Guest Macduck Posted April 2, 2011 Share Posted April 2, 2011 Hi there I am new and just thought I would post up my story to warn you all out there. There will be no names mentioned of which company it was! Recently my wife and emigrated to Aus from Scotland. She is an Aussie so life for me was easier. We spent many hours and getting many quotes deciding which removal firm to go with. After finally narrowing it down to handful a with help from here we decided to go with the one that came most recommended and many other reasons which will be mentioned later. Unfortunately this was the most expensive of them all. We paid for a door to door service including unpacking and removal of rubbish but it was only a part container. Finally the day came the men turned up on time and where very pleasant the tea does help! Anyway they were not part of the company we hired despite being told that they were based here in aus and the uk and it would be there company and not a third party doing the removal. One big reason we choose them. Anyhow I let that go despite out stuff not going to their warehouse but to the third parties warehouse till they took it down to Edinburgh. I left a few days later knowing that my stuff was in good hands how wrong was I. We had been told that it would take 10-12 weeks to get to QLD but infact it was 18weeks and it sat in the uk for 10 weeks before it left. After constantly harrassing them I did managed to get a tracking number and container number despite this being incorrect so I could track it. When it finally arrived here in aus I called the office here only to find out our paper work was incomplete and customs would not process till complete. Surely at somepoint during the ordeal they should have noticed this and informed us of this. So we completed the paper work and finally our stuff was clear and I had a day and time for delivery. Well one guy turned up late who again was not part of the company I paid to move my goods. So I had to help unpack and carry my goods into the house. Whilst doing so I noticed all the boxes had been abused and damaged in some way or another. My main concern was however that my tv which was packed in it's original box back in the uk was missing. However he informed me it was here and pointed it out in their own packaging. So after getting my goods out of the dented abused van which were crammed in there we proceeded to put them all inside. The gentleman was not keen on staying despite us paying for them to unpack and remove rubbish. I did get him to agree to stay whilst I opened the tv box. Well to no surprise it was smashed so he took note and sped off. I took a closer look and was shocked to see it had been dropped upside on a corner due to the cracked and missing plastic not to mention bent metal. As stated the tv was packed in it's original box but not no more. I have proof that this was the case as back in uk they noted this. Well the tv had one bit of bubble wrap and then one peace of card wrapped around it then taped up. No where near enough to protect my much loved Kuro tv. Anyway they had taken time to cut out the identity sticker from original box with a peace of the box on it as well and tape to new made up box. So someone has tampered with goods by unpacking them and repacking with out my consent or knowledge and then smashed it up. Well so far I have one bike that has chips all over it the other has a dent in the frame and a bent chain ring, a smashed blender, broken tool boxes, and a DVD recorder dented and scratched despite being in a wooden chest. Oh and course a pile high of rubbish which they were paid to remove. So needles to say I am angry they have abused and tampered with my goods. Not delivered on time no one I have delt with is part of the company I hired and I still have to go through the rest. They have caused thousands of pounds of damaged and a serious loss in time which I could of been working. I have no idea what to say to them or who to contact to report them as surely tampering with goods is illegal not to mention stealing the box it was originally in. If they had just left it in it's box all would be good. So all I can say is beware they are one of he top companies and when it says packed and loaded with care that is an utter utter lie! Hamish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Macduck Posted April 2, 2011 Share Posted April 2, 2011 Sorry I forgot to say using iPhone as still no Internet so excuse poor writing or any mistakes I may of made. Oh and for the length of it. H Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest siamsusie Posted April 2, 2011 Share Posted April 2, 2011 Have you complained through the official channels and gone through the association of removals? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Macduck Posted April 2, 2011 Share Posted April 2, 2011 It only happened yesterday so have not done anything as of yet but I have written a complaint letter which I will send to uk and aus. I will also contact customs as my goods have been tampered with without my consent and I am looking into which governing bodies I should contact any idea will be much appreciated H Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest siamsusie Posted April 3, 2011 Share Posted April 3, 2011 Complaints and compliments I notice a review site, which might come in handy http://www.reviewcentre.com/products5394.html . If your removal company was one of the big 10, then they obviously belonged I would imagine to a "removals professional body" maybe you could take the matter up with them as well. BAR - The British Association of Removers. Has been in existence since 1900 and is the oldest Trade Association for the Removal Industry. Representing over 600 of the UK�s leading professional removal and storage companies all of which are covered by the OFT Approved BAR Code of Practice. The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) approved a new Code of Practice for all 650 members of the British Association of Removers (BAR) in February 2008. The Code is the only one of its kind for the UK removals industry and provides the public with a guaranteed high quality of service and financial protection when moving house. www.bar.co.uk The Removal Ombudsman Scheme. Provides the Removal Industry with an independent service