Reviews for COLONIAL VAN LINES




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COLONIAL VAN LINES : User Reviews

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Average Rating:[0.98]

Number of Reviews: 29

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Address:  859 Willard Street
State:  MA
City:  Braintree
Zip Code:  02184
Contact:  1-888-717-0711
Website:  www.colonialmovers.com

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COLONIAL VAN LINES REVIEWS

LICENSE: ICCMC 689685 USDOT 1930256

WEBSITE: http://www.colonialmovers.com/

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User Reviews

29 reviews available

Colonial Van Lines + ESP Motors - job # 55573878-CO, August 17, 2017
Reviewer: Djburque from MA - See all reviews by Djburque

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1 of 1 people found this review helpful

“In my opinion regarding job # 55573878-CO, Colonial Van Lines transportation broker who hired ESP Motors as our carrier are the most disreputable moving firms anyone could ever hire – STAY AWAY from them!!! I regret ever hiring them. They will give you a moving estimate 30% lower than actual, deliver goods 13 days late in breach of contracted date and lose 23 boxes in transport. They will hold your goods hostage until you prepay all fees they deem valid. ESP Motors even arrived without sufficient resources to offload the delivery resulting in this 63 year old having to unload half of my own goods from the truck which took three hours.”

Run Run they are a bunch of crooks, July 31, 2017
Reviewer: Pets from Anytown, AT 55555 - See all reviews by Pets

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0 of 0 people found this review helpful

It was the worst experience of my life. This company increased the price twice and is still demanding money. I was ripped off. Run and don't look back

Do not trust them!!, July 19, 2016
Reviewer: Rmaurer from Mississippi - See all reviews by Rmaurer

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4 of 4 people found this review helpful

We used this moving company because they had a very good price. They sent the wrong size truck and now we are having to leave some of our belongings and pay an extra $900 because we were going to stick my husbands motorcycle in the moving truck and the one they sent was too small. ASBOLTLY horrible costumer service not willing to help out one bit.

Not a Moving Company - middleman only, June 09, 2016
Reviewer: Akrafel from California - See all reviews by Akrafel

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1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Do not use this company. They are only middle men and sub contract for actual moving services. Our contract was subcontracted down three layers. Since the actual movers were not Colonial employees, the folks at customer service were pretty useless. It was hard to get information in either direction. They were 6 hours late in arriving forcing us to pay someone to stay late to open the apt. and supervise packing. The truckers did not have the detailed instructions for arrival location and location limitations we had sent.The driver charged us a $70 elevator fee which we had not been told about nor agreed to. There was major damage to one piece of furniture and minor damage to some art work. But the main problem was just the difficulty of dealing with all the subcontractors, bad information flow and lazy, incompetent customer support.

DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY!, February 13, 2016
Reviewer: Ellen from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

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3 of 3 people found this review helpful

This was a horrible experience for us. They start out giving you a price that beats everyone and then they start adding on as time gets closer to the move, during the move, and delivering your goods. They were three days late to pick up our household items. This almost cost us the sale of our house. They sent a truck that looked like a semi that makes deliveries to grocery stores which meant they were loading all of our goods into the back of a trailer. 50% of our items, once delivered, were broken, damaged or missing/stolen. They didn't pay for replacement for most because they give you.80 cents a pound........get a lot of insurance if you use them and then it still isn't worth it. I wish that I could attach pictures of our broken and damaged items. It's uncalled for. They also delivered our items two weeks late which meant we were living in an empty house, in the snow, without anything. Just a horrible experience!!!

Fraud and Deceit, December 11, 2014
Reviewer: Brooks Everett from Anytown, AT 55555 - See all reviews by Brooks Everett

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4 of 4 people found this review helpful

This Company almost caused loss of sale of our townhouse in Morristown NJ for $330,000 . They were THREE Days late in arriving and actually arrived at 1:05 AM. Yes. To repeat 1:05 in the MORNING with out the proper help to even do the job. They insisted on collecting $622.15 by fraud and deceit 6 days before the scheduled move even though we had paid them the full binding deposit of $1,669.70 on October 30,2013.

the driver of the van insisted on the payment of $2,953.33 to make the delivery to North Carolina.

