Reviews of Joyce Van Lines

[Jeff.Walker]

With each passing day it seems that Joyce Van Lines distinguishes itself more and more as a leader of excellence in the moving industry. Because of this, MovingScam.com has endorsed Joyce Van Lines. Bill Adams and John Adams have both been singled out on many occasions as being friendly, polite, and reliable. You can contact Bill at 203-561-7837 or John at 860-306-6516 to set up your move. More information and reviews below:

:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup: --Joyce Van Lines (independent) in Oxford. Also owns and operates Callahan Bros., Inc. (independent).
AN OUTSTANDING PERFORMER with at least 30 good reviews and no significant bad reviews on this website. This company has about 60 long-distance drivers and 61 trucks nationwide. It is HQd in Indianapolis for the purpose of interstate licensing. However, it has 10 offices throughout the U.S. and 70% of the bookings are done out of the CT office. As of 4/10 the BBB had processed a total of 6 complaints about Joyce Van Lines, Inc. in the last 36 months, 2 of which were closed on the last year -- not many, considering that Joyce reportedly did 5500 to 7000 moves a year between 2004 and 2010. The BBB has given Joyce's CT office an A+ rating.
Because Callahan Bros. is owned by Joyce and is located nearby, MovingScam.com considers it, like Joyce, A VERY GOOD PERFORMER with at least 20 good reviews and no significant bad reviews as an origin agent on this website. Callahan has the website http://www.callahanbrothers.net and the phone 203-869-2239. As of 7/08 this company had no complaints with the BBB over the past 36 months. It used to be a North American Van Lines agent and has been in business since 1947. An estimator for Joyce explained what happened: "John Callahan retired, his children didn't have any interest in running the business, and he sold his company to Will Joyce in March 2006. Will used to drive for John many years ago, and they've always stayed in touch.":
viewtopic.php?p=91578#91578
"DavidV" posted an excellent review of a move with Callahan and Joyce in 7/08 (see under Joyce Van Lines below).
Moving professionals have spoken of Joyce very highly because of its ability to self-haul shipments using its own trucks and drivers (desirable) and to pick up shipments - even small shipments - on a specific day. A driver for NAVL ("East Coast Mover") posted that "the reason joyce can discount a little higher is that they are not connected with a major vanline and don’t lose a chunk to them..will joyce runs a real tight ship and they are a very good company…a close friend of mine went to work for them in dispatch 2 years ago after 20 years with another mover and has nothing but good things to say... " - viewtopic.php?p=50643#50643 On the same thread, another long-haul driver (ECM, now posting as "I-95") added that one of his friends had left Clark & Reid (a very high-end company) to drive for Joyce.
Joyce does many large, high-end corporate account moves as well as a lot of military work. Will Joyce, the hands-on company owner, works out of the Oxford, CT office. He grew up in Stamford, CT and is himself a former driver. The driver who said above that agents "lose a chunk" to the van lines was referring to the fact that on interstate moves that they register with their van lines, agents typically have to pay the van lines 10% to 15% of the linehaul. Since Joyce self-hauls everything, this doesn't come into play. Also, the drivers are likely to be motivated to do a good job in a self-haul situation like Joyce where they are rated for service quality on every move. There is a stiff chargeback to drivers if there is damage.
"Alba" posted in 2003 that she was going to use Joyce for a local move because they seemed professional and added that they were asking for a $100 deposit, which Tim Walker (website owner) said was normal in the busy season, but she never came back to report:
viewtopic.php?t=411 (local)
We have one bad report on Joyce by "mike in columbia" for a within-state move involving storage where there was damage to items; he said that he was trying to negotiate a settlement but never came back to report:
viewtopic.php?p=37813#37813 (within-state)
As of 2/06, a couple of people ("CTMove" and "LDM509") were poised to use Joyce for interstate moves. The first one was moving to GA. The second one told one of the MovingScam moderators in a Private Message that the Joyce estimator (Bill Adams, cell phone number 203-525-7055) made a very good impression and that Joyce even offers "recycled" boxes from corporate moves for free if people can pick them up in Oxford. Another estimator for Joyce (John Adams) came on MovingScam to offer assistance as needed. "LDM509" (real name Lynn) later came back to say that the move went very well:
viewtopic.php?p=52463#52463
viewtopic.php?t=9105 (interstate)
In 1/07 one of the MovingScam moderators talked on the phone with John Adams about another matter and he told her that he and Bill Adams are brothers and cover different parts of CT for Joyce. John has been in the business for 20 years and he impressed her as a straight shooter. His cell phone number is 860-306-6516.
She asked John about the claim by "mike in columbia" for water damage referred to above and he reported that the claim had been settled. He said that he himself had worked for agents of major van lines before coming to Joyce 7 years ago and he would never work anywhere else. He said that with the van lines, the agents lose control of the moves that aren't self-hauled and when customers complain, it is frustrating because the agent can't really do anything to help. (We have heard this before.)
