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Colonial Van Lines Complaints 28

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I was looking for a quote for a long distance move and called three companies. I appreciate the way the sales rep at Colonial handled the situation at the start. He gave me, what seemed like, a good quote and seemed to know what he was doing. That was the end of my positive experience that turned into a nightmare. I inquired from the start the type of truck...

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Colonial Van Lines "subbed" out my move from New York to Florida to a New Jersey moving company. My understanding is that CVL does this often! They picked up my stuff and held it for 29 days before it was finally delivered. It was kept in a storage facility in New Jersey where there was evidence of rodents in my boxes. There was also a horrible stench on my...

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Colonial Van Lines Cross country move

Stay away from this company! Their MO is to rip you off, take your money and hope that you get so frustrated that you won't keep calling them back.

Everything about my moving experience was terrible. Delivery was delayed by more than 2 weeks and no one could tell me where my items were. My items sat in a warehouse for more than 2 week and my couch was full of mouse droppings from being there. I was over charged signficantly - $8000 more than they had estimated on a $12,000 move. Filing a claim did nothing but give me back a few dollars on the many damaged items and trying to get resolution has taking many months. I still don't have the overage fees back from when they "reweighed" my items. This place is full of crooks.

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Is Colonial Van Lines Legit?

Colonial Van Lines earns a trustworthiness rating of 91%

Highly recommended, but caution will not hurt.

Our conclusion: After a detailed review, ComplaintsBoard finds Colonial Van Lines to be a trustworthy company. Although there's a 3% resolution rate for customer complaints, which deserves attention, Colonial Van Lines is known for their high standards and safety. If you're thinking about dealing with Colonial Van Lines, it's wise to check how they handle complaints.

We found clear and detailed contact information for Colonial Van Lines. The company provides a physical address, 3 phone numbers, and email, as well as 4 social media accounts. This demonstrates a commitment to customer service and transparency, which is a positive sign for building trust with customers.

Colonial Van Lines has claimed the domain name for colonialvanlines.com for a long time, which suggests that the website is established and has a history of being in operation. This is a positive sign, as it indicates that the website has been around for a while and may have a reputation to maintain.

Colonialvanlines.com has a valid SSL certificate, which indicates that the website is secure and trustworthy. Look for the padlock icon in the browser and the "https" prefix in the URL to confirm that the website is using SSL.

Colonialvanlines.com has been deemed safe to visit, as it is protected by a cloud-based cybersecurity solution that uses the Domain Name System (DNS) to help protect networks from online threats.

Several positive reviews for Colonial Van Lines have been found on various review sites. While this may be a good sign, it is important to approach these reviews with caution and consider the possibility of fake or biased reviews.

However ComplaintsBoard has detected that:

  • While Colonial Van Lines has a high level of trust, our investigation has revealed that the company's complaint resolution process is inadequate and ineffective. As a result, only 3% of 28 complaints are resolved. The support team may have poor customer service skills, lack of training, or not be well-equipped to handle customer complaints.
  • The website belonging to Colonial Van Lines has a low number of visitors, which could be a red flag for users. However, it's important to conduct additional research to fully evaluate the website's legitimacy and trustworthiness.
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Colonial Van Lines Missing Items

I am missing:

Wardrobe box: containing various items of winter wear, most importantly a suede fringed jacket that had once belonged to me son's father.

kitchen box: containing 12 pieces of cast iron cookware. Pieces range from a 14' skillet to a 4" square that had once belonged to my father.

assorted box: containing cutting boards, mixer, knife box, and other various small kitchen items.

Desired outcome: I would like my items found and returned to me.

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Colonial Van Lines Extreme delay in service

Colonial Van lines has failed to deliver the contents of my home in the 10-window period as promised. My representative is extremely unprofessional and nonresponsive to my questions and concerns. She blames "dispatch" for the failure to give a delivery date of July 23rd, 2023. I was promised that my contents would be picked up from my home and put on a truck and delivered to my new home. That didn't happen. Instead, they picked my stuff up in a Sprinter Van and it was delivered to a warehouse in New Jersey, where it stayed for weeks! I was recently told that "it has been placed on a truck and will be delivered...BUT they cannot give me a delivery date! The representative has been very insensitive and LAUGHS at me when I call and ask where my delivery is. This has been going on for weeks and I am literally sick over this experience.

Desired outcome: Deliver my contents of my home!

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Colonial Van Lines Misleading sales pitch and entire experience!