In total we paid $5,245.10 to Colonial Van Lines and their SISTER company All State van lines Relo both at the same address 2000 North State Rd Margate Florida 33063.

Note that Colonial Van lines incorporates in numerous locations to avoid prosecution and limit liability.

Our contract included all costs for moving and storage for 6 months plus Colonial returning to complete the move when

Our new house was completed. They have refused to release our belongings from storage .

__________________

this company preys on those with fixed incomes, seniors, ect, June 09, 2014
Reviewer: TimF from Texas 75446 - See all reviews by TimF

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4 of 4 people found this review helpful

over-charging, failure to honor agreed delivery date, holding my shipment hostage for higher than binding estimate, theft by deception (under packing more than 50 aqdditional boxes over the orginal estimate), severe damage to my property(over $6000.00),threats to not unload my property and threats to unload and leave my property in the driveway, unwilling to reassemble funiture unassembled for packing, marking paperwork to correspond to damage occured during packing/shipping at the site of delivery, refusing to give bill of lading, dropping funiture off the back of the moving truck,underpacking most all the boxes in order to over charge in packing costs, not properly wrapping and packing large pieces of funiture, and failing to follow instructions the full coverage insurance company required in order to pay damages occured by the movers.Colonial Van Lines refuses to make contact to resolve these issues,offered a small payment if I sign paperwork holding them harmless.and more, no room.

__________________

Worst company ever, January 01, 2014
Reviewer: Pam from USA - See all reviews by Pam

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1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Please do NOT EVER use this company. They quoted one price and it ended up way more expensive than the original quote. They told me they would pick up one day and never showed up. They then had to reschedule and only picked up part of my household items. 2 weeks later they came to get the rest. They stored my stuff somewhere around Chicago and did not deliver until 6 weeks went by. The boxes were smashed. Every lamp I owned was broken. I am missing items. All my wood furniture is scratched or gouged.

They only pay 6 cents per pound for all the damage that they do. Oh they also charged extra when delivering for a long haul and charged me extra for wardrobe boxes even though I packed all my items.

I would NEVER use them again even if it was free because all your stuff will be a total loss.

Can I give less than 1 star? What a rip-off!, March 27, 2013
Reviewer: MJDW from Arkadelphia AR - See all reviews by MJDW

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2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Problems started when I was promised pick up on a Saturday and they didn't come until Sunday afternoon. Then they gave me a tentative delivery date of August 4...Finally, on August 14 I got my stuff...after two false alarms where I took off work to meet them at my new place.
They loaded my "orange tag" boxes with ANOTHER "orange tag" load, and lost my boxes and the base of my bed. Total for my lost boxes, lost time, effort, energy and headaches: $51.
There's much more, but I've already wasted enough time and energy on these cheats.

Worst mover in the world, November 22, 2012
Reviewer: Daniel Vesper from Enid Oklahoma

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4 of 4 people found this review helpful

Please do not use this mover under any circumstance. Every piece of my furniture was damaged. An antique lamp was destroyed; a picture my father painted in 1960 was ruined. Not only were my items picked up late only half of them were never delivered. I lost all my lawn furniture, an antique desk, 20 bins and boxes containing my computer, pots pans, dishes pictures, dishes, telescope, gas grill. I have tried to negotiate a settlement with no resists. I am now going to have to get an attorney. Please do not use there idiots. My lawn tractor, pressure washer, and roto tiller were strapped on the tailgate and damaged as well.

do not use colonial van lines!, August 13, 2012
Reviewer: Dissatisfiedcustomer from Anytown, AT 55555 - See all reviews by Dissatisfiedcustomer

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72 of 73 people found this review helpful

My furniture WAS in pristine condition before I moved. The movers ruined almost every piece of furniture I own. Not only did the furniture get the normal, expected nicks and dings, there were also gouges in the wood. And some of the pieces were structurally damaged so that they no longer are usable, i.e., drawers that were damaged and can no longer be opened and closed. The movers pulled all the plastic bags off the furniture that I had put on the furniture to protect it. Just a few examples: they placed my sofa and armchair, fabric side down, on the ground outside to take the legs off so they could get it in the door. They piled all my floormats (the kind you wipe your dirty, muddy boots on) on a white fabric chaise lounge. They pulled the legs off my desk. No, they didn't remove them. They broke them off. And the customer service to resolve the claim is unbelievable. The first address to which I sent the claim does not exist. After I sent it to the second address, I got

frauds, August 01, 2012
Reviewer: Jasonehle from Anytown, AT 55555 - See all reviews by Jasonehle

