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{This is not the Wild West in 1880. This is America, in 2009 and we are talking about moves that end up as hostage nightmares, in which rouge moving companies jack up moving prices, and then hold the belongings hostage until they get paid. Since 1988, when the moving industry became deregulated, fierce competition has broken out among the increased number of moving companies to get their share of the profits. As competition drove prices down, unscrupulous moving companies developed scam strategies to woo customers. They start by offering extremely low estimates for the move. Then once the customer's belongings are loaded onto the moving trucks they jack up the prices. If the customer refuses to pay the increased moving cost, then the rouge mover will hold their belongings hostage, and sometimes the consumer will never see his belongings again. The following case was taken from the pages of a prominent moving scam web site, and illustrates how this scam works. | A new form of scam has quietly spread across America. Since 1988, when the moving industry deregulated, the number of moving companies has grown from a few hundred to thousands. Fierce competition between the companies initially drove down the prices. As a result, avaricious movers developed schemes whereby they woo customers with promises of low bind cost agreements, and then once they have loaded the customer's belongings on their truck, they jack up the prices, often to double or triple the original estimate. If the customer won't pay, they will hold their possessions hostage, and even threaten to sell them at auction. The following story, taken from an Internet anti-movingscam web site, illustrates the technique. } Kimberly contracted with a company to move her belongings. As part of the move, they were to store her goods for a month or two, and the price for the move and the storage was agreed upon. In her own words: "After the move and my things were loaded on the truck, the men then asked for an additional price that was way above what was discussed, an additional $700.00 which would have brought the move to over $1000.00." Shocked and furious at the increased price, Kimberly called the office. The manager was conciliatory and Kimberly thought she had solved the problem, little suspecting what was to come. She contacted the office and they agreed to lower the price back down, however, they now had her belongings, which were placed in storage. She goes on to describe what happened next:" I had one free month of storage with B. from November to December of 06. In December of 06 a woman named M. called me to tell me I owed $300.00 in storage fees plus the cost of the remaining balance of my move. Again I was alarmed! I said $300.00?? I got a price quote of $175.00 from M.L. The woman became very rude…" She made another credit card payment, and then the story continued as follows: "In Feb of 07, I got a nasty phone call from M. threatening to put my things in the streets. I made arrangements with M. to take $175.00 off my credit card for January, and that I would pay up my balance and look at getting my things back." { From February of 2007 contact with the moving company became more and more strained. They frequently refused to answer her calls. No matter how much she paid, it wasn't enough. She requested to send a relative to make a full payment in person, and view the belongings in storage, and the company became belligerent. She began to fear that something had happened to her possessions. |After February, the hostage crisis continued to deteriorate. There was periodic contact with the company, who always claimed she owed more money. No matter how much she paid, it wasn't satisfactory. She tried to send a relative to view the belongings in storage, and the company became belligerent. Frequently they wouldn't answer their phones, {/spin] After several months the company stopped sending payment receipts, and the crisis continued. She contacted several law enforcement agencies to make complaints. If a group of persons grabs your belongings and refuses to give them back you can normally call the police. However, because this started out as a move, and because of a law called the Carmack Amendment, she can only take the company to small claims court. At last report, Kimberley is not sure if she will ever see her belongings again. The company has threatened to sell them, if she doesn't pay enough money, and she fears they are already sold on the black market. To prevent this from happening to you, consider using a container shipping company and a packing service when you make your next move. Packing Service Inc., is the name to trust in the Packing Service Industry. Dedicated to fighting moving scams , they will provide you with a guaranteed packing moving cost estimate They will refer you to a safe and reliable container shipping company, that will ship your belongings in a locked container that only you can access. No one will touch your belongings from the moment they leave your house until the day they arrive at your new location.
Article Source: http://www.onlinearticlessite.com
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