other arrangements.  I will not give this company one more cent.  Before I signed, I got calls every day.  After my things were delivered, I can't get anyone to call back..  For your own sake.. don't deal with this company.  I could go on and on with details but I need to go to Yelp, Angie's List, BBB, and anywhere else I can find on line.  I am also thinking of contacting the Attorney General in MD about fake reviews.. other companies have gotten into serious trouble for this practice.  I'll do what I can to keep someone else from being ripped off. Don't hesitate to contact me with questions.

Service cost: $4100

"THE CUSTOMER IS ALWAYS WRONG" must be their motto.  Long Distance Van Lines has proved to me why this is not a reputable industry.  Poor communications all the way through the process.  Poor customer service.  I feel totally taken advantage of, as they charged me thousands of dollars extra for my move. On the day of the move, when the truck was half packed, they told me that it was going to cost an extra $4K to move my things. This was over 50% more than their original quote. I don't see how this is possible, as I had another company come survey my things and stated a volume that was just under their original quote. Little did I know that an original quote means absolutely nothing! This is their way to low ball you with an estimate, get you as a customer, and then, when you have no other choice, charge you thousands more to complete the move. Plus, when my things arrived - I took pictures of the volume within the new truck (as they had transferred it from the original truck) and the volume was a lot less than what they had charged me for.  I wouldn't be surprised if they purposefully wrongly packed the first half of the truck initially so that it was not entirely full. But guess what - there was nothing I could do.

If you look at the contract, you essentially sign your rights away - and if there is an issue you are responsible for the legals costs for both parties - so it doesn't even make it worth pursuing. They even caused damage to my home, which they didn't want to take responsibility for, even though they had said they would. They gave me misinformation all along the way in regards to delivery - which caused me to incur extra costs.  They were not very responsive or very customer friendly. Also, there were a number of my items that were damaged.   Overall, I've never been so stressed in my life from this moving company.  It shouldn't have to be this way.

Service cost: $8000

If you conduct a short search online, you will notice how much Long Distance Van Lines is revered by their former clients. Long Distance Van Lines has numerous top ratings and positive reviews as their former clients recommend them to other people. This is what made me use LDVL and I can say that they are very worthy of their ratings and commendations. They ensured that I was 100% satisfied by taking great care of my possessions, delivering on time and charging me very reasonably. I also recommend Long Distance Van Lines to others. .

Service cost: $3285

This move was incredibly unprofessional, stressful and time consuming. My things were damaged extensively at delivery causing me to purchase numerous new items in addition to the thousands spent for a move already using this company. The movers did not speak English at arrival and the company actually gave me the number of another individual to call in order to translate with my delivery individuals. Not at all what I would expect. The "customer service" department was actually funny how poor they handled things. Like other reviews have stated, the customer is always wrong with them. Despite 3 wrong delivery dates, I was still wrong for expecting a date of arrival. I feel very bad for individuals that get caught up and use this company for what is already a stressful process of moving around the country. It is hard to believe that this company prides themselves on their service and I would caution people to look elsewhere for services.

Service cost: $4000

Do not use this company! We have had a horrible experience with long distance van lines and want to warn other potential customers. This company damaged almost all of our furniture in our move from North Carolina to Ohio. They ruined our yard at our new house when the drivers drove through it repeatedly. They have been exceedingly unprofessional, rude, and difficult to work with. The claims process is tedious, inconvenient, and the company does not care about its customers. They made our move an absolute nightmare, and I would caution anyone from hiring them. It was a huge mistake.

Service cost: $8000