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2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Colonial Van Lines is not only a bad company, they are all around deceitful and fraudulent. I was blatantly given false information about cost and timeframe of my move so they could take their cut and dish my job out to a poor subcontractor. My auto relocation will be over 2 weeks later than promised and the deposit is NON Refundable. Convenient for them. Don't believe what they're selling you. A straight up scam. Just google 'Colonial Van Lines Reviews' and you'll find hundreds who agree with me and TERRIBLE ratings. I'm now an extra $2000 in the hole and still without my vehicle because of their false promises. Not only that - I was lied to about being able to include some personal belongings provided they weren't of high value. When the SUB-contractor showed up he refused to take them. They explicitly told me I would be able to have them which was why I chose them in the first place. They don't care about you as a customer or your stuff - just wanna get your deposit and then you're on your own. Can't express enough that you need to steer far away from these frauds. I will be filing s consumer complaint and report with BBB - and I've never felt the need to do that at any other time in my life.

__________________

Colonial van lines, AKA Moving Squad , June 23, 2012
Reviewer: KL from Anytown, AT 55555 - See all reviews by KL

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4 of 4 people found this review helpful

The sales agent, Mitch Blumstein, was courteous & available until my belongings were picked up. Pick up was one day late bc the movers were reassigned to pick up from other irate customers. I was given the choice of a midnight pick up or 9am the next morning. Arrival was noon. A week after the "guaranteed" delivery time frame, Mitch did not return my calls or respond to my emails inquiring as to the status of my delivery. Assuming his absence was due to sudden death, I called customer service & Julian informed me my belonging were in storage at the town of pick up. Belongings arrive 2 weeks late & I was only provided 4 hrs notice of arrival time. Do yourself a favor, call a major moving company. That will eliminate this disorganized middle man. My contract was w Moving Squad, a week after pick up was told to have certified check for balance made out to American, a week before arrival was told delivery would be by Colonial & had to cash the check to have another made out to Colonial.

Use someone else!, June 02, 2012
Reviewer: KristineH from Anytown, AT 55555 - See all reviews by KristineH

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3 of 3 people found this review helpful

I really liked working with this company until I signed a contract. The woman that I was working with initially said that I would be talking to her throughout the whole moving process and I liked her. But she seemed to have vanished once I signed the paperwork.

I then had to talk to a different person every time and they told me different things each time.

I ended up having to sign three different contracts with these people, because they would call and want to know how many boxes I had packed and I guess it was more than estimated.

I got a call one day from another random person that said that our stuff would be picked up the following day at 7AM. I thought it would be picked up the day after that. So, we rushed to figure out how we would make the next day work. Come 9AM when they hadn't shown up, I called. They had no record of them calling me. They would pick up our stuff the next day at 7AM. They didn't arrive until 12PM and they were not Colonial Van Lines. It was some Chicago moving company that Colonial Van Lines hired. So I guess I was paying middle men.

I was told by the original person that I wouldn't need an exact address of where we were moving to, because I didn't know, and that they would start moving our stuff in the general direction and I would tell them where exactly to take it a little later. Well it turns out, the Chicago moving company, held all our stuff hostage in Chicago until I knew an exact address.

When we got our stuff, the movers (who ever they were, no idea) carried our stuff in the house and dumped it at the front door. They didn't put anything back together. The damage some walls with our stuff. Every corner of our kitchen table was damaged. The box that was labeled video games had obviously been opened. Luckily we had put the actual games in another box. Parts of an antique bed were missing, so we had to throw it away. There was no way to replace the parts that put it together. The tool chest draws don't close properly now. Every box and every thing else was covered in black dirt. Your hands were black after handling one box. The tape they use on some of the non-boxed stuff, damaged half the stuff when removed and it was really hard to remove. Some of our stuff still has tape on it because I just gave up.

