Independence Van Lines

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1. Moved a 1 bedroom apartment cross country

   I would never use this company again . They did not come close to their quote for the move. They did not show up on time ( 4 days later ) the delivery took close to 6 weeks . So I had to rent furniture until my items arrived. . Poor communication awful . Charged me way over the quoted price. Scam artist .

2. Interstate Move

   NEVER NEVER USE THIS COMPANY!!!!!!! Took over 2 months for my son to get his furniture and personal items. This company contracted with S&M Relo, Inc which is the worst company ever! Every time he called the customer service line he was given a different story. Items when finally arrived were damaged/missing!!!!

3. Con men, liars, and bad service

   DON'T EVEN THINK TO USE THEM!!!!!
   
   Something happened in 2021 but they went from great to awful! Took a $2,000 deposit and didn't come, would not answer phones or emails and never gave the service. Their helper came one day but the van didn't.
   
   They will not even return the deposit though they would not give any service and kept increasing the cost of the move from the first move and NEVER rescheduled.

4. Choose another company

   I called this company on March 10, 2021 to schedule my move from Phoenix, AZ to Bangor, ME. I was given the total cost amount of $2008.00 which included a deposit of $896.00, the deposit was paid on that day. I gave them the dates that my furniture and boxes needed to be picked up, between May 25-May 27. I was flying out of AZ on May 28. My apt. lease ended on May 31, 2021. I was asked to call them 2 weeks ahead of scheduled time to give them my delivery address. On May 12, I was told that my stuff would be picked up on May 27. I called them again on May 23 and was told that there was a change, my stuff would be picked up either
   
   on May 30 or up to June 2. I explained again that I was leaving Phoenix on the 28. I was told that they could do nothing about that. I said I could give my neighbor my apt. keys as long as they picked up my stuff before the 31. I was told they would. I called them again on May 25, I was told they couldn't pick up my belongings until June 2. Again I mentioned that my lease expired at the end of May, my apartment needed to be emptied before June 1. I told the person to cancel my moving schedule. I needed to find someone else. I also said to refund my deposit of $896.00, I was told they couldn't do that, it was a deposit and not refundable. They are thieves! I am not the one that kept changing the pick up dates. They did. They wanted to keep my deposit! Do not use this company. What I have written is 100% honest.

5. Bad Reviews Justified

   All companies get bad reviews, but when you see a reoccurring theme in the bad ones...watch out!
   
   I dealt with Tye who came across as professional/credible. I brought up the reviews and Tye stated that they were under old ownership.
   
   Tye gave me an $1800 estimate. When we spoke the next day it was $2900. Spoke to mngr (Connor) and settled at $1900. Unfortunately, driver came and said $6000.00 or no pick up, blaming Tye for getting it wrong.
   
   So I get on a 3-way-call with whoever George is @ ext 954-320-6921 and the driver (Ivan, Igor or something). George is giving an aggressive attitude, blame-shifting and asking "so are you refusing the pick up?".
   
   Being an expert negotiator, I notice the specific wording he wants me to cop to on the recorded line, so I ask directly if he's attempting to justify keeping my $789.00 deposit. He says yes, I say "we'll see about that", he says "yeah, we will see about that".
   
   I called my account immediately and got the money back. BEWARE, for the purpose justifying keeping your money, they do an ACH charge instead of a regular debit charge in order to look as if it's a regular bill and services Have Been Rendered!!!
   
   What a bunch of Jacks?

6. Bait and switch scam company

   This company will reel you in with a low price and double your price 3 days before you move. Then they keep your one third deposit. They are not reputable and are a scam company. BEWARE. DO NOT LET THEM MOVE YOU!

   

7. Promises promised and not delivered

   Independence van lines is nothing a broker who says they are a carrier. They bad mouth all other carriers. Once they get their booking fee they continue to promise delivery date but they don't fulfill their promise. I had text confirmation that furniture would be delivered to Florida by may 13 because my wife was flying to Florida to meet the truck. The mover was scheduled to pick up furniture april 30 and did not show. They finally came may 1 and we told them again our delivery schedule of may 13. Furniture is sitting on a truck in phoenix with no driver assigned.
   
   Independence raised their booking fee from 1400 to $2900 plus deposit for actual move and said all this would be applied to moving cost. When movers came they charged us another 3600 and told us we would owe an extra $2500 at the destination. A move that originally estimated by CHRIS KANE( " THE MOVER" OH I AM THE BEST) to be $4500 is going to cost $10,000. Independence is a SCAM.
   
   THEY CONTRACT EVERYTHING OUT AND DO NOT HELP YOU GET CONTRACTED MOVER TO DO ANYTHING. The mover was S & M Relocation. Not to be confused with S & M Moving.
   
   My wife is spending 2000 to fly to meet furniture and it won't be there.
   
   DO NOT USE INDEPENDENCE

8. Company Contracted Move to Unlicensed Movers That Scammed Us

   Despite representing themselves multiple times on the phone as a “full-service, white-glove moving company” I learned through the fine print of our binding estimate that this company is a broker.
   
   I contracted a move 3/9/2021, revised 3/30/2021, and paid a cash-only deposit of $1242.00 for a binding estimate of $3233.33 for 485 cubic feet of items and packing services.
   
   On Moving Day, 4/4/2021, the actual moving company they contracted with arrived with day laborers, "eyeballed" our inventory, and upped the estimate dramatically by 95% for extra packing and 400 additional cubic feet that our move did not actually use, demanding an additional cash-only payment of $2,600 up front and $1,733.77 upon delivery.
   
   The foreman did not measure the actual dimensions of the items moved or actual space occupied on the truck at any point—either before packing or during or after loading. We measured and documented each of the 76 moved items upon delivery 4/15/21 and the occupied space on the rented Penske truck was only 453 cu ft., not the 885 we were charged for.
   
