Viking Moving and Storage

I've been waiting to write this review until after my claim was approved, which took 4 months and many phone calls.  While the loading and unloading crew did a good job, in between my pick-up location and destination, another crew unloaded and reloaded the items.  MANY items were broken (>20), including the outer glass of an $800 stove that was only a few months old.  The lead in charge of unloading told me they would "take care" of me and took "full responsibility" for the damages, however since I didn't purchase the "extra" insurance, they only would cover $0.60/lb.  So, for about $400-500 worth of damages, I received only $134.  This doesn't take into account the lost use of the items, time and effort to repurchase/repair, and stalking them to send me my meager check.  I moved myself across the country, spent a fraction of the amount and had ZERO damages.  I fully intend to move myself again instead of a moving company. My stuff was delayed for weeks, but it was within their acceptable "window" so no big deal to them.  This was especially frustrating when I learned the truck was close by, there just wasn't a crew available.  Also, another pet peeve is how the inventory is conducted.  I know most moving companies rush this, but it really bugs me.  They number every box, but don't write down what was in it.  Then, the signature pad requires you to take responsibility as though each item was thoroughly inventoried.  Calling everything "box" and slapping a number on it is insufficient.  Overall, the price for Viking was cheapest, but their handling was extremely poor.  You get what you pay for.  It's a toss-up whether I should've paid for the additional insurance, but I think it's ridiculous that they wouldn't take more responsibility for gross negligence of handling my posessions.  They kept citing the hazards of shipping, but I know exactly what happened: some low-paid guys were in a hurry to unload and reload the truck.  Since I wasn't there to monitor them and they wouldn't get a tip, they didn't care.  Ultimately, nobody there cared and all I got was a half-hearted apology and a fraction of what I lost. I'm moving myself next time.      .

Service cost: $5400

What a great moving experience. I've moved all over the world (literally) and while this was probably the shortest distance move I've done (Texas to LA), it was the easiest - and not because of the distance. Viking Moving & Storage worked hard for my business and earned every penny of it. The movers were courteous and cautious with my belongings, did little extras for me just because, and moved quickly through my house. They guaranteed delivery for me in LA in about 17 days, and even got there ahead of schedule. The even moved a bunch of stuff from one room to another after I changed my mind on where I wanted things. Not a single thing broke in my kitchen pack which is pretty remarkable (I have lots of fragile glasses).

Again great guys, great service, great company. I'd recommend them 100%.

Service cost: $6995

To begin with the three man crew for loading was a two man crew and I ended up having to help them myself. Therefore it took much much longer to load than it should have as was sated by the movers themselves a number of times. Then of course the damages and lost/stolen items. This company has shown nothing but total Disregard for damaged, lost/or stolen items, for damages movers did to the home. Boxes marked fragile CRUSHED at the bottom of the stack, expensive coffee and end table set all pieces damaged one extensively. Brand new bed, ruined by straps cutting through padding to the metal underneath and a number of other things and then of course the things that never arrived. Like an expensive hand truck, (convenient they can use that in their business)  as well as boxes of kitchen and bath items. Disregard for their contract stating 6-8 weeks for claims settlement. Its been much longer than that over 3 months now and they still will not respond. I call twice a week or more on attorneys advice and document every call, and they will not respond, there is no way to get to anyone but dispatch and she just says she will pass along the message AGAIN!!   I have severely damaged items, lost or stolen items and door frames damaged by the move in crew. I sent the required photos 29 of them to be exact and still no response to many many emails and calls.   This company is a rip off and I believe if you disregard your own contracts stated claims process that is fraud after all its partof the contract and the assurance people are paying for. ALL IN ALL THE WORST MOVING COMPANY EXPERIENCE I HAVE EVER HAD!! AND THEY STILL WILL NOT REPSOND TO  MY CLAIMS!