So of course I filed a claim. They had nine months to process it and they took nine months. It turns out that because, when the movers dropped off our stuff, we signed a paper that said everything was there, we didn't have any rights, I guess. Now remember that when we got our stuff it was put in a massive pile. How was I suppose to tell that everything was there and ok? As an act of "good faith", they were willing to give me $53 for my damaged and missing items. But to get my $53, I had to notarize a paper saying I wouldn't take them to court and I had 5 days to do it. It cost $10 to notarize that paper. It took them two more months to actually get me the check for $53. So, I am finally able to make a complete review a year after my move. Yay!?

One month later... still waiting for our stuff, May 18, 2012
Reviewer: Espoon82 from Tallahassee, Florida - See all reviews by Espoon82

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2 of 2 people found this review helpful

CVL is horrible. I cannot believe it is legal what they do (an attorney told us that there was little recourse for individualsâ�¦ you basically need to contact the Office of the Attorney General in Massachusetts and hope enough people complain with you). They basically lied to my elderly mother about everything--costs, time frame, obligations--everything, had her sign a vaguely worded contract that she could not possibly understand or refute, then held all of her worldly possessions hostage for over a month. They never return her calls, never give her any information, lie about arrival, and she is STILL waiting for her stuff! The contract basically amounts to this: they can do whatever they want, and you cannot litigate against them. If materials are damaged, they are not responsible. If they are late, they are not responsible. If they verbally lie to you, they are not responsible. If they never do anything they said they'd do, they are not responsible. Avoid them like the plague!

Excellent Move Thanks Colonial!, May 02, 2012
Reviewer: Samuel76 from New York - See all reviews by Samuel76

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2 of 3 people found this review helpful

My move was from Arizona state to northern new York, I originally didn't wanna go with colonial due to the fact they didn't provide visual estimates (witch I really wanted) but my estimator was very detailed and seemed to know a lot about everything I had a concern for. My inventory was taken over the phone and sent to me in writting the weight came in at a over estimated weight of 5670 Lbs witch seemed like a lot to me since I was only moving a 2 bedroom apartment but my estimator Roy told me it would play into my benefit, he provided me with a binding not to exceed process of 4700$ with a full pack. Very expensive to me but he assured me it would be lower after the trailer was weighed and my new weight would be determined, I secured a deposit with him of 1452$. My move date came and the driver showed up on time and was very friendly the workers worked hard. My move came out to be 4120$ at the end and went very smooth. Great company and honest estimator. Would use again thanks Cvl

Stay away, February 04, 2012
Reviewer: Jromewilly from Las Vegas, NV to St Petersburg, FL

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1 of 1 people found this review helpful

First the movers themselves (Anthony Davis and his crew) were excellent. CVL however is a shady, BS, dishonest bait and switch company. Teddy gives me quote of $3528, 5558 lbs. to rope you in. 3 days before move (when it is too late to fire them and get a honest company), Alvin gives final review and adjustment which comes out to $5414.38, 6793 lbs. and want an additional $1100 deposit added to the already $1627 deposit I gave Teddy. The weight actually comes in about 200lbs above original estimate of 5558 and I am told it is around .50 per lb for the overage equally $100. I also paid extra for mirror and picture wrap of about 250. So for the $2000 difference in the 2 estimates I was owed about $1600 , which I was assured would be refunded to me within 10 days. After a month of phone calls the did refund about $700 and change. Still short about $900. Still waiting after contacting Teddy with the math has been quite a while no nothing from them. Move was Oct 21, 2011, it is now Feb 5, 2012.
Avoid these guys like the plague. There are too many honest companies out there to be involved with guys like these.

