Spartan Van Lines

I wouldn't trust these people to move my trash to the curb. I contracted with them to pick up and deliver 300 cu ft of stuff. We estimated the number of boxes, and I told them at the time that I hadn't packed yet so I didn't know how many boxes there would be but I knew it'd be around 300 cu ft. They contracted with another company, Essential Movers, to just pick up the number of boxes and unboxed art that was estimated. It totaled less than 150 cu ft. I called my contact at Spartan more than 5 different times. I started counting after I was put off, ignored, and put on hold indefinitely. Three times I waited on hold for 15 minutes (thanks call log) after explaining the problem to the representative. In the end, the most expensive item in the shipment didn't show up. They use a 3rd party company to manage claims, so see how that works out for you. Honestly, I haven't been "taken" like this for as long as I can remember.

Move size: Partial Move Service cost: $3500

They were the best. I moved out of California last Sept. 2017. I have never attempted such a long move. The move was coast to coast Cali to NC. The movers on both ends were great the final cost was what I was quoted in the beginning. Everything was disassembled and reassembled just like they said it would be. They arrived when they were scheduled. The best part is that there was no quibbling at my destination over price etc. Professional all the way. They did not harass me day and night about before I settled on them as my movers. They came out and actually did an visual estimate which was great as there was no hidden fees.

Move size: 4 Bedroom Home Service cost: $3455

We have been relocated as an executive several times, so we have experience with professional moving companies. I am writing this review so that this doesn't happen to anyone else again.

Due to negligence, our property was stolen from their care. We contracted them to pack our stuff, put it into climate controlled storage, and then deliver our items. This was not done.

They packed our stuff, and parked the truck on a lot over an entire weekend. The truck was left unattended. They did not put it directly into climate-controlled storage as per the contract. The truck was stolen, and our goods were stolen. They recovered the truck but not our goods.

HALF OF OUR LIFE IS GONE! And they refused to reimburse us fairly for our loss. They also refuse to deliver our items on a requested date. We now need to go through our insurance. We are unable to file an insurance claim on time because they refuse to deliver our items on requested date.

There were two trucks with our items. We gave them 3 weeks notice for a delivery date for the first truck. They are saying that they will be two weeks late, and that they are allowed to do this per the contract.

The police report may be found with the San Leandro Police Department.

They have done nothing to help us from this theft that occurred due to their gross negligence.

Move size: 4+ Bedroom Home Service cost: $16000

These guys were great; they were true to their word. Their pricing was competitive, actually much less than the major van lines. I did a virtual tour (video chat) instead of having an in home estimate done, as I was out of state. The inventory was thorough and the quote was very comprehensive. There were no hidden fees either.
I paid exactly what I was quoted and I did not have any damages to report upon delivery. The staff was efficient and courteous as was the crew. I would recommend them highly to my family and friends.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $1887

Moving from San Francisco to the Midwest, and chose Spartan Van Lines for their many positive reviews and "Guaranteed Delivery Window" of 16 business days. That delivery window came and went, and I still have not received my stuff. This has been my experience so far:

The Good:

My sales representative Mercedes was very responsive until I signed the contract, and the movers picked up my stuff. Up until this point, my experience with Spartan Van Lines was very positive.

The Bad:

Their "Guaranteed Delivery Window" is essentially meaningless. I had my stuff picked up on 07-22-2020, and according to my contract, my Guaranteed Delivery Window is 07/23/2020 - 8/13/2020. It is now nine days later (8/22/2020), and I have not received my stuff or any word from my driver. I contacted my sales rep, Mercedes, but she could not give me any information about the location of my stuff and said I should call the "Dispatch Team." Getting a hold of the dispatch team has proven extremely difficult. After my "Guaranteed Delivery Window" came and went, I called them many times during business hours and left a voice message at least six times. They have never once returned any of my calls or responded to my voice messages. I finally got a hold of them this past Monday (8/17/2020), and they assured me my driver would either arrive on Wednesday or Friday of that week. Well, it's now Saturday, and I have not received any word from the driver, Mercedes, or the dispatch team with an update about my stuff.

In Conclusion:

Expect to have a great experience up until the movers pick up your stuff. However, you can forget about the "Guaranteed Delivery Window" because it appears to be meaningless- although delivery is"Guaranteed" within a specific timeframe, there is no discount or any other recourse offered if they don't meet that timeframe. Also, you can expect to be left entirely in the dark about your move's status and when you should expect to receive your stuff. Furthermore, do not expect any help from your sales rep after signing your contract because they can't give you any information about your move. All they can do is redirect you to the Dispatch Team. Finally, the Dispatch team is difficult to get a hold of, so you shouldn't expect much help from them.

I still have no idea when I will receive my stuff.

Move size: Studio Service cost: $1666

From the initial meeting with the estimator to the pick up and delivery these guys are at a while different level, the amount of care and professionalism that they have with our move surpassed all the other moves I have done. We moved from Oakland to Seattle. They did a great job all the way through and delivered within the window. They provided a guaranteed flat price for the move with no hidden fees. I would highly recommend them for anyone looking to move out of state or locally. Thank you Spartan for a stress free moving experience.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $5800

FIRST OFF - look how many reviews I have written (1) and the reason is that Spartan Van Lines is such a TERRIBLE company that I needed to go onto Yelp and alert other people of how this is a shady business that continues to exploit their customers.