Service cost: $3674

This Co moved me in July of 2011. I was told I would get VIP direct move service but they stored my stuff, not that bad in itself but by doing so they damaged two of my antique chairs and broke a third one. They also lost four! of my paintings and stole my coin collection right out of my living room. There was other breakage and theft of minor items also. As compensation for this horror story (after I complained to the BB) they offered $250 claiming I should have bought additional private insurance. Theft from the home and willful damage is not an insurance issue but I lowered my total claim of $2k to $583 but they refused to pay. The useless BB kept their A- rating and determined my claim as resolved which it isn't. Do not move with this shyster Co!  .

Service cost: $3845

My experience with this company was not good at all. I had quotes for cheaper moves when they called and said they could do it cheaper, around 1200. I agreed of course. The quote came out for more, but in a pinch to move again I agreed. The move was not to exceed 2250 as stated on the quote however I ended up paying of 3300. Then they said 10 days to deliver the furniture, this is not good for anybody, how do you take off work for that?. Yes its 10 Mon-Fri days. The dispatcher who I can't remember the name was very rude. When the furniture arrived it was damaged and items missing, lots of things broken inside well packed boxes. . You can tell the boxes were thrown around and tipped  over, especially when we unpacked them. Also they tried to give me someone elses stuff. I'm sure they were upset when they didn't get their stuff.
Over all experience is I will never use them again.

Service cost: $3113

I'm sorry to write such a long review, I usually try to keep it shorter, but there is so much to tell!!

The good:
They showed up during the times they said they would (well, just barely)
The final amount I paid was less than what they quoted me and the price was very reasonable.
The movers who picked up and dropped off my stuff were very friendly and moved quickly.
They booked me at the last minute.

The bad:
Since the price of the move is based on weight, I had been told by their secretary, star, that when the movers came, they would load and weight my stuff, and then I would get a copy of the weigh slip. When the movers came, they said that was not their procedure, but that I would get an email with my weight. I called and e-mailed several times asking for the weight..2 weeks later after many excuses (our system is down, it is not our standard procedure to tell you the weight until the truck arrives to deliver, the weigh slip must have gotten lost) I received the weight via phone. But, I NEVER saw a weigh slip even on delivery!! The only reason I agreed to pay was because I was contracted to pay 80% of the quote so even if they were lying about the weight (which i'm pretty sure they were) I had to pay the 80% so I did.

Per the contract, I paid 50% of the estimated price on pick up. I had to e-mail and call several times to get a receipt for this cash payment, but I did finally get it. I paid the remaining balance upon arrival and I have asked for a receipt for that and still haven't received it (it's been 4 days since they dropped off my stuff).

My stuff was picked up at the end of June and I said the first day I could receive it was July 5th. they say they will deliver within 10 business days (from July 5th) and you would think since they work 7 days a week, every day would count as a business day, but it doesn't so my stuff wasn't delivered until July 17th. I sent an e-mail asking why the weekends don't count as business days, and Steve keeps telling me he is busy and will respond to my e-mail (i sent almost a week ago) but I haven't got a response yet.

Also Eric called me on a Saturday saying that he was planning to get a truck out to deliver my stuff "early to mid week". I told him the best days for delivery would be wed, thrus, fri, or sat and he said that shouldn't be a problem. I understand that things change, but he should have called me to let me know. so by Thursday I had not heard from him so I had to call him and he said the truck would be there by "the end of the day Sunday". Well, it certainly was the end of the day, they arrived at 9pm on Sunday night, and after getting their semi truck stuck in our driveway, were there until 11 pm.

Every time I would call to talk to them about a problem, they would cut me off mid sentence. I therefore asked to only correspond via e-mail, not only to avoid the frustration of talking to them on the phone, but also to have things in writing since I began to realize what they told me verbally was not what they were going to do. When I asked for the delivery date & time to be e-mailed to me, they still insisted on calling me and said that it was standard procedure to get a verbal confirmation from me..really? why would written confirmation not be OK? I never got an answer to this either.

