After reading about others' nightmare stories with dolphin relocation i realize i got off relatively easy, but i would still like to post a complaint to sway people from using this company again.
I moved from san francisco to new york city using moving services (moving-services.net) whom i found on movedirect.net. I spoke with a representative, dawn lee, who was quite helpful and friendly and we set up my move for the end of may. I was never told that my move was being outsourced to a company called dolphin relocation. One of the reasons i went with moving services was because i felt comfortable with their agents and feel quite mislead as it was never divulged that they were just a reservation company.
The trouble started when the movers didnt show up and i had to keep calling the dispatcher, lee, with dolphin. I found out hours later that they were delayed at their move prior to mine and wouldnt be able to move me until the next day, that they would be there at 9 am without fail. Luckily i had not made my flight for that night so i agreed.
The next day the movers called at 10 am saying they were on their way. Two hours later i had heard nothing, they were nowhere to be found, even lee the dispatcher had no idea where the movers had gone or how to reach them. They finally showed up around 1 pm and proceeded to move my stuff. They didnt wrap my mattresses, leather headboard or near-new cream colored velour sleeper sofa, but told me they had the supplies in the truck and would wrap everything then. When they were finished, i handed them my credit card, which dawn lee, from moving services, had told me would be an acceptable form of payment.
They drivers said the credit card machine at the office in florida was 'down' and they would need cash or a cashier's check. When i complained they agreed to take a personal check, but said the machine should be working by the time my delivery would be in new york.
I had to sign a paper saying when i wanted my property and both the head driver and lee the dispatcher (whom i had on the phone constantly, but at least he was receptive) said i could call TWO WEEKS before this listed date and my property would be delivered.
I put july 1, taking in to account the free month of storage with coast-to-coast moves and the time needed to find an apt in manhattan. That was the last i was to see my property, especially in this condition, for almost 2 months.
I found a place in new york and called the dolphin office 2 weeks before the july 1 delivery. I asked for lee and was told he wasnt there, he would call me back. After about 3 unreturned calls i finally realized something was up and asked if he even worked for the company any longer. I was told he did not, but that the new dispatcher 'ron' would call me back. Nobody returned my calls for over 1 1/2 weeks.
The incredibly rude receptionist would not refer me to anyone else and i was livid. I called moving services and my once helpful account manager, dawn lee, would no longer accept my phone calls. I was referred to mike gannon in customer service. He had heard nothing about lee's departure and promised to help me get to the bottom of this delivery. I never heard back from anyone at moving services. I had to call them time after time to be told that they had nothing to do with the delivery and could do nothing for me. They explained they use dolphin all the time and never have problems.
Judging from all the complaints just on the internet i doubt that is the truth. I was outraged. Finally the office manager for dolphin, tali erez, got on the phone after about 15 phone calls, the last 5 increasingly irate. She informed me that the paper i signed with the july 1 date meant that they werent obligated to even start my delivery process for 2-3 WEEKS AFTER that date!
I explained that both the driver and their dispatcher had told me otherwise and that there would be no problem with delivery so long as i called 2 weeks prior. She explained that since lee no longer worked for the company they were not responsible for anything he had said while employed. The next 3 weeks were spent screaming on the phone with her, catching her in lie after lie.
My stuff was supposed to be arriving around july 5 but then there was a supposed accident with their (apparently) 1 truck and head driver and then numerous false dates were given. I had specifically asked dawn lee for my property to be stored in new york and she assured me that i had the choice of where it would be stored. I told tali i had paid at this stage OVER half of the estimated cost, i would like to use a local mover to pick up the my stuff, which was supposed to be somewhere in the area. She refused to give me an address or tell me anything.
Finally i had a family friend with legal background call her and she was forced to tell me where my shipment had been sitting for the past 6 weeks... in LOS ANGELES. I was shocked and angry... Why would my stuff have been moved from san francisco to la when i was promised it would go straight to new york and sit in storage here? One of the reasons i went with moving services in the first place is that they guaranteed ny storage, when many other companies had only california. Obviously dawn lee was prepared to tell a client any lie they needed to hear to seal her deal.
Finally, after we had to threaten legal action with a firm in florida, my move was scheduled. I was going out of town on friday july 19th and gave them the ultimatum to have my property here by 7 am or we would sue. After many threatening phone calls, i got a call from the owner, yaron, saying my shipment would arrive late on thursday night, around 9. I said that was fine. Then i got a call on wednesday saying there were truck problems, the e.T.A. Was more like midnight. I got a call from the driver saying yaron had slipped in an unscheduled move for wednesday in buffalo... There was no truck problem.
I was also told they would need the remaining $1400 in cash, no credit cards because they feared people would cancel payment (obviously this must happen often) so i was left scrambling to get a cashier's check the day before they were due to arrive. And again dawn lee had lied. The movers finally arrived at 3 am on friday, exhausted after moving and driving all day. They moved me from 3-6:15 am, and they were off for 2 more moves without any sleep.
My mattresses, headboard and sofa were never wrapped. The headboard was scratched and gouged. My once-spotless couch was filthy, torn at the corners and the feet were missing. I could not believe the shoddy shape in which the unwrapped items were delivered. Who knows how many times everything was moved, stored, re-moved etc. Luckily i had taken out additional insurance through baker international, which i recommend for anyone moving.
I realize i am relative lucky, as my stuff was finally delivered and with minimal breakage, considering the horror stories ive heard since my experience. I do urge people to find out if their move is being farmed out to another company and find out about both, to get additional insurance, and to call the department of transportation to see if any formal complaints have been lodged against a moving company.
Their number is 1800. Sunk. Dot (7865.368). If anyone is ever stuck in this hostage situation as i was, there was one helpful person at moving services, named Liron. Ask to speak with her or yaron, the owner, who is not honest but at least responds to calls. 1.866.205.7619.
Michelle
new york, New York
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