A North Texas family said their mover was MIA with just about everything they owned. They used a Bluetooth tracker to help locate their belongings. However, the consumers said they were still out thousands of dollars.
Read on for what happened and what to know before your next move.
TRACKER COMES IN HANDY
While packing for a 2,000-mile move to Oregon, Will Schmidt included a Bluetooth tracker.
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“I'm really bad at remembering where I put my keys. I figured I might as well just throw this in the box,” Schmidt said.
It would come in handy.
Schmidt said he and his wife hired a North Texas moving company to unload a storage unit in Garland, temporarily store the items for a few weeks while the couple honeymooned, then, move everything to Oregon.
“Looking at all the quotes I got, they were kind of middle of the road,” said Schmidt.
According to the bill of lading Schmidt shared with us, movers agreed to a delivery in Oregon no later than June 18. The delivery window came and went.
“It's very hard to go to sleep on an air mattress and wake up and look around that nothing we have worked so hard to accumulate over the past six years together is there,” Schmidt told NBC 5 Responds.
A few days later, Schmidt said the moving company he hired, Texas Movers Group, asked the couple to call the police because it couldn’t locate their load. Schmidt checked the AirTag. It showed it was in a storage facility in Dallas. The consumer called the police.
Schmidt said, “The detective contacts us and says that he can get a warrant if we can validate the AirTag is connecting at that location.”
After hopping on a plane, Schmidt said his wife was there as police recovered their belongings. According to Garland Police, investigators also found items from two other households in the same storage unit. Police said the driver of the moving truck is facing theft charges. Police said they haven’t made an arrest.
Schmidt said he and his wife completed the rest of the move to Oregon on their own, “She had to go and hire movers to dig through everything to get to all of our stuff.”
CONSUMERS SEEK REFUND
Schmidt told NBC 5 he expected a full refund of the nearly nine thousand dollars paid to Texas Movers Group. It ultimately offered around half.
In an email to NBC 5 Responds, Texas Movers Group wrote after it packed and stored a shipment for Schmidt, it used another company, All Seasons Moving and Storage, to transport Schmidt’s items to Oregon.
The company also wrote, in part, “After Texas Movers Group had temporarily stored the Schmidt shipment, and after Texas Movers Group had re-loaded the truck for transportation by All Seasons to Oregon, the shipment was stolen by a driver working for All Seasons.”
Texas Movers Group said it had no involvement with the theft and it cooperated with police.
The company said it offered a partial refund to Schmidt because it provided services including scheduling, pickup and transporting items to storage before Schmidt’s shipment was reported missing.
“Despite the fact that Texas Movers Group had performed all of these services, and despite the fact that Texas Movers Group had nothing to do with the theft of the shipment, Texas Movers Group has offered to refund Mr. Schmidt more than 50% of the transportation charges for his shipment, but he has refused to accept it,” the company wrote.
“All the costs that they're saying that they incurred are just costs that we incurred due to their negligence and requiring us to travel from Oregon,” Schmidt said. “Taking time out of our lives and figuring out the case ourselves.”
According to the bill of lading Schmidt shared with NBC 5 Responds, it doesn’t list a partner carrier for the move. Schmidt told us he wasn’t aware another company was involved until Texas Movers Group contacted the consumer about the missing load.
NBC 5 Responds tried calling and texting the phone number for All Seasons Moving and Storage in Indian Trail, North Carolina. We haven’t heard back. We also tried a possible phone number for the driver and couldn’t connect for this story.
Web searches show another All Seasons Moving and Storage in the Carolinas. It has a different U.S. DOT registration number. We dialed the company and a person who picked up said it wasn’t involved in the Schmidt’s move.
When we checked registration information for the All Seasons Moving and Storage, with the DOT number Texas Movers Group provided to the Schmidt’s, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration database showed it was authorized for household goods moves.
That was in early October. When we looked again later in the month, the FMCSA database was updated to show the moving company is not authorized by the FMCSA to transport or arrange the transportation of household goods.
FMCSA tells NBC 5 Responds All Seasons Moving and Storage didn’t respond to the feds during a routine audit request.
We asked the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration what consumers should know about movers that may use another company for part of the move. It tells us a moving company is required to provide specific information on the bill of lading, including the names, addresses, and DOT numbers of any participating motor carriers, when known.
RELOCATING? HERE’S HOW TO RESEARCH MOVERS
If you’re planning a move, confirm the mover is registered with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. It requires a U.S. Department of Transportation number for moves between states. If the move is within Texas or the mover only operates within the state, look for a Texas Department of Motor Vehicles certificate number. Ask the mover for that information and confirm the registration online with the TX DMV here.
You can also look for a history of mover complaints.
Get multiple bids from moving companies and confirm any mover’s physical address. Texas DMV said consumers should be wary if a company answers the phone with a vague name like “movers” or “moving company.”
Consumers should never accept a verbal estimate. Get a contract and do not sign anything with blank spaces before or after the move. Ask if the company is going to do an inventory. Confirm the inventory is accurate before signing off. Make sure you receive a copy of the documentation at that time to ensure no changes are made to the paperwork later. The date of delivery should also be definite.
The FMCSA shares a list of red flags consumers should know.
On moving day, TX DMV recommends consumers confirm the name of the company is displayed on the truck.
Consumers should also confirm if they are hiring a mover or a moving broker – someone who sells your move to other companies. The FMCSA said brokers arranging interstate moves must be registered with the agency. It also writes a broker does not assume responsibility for your household goods.
If you’re not sure if you’re talking to a broker, ask if they are handling the move or if they are contracting someone else. If they are hiring someone else, the consumer should confirm those movers are licensed and vet that company.
NBC 5 Responds is committed to researching your concerns and recovering your money. Our goal is to get you answers and, if possible, solutions and a resolution. Call us at 844-5RESPND (844-573-7763) or fill out our customer complaint form.
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