Zippy Shell Incorporated

My wife and I relocated from Chicago to Chapel Hill, NC because she accepted a new job. The job provided us with temporary housing while we sold our condo in Chicago and tried to find a home in Chapel Hill. We decided we would use Zippy Shell as they would not only move, but could store our belongings while we transitioned from our condo to our new home. They were an absolute disaster!
While getting a quote from Zippy, my wife worked with a moving specialist who went through a checklist of our items and the size of our condo. He told us we would need one 15' shell. She asked for two to be safe. Twice. Each time she was told only one was needed. A moving company would be subcontracted to load our belongings into the shell. We set the date for the loading.
The day of the loading the shell arrived 30 minutes early. We live in the city and were lucky enough to have space on the street in front of our condo to park the truck and shell. The driver would wait with the shell in case it needed to be moved. The movers called to say they would be there early, which was 45 minutes AFTER our scheduled start time. Part of the agreement with Zippy Shell is you have a 3hr window to pack the shell. The movers said their paperwork from Zippy said a 10am start time. I spoke with the driver who indicated his paperwork said 9am. We called Zippy because we were worried we would go past our window with the movers arriving late. They said the movers were running late and they would try to help us if we ran over our window. The movers arrived with paperwork from Zippy that showed 10am. My wife called Zippy while I talked to the driver. Zippy was adamant the movers were late. The driver showed me a text message from his boss saying he forgot to tell him the move got pushed back an hour. Zippy lied to us and blamed the movers. Great start. The movers walked through our unit and indicated one shell will not be enough for our items. We called Zippy, and here's where things go off the rails. They said they couldn't get us a shell that day. They wouldn't be able to get us a shell until the following Monday (the move was on a Friday). We had made travel arrangements to leave Chicago later that day. I talked to driver and explained the issue. His response was that Zippy could get another shell to us but won't because they don't want to pay overtime to a driver to bring one. We pleaded with the customer service rep. The response was this was our fault, that we filled out the checklist incorrectly. The same checklist that their moving specialist filled out over the phone. No one came to our home to see what we had. We asked for two shells and were told twice we only needed one. The rep did offer one solution..we rent a Uhaul, pack the remainder of our belongings, drive them to their warehouse and then pack them ourselves into a shell there. So we would pay them while we moved our own stuff. Got it. At no point did they offer any sympathy or a willingness to help us. We were told it was our fault and they couldn't do anything. At their mercy, we had to schedule a second move. They were a room and a half short by the way, not just slightly off in their estimate. We would have to pay for this second move. And I would have to take time out of work and purchase a plane ticket to fly back to Chicago to be there. We set the move up for the following Saturday morning. The driver arrived with the pod. The street was now full so I told him we would just have to load in the alleyway. He said the shell was set up as a drop and not for him to stay with it. You can't drop a shell in the city. It's a fire hazard in the alleyway. The last move was not set as a drop. Why would they set the second one as a drop? He said he would call his boss and see what they wanted to do but that they might have to cancel the move because he had another drop to make in the morning. I flew back to Chicago to complete this move and I was being told it might need to be cancelled. I couldn't believe it. After a few unsuccessful calls he decided on his own he would take the shell to his next stop. He would then grab another and drive back with it and stay with it. This was a life saver. However, I now had movers at my condo waiting for two hours for a shell to arrive. Loading of the second shell was completed and I was able to make my flight back to NC.
Once we closed on our new home we set the delivery of our two pods. They showed up late of course. And with only one pod! We asked about the second pod. The driver wasn't aware of a second pod. We reached out to Zippy but our moving coordinator was not in the office yet. We spoke to someone else who said they would look into it. We heard back from our move coordinator 2 hours after the unloading started. The subcontracted movers were done with the first pod. We were told the second pod was running a little bit behind but would be there in 30 minutes. An hour later, still no pod. We were told it was common that they staggered pods for unloading and it would be there within the hour. I found this interesting that they would hire a moving company to sit at my house waiting for the pod. Clearly another lie. Another hour, no pod. Finally, 6 hours after the first pod arrived our second one made it to our door.
To be fair, both moving companies that were subcontracted did a good job. We had minimal damage and both were courteous and diligent.
Overall, this was the worst moving experience I have ever had. They were unorganized, they lied, they blamed us for their mistakes, and in the end we ended up paying almost double their original quote, not to mention having to take time out of work and pay for flights. Do not use this company. It will be a decision you will regret.

Service cost: $5300

As a millennial who is always on the go, I truly appreciate the uniqueness that Zippy Shell brings when it comes to making a move.

I grew up with a father in the military and spent my entire life moving every couple of years. However, I have never had a better moving experience than with Zippy Shell! Everything from the price to the customer service is outstanding and incomparable!

The storage options really helped free up some space at my new apartment and give me some time to sort things out and decide what I wanted them to haul back to the warehouse for me.