In 9/08 the same MovingScam moderator met the Joyce team at the Callahan Bros. facility in Cos Cob (see above photo) and was very impressed with the high quality of the people, from Will Joyce on down.
"ct_to_ca" (moving to CA) posted that Joyce gave a very high Nonbinding estimate:
viewtopic.php?t=7723
"just_moved" posted a very good review of a move from New Haven to San Diego--Joyce moved 6400 pounds plus a car for only $5800. The original estimate was for 5000 pounds but the price stayed the same because the person had a GNTE quote:
viewtopic.php?t=7870 (interstate)
"Confusion" posted an excellent review of a move to NC with Joyce, saying that they loaded quickly and "the crew was wonderful":
viewtopic.php?t=8524 (interstate)
"small move" complained in 9/06 that a local move took 2 days rather than 1 day that was promised, but this may not have been Joyce's fault:
viewtopic.php?t=10045 (local)
"doctord33" moving to IL didn't care for Joyce's rep (no longer with the company as of 2007), who he said made disparaging remarks about William B. Meyer and Kaster in 10/06:
viewtopic.php?p=72979#72979
“Glad2BDone” posted a rave review of a very short notice 50-mile move in 1/08, praising Bill Adams (estimator/district manager) and the crew as "absolutely outstanding":
viewtopic.php?t=15450 (intrastate)
"BonnieS" gave Joyce excellent marks for a 2/08 move to West Virginia, which occurred during very bad weather but the movers (the driver was Richard Evans II) never complained and did a great job:
viewtopic.php?p=107227#107227 (interstate)
"DavidV" posted a rave review of Joyce for his 7/08 move to SC that was booked through Callahan, a company owned by Joyce (see above). He singled out Bill Adams, Ann and Barb in the office, and especially the driver Richard Evans for praise - "the most pleasant moving experience imaginable":
viewtopic.php?t=16876 (interstate)
"davefaiman" posted an excellent review of a very large move to OH in 8/08, praising especially John Adams (estimator), Dawn in the office, and the driver John Colaccio:
viewtopic.php?t=17107 (interstate)
"newhaventophoenix" posted an excellent report on Joyce in 9/08 for a move to AZ, giving favorable mention to John Adams (estimator) as well as the driver Frank Lutz and his wife Cindy:
viewtopic.php?t=17276 (interstate)
In 11/08, "dlinck" (real name Darren) posted a rave review of a move from CT to GA with Joyce, praising especially the driver Fernando Castillo, who managed to load three cars and two motorcycles in the same van with the household goods, with no damage:
viewtopic.php?t=17540 (interstate including 3 cars)
"PhillyPhanatic" posted an excellent review of his move from CT to Philadelphia with Joyce in 12/08, saying that they were very professional and he would use them again:
viewtopic.php?t=17631 (interstate)
"Nelima 1581" used Joyce for a NY-CA move, including one month of storage, saying the movers were polite, quick, reasonably priced, and always accessible for questions. Move coordinated by Bill Adams, who shares his knowledge with the MovingScam community:
viewtopic.php?t=18678 (interstate)
"Rea.Mark" heartily recommends Joyce after a MA-OH move. The family car was loaded onto the trailer along with the household goods. Good price, great service, kudos to Jeff Johnson and John Adams:
viewtopic.php?t=18634 (interstate)
"lewynli" posted a good review of Joyce for a move within CT in 8/09, praising especially John Adams and Janice Silvia:
viewtopic.php?t=18522 (intrastate)
"MichaelSharon1" used Joyce for a move within CT in 10/09 and singled out employee Jeff Johnson for praise:
viewtopic.php?t=18706 (intrastate)
"RJK " Used Joyce Van Lines on a local move and had good things to say:
viewtopic.php?t=18887
An Excellent review by jbmill3 who singled out Bill Adams for his efforts during their move -
viewtopic.php?t=19040
Another great review by Colin C who gave Joyce Van Lines 5 stars and singled out Bill Adams and June for praise for their efforts.
viewtopic.php?t=19135
gferguson37 had a "great experience from the very beginning" of their move with Joyce Van Lines
viewtopic.php?t=19165
mprovencher describes the Joyce Van Lines employees as "completely professional" in their post on 5/10:
viewtopic.php?t=19231
kmcherry gave the Joyce team high praise on 7/14/10
viewtopic.php?t=19532
ragadioclark said on 11/14/10 that she was "Truly Impressed" with the Joyce team:
viewtopic.php?t=19908
Jalbright praised John Adams in his review on his move from Conneticut to Wisconsin:
viewtopic.php?p=136298#136298
refehr praised Richard for an "exemplary" move in their post on 1/13/11:
viewtopic.php?t=20046
colmanc had high praise for Joyce and Bill Adams in their review on 3/8/11:
viewtopic.php?t=20210
saikat singled out Bill Adams and June Myerson for high praise for their coast to coast move on 3/11/11:
viewtopic.php?t=20221
christinelundmolfese said she had a "Wonderful expierience" with Joyce on 4/20/11:
viewtopic.php?t=20360
"mgill" had high praise for Bill Adams and the moving crew in this review on 6/17/11:
viewtopic.php?t=20579
"O3ozone" described their move with Joyce as "Great" on 6/23/11:
viewtopic.php?t=20604
"MikeAtWork" said he gave Joyce "5 Stars" in his review on 6/1/11:
viewtopic.php?t=20655
"Yves" described Joyce's efforts as "Professionally done" in her post on 8/31/11:
viewtopic.php?t=20944
"unc1995" described Joyce as "extremely professional and efficient" in their move from New York to North Carolina on 9/28/11:
viewtopic.php?t=21031
"John Ciolino" singled out his driver Richard for praise for his move from Conneticut to North Carolina in his review on 10/22/11:
viewtopic.php?t=21071