   I have learned since filing complaints with the Better Business Bureau, the Federal Motor Carrier Carrier Safety Administration, the American Truckers Association, and the California Bureau of Household Goods and Services that the company contracted by Independence Van Lines for this move is not even licensed in the state of California to do moves for household goods. State records show their application for a permit was denied 2/13/2020.
   
   Because this move was contracted to an unlicensed moving company, under California's Business and Professions Code, Section 19237, subdivision (b), I am entitled to recover all money paid for this move due to the movers’ lack of licensure.
   
   I reached out multiple times to my several contacts at Independence about a refund for my $1,242.00 deposit since they contracted my move to an unlicensed carrier and I have been ignored.
   
   Do not under any circumstances use this broker.

9. Cancelled my move and refused to refund my deposit

   They cancelled my household move 2 days before scheduled pick-up. Then refused to refund my deposit, then blocked my phone and email routes to talk with them. They have obvious fraudulent behavior in retaining a deposit and offering no service. Since this is a repetitious business practice, it can be considered a scam. Beware.

10. Don't use this company they are crooks

    We hired them to move us across the country, and they hired another company to complete the move. The company they hired has D rating and we still haven't received our stuff even though the bulk of the money was paid to Independence Van lines. It's been over a month and they won't return our calls and they won't tell us where stuff is. DO NOT TRUST ANYTHING THEY SAY!!!

11. Horrible

    We had a horrible experience we had a scheduled move they notified us 2 hours after the pick up time that our move was pushed out 2 days their contract states deposit not refundable so even though they rescheduled and we had to make last minute changes to our move they are not liable

12. Worst of the worst

    This is a broker that charges you for nothing. They hire the worst movers and give you cheap estimates that double at pick up. They dont do anything to get your items to you. I have been waiting 6 weeks with still nothing. The company they sent talks about their prison time and how they auction off peoples belongings.

13. Refuses to cancel my move

    Bait and switch. Tried to go to arbitration and they are refusing and aren't certified AAA® or the ICDR. Basically just stole my money. Deposits on moves are NOT normal turns out. Run.

14. Bait and switch moving scam, STAY AWAY!!

    TLDR:
    
    THIS IS A BAIT N SWITCH MOVING SCAM!! Do not use this company. The good reviews are all fake, trust the bad reviews with pictures.
    
    I never believed that these moving scams exist and that it could happen to us, but it did. Here is the link to the complaints with Better Business Bureau, there are so many people out there with horror stories with this company.
    
    https://www.bbb.org/us/fl/fort-lauderdale/profile/moving-brokers/independence-van-lines-0633-90415056/complaints
    
    They basically dumped all our stuff on the ground and left and are not agreeing to refund our deposit of $1120.
    
    FULL REVIEW:
    
    We were completely lied to when we hired this company. They said they are actual movers and not brokers, I never checked this on the DOT website as we were time crunched. We received a binding estimate of $2500 to move our minimal goods(1 bedroom apt.) from California to the East Coast. They outsourced the job to USA Logistics, never told us the name of the company who the job was outsourced to. USA Logistics is another moving scam, feel free to check their reviews and BBB ratings, you will be shocked.
    
    https://www.bbb.org/us/ca/sun-valley/profile/moving-and-storage-companies/usa-logistics-1216-884745
    
    Anyways, three unskilled movers showed up at 9.30 PM at our house, started loading boxes in a hurry. After they loaded 12 boxes I asked them about our estimate and he said that we are over our estimate significantly because we had more boxes. We did have more boxes but we had also gotten rid of our entertainment center, 200 lbs worth of dumbbells, workout bench, bar stools, lamps, coffee table and some other stuff. I had clearly discussed this with the QA department of Independence Van Lines and they said that we should be ok. Moreover, I had calculated the cubic footage of my stuff and based on my estimate, our cubic footage was at 340, we were estimated for 355, so we were definitely under.
    
    After I expressed dissatisfaction over the increased estimate, I was asked to speak with their manager Ben, who was the rudest and most insulting person I have ever spoken with. I had a heated conversation with him and told him to proceed with the move, but that I will report this to the FMCSA. At this, Ben basically said that he refuses to work with anyone that threatens him and asked his guys to dump our stuff on the ground outside and leave. THESE GUYS DUMPED OUR STUFF ON THE GROUND AT 10.30 PM, MY WIFE AND I HAD TO CARRY ALL OF IT TO OUR 3RD FLOOR APARTMENT OURSELVES.
    
    The next day, I asked Independence Van Lines for my refund of my deposit of $1120 as my move never happened and they said NO. They said that we refused to pay the carrier and that we were over our estimate, which is not true at all.
    
    I have reported them to the FMCSA and have filed a complaint with BBB to get my deposit back. If they do not refund me, I will take them to small claims court and will file a case with the attorney generals office in the states of Florida and California.
    
    Seriously guys, stay away from this company. They will lowball the quote and you will feel like you are getting a good deal, but do not become a victim of a moving scam. It causes immense amount of emotional and financial stress.

    

15. Scam company

    I paid a 600 dollar deposit and my binding contract was for march 27 to 28 they didnt call they just rescedule me to following monday time was for 10am to 2pm they never came driver i called and asked what happened they said the move they were at took longer so they said 6 to 7pm still no show i called and asked for refund of deposit the manager said no refund if i cancel im so hurt i had to rent a hotel to live cause im still waiting to get moved i beg you guys please dont use this company they will scam you i was just like you guys please when you call ask them to show proof that they are acredited and ask thier score i searched at bbb and they wasnt i wish i would have listen to the company that told me they are not a good company