I am writing with the hope that other people will see this letter on the internet and NEVER choose Empire Moving Services for any type of relocation services. This company, from pick-up to delivery, displayed incompetence, rude behavior, disregarded scheduled appointment times, totally lacked in customer service and showed a total blatant disregard for its customer. With all the complaints that I have now found on the internet about this company, I am truly amazed that they are still in business.
The nightmare began when my daughter contracted with Empire for a move from Cambridge, MA to Houston, TX. The contract was made several months in advance with a set pick-up date and my daughter arranged her move schedule around that scheduled date including purchasing her plane ticket to fly out. Well, of course, that set pick-up date was disregarded and my daughter was forced to pay additional rent money for the extra days she had to remain in her apartment and was forced to purchase another plane ticket to fly out on a different date. But this was just the beginning of the nightmare.
The movers who were contracted to pack everything arrived very late in the day on the day they FINALLY arrived to pack and pick-up. And they arrived with inadequate packing supplies. Their packing methods were totally unprofessional and consistently ignored my daughter's numerous please to wrap crystal, glass and china individually. The movers were found using the leather sofa to take naps in the moving truck and one mover was seen in the back yard smoking what appeared to be a joint.
Despite all this, my daughter supplied the movers with pizza before they finally stopped packing at 4:00 A.M. Even though my daughter had to be at work at 8:00 A.M. They were supposed to be back to finish packing after my daughter got out of work that evening, but that didn't happen because the movers wrecked the moving truck trying to pass through the Storrow Bridge, which is clearly marked low clearance no trucks with all the boxes of my daughter's belongings inside. The moving truck was impounded, according to the movers, and they were forced to rent a different truck to come back and finish packing another day later.
And to top off all of this, the contract price for this move suddenly doubled from the originally agreed upon price.
But the continuing nightmare didn't end there. I had re-arranged my work schedule to be in Houston to help my daughter move into her apartment. The delivery was scheduled for a Thursday, but when we called to confirm the delivery date, we were told the truck wouldn't be in Houston until Saturday or Sunday. When I called the company (after several attempts) to speak to the sales representative named Sean, he played stupid. He said that he hadn't even heard that the truck was involved in an accident at the Storrow Bridge.
They finally put the President, Henri, on the phone and he proceeded to SCREAM and YELL at me with total disrespect. He screamed that delivery dates are set within a fourteen (14) day time frame on every contract. When I told him that this entire move has been a breach of contract, he screamed at me to have my attorney contact him. I have never been treated in such an unprofessional manner. And this company is still in business?
The delivery movers finally arrived on Sunday morning, a different company named, Triple A. They were very courteous and were appalled at the condition of my daughter's belongings. Every box was in such a damaged and/or destroyed condition that the deliverers were very apologetic and didn't even take some boxes into the apartment for fear that charred pieces of glass would fall out onto the floors and carpets. There were several boxes that appeared to have been re-packed and items tossed or thrown into different boxes without tags. Heirloom china arrived in pieces and crystal glasses were crushed to point of being unrecognizable. A digital camera case arrived without the $400 camera inside. The wooden media trunk was no where to be found and most other furniture arrived with broken glass, broken mirrors, knicks, scratches and dents.
And of course, they refused to unload without money in hand. After all of this traumatic experience, my daughter, who is afflicted with MS, was in grave health.
So, where's the missing or stolen furniture? And the missing or stolen digital camera? What about all the destroyed china, crystal, heirlooms, etc.? The Claims Department sent my daughter a settlement offer of $87. It would cost her over $3250 just to replace or repair everything that was destroyed and/or stolen. And this doesn't even include the numerous priceless heirloom pieces that were destroyed.
Is she forced to accept a settlement offer of $87? I urge anyone contemplating a move in the future to avoid using this moving company. No customer should have to endure the pain and suffering that we have. This is a crime and this company should be accountable.
B. Mattson
Pueblo, Colorado
U.S.A.
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