Dishonest Company, December 13, 2011
Reviewer: Zahira Vargas from Florida Virginia

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5 of 5 people found this review helpful

Karlos Stevenson took my order over the phone and provided a quote based on 3000 lbs. He quoted me $1477 and said that his company would do the work and was able to pick up the load on the date requested-11/25. After I agreed to go with them, he sent me an order form and asked for a deposit. I had to use a credit card and was asked to provide front and back copy of the cc and driver license. Deposit was needed before the truck will arrive. Shortly after they received the signed paperwork, I received an email from American Van Lines with a confirmed date of the pickup. I immediately called Karlos and asked him why I was being contacted by another company since he agreed to do the actual move. He told me that the date I requested was not available and they had to broker my move to American Van Lines since they had availability. On the day that the load was supposed to be delivered, I tried to get in touch with the driver and couldn't. Called Customer service and was on hold for over an hour to no avail. Called Karlos to ask for help and he said to call customer service. Called back customer service and was on hold for another hour. I was then told that someone from American Van Lines will call me but that person never did. I finally got a hold of the driver hours after he said he would be arriving at my house. I then received a call from Ken from American Van Lines asking for a credit card info for the payment. I asked for the actual weight of my load and was told that the weight will be calculated on the back end. I was not present at the time of the weight and at the end and to this day, they haven't done the weight. This is against the practice as they are supposed to weigh my load after being on the truck and that hasn't happened. There were a few items broken and my armoire got broken significantly. Colonial Van Lines are not authorized to broker moves and my move was brokered to American Van Lines. They clearly not followed protocol and did a bait/switch move. They also charged me more than what was discussed and just by eye balling the items that needed to be shipped. This is unacceptable and this needs to be rectified. They shouldn't be doing business.

__________________

A Poor Choice, November 23, 2011
Reviewer: Tom Drews from Fort Worth, TX to Traverse City, MI

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1 of 1 people found this review helpful

I will not recommend Colonial Van Lines to anyone. Once the contract was signed and deposit made, communication with the van line was almost non-existent. The van was scheduled to arrive on a Wednesday. They did not arrive until 7:40 PM Sunday with very little communication from Colonial or the driver.
After arrival driver informed me that it would be tight and we might have to leave some items behind. With the van about 90% filled I was told to take a look and see what should come off and what will stay behind. Tough to do in the dark! We ended up leaving a significant amount of items behind. I now have to make a 2,400 mile r/t with a trailer to come back and retrieve my remaining items. I told the driver as he was leaving to not show up at the deliver address no earlier than noon Wednesday. He called Tuesday morning wanting to deliver that afternoon. I was still 850 miles away and he agreed to be there Wednesday morning. I had to drive 18 hours to be there by Wednesday AM.

Colonial Van Lines - WORST Moving Company Ever, November 20, 2011
Reviewer: Anonymous from Texas to Nevada

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1 of 1 people found this review helpful

NOT A MOVING COMPANY - A FREIGHT COMPANY - DO NOT EXPECT MOVING SERVICE.

Whatever quote you;re given is a complete sham.

I made the huge mistake of using this company to move from Texas to Nevada. I thought I'd identified a move date with Colonial, but they had no respect for my timeline. They were supposed to call 24 hours before arriving to confirm and I had to call to see if the movers were coming the next day, was told no. At 4:00 the day before I needed to leave, I had to call a local moving company to put all my items in storage (an additional $750).

I had no idea when my things would be delivered, so called frequently to find out. I finally called the contracted trucking company from the pick-up debacle and was told the items would be delivered that afternoon. UGH!

When the items arrived, the movers didn't put the beds or table together. Terrible company all the way around.

Colonial Van Lines is unethical, unprofessional and dishonest. Better name: Colonial Van Lies!

THE MOVER SWITCH-A-RU, November 14, 2011
Reviewer: JPC from Laughlin, NV to MN

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4 of 4 people found this review helpful

1) Showed up three days LATE
2) Actual mover crew/company was completely different company
(It was never disclosed this was even possible of happing)
3). The actual mover crew/company sent three men, they could barely
Speak English. I found out they were Croatian.
4). Most importantly, my moving contract was for .60 per pound. I was charged .71 per pound.
5). They had all right answers up front. Bottom line, No way would I recommend this company to anyone!!! This was an expensive lesson!!!!
6) Thank goodness, only one casualty, a love seat. have not settled that yet??