to resolve disputes between member companies and their clients, both domestic consumers and commercial organisations, if the normal complaints procedure has not produced a satisfactory conclusion. The Scheme is managed by an independent Committee, and it has appointed an Ombudsman, who has no connection with any removal business. Complaints are investigated free of charge but only after all efforts to conciliate by the trade association has been exhausted. www.removalsombudsman.org.uk http://www.helpiammoving.com/moving_house/removal_company_associations.php Susie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cherylant78 Posted April 6, 2011 Share Posted April 6, 2011 oh that sounds very similar to our shipping story so far, we also shipped from Edinburgh, shippers removed our goods on the 3rd of November 2010 and they didn't make on to a ship until the middle of February despite having been quoted a 10-12 week timeframe. As far as I know the ship has now docked and is waiting on customs clearance, I'm now wondering if we used the same company and dreading what kind of condition my belongings will be in when they are finally delivered. I hope you get some answers from them and soon. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Sam C Posted April 6, 2011 Share Posted April 6, 2011 Sorry I forgot to say using iPhone as still no Internet so excuse poor writing or any mistakes I may of made. Oh and for the length of it. H Sorry to hear about your awful experience, I'm in the process of obtaining a visa and therefore researching shipping companies. Thanks for the heads up. Good luck getting to an agreement - did you insure the move? Like siamsusie's said, they're the places to go to report this. BTW, fair play writing that novel on an iPhone, that must have taken ages! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz n family Posted April 6, 2011 Share Posted April 6, 2011 i wish i knew which conpany this was, we are about to choose after four quotea, would appreciate it if you could pm me the companies name Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pallen Posted April 6, 2011 Share Posted April 6, 2011 Hamish Very interested to read your article re shipping to Australia. As I am plannin to do the same in July I really would be interested to find out the company as obviously I dont want the same to happen. Would u supply or tlk off this site!? Best regards and thanks Antony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadas Posted April 6, 2011 Share Posted April 6, 2011 It's a prob with some of the bigger companies when you are in remote locations. We used P***fuds for our move from France to Spain, they guaranteed to do it in 14 days, were late and we had already gone, then found out they subbed it to a local firm who. Only 5% of my tools arrived, and I'm a commercial cabinet maker, many of them were my grandfathers. But not inventoried therefore never existed. 8000 euros for the best inthe world!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted April 6, 2011 Share Posted April 6, 2011 I'd love to know who you guys used...... I'm about to pick someone and dont want to make the same mistake...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bennyboy Posted April 6, 2011 Share Posted April 6, 2011 Hi and sorry to hear you had a bad experience, sounds awful i must say! The company that you used, is it one that is just from your area or is it nationwide across uk too? I would be grateful if you could pm me the name so i too don't make the same mistake! Hope you manage to sort everything out and good luck for the future.:biggrin: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Allic1978 Posted April 6, 2011 Share Posted April 6, 2011 Gosh that sounds awful, im in the middle of getting qoutes and I would be so grateful if people could private message me the names of any companies that you wouldn't use, thank god for these forums Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bath2Brisbane Posted April 6, 2011 Share Posted April 6, 2011 So Sorry you had such a bad experience, it really adds to the stress levels. Like others before me, I am just about to book shippers and would appreciate a pm re who not to use. Nikki Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest destinationoz Posted April 6, 2011 Share Posted April 6, 2011 Sorry!! Same as others - please PM me the company name so I don't make the same mistake! Thanks lots !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest PocketMamma Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 I don't know which shipping company was used but I would advise you all against (PM for details). My belongings were packed up on 15 December 2010 and finally put on a ship around 22 February. It docked on 31 March so now waiting for customs clearance. I'm also worried about what state my goods will be in - particularly since the winter was so cold. Because of the long wait I had to buy warmer clothes - only packed for summer. I was given a 200 GBP refund but no explanation as to why it took over 2 months for my things to be loaded onto a boat. Possibly because I had a relatively small consignment but this is just a guess. Not sure why others aren't divulging the name - perhaps I'm being foolish or breaking the law somehow in doing so? I can't see how telling the truth could land me in trouble - oh well, too late now :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Macduck Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Hi all many thanks for all the words and thoughts. I am more than happy to tell who it was but only once I have had a response from them as there is no point giving them a bad name if they come good in the end. On a good note they have been in touch and are investigating it and will be in touch early next week. So watch this space. And to all those wanting to know I will pm their name after that. H H Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 With my sense of humour bashed!! I'll tell you my happy story of last week...Like the poster our company didn't do the move but 'cross' hired another company to collect our things. (Bristol to Brisbane) We had spent the weekend gathering all the furniture and bits to be moved into one room with plenty of space for the packing guys to move around lugged all the