move report- Bates Moving Co., Maryland to NC

[pigglet824]

Hello all.
i recently moved from MD to NC using Bates Moving Co. out of Salisbury MD. There aren't a lot of options in that small area, so we got a couple estimates and went with Bates. We were lucky to have only our things on a small truck, although I was disappointed to see they brought a small truck and our stuff barely fit on there (yet they came and did an on-site estimate of my home). The movers were good with exception to one guy who was completely obnoxious and unprofessional. He was sliding my boxes down the stairwell from the attic (??!!), dropped the washer on the front steps so loudly that it sounded like a gun had gone off, etc. He just rushed around and picked up boxes, and handled things roughly. Once we got to NC, there were 2 new guys from the local NC Mayflower group here to unload into storage. Both were nice. The driver was the same at pick-up and there at delivery. He was nice. Overall was pleased but my furniture is damaged and would assume this is due to the aforementioned employee who acted careless with our things. Several pieces of furniture are badly damaged (the finish on top and visible portions of dresser, bed, and couch). We plan to file a claim. The owners (Von Paris) is what sold me on using them, but they need to fire that one employee. So, my overall review is 3 out of 5 stars. A plus in using them is that they were very professional with paperwork, guarenteed a delivery date with no charge, and were generally great to work with. A downside is of course the damaged goods. And, with my things in storage, I have to wonder if there are other damaged things that that one employee damaged. Hope this helps, as you can add this review for future movers using Von Paris in other areas. I would recommend Bates, but with reservations.

[farrah7031]

Thanks for coming back to post a review. Here's the previous post:
http://www.movingscam.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=14870&highlight=

[farrah7031]

Did you purchase the additional valuation with a $0 (zero) deductible?

Damages are inevitable in moving, no matter who you chose. It sounds like overall, they did a good job. Make sure not to file a claim until you look at everything you put into storage, as you only get to file 1 claim.

[pigglet824]

thanks. Yes, damages are inevitable, but when you see employees tossing things around and acting carelessly, it doesn't help things and almost makes you wonder "what if..." Nevertheless, thanks for the rec's on waiting to get my stuff out of storage before filing a claim. I didn't reallize that I have 9 mos to file until the paperwork for the claim arrived in the mail.
We are planning to move fully into a new house well before that deadline --and so we'll just wait to file that claim. Thanks again to everyone who helped me decide and for being a part of such an effective and helpful forum.
-amanda

[Diane]

[Noone]

You MUST check with the insurance carrier as to their specific terms.
I can only speak for the insurance companies that I have used, however neither of the two I have worked with care if it is moved into a self-storage facility. The concern is if the goods are moved before the claim gets filed.
So, I'll use an example:
Goods get delivered into self storage.
45 days later a claim gets filed.
15 days after that, the goods are moved again to final home.
The above scenario is OK.
Versus:
Goods get delivered into self storage.
45 days later the goods get moved again into final home.
15 days after that, claim is filed.
This scenario would get turned down, as the Insurance company doesn't know if the damage occured on the first or second move (or while it was in self-store).
If the self-storage was broken into, or had a fire, before a claim was made, they would have grounds to reject the claim, as the damage might have been a result of the break-in or fire. The only instance where I had this happen (a break-in to a home after the move-in) the insurance company paid out anyway, based on an appraisers opinion that the damage was likely the cause of the move. How or why they came to this decision I'll never know, but it's thier money, and it made my customer happy, so what do I care?
As a rule, the insurance company takes a leap of faith that you won't break something and then report it as having been broken during the move. Properly, they just make sure they collect enough premiums to pay out AND make a profit.
Of course, you MUST check with the insurance carrier as to their specific terms.

[EastCoastMover]

not to get into a peeing match with noone BUT... neither example will bring any satisfaction to you if you file a claim...if you goods were delivered into mini storage and you did not take exceptions noting any damage to you goods, as soon as you signed the delivery reciept your coverage terminated...als the staement that damage is inevitable with any move is bunk also..i moved 126 families last year,packing and loading quite a few,70% being big shipments of at least 20,000 # and i had 1 damage claim for 36.00....you are paying good money for a service and should expect to get your property back EXACTLY as it was when it was removed from your house..imagine going to a doctor and not expecting 100% "service" or calling an electrician and having "most of the lights working...no difference, you should expect 100% satisfaction from your mover too....

[Michael]

Being in sales, I tell my customers they must inspect everything at time of delivery also. Now of course they cant check packed boxes at time of delivery and therefore will stipulate the time they have to file a claim and also once the goods are moved again the valuation ceases to exist. I tell them to pay particular attention to the condition of the boxes as they come off the truck and if they are damaged to set them aside before placing them into storage so they can check them more readily.
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Michael
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Forget yourself for others and the others will never forget