[danceparty]

My wife and I used Joyce for our move from Brooklyn, NY to Mountain View, CA. The guys who came to pick up our boxes were nice and professional, as were the guys who delivered everything. Indeed, Bill Adams was very nice and helpful, as was everyone at Joyce that I talked to. During both pickup and delivery, Bill checked in to see how everything was going.

OK, the only problem we did have was that when we unpacked our plasma tv, there was a large crack in the screen and it would no longer turn on. A 3000 mile move, well things happen. But the good news is that I had purchased full-valuation insurance and the claim process with Joyce could not have been easier. The process was quick and hassle-free. I even received my reimbursement in less than a week.

So even though our property was damaged, Joyce was quick to rectify the problem and because of that, I would use them again and highly recommend Joyce to anyone who asked.

One thing I will note is that I would not recommend using Lowe's moving boxes. Perhaps for a short move they would be fine, but for a long-distance move like ours, no. All the boxes were crumpled, some had holes, etc. We also shipped some via UPS and they arrived with large tears in them. They simply aren't strong enough so be careful in what boxes you use. I would consider them storage boxes, not moving boxes.

[BillB]

Just relocated from CO to IL

For the record, I have moved cross country 5 times so I have a little experience with different companies and even did it once myself (U-Haul)

I have only ever had one other bad experience which speaks well for the companies that our relcation group chooses. In that case the company destroyed a weight bench but to their credit I was paid within the week.

This was my first and only move with Joyce, and I had not heard of them previously.

Two drivers from Connecticut were very nice and the local talent they used were both very pleasant and experienced. They actually finished up a half day early on the front end and took very good care of the property we were leaving. From talking to the local workers they had several years experience working with moving companies. They used a Joyce truck and a U-haul they had rented and there was someone elses stuff in the nose of the Joyce truck

On the other end they used day laborers that were horrible. Lots od scratches in the floors and marks on the walls. They seemed to use a much lower quality plastic on the carpet. It was only after they finished unloading that we realized that they had not packed the contents of several large pieces of bedroom furniture and my large snap-on toolbox was also moved with the contents inside. This meant that the contents had shifted during flight and in some cases wedged themselves behind drawers, etc

My tools had all slid to one end of the box and I had to go through and empty all the drawers and replace the pads in the bottom and then replace the tools in the drawers.