upstairs furniture etc downstairs so there were no stairs to climb access right out into the drive and van backed up to door..thought we were being helpful! Two guys turned up three hours late and started to moan from the off...we hadn't packed enough? they we're supposed to be packing it...we had filled about ten boxes with books etc. They were there no more than three hours and left the place in a state with mud right through the house even though we had put dust sheets down they had moved them and not put them back. We rented in the UK and ended up paying 150 pounds cleaning bill from our bond!!! They left the packing materials so we spent till 2 am the next morning packing for them but left some for them to do. Next day one guy turned up almost four hours late, my partner had to help him wrap and pack the remainder and load the lorry as they had left the big furniture. My partner had a little moan and was told by the guy " I have a conviction for GBH!" not sure if that was a warning? (Blush) partner has one too :no:!! and a short fuse!! Two days later I received an email from the shippers demanding an additional 998 pounds before they could send the container..we've already paid them almost 3000 pounds! it was for the wrapping and packing of an extra twenty boxes which we wrapped and packed ourselves! they then said it was for the extra container space...we had removed a few cabinets etc and made the extra space which they were aware of! :mad: THIEVES!!!!! We've lodged a complaint with B.A.R PM me for the details if your interested!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest destinationoz Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Please can you PM the name Rachetv!! I can't work out how to PM you!! Thanks loads Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest stapld Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 can you PM me too, in Manchester, heading for Perth and have just put down a deposit so hoping that the lot i have gone with are ok! Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourcorners Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Just bear in mind everyone that if you only have a partial container they will wait until they fill the rest of the container before shipping. So no-one can predict accurately how soon the rest of the container will be filled. I think when we move back to Oz later this year we will have a full container as it will probably contain a car. We have done three international moves and never had any problems with damaged goods, but we always take a full inventory ourselves and take pictures of everything. We laid out all our CDs and books on the floor and took high resolution pictures so every item could be identified. That also included an extensive amount of climbing gear and valuable ornaments etc. We calculated our amount of insurance cover at the same time (always more than you think it will be). It is ALWAYS worth getting insurance, so you have absolute peace of mind that if anything does get damaged, you will be able to replace it. We've always done most of the unpacking ourselves so that we can document anything that is missing or damaged, as it comes out of the box. I don't think it's worth paying someone to do something that we're perfectly capable of doing ourselves. Some boxes are then used for storage, the rest go to recycling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bath2Brisbane Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 With my sense of humour bashed!! I'll tell you my happy story of last week...Like the poster our company didn't do the move but 'cross' hired another company to collect our things. (Bristol to Brisbane) We had spent the weekend gathering all the furniture and bits to be moved into one room with plenty of space for the packing guys to move around lugged all the upstairs furniture etc downstairs so there were no stairs to climb access right out into the drive and van backed up to door..thought we were being helpful! Two guys turned up three hours late and started to moan from the off...we hadn't packed enough? they we're supposed to be packing it...we had filled about ten boxes with books etc. They were there no more than three hours and left the place in a state with mud right through the house even though we had put dust sheets down they had moved them and not put them back. We rented in the UK and ended up paying 150 pounds cleaning bill from our bond!!! They left the packing materials so we spent till 2 am the next morning packing for them but left some for them to do. Next day one guy turned up almost four hours late, my partner had to help him wrap and pack the remainder and load the lorry as they had left the big furniture. My partner had a little moan and was told by the guy " I have a conviction for GBH!" not sure if that was a warning? (Blush) partner has one too :no:!! and a short fuse!! Two days later I received an email from the shippers demanding an additional 998 pounds before they could send the container..we've already paid them almost 3000 pounds! it was for the wrapping and packing of an extra twenty boxes which we wrapped and packed ourselves! they then said it was for the extra container space...we had removed a few cabinets etc and made the extra space which they were aware of! :mad: THIEVES!!!!! We've lodged a complaint with B.A.R PM me for the details if your interested!! Hi, I haven't worked out how to pm yet - could you please pm me? Thanks, Nikki Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pallen Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Hi.... PM me please with the company u used.. i am just p[lannin to use Anglo Overseas and wondered if they were the company Many thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest boxtobox Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Wow, sounds a nightmare - we are just about to make a booking, please tell me who it is before I spend my hard earned. Thanks Russell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest boxtobox Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 OOPPPPPSSS, Sorry that was supposed to be a PM. Been a long day - I wouldn't expect you to name and shame (publicly). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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