Back in March of this year (2023) we were deciding on a moving company to do a long distance move from one state to another. We got 4 different quotes from various long distance companies-some big companies and other's not as big. When getting a quote and discussing our upcoming move with Anthony P., we were assured that Colonial Van Lines could in fact do the move but with outstanding customer service. I was told that they needed a 3 day window to pack/load. We gave them 4 because Memorial Day was in between. I warned him that we did not want a pack/load all on the same day because we had a bad experience the one time this happened before with a different company. They didn't leave until 3AM! I was assured by Anthony that they would not do that. He looked at all the pictures online of our house and the items within it from pictures of our house listing. I also talked him through each room. Big mistake! I will never go with a company in the future that doesn't send an actual human being out to lay eyes on everything in the house. At the end of March we decided to go with CVL's because Anthony was a good salesman-promising the world, but unfortunately, now that the move is complete, I can honestly say this was the worst move we have ever encountered-and we've done many with the military. I have emails with evidence and according to everyone I spoke with, the calls were recorded so it should be quite easy to verify everything I write here. Our 4 day window was May 28-31. A week leading up to the first day, we still hadn't gotten any specific day so I started calling. I reminded Anthony that we did NOT want to have a pack/load on the same day. He said it looked like we would be packed on the 28th and loaded on the 30th because apparently no one works on the holiday, according to Anthony. Then Daniel entered the picture. He was supposed to be our customer service rep. He called us a few days before the 28th and said our day was now on the 30th. I asked him if this was a pack on the 30th and load on the 31st and he said no, it was a one day of packing and loading! I reminded him that we had to be out of our house by the end of the 31st as our home closed escrow on June 1st and we didn't own it at that point. (This was also told to Anthony!) He said everything would be done on the 30th, and assured us it would be taken care of. THEN, we get another call from him a couple days later and he said that the driver was running a bit behind and now he wasn't going to show up until the 31st. I reminded him AGAIN, this time more forcefully, that we DON'T OWN THE HOME ON THE 1ST, and this job had to be completed by the end of the 31st. He ASSURED us over and over that it would be completed in one day. So, the 30th arrives and we get a call from the driver, Tim. He was in town and wanted to come over and look at the contents of our house to see for himself what he would be looking at for this job. We told him to come on over. While he was in our house, I specifically reminded him that this job had to be completed by the end of the next day, the 31st because we don't own the house the 1st. He went outside to talk to his dispatcher "J..." and came back in and asked if he could start packing up the kitchen right then. Of course we said, SURE! So for the next 3 hours he packed our kitchen. All the while I sat about 10 feet away from him reminding him that the job needed to be completed the next day and I hoped he had a lot of guys coming to do the packing because we had a terrible experience once before where they didn't leave until 3AM! He kept telling me, "no worries, I got you. It'll get done. I've got guys coming tomorrow." I then asked him how he got the guys that would be doing the packing because I was told by Anthony during his sales pitch that all the packers were flown into Florida to go through a week long training of how to pack. And if they failed by breaking one piece of china in a dishpack, they had to start the week over again - so their training was top notch! Sounds great Anthony, but that is not how the driver described anything. He said he gets guys in every city that he has worked with before so when he's coming to a city he just calls them up and asks if they want to work. Hmmm...sure doesn't sound like CVL ever fly's these guys out to train. And if they did, they should get their money back because they packed many things that supposedly were not allowed! Ammonia, nail polish, acetone, cleaners, etc! These were all found in our boxes as we have been unpacking! Even leaked Robitussin all over a box. So after 3 hours passed, Tim, said he was leaving and would be back in the morning around 8-8:30am. When he arrived, he arrived alone. A couple guys showed up around 9. As he's showing them around the house, I reminded Tim that our cat was in the front bedroom and when he was ready to break down the bed in there, I would move the cat. He looked squarely at me and literally said, "oh there won't be any furniture being broken down or loaded today, this is a two day job!" WHAT? I reminded him that no, this had to be finished TODAY, the 31st, because we don't own the house tomorrow! And, I reminded him that we talked about this at least 3 times the day before AND that Daniel had ASSURED us that this would be a one day job. I ran to get my phone and call Daniel to find out what on earth is going on here! He said he'd call his dispatcher and figure out what was going on. He said he'd call me right back. Well, about 2 hours later, he called - all the while, my husband and myself were arguing with Tim about how this was to be a one day job of packing and loading because it was the last day of our window AND was assured to us that would be completed, AND that we didn't own the house the next day and the new owners would be here! We could be in breach of contract for not being out! He said no way! This was going to be a 2 day job. My blood pressure is literally boiling just reliving this by writing it down. When Daniel finally called us back he said, sorry, my dispatcher says that the driver says this is a two day job. Basically telling us tough! Deal with it! CVL is a very shoddy company. They promise you one thing and then are very cunning and great with the "bait and switch" tactics they use. Luckily my realtor was able to work some magic and get it worked out with the new owners saying we were having trouble with CVL who promised one thing but wasn't delivering on it. The interaction at that point became quite hostile between us and the driver. I felt sorry for the guys doing the packing. They looked like they were caught between a rock and a hard place having to deal with this. They even APOLOGIZED TO US the day they loaded our stuff. They knew we were getting jerked around! We also were paying for storage fees which no one could actually tell us if our stuff was going into storage until the day we were supposed to get our things. Apparently the driver didn't even know because I asked him point blank where our stuff would be stored for a few days, and he said he wasn't sure if our stuff was even going to be stored or not. Over the next few days, I was trying to call and get some questions answered. No one would return my calls! I would leave voicemail and get no reply. Then a day before our stuff was supposed to get delivered I spoke with Brandon, someone I guess who wanted us to pay the final installment, and told him we were extremely frustrated. I was frustrated at everyone involved up to this point! I even asked Daniel during one of the calls to please give me his supervisors name number and email, as well as the CEO of the company. He said, and I quote, "I can't do that. I can't give that to you." WHAT? Since when can an employee not give that information to a customer? What kind of company is this? The whole experience can only be described as - the right hand does not know what the left hand is doing...and this was the most stressful, bad experience that will never be repeated with this company again. $16,000+ might be a drop in the bucket for some but it was a lot of money for us. When we spend this kind of money, we expect a good result/experience. It was not. All I keep hearing in my mind is one of the competitor companies warning us not to go with CVL. I should have listened. I'm not sure what is next but I feel obligated to warn other's about what they could be in for in dealing with this company. They also packed items that were not supposed to be packed such as; acetone, bleach, alcohol, cleaners, nail polish, etc! I have photo's if you would like me to send them.

