Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:10/05/2022

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I reserved the services of Apollonas Moving and Storage on June 26, 2022 to provide unloading/loading services from a moving truck into three (3) ****** moving containers (U-Box). Two movers were reserved for two hours each. The order was clear as to the services required. Movers were contracted through MovingHelp.Com, a website owned by ******; it provides a list of referrals for local moving help. The job was reviewed by the company representative prior to their acceptance of the job. The services were to be delivered at the ****** center on ******************** in ******. (At the time of the service, I was living in ******/Mattapan.) The mover arrived late (approximately 75 minutes) and was alone. I asked when his help was arriving and was told that he was the only person and that he had done this work many times and to not worry; he is a professional mover who has been doing this work for many years. While the truck was being unloaded and items placed into the moving containers, I noticed that some items were not being tightly secured and not protected with plastic wrap or the moving blankets that I purchased specifically for the move. Please note that we were on the ground of a retail ****** center where any other necessary items were available for purchase. Three times, I asked that the items be wrapped and secured. Each time, the mover said that he was a professional mover and that he would be packing the items so tightly that they could not move and therefore not be damaged. I disagreed with his proceeding with the assurance that nothing could happen to the items because they were tightly loaded and stored correctly. When items were unpacked, damage to multiple items was found. I paid for an inspection to assess the damage and write a report detailing damage and cost to repair. The damage was due to items not being protected and secured, and loaded incorrectly with damage resulting from the way that a skilled/experience mover wound not have done.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 10/16/2022

  I have not heard from the business in response to my complaint.

   

  I contacted the company prior to contacting the BBB. The response to my message was that I did not make him sign anything that says he has insurance and that I needed to contact the agency that I booked him through. The information/attachments that I provided in my initial complaint is what he was sent on September 30, 2022 with his response the same day. 

  Business Response

  Date: 10/18/2022

  Hello, my name is ******* with Apple moving and storage LLC. I'm calling about the complaint of ******** and I want to respond that way when we load the truck nothing was damaged on so my job is done from the time that boxes as they get the loaded because that's the deal if they asked me to do from the move we helped out. So I get there and I load this stuff from the time. I load the stuff and out there is not my responsibility for any damages or something else is helping in your brokers. So I cannot take all these complaints because something happened after four five months from the original day we load, we load on June 26 and he filed the complaint on Oct 2 so this is like 3 months after we load. He needs to take this up with movinh help and figure this out and not my company, when we were done he approved with no damages. 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 10/21/2022

  Better Business Bureau:I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # ********. Please add your rejection comments below; if you do not provide any details, your complaint will be closed as ************************ Services were provided by the business with full knowledge that the items were being shipped to ***** with teh UHaul UBox service and placed in storage. 

  2. Supplies were provided  furniture wrap and more than 2 dozen moving blankets protect items from damage. I requested that both be used at least three times mover stating that the protection was not needed. 

  3. ***** said that there was no way the items could move as he wsa packing them so tightly that it would be impossible for items to move or shift. 

  4. Mover informed customer that he was a professinoal mover who had performed the service and that he was certain that the packing was sufficien to protect items. (NOTE: Customer has moved 18 times in his adult live including driving a self-packed UHaul a distance of ***** miles from ******, ***** to ************, ** and across the ********************************************************* and down the ************************** through Harlem *** in rush hour traffic. Customer also has a background in physics and advanced mathematics. Frictionless or minimally frictionless surfaces move easily)

  5. Business accepted the job with full knowledge of the nature of the move and assured that he could provide the services. 

  I have pictures and an independent review of the damage with concurrence of damage due to the improper loading and storage of the items. At the end of his presence with the items, it is expected that nothing had moved and appeared secure. Given that nothing had been secured with a D-ring within 2 feet of the items and facts stated above, it is clear that the damage is as a direct result of the  items not being secured. 

  Damage to the buffet is a direct result of the item being stood "on end" rather than on its feet as requested. As a professional, experienced mover his professional judgement and execution of the task was in error. 

  I am not seeking any compensation for damage to items that I packed myself or are expected in a move: broken professional-framed items; glassware; glass vases. That is reasonable and, in my experience, customary.

  The company's response remains consistent with the response when I informed him proactively of the damage and seeking to resolve without engaging other companies or the court. I have offered to work directly with his insurance company to process claims and make sure they have everything they need. I have contacted MovingHelp.com who have assured me that the business is an independent contractor that is responsible for the quality of services and is to offer insurance through MovingHelp.com or to advise the customer practively that their services are delivered without warranty. Not only did the mover not offer this insurance, he assured writer on multiple occassions during the packing of the items that he was a professional mover with years of experience and that he was certain that on damage could be done. This was done with full knowlefdge of the nature of the move and stating that he had experience with loading UBoxes for move and storage.