__________________

was going to us them, August 26, 2011
Reviewer: Anthony potter from Anytown, AT 55555

4 of 5 people found this review helpful

thank you for saving me alot of pain i was contacted today from colonial and was told that they could move me from ca.to texas for 2300.00 i ask the rep if they were coming out to look at my stuff and was told that i was to give them a list of the things that were to be moved and that she could give me a price i asked her about the 2300.00 price and was told that was just a guess that is what they say is the cost of a 2 bedroom apt. i told her i would call her back and let her know i did not let her know that i was going to there web site and check out reviews there are so many crooks out there one company told me they could move me for 1800.00 and that loading and unloading the truck plus driving 1800 miles thank to all for the info

__________________

Colonial Van Lines Hires Careless Subcontractors, August 14, 2011
Reviewer: P McCord from Santa Fe, NM to San Antonio, TX

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1 of 1 people found this review helpful

The thing about an aggregator like Colonial Van Lines is that they hire subcontractors. You pay Colonial part of the fee for setting it up and pay the rest to movers you might never have hired on your own. They guys who moved me were polite but they were unprepared (they were doing the packing and only brought one pack of newsprint), careless, and down right malicious in handling my belongings. Fragile pieces of art were laid in a box, unwrapped but jumbled together, and then they threw my iron into the box. The tension rods on my bed were twisted and bent to the point that I have to replace them. Colonial's customer service was very sorry to hear about this but claims must be filed through the mover. And the mover is a freight company meaning they pay 60 cents per pound per article. So, I could file a claim for my 2-pound Mexican cross that broke, but I'll get $1.20 for my time.

WORST COMPANY!!!, August 11, 2011
Reviewer: Jason a. from NJ to FL

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0 of 0 people found this review helpful

The entire experience was the most unprofessional experience I've ever been a part of.
They subcontract out to unprofessional unreliable lying companies.
Our movers didn't show 3 days in a row and were late each time. We have proof that the movers lied to us multiple times and that the truck wasn't even given our job until the night before. They showed with 1/3 of the room we needed to move after me telling my customer service rep that we needed more space than she estimated and she told me "not to worry about it". We had to box and move all of our stuff outside of my home 2 days in a row because we had a tenant moving the day before the truck finally came. We ended up having to Uhaul our own move, hire workers, and stress about this whole situation for days on end not knowing what was going on.
This company's customer service reps are nice as can be, don't let them fool you like they did me. They are moving brokers and use companies who the drivers told us are horrible!

Whatever you do, DO NOT use this company., August 09, 2011
Reviewer: W. Studstill from New York - Florida

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1 of 2 people found this review helpful

This company is a total waste of time and money. I contracted them to move my belongings from two pickup locations, one with restrictions in NYC. They were informed repeatedly of the restrictions at the time that they took my $1500 deposit on July 15, 2011. Due to building restrictions in NYC the move out date for pickup location #2 had to be determined in advance, between certain hours. My designated move out window was Aug 8 - 10, 2011. On Aug 8 I received no call and no pickup at location 1. On Aug 9 after repeated phone calls, 5 voice mail messages I was told by the salesman that 3 different carriers had refused the job, and there was still no pickup scheduled. At the time of canceling the job I was informed that my deposit was non-refundable, so they actually intend to keep the $1500 deposit I gave them although they provided absolutely NO SERVICE. Whatever you do, DO NOT use this company. I was persuaded by the salesman but they were incapable and wanted to keep my $1500.

Avoid them like the plague, August 04, 2011
Reviewer: Sue from Los Angeles to Chicago

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3 of 3 people found this review helpful

My original move order was placed with Colonial Van Lines. I had no idea that they then broker the packing/shipping to another party. In my case, B&B Transportation. They arrived on time to pack my contents. I had a guarantee delivery date, which was not met. I firmly believe they "pad" the materials they use to increase the charge versus the quote. When they provided the weight of the goods they said I was 1.000 pounds over the estimate.

I shipped less items than the estimate...so the math just doesn't add up.

When we arrived home, we had our stuff and someone elses stuff. They left all of the blue packing blankets as well.

As other reviewers stated, customer service is great until you sign the contract, then heaven help you as the wait time is 10 + min, if they answer.