I will add one note though, the guys that did our unloading at our new destination were top notch. The delivery was the only decent experience. Too bad the rest of this entire experienced was the worst experience and worst move ever. #1269337-CV

Desired outcome: Written apology! Take dates seriously - legal contracts are on the line (real estate) That was an unacceptable position you put us in.

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Colonial Van Lines Cross country move

• My $1500 Fender Telecaster guitar and matching $229 case were not delivered and are missing. I’m filing a report. Are you going to return my guitar and case or fully compensate me for the loss?

• Our neighbors in Three Lakes are furious that the semi-driver parked on their front lawn and emptied our contents on their lawn to be dollied to our front door. We are negotiating what to do about what the neighbor described as the scene of a dirt bike race. I sent pictures to my salesperson (and video, as well, to the driver two days before he arrived). I was honest and transparent. I knew a “shuttle” truck was the better option but the driver explained that lining up another truck and moving freight between trucks was too big of an inconvenience for him. So now I’ve got an angry new neighbor and am looking at time, effort and expense to make things right. What do you think I should do about this situation?

• When you loaded our possessions in Prescott, AZ the salesperson, Anne Boyer, insisted that we pay for a “shuttle.” When we hired Hollander to move all the contents of our 3,800 sq ft home in IL to a 3,300 sq ft home in AZ, Hollander had no problem parking their semi on the street in front of our house. Ms. Boyer insisted there was no negotiating on this point. We paid the approximately $300 extra because of your insistence. What do you know that Hollander didn’t know about our home in AZ?

• You discounted the final price because delivery was outside the agreed upon time frame. But because of your uncertainty about delivery dates, my wife rescheduled two doctors’ appointments, only to learn that the shipment was NOT coming on days that you told us. Does missing deadlines you proposed and changing them numerous times, make you more profitable?

• Because of your siloed operating structure, getting straight answers is impossible. At least Ms. Boyer answered her phone. But when she assures me that she is forwarding my question to someone who can give me answer, I don’t hear back. Why can’t I get to a dispatcher who knows what’s going on with my shipment?

• When I spoke with someone in Finance today, he quoted me a discounted price, but when he sent the revised contract, the price was higher than quoted. Is arithmetic a challenge for your finance department?

• Payment terms are clear as mud. The driver insisted on cash. One Colonial person demanded cash or a postal order. Today, someone said I could use a credit card but discouraged me from doing so because of the steps required. Does everyone at Colonial understand your payment terms and can they communicate them consistently?

Desired outcome: Return lost/stolen items or reimburse full replacement value of guitar and case

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Colonial Van Lines Move from Los Angeles to Austin

We contracted with Colonial Van Lines for $8,009.10 (all prepaid before 1st promised delivery on 3.18.23) to move our household furnishings from LA to Austin on 3.8.23. We had a one bedroom set, dining room table, and 3 office desks only. No living room furniture, no chests, and no appliances. We were 1st promised delivery on Saturday, 3.18.23. Then 13 more explicit promised delivery dates/times that were all broken with no verbal or email communication from Colonial with a firm delivery date. Colonial promised on several consecutive days that our furniture would arrive. We stayed home and lost money taking time off from work. Our furniture finally arrived on 4.5.23. The contracted delivery men informed us that the hardware to put together our bed was missing.

We unpacked all the boxes on 4.9.23 and did not find the hardware to put the bed together. We have no real bed to this day. Colonial was late in delivering our furniture and contractually owes late fees. We have requested $1,000 to reimburse us for the hardware, the late fees, and repeated broken promises that caused us lost wages.

Desired outcome: We sent an email to our assigned Colonial moving manager on Monday, 4.10.23 with a request for $1,000 to be refunded to the credit card charged.