Moving can be stressful. It's easy for people to get frustrated with little things and small mistakes companies like this can make. But I can assure you that Zippy Shell is truly unmatched when looking at other storage and moving options. I can't say enough good things about them!

Service cost: $2000

Where do I begin? I have relocated and lived in 8 different states so that means I have experiene with van lines, direct, and contract broker movers (don't use brokers) No move has compared to Zippy Shell and I am now a loyal customer. The owner, John, made the whole process so easy! We had an amazing team of gentleman that treated our items with genuine care. They were careful with all the furniture and they listened to all our concerns.. but after a few minutes of watching them work, our concerns melted away because it was evident these guys knew what they were doing. We had a long distance move that required a next day meet for unloading. Timothy and Montreal called us 10 minutes before our meet time to confirm we were still on schedule. (They did that for loading too)
Thank you Zippy Shell for making this move so stress free! Thank you Timothy and Montreal for being rock stars and going the extra mile with a smile!!

Service cost: $100000000

Zippy Shell's only value proposition to customers is that they coordinate the moving and storage of your goods with local franchisees and/or 3rd parties in the origin and destination markets, but they failed me at every point in the process. Before pickup, I called my moving coordinator (they moved from a dedicated coordinator to a pool of coordinators during our move) to let her know that we would likely need some items moved through our 2nd floor window because of narrow stairs. They were providing free loading help since they didn't have enough shells to drop one off with us and I wanted to make sure the movers could handle this. The rep assured me this would be fine but on moving day the movers were shocked and refused to help us. I had to scramble to find and pay handymen to move our things and was told by ZS I'd be reimbursed for this since their rep noted my call but never acted on it. At our destination, the day before our move the local warehouse called to confirm delivery but told me he had no idea what time they'd arrive. I had called the moving coordinators a few days prior and they'd said the shell would be delivered from 8-12 and I'd hired movers to help unload starting at noon. When I told the guy on the phone his response was that "they're in Florida and we're in California" as if that makes it ok. I ended up having to reschedule the movers; thank goodness they were actual professionals and very accommodating. Finally, once the shell was dropped off, it was locked with a lock that could only be opened with bolt cutters and yet the guy who dropped it off had no bolt cutters. I was once again promised by ZS that I'd be reimbursed for buying my own bolt cutters.

So far, I've not received a dime of reimbursement and I've been promised that a manager would contact me for almost 2 weeks now with no attempt to reach me despite multiple follow-up emails and phone calls on my part. No one in this company communicates with anyone else even though that's their entire role. If I wanted to contract with a mover, loading help, a storage company, etc. I could have done that. So what the heck did I pay for?

This company talks a big talk but they fail to deliver. Don't trust them with your money. It's a ripoff.

Move size: 1 Bedroom Home Service cost: $3200

Not So Zippy Shell is great about calling to get your business. Once you sign up, that's when the communication ends. We moved from Utah to Florida. They contracted out the delivery service to a mover in Miami. Not So Zippy Shell could not confirm if and when our belongings would arrive. Our stuff arrived and they could not get their act together to schedule a delivery time. Forget about talking to a supervisor, they have no concept about customer service. Stay on top of them if you do decide to contract with them. Their concept of delivery is wait until you are furious and then they'll make your delivery a priority. At that, the delivery crew showed up almost 4 hours later then the latest time they said they'd arrive. It was nice that the delivery movers helped unload. That said, there largest container is too small. Go with PODS! It's the same price per sq ft for the larger container albeit there's no unloading assistant. While I can't speak to PODS customer service, it wouldn't take much to exceed Not So Zippy Shell.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $3100

I hired Zippy Shell for a cross country move from North Carolina to California. The two 15' containers were dropped off and picked up without any issues and I began my drive to Los Angeles. I was given a transit time of 7-10 business days after the pickup on 7/29. I called on 8/4 to make sure they had the delivery address correct and ensure there were no problems. I was told by the customer service rep that my units would be delivered on 8/8. When I didn't hear from them or receive delivery by noon that day I called and was told delivery would be on 8/10 between 8-10am. Again..nothing. I called customer service and was told they weren't even in Los Angeles yet but were "in transit". As of 8/11 no one at Zippy Shell can tell me where my things are or when they'll arrive. I asked to speak with a supervisor and was told I would be called back. I reached out to the person who booked my move and he sympathized with me then transferred me to his supervisor..it went straight to voicemail. I don't know when, or if, I'll receive delivery but I sincerely regret hiring this company to move me. U-Pack is just a little more but guarantees the delivery date or refunds the cost of transit.