Poor Service Colonial Van Lines, July 30, 2011
Reviewer: Brian from Overland Park, KS to Los Angeles, CA

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3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Colonial Van Lines have provided me with the worst service of any company I have ever dealt with. They do great at taking deposit money up front promising to pick up your goods. That is where the customer service ends.
I have just taken two days off of work in order to be at my house. No truck no phone call. When I called my customer service representatives they told me to call the customer service phone number. When I finally got through to someone they put me on hold for ten minutes and when they picked up they asked what they could do for me. I was finally told they do not have a truck to pick up my stuff and did know when they would be able too pick up my stuff. I am out $4,000 and my ex-wife and kids are out of state in a home with no furniture and need to be out of my home in two days. Do not use Colonial Van Lines.

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Move on to another company, July 11, 2011
Reviewer: Kathryn from MI to KY

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3 of 3 people found this review helpful

My experience with Colonial Van Lines is so horrible! Do not use them for your move!

When I asked for a quote, Colonial Van Lines was very prompt. Within an hour, I got my preliminary contract and the next day, I got the final job order. I paid 50% deposit. I was glad everything was settled a month before my planned move.

3 days before my move, I got a call from them saying they don't have a driver for me yet. Fine, there are 3 more days before the scheduled move. June 26 or 27 was the pick-up date. June 26 - no driver. June 27 - no driver. June 28 - no driver. The worst part is they do NOT call you to update you. I called them several times, left messages, did not get a call back. I called their customer service and was put on hold for 10 minutes without getting to my assigned agent. I decided to call their line for getting quotes, and, surprise, surprise, immediately talked to an agent! Agent was not very helpful, saying I'm calling the wrong number. But I insisted I wasn't getting

AVOID AT ALL COSTS, June 20, 2011
Reviewer: J. PARRISH from Anytown, AT 55555

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10 of 12 people found this review helpful