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Colonial Van Lines Moving company

We had a binding estimate and contract with Colonial Van Lines to pack our fragile items and artwork beginning 2-3 days before our move which was scheduled for August 5th, 2022. On or about August 3, 2022, the following unfair and deceptive act occurred. I had been in continuous contact with our moving coordinator and many other Colonial Van Lines employees prior to August 3rd and I was led to believe that everything was on track for our scheduled move from Boston to Greenville, South Carolina. Then two days before our moving date, another representative called and callously announced that they didn't have a truck for our move and that they had exhausted all possibilities. I asked if the Company could provide any assistance in finding another mover, and I was told that we were now on our own. Colonial's cancellation of our move impacted many other people other than ourselves. There were three other real estate closings that were contingent upon us moving out of our home on August 5th and our home buyers were very angry. I was in complete shock at this point and at a loss as to what to do to find a new mover at the eleventh hour during the busy moving season. One of the real estate brokers was able to find us another mover at the last minute that could accommodate our requested move date. Unfortunately, the second company that we hired took advantage of the predicament that Colonial created by their cancellation. The new company basically doubled the price that Colonial had quoted us and at this point we felt that we had no choice except to go forward with the move and pay this exorbitant amount. The second company did a terrible job packing our fragile items and didn't mark any of the boxes that they packed. Ultimately this led to a terrible outcome when the boxes were unloaded in South Carolina. There was an incredible amount of breakage and those movers had to end up dumping most of the boxes in our attic and garage which made the unpacking a complete debacle. As a result of Colonial's actions, our monetary damages were over $27,000, not to mention the pain and suffering that they caused. After our move to South Carolina, I called and spoke to another Colonial representative who led me to believe that I would be receiving an offer of compensation, but she stopped responding to my calls and no offer was ever forthcoming. After some time had passed, I sent a certified mail letter to the President of Colonial Van Lines asking for a fair offer of compensation and his response was to send us a Docu-Sign document with an offer of $500.00. Shortly after that, I sent another certified letter to the President stating that his offer was insulting and that if I didn't receive a reasonable offer of settlement within thirty days that I would be exercising my other options, which included filing a claim with the Better Business Bureau. I never heard anything further from Colonial Van Lines since I sent the second letter.

Desired outcome: As noted above, I would like to be reimbursed for the money that we lost due to Colonial's incompetence and complete indifference to our plight.

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Colonial Van Lines long distance move

incompetent & uncommunicative

from the start, colonial van lines was either dishonest or incompetent. i provided them with both pick up and delivery addresses, but they were unprepared for whether the truck would be able to get there. their lack of preparation meant that the move took much longer & cost me much more than quoted. my understanding was that there would be a person assigned to my move to help & answer my questions. when i last spoke with that person before the scheduled pick up time, she said the driver was an hour & a half away. i waited 4 hours past the time the truck should have been here & couldn't reach ANYONE to find out what was going on. the truck didn't arrive on that day at all. spoke with the driver the next morning & he explained why he didn't make it here. no one had informed me of what was going on. (after that, i did get the driver's number so that i had direct contact). then, a shuttle was needed & had not been arranged.

when it came time for delivery, the truck was to arrive wednesday morning. i waited & waited & then called the driver to find they were trying to decide if the truck would be able to come down my street. the determination is that it wouldn't, so needed to get a shuttle truck. again, it had not been arranged. because of that, once more the office contacted me for more money. basically they would hold my household goods hostage until i gave them more money. the truck (small) didn't arrive until the end of the day. the 2 drivers had hired 2 local crew & the 4 of them got busy unloading. when that was done, it was late & they said they would come back in the morning to finish. thursday, they arrived with the shuttle truck, but without the extra 2 person crew. so it took longer for the 2 drivers to offload the truck. then they got word that the shuttle truck was due back. so they had to return that & get another, which meant that by the time they got that here and unloaded it was quite late & THEY WEREN'T YET FINISHED. friday, the 2 came back with one more small truck with the last of my things.

delivery took 4 trips in 3 days. i needed the thursday & friday to arrange utilities & get the house ready for family, but wasn't able to because of the long waits for delivery to be completed.

because i had voiced complaints, their 'fixer' contacted me for a resolution that would cause me to change my review to 5 stars. donna offered me $400 to that end. i thought $400 refunded from an over $15,000 bill to be insufficient especially since nothing was ever mentioned about improving their service so that this didn't happen to anyone else. i refused the bribe.

the whole move was a huge pain. i suggest that you DO NOT USE COLONIAL VAN LINES!

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this was NOT resolved. colonial van lines overcharged me, damaged some items, and lost several boxes.

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Colonial Van Lines Overcharged by moving company

Got a quote fro Colonial Van Lines for a move from Mass. To Florida. I was given an estimate(From Tracy Brown) of $6846.32 which included 795.50 charge they claimed that my new address in Florida would need a small shuttle to transport from big truck to apartment complex. (not true because it allows even tractor trailers to come into the parking lot) That was the first lie. They picked up the furniture on 9/10/22 and delivered the 17th .

2nd lie: They were in business for 50 yrs and I was assured that they use their own colonial trucks no other moving companies.

