Allied Moving Systems aka SIAA Inc, located in Sunrise, FL scammed me for everything I owned. I accessed Yahoo to get some quotes from local moving companies. (or so I thought) I got a reply from several companies but I chose Allied, thinking they were affiliated with the worldwide company Allied Van lines with the big orange and red trucks.
I spoke with Roni Green who patiently calculated the estimated cubic feet I would need to move from Lakeland, FL to Reading PA. We were on the phone almost an hour. She was very personable and accomodating. She determined that I should expect to pay $1696.00 for 898 cu. Ft. At $2.00 per cu. Ft. I agreed and she sent me an email confirmation that same day. The email was pretty cut and dry. Later I called back to say that I forgot to include my washer & dryer and she stated it was no problem they could just add it on later. I said I preferred that there be no surprises and at that time she indicated that there would be no additional charges for "extra" cubic feet. She said the driver would contact me the day before the move to give me an arrival time. I explained that an early departure was desired.
I received a call the day before the move and was told they would arrive between 12:00 & 2:00pm. I again explained my need to leave earlier as we had discussed previously. I asked if my presence was required or if I could have a friend or neighbor let the movers in and she assured me that would be no problem. They just needed someone to let them in and lock up behind them.
I made arrangements for a neighbor to be at the house to let them in. He was told by the driver, that he had to sign the bill of lading for insurance purposes before they got started. At the time he signed the paperwork, the inventory sheets were blank and the only figures were the original 898 cu ft @ $2.00 per cu. Ft. Totaling $1796.00
They proceeded to pack my boxes into larger boxes, in their words "to fit better in the truck", which turned out to be a large Ryder truck. After they had the truck loaded they brought in the Bill of Lading, which now contained additional figures for packing materials, additional cubic footage billed at $5.00 rather than the $2.00 i was quoted. The bill just jumped from $1796.00 to $6802.00! More than 300%!!!
I tried to contact the company the next business day to dispute these charges. I asked to speak with Roni Green and she immediately put her supervisor/dispatcher on the line. He would not give me his name, and would not tell me the location of where my belongings were being held.
I asked that he fax me a copy of this new bill, but he never sent it. My father spoke with him and told him that the original contract with me, was for $2.00 cu. Ft. Not $5.00 and that we had no agreement for additional costs. This "supervisor" offered to reduce the bill by $1500.00 as a measure of "good faith", (ha!) We told him we would be consulting an attorney. He replied that they had a legally binding contract and I was going to have to pay them if I wanted to see my belongings again.
I called the next day and asked if he had faxed the bill, he said he would fax it again. I still have not received it.in the interim, my father told me to stop payment on the check, until we could straighten this out.
I have been in contact with FMCSA, the Sunrise Police Department and the states attorney general office, but at this time I do not know whether they have my things or if they are gone for good.
Everything my 12 year old daughter and I own has been taken from us and is being held for ransom it seems. There must be someone out there who can help us. After doing some research I found that this company is operating under numerous names (ie. Allied Moving, SIAA, Inc, Focus Movers, Countrywide Movers, Advanced movers, Amerivan lines, United Express, just to name a few. I don't understand how a known fraud ring can receive fines, and be closed down, only to reopen under a new name with the same principal people involved.
Jamie
lakeland, Florida
U.S.A.
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