Contracted with Colonial Van Lines to pick up furniture on May 13 no later than May 14th. Would not sign contract for move until they would guarantee pick-up as house was going under construction. I also went over contract and all items to be picked up. I have read about additional fees being added in at delivery time and expressed my concerns to Roslyn Dubs, customer service rep. She assured me there would be no additional fees. I was paying minimum weight limit of 3000 pounds and I was a little over 2000 pounds. May 13th - No Pick up - informed would be May 17th.rnMay 17th - Truck became stuck in a ditch before arriving for pick-up. Informed pick-up would be May 18th. May 18th - Contracted for shuttle service as driveway steep. When movers arrived they had no idea what a shuttle service was and did not know what to do. I had informed movers from very beginning about driveway and did not want any problems when movers arrived, therefore contracted for shuttle service. Construction workers were waiting at house for furniture to be removed. I had to hire them to move all furniture and appliances to bottom of driveway. They assisted movers in loading their truck. Late pick-up cost thousands in delayed start of construction. May 18th - Called Colonial Van Lines and asked that Shuttle Service fees be removed from Contract. I was informed delivery would be week of May 25 - June 1st. May 24th - informed delivery would be May 26th. Asked for final price and shuttle service was still included. Colonial Van Lines said "agent" was refusing to deduct shuttle service. I was SHOCKED! Not only had I paid 6 men to bring all items to moving truck at end of driveway, they helped the movers load their truck!!! Colonial said it was their right to charge. I said I was contracted with Colonial not these "agents". It came as a shock they used third party movers. May 26 - Colonial phoned to say delivery would be May 27th and they would not charge for Shuttle Service. May 27th - Colonial phoned to say delivery was delayed to June 1st. May 31 - Colonial phoned to say delivery was delayed to June 2nd or June 3rd. June 1 - Colonial phoned to give new price - added in $150.00 Heavy Rug Fee. I could not believe it. I gave size of rug when itemizing items and told no additional fees because I was 30% under weight limit. I protested. Colonial said "agent" had right to charge bulky weight fee. I was told if I did not pay the movers would not remove my items from truck. I spoke with Supervisor and she said she would look into it. I was concerned because delivery date kept changing. I told her I had an obligation out of town June 8 - 10. she said no problem because i would have my furniture that week. June 2 - Kyle called to ask if I had heard from drivers. I said no. He said movers would be at house June 3rd - guaranteed He said he would call me first thing in morning as I was his priority. That is a quote. I took day off from work. I did not hear from Kyle or anyone else. June 4 - Tannish called from Colonial to say movers would be delivering on Tuesday June 7th . Kyle would call Monday and confirm times. June 6 - Tanisha called to say delivery would not be June 7th but June 8th. I became very upset. I told her i had already told Colonial I would be out of town June 8 - 10. She said....and I am quoting, â��well, you didn't tell me!". OMG are you kidding??? I didn't start talking to Tanisha until June 4th. She said "agents" were not told I was out of town those dates. I decided to ask for the $30.00 a day reduction for everyday delivery was outside guaranteed delivery date, which was June 1st. Colonial said they didn't have to pay because i was not available on June 8th. I couldn't believe it. I was in shock. June 7 - Tanisha called and said delivery would be June 11 or June 12th. I asked for final dollar amount due, I did not want to pay heavy rug charge or shuttle fee. June 9 & 10 - left msgs for someone to call me back so i would know final amount to get from bank. No one called me. June 11 - Colonial called to say no delivery until Thursday June 16th. They said they were still "working" on final price. June 11 - "AGENT" Trans United called to say they would be delivering June 13th. I said are you sure???? I asked what final amount due was? They had added more fees.....Bulky charge for rug taking up room in truck. I protested. He said he would talk with Colonial on Monday before delivery. Delivery would be 12-3. Monday June 13th - Colonial working on final price. Said that "agent" would not remove Shuttle Fee, even though I provided my own service. They said "agent" would not remove heavy item charge for rug, even though men I hired helped them load it into their moving truck. They would not remove bulky item charge, even though I had not heard of this fee before. My husband took day off from work to meet delivery truck. June 13 - NOON - Leon from Colonial Van Lines informed me that delivery would not be that day, but the next day, Tuesday June 14th between noon and 3pm. OMG are you kidding me? When I told him my husband had taken day off from work and this was BS he said he was sorry. When I asked Leon about my late delivery fee being deducted from total, he said drivers said they were set to deliver on June 8th, but I could not take delivery. OMG are you kidding me???? This is 20 of delivery promises and because I was not available June 8th they are using THAT to avoid reducing fees? Colonial said they would see what they could do. I said....I contracted with Colonial, not these "agents". Tuesday, June 14th. - Spoke with Tanisha, she said she spoke with "agent" Trans United, and she was confirming they would be at my house between noon and 3pm.rnI protested fees again. She said i would not receive my items if I did not have their money. They would not unload the truck. I told her they were worse than the Mafia! Tuesday, June 14th. - 11:30AM - Leon phoned to inform me that delivery would not be that day. The truck had mechanical problems. Thursday, June 16th - Leon, Supervisor, phoned to say that he would call Friday or Saturday with an update on delivery date. Sunday, June 19th - I have not had one phone call from anyone at Colonial Van Lines. I am now questioning whether anyone has my furniture and appliances. Are they lost? Is this all a scam? Do not do business with Colonial Van Lines. They have absolutely horrible customer service. They make promises and do not keep them. This is not just one person or one bad experience.....this is over 8 customer service reps and 3 supervisors I have been dealing with. All of them are trained like stepford wives to say the same thing.......I am sorry for your trouble. I am sorry for your trouble. I am sorry you feel that way. Their contracts are no good, as they contract with 3rd party movers to move your items and the 3rd party controls the fees. Colonial keeps saying, I'll talk with them to see if they will take that fee off. I'll see what I can do. But the bottom line is if you don't pay you will not get your stuff. I don't know if I will ever get my stuff. After 21 days of promised deliveries, I am starting think something is seriously wrong. I know there can be issues, but how customer service handles problems key to the integrity and value of a Company. Colonial Van Lines do not put customer first and repeatedly do not call back when they have promised to call. I am constantly calling because they do not follow up and call back when they have promised to do so. I do not know how they are in business with such a horrible customer service team. Do not risk going through the hell I am in....and do not see an end in sight. There are too many other choices in moving. Stay as far away as possible from Colonial Van Lines/Colonial Movers.

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