3rd lie: In price was included all the packing for the Furniture mentioned on list I gave them.the other 95 boxes We were to pack ourselves (which we did). they gave us a total weight for everything of 6776 lbs. We came under weight (5500 lbs.) First Deposit was $2214.29

2nd Deposit was $438.80

Balance due was $4193.23 minus $795.50 = $3397.73

Movers(shield movers and storage not colonial van lines) would not move anything inside until I Paid a new balance due of $4545.23 which was over by $1147.50 over quoted price. I got charged $795.50 for a shuttle they never used or needed (same truck that picked up was the same that delivered) and an extra $352 cause they packed 3 mirrors they packed although we had them nicely packed. Contacted Shakeem [protected] ext 137 and he never contacted me back. Promised to take out the shuttle delivery, but never called back as promised to see if delivery was ok. Got a call from a Jim colman giving me some crazy excuse Why all the baloney fees. Then said someone else would call but no one did.

Desired outcome: I want my $1147.50 that they overcharged.

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Colonial Van Lines Moving

They gave me a date to start within their 3-day window so I made my plans - vacation, hotels, etc. The the night before they called and said they would not make theh promised date, or the contract 3-day window. In reality they did not have anyone to do the move. They subcontracted to someone who then subcontracted to a team who didn't know how to pack. Arrived in town with no boxes, arrived at site 6 hours late, total time to pack less than 1100 sq feet was 12 hours ending at 3:00 a.m. Not a single box marked with contents or even room it was packed in. Clearly don't take their dates seriously as compensation for a missed pick up is $50, which wouldn't even cover a hotel room. Company web site inaccurate on executives; promised response to letter written was 10 days late. And when they did respond the original compensation hadn't changed a dime. Don't do it.

Desired outcome: Full refund.

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Colonial Van Lines Avoid this company!

Let me start by saying I've done several long distance moves: HI to CT, CT to FL, FL to PA, and this PA to FL. This experience has been the WORST moving experience I've ever had.

Here is what I was "sold" vs what I received:

#1 Sold - they weren't a brokerage/used their own people

#1 Received - one of their "agent" companies did the actual move using Ryder trucks. Further, the agent company (BCM Relocation) hired day labors to assist their driver with the move. When goods were delivered, one of the day labors was stopped from working due to the police needing to speak with him regarding a hit & run accident

#2 Sold - two payments made by credit card (deposit and drop off)

#2 Received - BCM Relocation demanded $1000 upon pickup and the rest upon delivery. When I fought with BCM Relocation people (who called me a 8itch on the phone), they told me if I had a problem that I needed to contact Colonial bc they were my contract company. After agreeing to receive payment upon delivery, they retaliated by refusing to accept credit card payment and demanded cash/cashier's check

#3 Sold - acct manager would contact me a few days prior to pickup/delivery for date confirmation

#3 Received - acct manager called the night before pickup to tell me of pickup and the driver of the vehicle called at 9:30pm to tell me delivery would happen at 10am the next morning

#4 Sold - weight estimate of 3500 based on inventory

#4 Received - weight of 4700 and no proof/documentation to justify the additional weight

#5 Sold - communication throughout the move

#5 Received - couldn't reach anyone on move team for a week; was assured management would reach out to me, but it never happened

#6 Sold - all items would be tagged/color coded to ensure no inventory mix-ups

#6 Received - upon delivery, multiple items were placed in my house which weren't mine

If all this wasn't enough, I have several destroyed items and now have to attempt to make a claim for reimbursement.

Lastly, not to divulge personal information, the driver I had for Colonial/BCM Relocation for delivery had a medical emergency DURING delivery and should not be medically cleared to drive ANY motor vehicle. Yet, when delivery was complete and the paramedics were gone, the driver drove himself and the Ryder truck they used away.

Avoid Colonial and BCM Relocation - they will make your long distance move a nightmare.

Desired outcome: I would appreciate a refund for services.

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Colonial Van Lines Moving Company

I went online to get a quote in January to move in February. I got a lot of quotes. Colonial Van Lines, their sale agents spouted out alot of what the company could do. He made a point to say they were not a brokerage company. They operated their vehicles, and their quote was from their company. He constantly called and made promises. One promise, I could pay by credit card. He also stated it would not be an issue at the time of delivery. However, the company that arrived on the day of pick-up and delivery was not Colonial Van Lines, but a representative company, Cal Lines. They arrived to pick up my furniture. It was some discrepancy about my inventory. I reluctantly gave in but asked to take my vacuum cleaner. I end up throwing out and giving away alot of my things. I called and a very rude manager called me a liar on the phone. He did not know my phone was on speaker. He was talking to the driver. I was outraged. I told them I was Christian woman, and all I wanted was what we agreed upon with the salesman. I was stuck and they knew it. I was forced to use them. They got my items. They picked up on the third of February. They were supposed to deliver between February 7 and February 25. I did not get my furniture until March 7th. Doing this time my interaction with Colonial was few. The second company Cal Lines called and dictated everything. They wanted me to pay before I got my furniture and I refused. They wanted it all paid by March 5th. I refused they got angry and in retaliation they said I had to pay by cash. I refused because that was not my agreement. They called and harassed me. They were holding my furniture as hostage and refused to deliver if I did not pay in cash. On Monday I received so many calls telling me no furniture, if I did not pay in cash. I refused. They finally agreed on credit. Colonial had my new address for three weeks and two days before delivery they said I needed a shuttle which added 300 dollars to my bill after I had received a bill stating I owed 1,358. It was a punch in my gut. I couldn't believe it. I refuted it. They said it was necessary. They arrived in a Uhaul, which I suspect they had all the time. I paid the amount in credit card. The driver refused to give me a copy of the receipt. They drove off. Upon inventory, I had a broken TV. I had two broken bowls and two missing boxes. They say they are not a brokerage company but they operate as one. My contract was with Colonial. but this Company had all the control of my items. I was promised a compensation. I haven't heard from the company once they got their money. Please review your contract carefully. If they sneak in a second company don't sign it.