It was during that process that I deicovered a watch that belonged to my wife in one of the drawers with the tools. Luckily it had escaped damage but since it was in a dresser drawer in the box prior to the move it raises some serious questions???

Other dressers, etc had to be completely emptied and items recovered from behind drawers, etc

As they were finishing up we noticed a missing glass insert for one table and luckily discovered it intact, in the trash on the truck

And the highliight came when the craters came to unpack our other glass tops and dining room table. Our $6,000 italian marble table top had cracked in half. That started a long drawn out process that took 5 weeks to (mostly)complete

Note: this same table had been moved 4 times before with no issues!

I have not been able to park both vehicles inside for those 5 weeks

They sent one person to look at whether they could repair it- which was impossible

Then two weeks went by with them swearing that an adjuster was coming out. When I finally pitched a fit they sned a local marble company to come get the table. But they would not take the base, so I was still parking outside.

The marble company said they could build a new top for around $4300

So my wife spent half a day driving to a stone supplier to look at the marble they were going to use

It was the wrong type (did not match the base) and they did not have enough to build the top

They had some she liked but it would cost $9,000 just for the stone

They said they would have to special order the stone from Italy

We told Joyce we were done doing any of their legwork and to pay us the $6000 we paid for the table

They stuck to the $4300 number even though that was only the cost to make a new top and the quote was based on material that did not exist

After another week we settled for $5,000 just so we can start looking for a new table and move on(the check arrived 5 weeks after the move in)

And the base is still in my garage so I still park outside

I have encouraged my company to switch relocation mgt firms or at least not allow the current one to use Joyce

[Diane]

There is another very positive review of Joyce Van Lines that was posted here in 9/11 - http://www.movingscam.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=21031

[BillAdams]

I am sorry your move was less than perfect. Richard and Malcolm, your Joyce team have been with the company for many years. They are dedicated, proud company men and were very upset about the issues that happened on their watch. They are rated highly in our internal metrics and strive to keep it that way. I personally reviewed your move defects with them.

Joyce Van Lines, Inc. contracts with a third party service for crating and uncrating. This is industry standard for corporate relocations. Your claim settlement for the broken table top was slowed down by the amount claimed, the claims process itself and the fact you were unable to provide proof of the purchase price.

On October 14 we received an e-mail from your relocation company instructing Joyce to pick up the table base. Your customer service representative immediately contacted your wife and made arrangements to have it picked up on Friday, October 21. Until that e-mail we were told you wanted to keep the base.

I invite you to call me so I can speak with you privately about your experience and make it right.

Best,

William H. Joyce

President/Owner

[Arto]

In December 2011, with holidays looming, I had an excellent move with Joyce Van Lines from Malibu, CA to Grosse Pointe, MI with additional dropoffs in Brooklyn, NY and Southampton, NY. Got excellent support from agent Dierdre Wittmann at the Joyce home office (Oxford, CT). They estimated based on 13,500 pounds, full pack but no unpack except for assembling the beds, stairways at all stops, crates for two paintings. The estimate was $16,980 including $150K insurance with $500 deductible. Fortunately, I asked for, and Mr. Joyce approved, a "not to exceed" rather than the original "fixed price" bid. This gave me a good refund as you will see.
Changes along the way: Our street in Malibu is so "crowned" that the trailer would have bottomed out - so they had to use many trips of a shuttle truck to load the trailer. We canceled the Brooklyn stop and sent all the NY stuff to Southampton. Joyce split the load in California onto two separate trucks. And what really helped us was that the final weight turned out to be 10,860 pounds.
We would up getting $2,217 refunded to our credit card, even after paying $2,830 for the (unexpected) shuttle service.
Excellent packing, no breakage that we have found (though we are still digging out of the boxes three weeks later), and no lost items (though several items lost their inventory stickers en route). I recommend these folks and would use Joyce Van Lines again, without hesitation. We have used a variety of moving companies thru the years and these folks are the best I have seen. javascript:emoticon(':D')

[Jeff.Walker]

This review came in from the comments section of the web site:

Joyce Van Lines recently moved us from Connecticut to Kentucky, and it was far and away the best moving experience we've ever had. Their representative, John Adams, accommodated all of our wishes when he came to give us an initial estimate, and Jan in the office and driver Richard Evans made sure all of our requests were met.

