I originally contracted with Federal Moving Systems on October 15, to pack, move and then unpack my household goods from Sheboygan, Wisconsin, to Lehigh Acres, Florida. The original quotation was $3,611.73 based upon an appraisal made by their Customer Rep, Chris Michalski; the shipping weight was determined to be 6,600 lbs. He told me he usually overestimates the weight when a price is given. A date of October 27 was to be the date the movers were to arrive, with a back up date of October 28th. I made it very clear to "Chris" that I had to vacate the home on October 29th, because the new owners were taking possession on that day.
I received a phone message on October 27th that the truck was delayed would not arrive until 10 AM on October 28th. I was assured that the men were experienced and that everything would be packed professionally and moved prior to the 29th. And that my household items would never leave the truck.
The movers and truck did not arrive until 4 PM on the 28th. The movers were two men who drove a Ryder rental truck from Baltimore. The moving boxes were from Home Depot and no bubble wrap was used in packing. The movers did not appear to be experienced or even W-2 employees, as claimed by Federal Moving Systems. I was given an empty truck weight slip. The shipping inventory was simply written on a yellow legal pad. The movers had not completed packing until October 29th. This caused serious issues with the new owners of the house because they had planned to move in on the 29th. I had to agree to pay the new owners $150 to have the house cleaned because of the huge mess left behind by the movers. The movers demanded that I pay the balance in full with a credit card prior to them leaving for Florida. On October 29th I received an email on my Blackberry from the "owner" of Federal Moving Systems, "Max Ferrari", stating that the weight was now 11,040 lbs. And that the total price would now be $7,562.73.
I was then contacted by "Chris" to tell me that the balance had to be paid in full prior to delivery of my household items and payment had to be in cash to the drivers, PayPal or wire transfer. I contested this because that was not part of the original agreement. As a result, my household items were held hostage at an undisclosed warehouse in Fort Wayne, Indiana, until the balance was paid in full. After much negotiation with "Max", my brother (and employer), played the 'good cop' to my being the 'bad cop, paid these highway bandits $6000 cash via bank wire transfer to a third partys account just to get my possessions released.
I finally received my household goods on November 20th; delivered by two different drivers, this time in a Penske rental truck. My household goods and boxes were a mess and many furniture items were damaged beyond repair. Additionally, my wifes jewelry valued at about $4000 was, not surprisingly, missing as well.
Federal Moving System is a moving broker scammer that preys on unwitting consumers with a bait price and then switched to a corrected price once they have your personal possessions. They will then put your belongings into storage until the ransom price is paid in cash, wire transfer or PayPal before delivery of your household goods is made. The storage allows for damage to your household items and affords plenty of time for the bandits to go through your valuables. Lastly, at no time was I given the weight slip of the full truck. I was not given a DOT Moving Company Buyers Guide nor DOT Shippers disclosure form.
Below, is a link is to a website showing pictures of my damaged articles and of the unpacked crumpled boxes that were simply piled into my garage in Florida.
Http://www.flickr.com/photos/44909324@N07/sets/72157622737155793
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