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Colonial Van Lines Moving

I have contracted w/Colonial to do a furniture move from Illinois to Florida. The furniture was picked up on February 16th with a time line of 10 days, It is now March 9th. Not a single time has the moving coordinator called me as was advertised in the emails that I have received. I had to contact them. Much to my surprise they didn't know where my furniture was or when it would be arriving. Subsequent inquiries have gone unexplained as to when this move will be completed. I get the gibberish that the service rep contacts dispatch . The latest was that the truck broke down. Really, why wasn't I contacted? Extremely disappointed w/Colonial at this time.

Desired outcome: Deliver the furniture in tacked as to our contractual agreement.

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9:37 am EDT

Colonial Van Lines Moving

Colonial Van Lines provided us with an estimate for an interstate moving that was calculated ONLY on weight, not in volume. We warn the sales agent Mr. Chad C that our items were larger than usual but not heavy. He stated not to worry about since they were going to send an 18-wheeler.
On the day of the move a 40feet truck showed up. We were surprised when our moved was sold to Best Price moving without no one letting us know. we raised our concerns that the truck was going to be to small, and immediately called Colonial Van Lines, who onlyl then told us that the truck was sent based on the cubic weight (but we were sold only on weight not on volume)
Mid load, the crew saw that the truck was indeed too small, and left items behind with the promise to pick them up the very next day. It was right then when the nightmare started.
Suddenly Colonial Stop answering the phone call, just giving us a call at the end of the day to let us know the goods were going to be picked up the next day. Best Price moving referred us always to Colonial.
We had to get rid of numerous items that were on the original packing list in the estimate in order to fit their trucks, again at our financial loss.
ONE WEEK later they finally came to pick up the goods. it was a week that we were forced to stay at hotels and have meals in restaurants at our own expense.
ONCE they had our goods in their possession they called us to let us know that they were changing the estimate and transforming it to a binding contract without giving us the option of having our household goods weighted at a certified station. Colonial Van Lines forced us to accept it or face more delays.
Then the delivery never came.
Again Colonial Van lines failed at giving us an estimate on when the goods were going to be delivered.
We were assigned multiple Customer Service Managers every day, when they run out of words and excuses they just assign us another person (Mario, Roxanne, Aisha...)
We asked several timer to Colonial to provide reasonable accommodation with the only offer from Mrs. Roxanne H of 150 dollars to buy inflatable mattresses so we could "sleep comfortably". Colonial denied every single of our petition and always stated that we needed to place a claim with their claims department.
17 days after the pick up we finally got our items delivered (without Colonial letting us know, in fact they called us to tell us that they did not know when our items were going to be delivered, while we were getting them delivered by a third party company)
to our surprise, we learnt that our goods were stored at a warehouse from Best Price Moving for more than a week, without no one going to pick them up. When we got everything delivered, 16 boxes were missing and numerous items were broken.

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11:41 am EDT
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Colonial Van Lines worst moving experience ever

Job ID: 447062-CV
Colonial moved us and my car in April 2019 from Syracuse, NY to Savannah, GA. They showed up late and were unprepared to wrap insured items. They lost my car. It was left up to me to find it by hounding the subcontractor that they used. It was finally found and delivered, five days late. No one from Colonial helped.
Once the move of household items was complete, We identified a number of items that were missing. It is now three months later and all we get is a runaround. They promised to deliver SOME of the missing items in early July. It is now mid August and they they do is say, "next week, next week." Even if they do provide the items that they have found, we will still be missing a number of things: hand tools, power tools, kitchen appliances, multiple chairs, and family heirlooms that cannot be replaced. We are heartbroken.
Further, the deal was that we pay 50% ahead of the move and 50% on delivery. Instead, they used a subcontractor who demanded more money up front. Colonial never mentioned this. If I wanted to use a subcontractor I did not need Colonial.
They have been duplicitous from the beginning and have essentially stolen from us and have no intention of reimbursing us for items that they lost.