Move size: 4+ Bedroom Home Service cost: $4600

We had a horrible experience with zippyshell. They underestimated the amount of storage we would need even after us giving them all that we needed moved. We had to pay for a larger container on the day of the move because the movers we hired through zippy said all our things will not fil in the 15' and 10' containers. Even after the larger container was brought the movers were still not able to fit all of our things and left a lot behind. I had a week to sell my things because they couldn't fill it in the two containers that they said would be enough. On top of that they charged me for heavy lifting and an extra staircase climb! I lost so much money in having to sell my stuff that didn't fit and then having to repurchase in CA. on top of all that I bought a one way ticket so we could fit the essential things we needed in our van so my husband and sons could drive it to CA. I flew with my toddler daughter and arrived here the morning of the delivery. I called them and was told the containers were not there yet. My family drove three days and arrived by Sunday and had to sleep on floors. We are still waiting and sleeping on floors, spent over $700 on things we need that we already posses but don't have yet. Having to eat out because I have nothing to cook in. Kids start school tomorrow and don't have most of their belongings. Our containers were packed and taken on July 25th, its Aug 15th and we still don't have our things! Of course the manager still hasn't called us back. We asked to be compensated by them providing the unloaders but of course the customer service can't authorize that without the manager who never calls. We have been on the phone with them daily with no results. Our things have finally arrived at the warehouse but where have they been all this time and what condition am I going to get my things in? The loaders that we hired through zippy didn't even wrap my furniture in the clear film I bought for them even after me reminding them to do so, we are all so frustrated. Save yourself the headache. The long move was hard enough but these guys have made it harder for us!

Move size: 3 Bedroom Home Service cost: $5000

Absolutely horrific company from top to bottom. Charged us $4000 to move from Minnesota to New Jersey. They said our stuff would be arriving in NYC within 10 business days. On the 9th day, it hadn't even left Minnesota. But they wouldn't let me speak to a manager because it was still in their contracted time frame. Apparently they have particle accelerators at Zippy Shell!

Needless to say, my items didn't arrive in New Jersey for another 6 days, at which point they had had my stuff for 18 calendar days. Throughout this experience, I had been trying to get a hold of their customer service manager, Rod. Rod is a hard man to get a hold of. I made the grievous mistake of missing his first call and calling him back minutes later, only to be told that I had now dropped to the bottom of his call list and had to wait 48 hours for another call. Well, 3 days later he finally called. And on that lovely call, he lied and told me that he had tried to call me multiple times, so this whole situation was essentially my fault for not answering. He also told me that his company had done well because my stuff was "only 3 business days late in reaching the warehouse". Meanwhile, I still don't have my stuff delivered, and we're on day 19, and it still won't be here for 2 more days. Don't ever, ever, ever use Zippy Shell.

Move size: Studio Service cost: $4000

It's clearly the worst, and so are it's employees.
I have been in contact with Roderick Bethune, the customer service manager for over three weeks demanding a refund.
He continues to say how valuable my time is and how much he appreciates my business yet will do nothing to show it. He said in one of many emails..
"I would be more than happy to discuss any other ideas in regards to compensation with you to come to a resolution. We hope you understand how valued you are and how much we appreciate your business. Please let me know how you would like to proceed."
I let him know how I would like to proceed. I want my money back.

Here's his email address. Be sure to let him know Jill sent you.
rbethune@zippyshell.com.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $4000

After reading many of the negative reviews of Zippy Shell, we felt that it was mainly people with bad experiences that leave reviews and most people who were pleased did not bother to leave a review. My son was moving from a downtown Chicago apartment to Marina Del Rey, CA.

I called nearly every pod type moving company to get their rates. Pack-Rat and PODS were the most expensive coming in at around $3k. Also, a few of the companies could not come into the downtown area of Chicago due to some zoning/parking regulations. Zippy’s quote for a 10’ was a bit over $2100. Since we were only in the early stages of looking, our quote expired after a few days. About a week later, Michael G., my Zippy Moving Consultant, emailed me saying that due to reduced moving costs, my original quote dropped from ~$2115 to $1820. By now, I was ready to book. We decided that my son needed the larger, 15’ shell and booked that for $2088.

I called the local Chicago Zippy warehouse and explained that I was hiring movers and need to know exactly when the shell would arrive, as a 3 hour window would not work as I was paying the movers by the hour. He told me that if I took the first appointment of the day, he could get it to me at 8 AM, (+/- 30 minutes). We agreed on a day. At about 7:45, on the day of the move, the driver called saying he was stuck in heavy Chicago traffic and he’d be there about 8:30. I told him that was fine as the movers had not yet arrived.

The movers loaded my son’s stuff into the shell in about 90 minutes. The driver remained at the apartment with the shell in the truck. The move went very smoothly. The top of the caged shell was already covered in plastic wrap and they explained that the shell, when loaded, would be completely wrapped in plastic. We were contacted about 10 days later that the shell had arrived in L.A. We scheduled an 8 AM delivery in L.A. for about a week later.

L.A. traffic is brutal and on the day of the delivery, both my son’s movers and the shell arrived about 8:45, which worked out great.

Bottom line… Zippy Shell’s price, customer service and overall performance were excellent. I would definitely recommend them.

Move size: Studio Service cost: $2088