  In the spirit of full disclosure, a court case has been filed in ****** County, *****. The suit has been filed in small claims court for $4,000. A court will have to decide whether the mover's statements constitute a verbal warranty of services and whther the damage is as a result of the services provided. Two attempts to find a resolution with willingness to accept a reasonalbe offer have been made. The requested amouth is about 30% less than the damage and cost to repair/refurbish. I have already researched options to buy used furniture to replace items where the cost to repain exceeds the item's worth. I have made more than reasonable effort to find a solution.

  The company will be served with notice within 1-2 weeks depending on the outcome of proceedings with the Better Business Bureau. No other publc comments have been made. No commentts or reviews will be made until the resolution of this issue though BBB or the courts. 

  Respectfully submitted,

  *********************

   

   

  FAQ
  
  Regards,

  ******

   

   

  Business Response

  Date: 10/24/2022

  I load the furniture with no damages on that day on June of *********************************** and that was my job to load the uboxes after that is no longer under the companies name the rest of moving or driving any truck that cares my company name and also he file complaints after 4 months of the specific day I did my job to load the uboxes and that was all everything load with care in the small containers
  

  
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 10/25/2022

  Better Business Bureau:I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # ********. Please add your rejection comments below; if you do not provide any details, your complaint will be closed as Answered. 

  The response is rejected as there is no indication of any willingness to resolve this issue outside of the court system. On four separate occasions, the mover has denied any liability for the damage to the items; has not accepted offers to work directly with his company's liability insurer; and has not made any offers to compensate in any way for the damages. The mover rejected my requests to cover the furniture and to not store the buffet/sideboard on its end with assurance that he is a professional mover and that in no way could the items be damaged. The mover was told multiple times that the items would be in storage in ***** for an undetermined amount of time.

  I am making one last and final offer to close this without engaging the court system or reporting this incident to the State of ************* Secretary of ************** for concern than LLP or LLC is not carrying liability insurance as required under ************* law, the ************* ********** of ****** Utilities through which professional moving companies must be licensed, and the **************************************** for the potential for incident on public roadways. I will also forally register and report this incident and subsequent communications to movinghelp.com and **Haul. I have not engaged in any reports on social media. 

  I have cleaned the leather chair myself over the course of two days. It cannot be restored to its pre-move condition but is better than it was when it was delivered. It was found uncovered in the **Box. As such, I will remove the item from the repair list.

  I have researched replacements for the dining room set. I have found replacements through discount retailers to replace for $400-$500 including deliver. I will have to assemble the items myself and will not pass that charge to the mover. 

  I have found a substitute for the buffet/sideboard for 80% retail price at ******* The buffet/sideboard cannot be replaced and last appraisal was for $3,400. The estimate to repair the item was over $2,000 plus moving expenses for the crew to transport the item. With delivery fees, the cost for the replacement item which is one-third of the size of the item being replaced is $319.

  The desk will need to be professionally repaired. I will load the desk myself into my SUV and deliver/pick up after the repairs are complete on my own. I will charge normal mileage under IRS regulation and round that off to $25. I will not charge for my services and time.

  I will include the cost of the estimate of cost to obtain the damage report and estimate to repair. 

  I will include an estimate of the cost to have the items removed from my home through a junk removal service. That estimate is $400-$500.

  This offer, the research and work to limit the costs to a small business, the damage to a business through a loss of this magnitude have been well-considered. I have done as much as I can to minimize his financial liability. It is not my responsibility to minimize his out of pocket business expense. It is the mover's responsibility to accurately and professionally represent the company's capabilities, to deliver a service within the agreements made, to accept responsibility, to honor a customer's direct request to perform tasks that would have further limited and/or avoided the damages, and to understand the liability that the company carries when in this business. 

  There is nothing more that I can do to find a way to make this work. I am making a last and final offer to settle this issue for $1,800 with payment within 10 business days. I will agree, in writing, to not pursue additional legal action or reporting to regulatory offices in the **********************.

  Respectfully submitted,

  *********************

  
  Businesses and Customers should be civil, courteous and polite in their responses to complaints. It is important to remain professional and productive when participating in the BBB complaint process.
  
  FAQ
  
  Regards,

  ******