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10:37 am EST

Colonial Van Lines sent a truck that was far too small for listed inventory

Same on a Sunday so no offices were open to contact. Subcontracted movers sent a 26 ft van the was already 1/4 full to move a 3 bedroom, 2000 sq ft house. Company notified first thing Monday morning that truck had been too small and needed another truck for remainder of items. They are still waiting for ‘paperwork' to verify something before they send out another truck. Because I am closing tomorrow at noon I am going to have to rent a uhaul and drive it cross country myself to empty this house.

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5:13 pm EDT
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Colonial Van Lines moving from ar to tx

Low Quality, Incomplete Services, Driver Extorted for Extra Money
If you love yours belongs and your moving investment, I would recommend stray away from Colonial Van Lines. I had a very good and friendly approach while in touch with James Coleman, a politely sales person, but it drastically changed when they sent my moving to the account manager Roxanne Hudson. Roxanne was very rude all the time, speaking fast and skipping words to distract from a full understanding of the agreements, but also when questioned acted very rudely; in addition, she did not answered emails, unless on her best interested, never to clarify doubts or take actions properly. In summary, the problems I have is listed below for your own judgment that you can deal with a company that will not provide support for the bellow:

1. The Statement "Bidding Fee" is not related to bidding or non-bidding price, they neither respected the 100% (bidding), or 110% (non-bidding). You fundamentally will pay per pound, just as simple as it. So, look for companies that go and quote in your location, avoid this SCAM.

2. Mrs. Dee Pettis called me several times, I recorded some that I attended in my computer, insistently enforcing an additional full-value insurance. I did it partially, and after I received information from www.movinginsurance.com, I notified Mrs. Pettis among others in the Colonial that the Driver should verify the condition of my TVs before and after moving; otherwise, the insurance would be automatically voided. Colonial crew and their third-party driver fully ignored it, I paid for a voided insurance. Mr. Robin (Colonial) said that if TVs were broken, I would be compensating by pounds only, and the Moving Insurance said that it is voided. I may not call it a SCAM, but certainly you have to avoid this sort of incompetent company that allows you pay for something that will not be covered anyhow.

3. Aside of delays, after all my belongings were fully inside the truck, Onyxx Driver (Mr. Williams) used an intimated way to say "I used some extra wrapping here and there, you have to pay me, not to the company once it is between you and me, 350 USD by cash or check", we ending on 150 USD of pure extorsion. I reported it to Colonial, and Colonial said that they are not responsible for their Drivers or partners, the driver said it was a Tip. How a tip would be during the loading, 150 USD for a tip? I questioned, and Mrs. Robin was not very polite in say that Colonial is not responsible for drivers and partners. You can still hire Colonial; would you be willing to be a victim of extorsion? No Colonial action on this? Would you put your family or yourself in risk based on this? Mr. Williams (Onyxx Movers) practice extorsion under Colonial brand, with no actions at all.

4. Among other problems, we had...

a. Low Staff and unqualified, complaining all the time when delivery was upstairs.
b. Onyxx had a crew that was throwing my sofa cushion downstairs, in a dirty floor.
c. They were not able to delivery in total, they asked "using pressure" to help unload the truck. 9:30pm, no one from Colonial were available to support complains. Mr. Williams from Onyxx, said that if I would not help, they would need to charge more to return they after.
d. Several boxes were not delivered upstairs, and just few labeled boxes in the right place, I asked them to move, and they asked for extra money to do it. Again, Colonial seems not responsible for partners.
e. Mr. Williams (Driver) said that I should avoid brokers like Colonial Van Lines, and this moving could be done with him for less than a half that I paid.
In summary, I would recommend to a friend to STAY AWAY from Colonial, worse moving experience I ever had, they trap your moving with high deposit, acting like a broker without previous notice, hire unqualified and main DISHONEST partners, offering no warranty on their service or partners acting under their brand.