Richard and his helper Matt were fast, efficient and careful throughout the move. I would never consider moving again with any other company but Joyce.

[Jeff.Walker]

Another review that came in from the comments section of the site:

We recently moved and used Callahan Brothers/Joyce Van Lines. They were tremendously professional, very accomodating and each mover kept a pleasant personality despite the tremendous heat and amount of items we had to move.
Every item arrived safely. I recommend them very highly, they made our move
so much easier than we thought it would be.

[Jeff.Walker]

This review came in through the "Open Community Forum":

http://www.movingscam.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=21912

I recently moved across country and had enlisted Joyce Van Lines. The quote was quite reasonable - in addition the movers very professional and accommodating. As I am retired they helped me open boxes and put my clothes in the closet. I was very satisfied with this company and highly recommend them if you need a mover.

[Jeff.Walker]

Another review from the "Open Community" Forum:

http://www.movingscam.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=21959

Just wanted to drop a quick note to let everyone know that Joyce Van Lines is the moving company you want. The process was effortless. John Adams came to my home and did a walk-through, jotting down everything I would need from boxes, packaging and an accurate estimate. He gave me a contact at his office who will answer any of my questions and help me with my move. Jan was always available. On moving day, the crew arrived on time. I was assigned four men and the driver, who was my lead contact. They were professional, worked quickly, and knew exactly what to do. When they arrived at my new home, they unloaded the truck quickly and placed everything where it needed to be. No damage, no scratches and the crew was still pleasant to work with even after several hours of moving in the summer heat. They really worked hard and made this move very easy for me. I highly recommend Joyce Van Lines and in fact, I have already recommended them to my realtor, friends and my sister, who will be moving in October.

[mogonza]

I just got off the phone with Bill Adams from Joyce. Right off the bat he told me he would probably not be able to move me as he has no one in my area for an in home inspection. So, knowing he was unable to get my business, he talked to me ANYWAYS. He took the time to educate me about what to look for, listen for, and to avoid at all costs. He even emailed me a quote, and a furniture list for me to forward to prospective movers, thus saving them and me time. Wow, who does that?? SO wish I could use these guys, really do. Anyways, I asked him for his recommendations, and he willingly gave me a few he trusts. I will get in contact with them soon, and thanks to all Bill's help, I feel so much better about what to look for in movers now. I can honestly say, I have never spent 15 minutes on the phone with any company who knows in advance I am not using there services. Thanks so much!!

[Jeff.Walker]

A new review has been posted for this company in the Review Verification System! To see this review, click here!

http://www.movingscam.com/reviews/index ... ny&mid=846

[Jeff.Walker]

A new review has been posted for this company in the Review Verification System! To see this review, click here!

http://www.movingscam.com/reviews/index ... ny&mid=846

[Jeff.Walker]

A good review from nebolisa7 the "Open Community" forum:

Thanks for all the feedback. We ultimately went with Joyce for a number of reasons and we are so pleased that we did. Our move was seamless and fast. Scott and Dave arrived on Thursday and delivered in New Orleans this (Saturday) morning. Meticulous, professional, detail oriented, kind, respectful of our space and our family, my husband and I were comfortable that Scott and Dave would treat our belongings as they would their own. The office team was equally responsive, knowledgeable and upfront. Kudos to June who was excellent in every wayI highly recommend Joyce Van Lines. I have been fortunate to have had very good moving experiences over the years but these guys are the tops! We plan to call them again for our next move to the West Coast! Thank you, again!

You can find the original post here:
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=24940

[cooldog]

Joyce Vanlines from Conneticut: we just hired Joyce for my daughters move from upstate Pa. to South Florida. They were AMAZING.....On Time, Great Price, Very Friendly and Courteous workers....Cant say enough to praise them!!! So glad I found this website to help me hire them for our move.