Spartan Van Lines in the Bay Area and small moves may be decent but anything out of state or beyond - MAKE SURE TO AVOID THIS COMPANY AT ALL COSTS

Why? I was moving my stuff (not alot of stuff mind you) from San Francisco to Oregon a 600 mile trip. Upon them picking up my stuff which seemed normal. They give you a gap of 2-10 days where they will deliver your stuff. So what is it 2 or 10 days this can have major effects on people and where they stay and they don't know when things will be delivered - that was strange to begin with

Upon my stuff being (finally) delivered, I noticed a different company that Spartan Van Lines contacting me to deliver my stuff. From what I read this is normal for trucking/logistics companies to work with other companies.

Anyway Spartan needs to do a better job on who they partner with because 3 out of the 6 items delivered were broken - My lamp, Bed Frame and several dishes and cups. That wasn't a huge deal (Sh$t happens) - the company is meant to disassemble and reassemble everything once they reach the delivery stage. WELP that didnt happen - they threw everything into the living room and made excuses that they didnt have the right supplies/tools to reassemble the items that needed to be put back together.

Overall they are now doing a bad job but here is the worst part. Everything of mine got delivered but an important item that included very personal information and several other important files this never made it to my apartment

POOF JUST DISAPPEARED – hmm really seems to make sense how everything made it to my apartment but one certain item.

This is the type of stuff that makes me go on Yelp and take time out of my busy day to write about - check other reviews – this is not the first time something of value was missing from a delivery

Also, on my "carrier" someone else lost a cabinet - hmmm makes a lot of sense.

Now I need to go get Identity Theft Insurance and all other ways to protect myself because this company whether it was them or their crummy partners leaving you to call a "customer service" line thousands of times - they don't even have customer service reps and they are scared to talk on the phone because they know they are in the wrong..

You lost a plate or a lamp - SURE but when it seems that everything is delivered besides valuable items which are known to carry important stuff of yours do not be surprised that is just walks itself off the truck

Terrible company - do yourself a favor and find another moving company

Move size: 1 Bedroom Home Service cost: $2000

AVOID SPARTAN VAN LINES.

Why?

-They failed to meet their delivery commitment to me, costing me an additional $10,000

-When we contacted them, they weren’t responsive

-They never proactively contact us

-They held my move hostage

More details:

-They picked up my belonging on August 30th in California, with a promise to deliver before Sept 29th in Virginia

-They actually delivered in Virginia on Oct 23rd

Spartan ignored my calls and emails for weeks. When I finally got them on the phone on September 29th (the last possible day they were supposed to deliver our stuff), I learned my belongings hadn't even left California and an updated delivery date was unknown.

Impact to me and my family:

-We (me, my wife, my 2 yr old son, and our dog) were effectively nomads for close to 2 months, with no end in sight.

-Losing $4,500 on rental income

-We lacked a stable work environment

-Risking getting COVID while we were displaced from our home

When delivery day finally came, Spartan refused to unload the truck until I paid them thousands of dollars in full (they asked for payment in cash).

Spartan Van Lines completely failed on every aspect of what they were hired to do and their lack of communication made it impossible to manage our day-to-day.

In the end, Spartan offered me $551 as compensation, but they required that I sign a form saying I couldn’t post any reviews on social media which I refused.

Thanks but no thanks, Spartan. If this review prevents one person from hiring Spartan, then it’s $551 well spent.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $6500

I submitted a request for a quote to move from Texas to South Dakota. They called a few minutes later and the guy spent probably 20 minutes on the phone with me telling me about the perks that he managed to squeeze in for me to save me money, before he actually gave me a quote. Uhaul Uboxes quote was $2,045, and Spartan told me it would be $3,600 and that was with $300 worth of discounts!! $3,900 for a desk, a dresser, and 15 boxes. That's ridiculous! When I told the guy that U-Haul was $2,045 he proceeded to bash uhaul and try to sell me on them instead. When I told him no thank you, he then spent another several minutes fumbling with his words trying to keep me on the phone and trying to get me more discounts. I finally hung up on him because he wouldn't take no for an answer. They've continued to call every day for the past 3 days, multiple times a day. When they call, it's several calls back to back, not just once. I wouldn't recommend this company, and certainly won't ever be using them.

Move size: Studio Service cost: $3900

Absolutely DO NOT USE Spartan Van Lines as your moving company. They moved our young family with two babies from California to Texas and the experience has been so stressful and heartbreaking with expensive and careless damages to our belongings. Here is an outline of what we've been through below:

1. WRONGLY DELIVERED ITEMS to our house which now ~5 weeks later have still not been picked up to return to the rightful owner (even though they know based on the tags whose items they are).

2. LOST DINING TABLE PEICE (which makes the table completely unable to be re-assembled) and a lost 8ft ladder (which seems impossible to loose given its size)

3. MISREPRESENTATION OF HOW ITEMS WOULD BE WRAPPED for which we paid extra money for. Instead of a $350 custom cardboard box, our e-bike ended up being wrapped in plastic wrap and pieces of cardboard on only certain areas of the bike (and the bike ended up being damaged on the backside). And instead of a ~$40 custom cardboard for our computer monitors they were thrown in a large box with other items including lotion bottles which exploaded all over the items and crushed the monitors!

4. SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE to several furniture items including -- a bookshelf (which is unusable now), a secretary desk, a side table, a chair

5. Mispresentation of how furniture items would be wrapped. We were told they would be wrapped in "moving blankets" but they ended up being ONLY WRAPPED IN THIN BROWN PAPER AND PLASTIC They claim this is industry standard but the wrapping barely provided any protection and absolutely contributed to the damage. I've attached photos as an example.

Do yourself a favor and look elsewhere for your movers. Sadly we even asked them about the bad reviews before we signed a contract with them and they assured us that all of their issues in the past had been resolved. But clearly they are not and this has been an extremely horrible experience.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $8000