One item they transported for me was my bicycle which was given to them completely intact. They took off my front wheel for transport, which I wouldn't have a problem with, except they were going to just leave it like that and I had to ask them to put it back on. I didn't watch them do it, but somehow they put the handlebars back on sideways when putting the front wheel on.

I had also asked that the one item they be extra careful with was our kitchen table, and that was the one item (that I have found so far, I haven't finished unpacking yet) that was damaged!!

The final straw for me was the voice mail I received from them today. I had e-mailed Eric two separate times asking if they accepted American Express credit cards (he never responded to these e-mails) and the driver who dropped off my stuff processed my payment with an American express card. Then I got a call this morning saying that they don't accept American express and that they had charged another card I had given them without even asking me! This was a debit card so what if I had not had sufficient funds?!! The payment was already processed through my bank and thankfully I had enough money, but seriously?

I really feel that this company is dishonest and unprofessional. if I had not insisted on getting things in writing, I feel they would have tried to scam me on the price.

Service cost: $1120

I used Viking to move from the Bay area to Los Angeles last month. The whole process was pretty simple from start to finish. My sales person Richard was very thorough and upfront about all the costs associated with my move. He gave me a great, not to exceed price, and that was exactly what I paid. The quality of the work was great too, the team the sent was professional and courteous. They wrapped up all my furniture with blankets and shrink wrap, and my stuff arrived in LA well within their time frame of 10 business days. I would definitely recommend their services to anyone looking for a hard working, professional team to help with their move.

Service cost: $2700

Spoke with Robin, about my move from san francisco to palm springs,he gave me an honest estimate, 2 months later on the specified day and time of move, movers showed up on time. movers  wrapped all furniture loaded up the truck with 40  huge boxes plus furniture in 2 hours the house was completely empty and cleaned up. Robin the salesman called later to follow up on the progress of the move.  The next day in Palm Springs, furniture and all belongings were delivered on  specified time of delivery, unloaded the furniture to specified places in the house. Within 2 hours the new house was in order.  All the movers were very courteous and  professional.  No goods got damaged nor lost. The amount quoted was what I paid, no extra charges.  Will use them again in the near future.  I   highly recommend Viking Movers.

Service cost: $2000

To the customers that are considering using Viking Moving and Storage:   Viking Moving and Storage is owned and operated by one, Eric Hilson.  VM&S has previously operated under the name West Coast Moving and Storage and it was only when their reputation with the Better Business Bureau was so tarnished through bad practice, and their unwillingness to work with the BBB, Department of Transportation, and the Public Utility Commission, that they became Viking Moving and Storage.  They are also looking into changing their name again, as Viking has a very bad reputation ALREADY! Please don’t get me wrong, Eric Hilson is a FANTASTIC salesman.  He will promise you the world, and tell you that because he is the COO, he can deliver.  The reality is that he COULD deliver, but absolutely will not.  The people that he employs are all great people.  They are genuinely interested in helping their customers with their moves.  Unfortunately, once the move is booked, with a credit card deposit of $100, Eric will now have the upper hand.  It will be only after the move begins, or your belongings are picked up, that you will be charged 1.5-2X the price quoted. I’ve seen it happen over and over again, and he has continued to operate without any consequences.  The small fines from the DOT are just a drop in the bucket to him and thus he doesn’t mind paying them as long as he is allowed to continue STEALING YOUR MONEY. He has even charge customer’s credit cards, without their knowledge. in the excess of $500 FOR NO REASON! Please do not fall victim to Eric’s scam.  Save yourself the time and money.  There are many choices for a moving company and not all are good, but if you do the proper research and check the BBB and DOT sites, you will save yourself a great hassle.  Please heed this warning, regardless of what Eric tells you.  He will say that every one of his disgruntled employees are drug addicts and drunks and that is why we are so unhappy, when the reality is that the only person Eric cares about is himself and filling HIS wallet.    I will continue to post daily as YELP filters the reviews and I want to make sure that I can help as many people as possible. You can contact me via YELP if you have any questions.

Service cost: $1000000