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9:50 pm EDT

Colonial Van Lines horrid customer service

Job ID- 168760-CV-R1

I don't even know where to begin with my frustration with this company. Having to travel with an infant and a husband who just had surgery yesterday was stressful enough. Then to find out my aunt was just diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer, I regret the day I spoke to Colonial Van Lines. And before I go on I know many people will ask why didn't I change moving companies well when you have less than 72 hours to find another moving company from Colorado to Alabama it’s next to impossible, especially when you've already paid a moving company their deposit of $1, 500 in advance a month ago. Let's start with the beginning a month ago I received a call from Colonial Van Lines about a quote I asked for online. I was in touch with their estimator by the name of Lucy who was very good at her job she sold me a dream and I paid her that deposit on the spot no hesitation. So for the next couple of weeks I pack my house up made sure everything was in boxes. Last week I called Lucy to see who my account manager because I have not heard from anyone and it was down to crunch time. She said that my account manager will be in contact with me on Friday to make sure I had enough time. Well Friday came and went and no account manager so Monday I called Lucy again and she transferred me to my account manager Aneisha, who was not at her desk at the time. When I finally received a call from her I asked about the 48 advance call to let me know when the moving truck was coming to pick up my things, she stated she didn’t know, that she would check with dispatch, when I started asking more questions she became irritated and short, sensing the attitude I asked for a manager, who wasn’t any better than her agent, manager Sonya S. was absolutely dreadful everything about her was unfriendly and just horrid, she refused to acknowledged her agent’s behavior nor did she try to rectify the problem, she then tells me that I should get another moving company when I stated that I didn't have enough time she had the nerve to tell me what do you want me to do I can only tell you what my dispatch is telling me. So I asked her for another account manager and another manager. She then gave me Krista H., who was understanding yet not that much help. She then states that she would place a request for someone to call me from corporate. That never happened that day, so enters today, I call Krista 4 times today and no answer I finally received a call back from Doreen extension 153, I believe, she again was no help nor did she care. She said give her an hour to fix my problem and she would call back however an hour later still no pick date! She then stated that she tried to call me last week to schedule an earlier pick date however she could not get a hold of me. She stated it was a computer error and my number was entered incorrectly however I was getting calls from Lucy and emails from Lucy who had the same contact information! So I still can’t figure out why I wasn't contacted at least by email. She was so nasty over the phone and kept asking me to request a refund and that I should go to someone else because they cannot guarantee that my items would be picked up on the estimated days that I was given a month ago. Which would have been today and tomorrow 8/22-8/23. That the only day that she can guarantee the pickup of my items is on the 29th which is a day after my husband's appointment. After going back and forth with her several times even waiting an hour to give me more information from dispatch I finally had enough and ask to speak to someone else. Then I got Kenya extension 144, that lady should not have a job in anyone's corporate office. She did not give two cares if I cancel my request or about my situation or anything. She just kept saying what she couldn't do and what couldn't be done and there was no customer relations that I can speak to and that there is no one higher than her and there was no corporate other number that I could call there was no one but her. And that she didn't care how many reviews that I did online it wouldn't make a difference with her and her attitude she was worse than Sonya who was pretty bad mind you however Kenya was atrocious. When I asked her to spell her name for me to make sure I had it right she got smart and say it's like the country do you know how to spell the country. I was like that is a rude thing to tell a customer she then asked for me to give her an hour just like Doreen to figure something out . Well when that hour came we were still back at square one something happened to my delivery truck and they could not get me out of my house in a timely manner. I tried to explain to her the situation with my infant with my husband and also the fact that we had to get out of our house by Thursday because we told the realtor that we will be out and the house will be for showing by Friday which if we were moved out at our appropriate time this would be no problem however now they're saying maybe Thursday but there's nothing in concrete and also that the only compensation I would get would be 50 dollars a day for every day they are late. If I wanted to be moved on the 29th I would have picked the 29th however I need to leave before then. After begging and screaming and going back and forth with Kenya, I realize it's not going anywhere she didn't care she honestly could give two craps about my situation. She didn't care that I had already booked the hotel room in another city to make sure we had enough sleep for the road the next day she didn't care that if I stayed in this house passed Thursday that I would have to pay $1, 400 of rent to my landlord if we weren’t out, she didn't care about any of that she just kept stating what she couldn't do and it's not her fault and there's nothing dispatch could do. The only thing that she was consistent about is requesting me to cancel and she would give me 3 to 5 business days to get my money back and I can find another moving company. I want some type of assurance that the truck will be here on Thursday morning so I could at least make sure I'm not feeling rushed on a 22 hour Journey from Colorado to Alabama. I believe I am entitled to some type of compensation due to the fact that the days that I scheduled my move are not happening because $50 a day is certainly not enough for the horrible customer service and being inconvenience by this moving company. And if I wanted to go to another moving company in the beginning I would have picked another moving company however I picked this company because I was led by the reviews that it was a good company however I should have read all the reviews instead of the ones that were listed most helpful because as I read on after I paid the money this was not a good company. The lack of communication is consistent, the late delivery and pickup times as of right now shows consistent as well I just want my items moved out my house by Thursday and I don't believe that I should have to pay for this whole move when I'm the one inconvenience. Stay away from this business!

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Overview of Colonial Van Lines complaint handling

Colonial Van Lines reviews first appeared on Complaints Board on Mar 22, 2012. The latest review Long distance move was posted on Nov 8, 2023. The latest complaint long distance move was resolved on Sep 23, 2022. Colonial Van Lines has an average consumer rating of 1 stars from 28 reviews. Colonial Van Lines has resolved 1 complaints.
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  1. Colonial Van Lines Contacts

  2. Colonial Van Lines phone numbers
    +1 (855) 266-5176
    +1 (855) 266-5176
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    Customer Service
    +1 (800) 356-1855
    +1 (800) 356-1855
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    Sales
    +1 (800) 410-0956
    +1 (800) 410-0956
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  3. Colonial Van Lines emails
  4. Colonial Van Lines address
    8795 W. McNab Road Suite #103, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, 33321, United States
  5. Colonial Van Lines social media
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    Checked and verified by Janet This contact information is personally checked and verified by the ComplaintsBoard representative. Learn more
    Oct 08, 2024

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