A-1 Razorback Moving Company and the BBB Part 3

Part 3 of our dealings with A-1 Razorback Moving Company and the BBB. See previous posts for more information about the saga.

Twelve days after they received my response (which was sent to them on 9-11-08), A-1 Razorback Moving Company sends this rebuttal:

1. Consumer asks us to acknowledge we "screwed up in being late". Well we did have truck problems that day which made us late, but we were still able to complete her job. A lot of companies would have just made her reschedule. But in order to keep our customers happy we try everything we can to get it done. We normally have Peterbilt of Little Rock do our repairs but unfortunately they would not be able to work on the truck until the next day. So we ended up spending double on the repair just so we could move Mrs. Jones that day and not inconvenience her by rescheduling.

2. All of our trucks are equipped with all of the professional moving materials needed to complete a job.

3. I can't acknowledge that the workers took too many smoke breaks. There were not complaints of smoke breaks the day of the move. If there had been we would have taken break time off the bill.

4. I asked the men about taking drinks from the refrigerator and they said they didn't take anything that was not offered to them. It is pretty common for customers to offer the men drinks. But once again this issue was not mentioned the day of the move.

5. It is stated clearly on the contract that we can not take responsibility for boxes we did not pack.

6. I feel we have compensated well above what was needed. She had 4 men for the price of 3 which was a 200.00 dollar savings and a free truck which was 100.00 dollars. She also had a credit of $100.00 to her bill for the desk. The desk was the only issue at the time and that was resolved. All other articles were signed received in good condition.

I received the above response in an email and immediately wrote back my response. My #1 and so on answers their #1 and so on. I wasn't happy. Theirs was full of excuses and lies. You know the workers aren't going to admit to doing anything wrong or unprofessional. So, here is my response sent the same day (9-23-08):

1. When they called to let us know they would be late, they did not mention anything about their truck being broken down. They just said they would be an hour late. The next two times, we called them only to be told they were "unloading" a truck. It took two more hours for them to get to us. It doesn't matter who their mechanic is or how much they had to spend to fix their truck, it should have been communicated more clearly and we might have understood more.

2. I asked the men specifically if they had blankets and tools. They said they didn't have anything. So, the truck was NOT equipped as stated above and we witnessed our furniture being put in the truck without any protection whatsoever. No tools were provided. My husband's tools were used to disassemble the furniture.

3. I would have told the company about the smoke breaks had my phone call been returned. Like I have said previously, I called on the day of the move, before the movers left. I left a message and it was never returned. It would have been discussed had I received a call back. I did not feel it was appropriate to talk to the movers there because of their attitudes about other things we did say. I am the customer and I don't think it is my responsibility to hound the company to call me back. They are professionals, they should act like it.

4. WATER was offered to the men. They declined. Later, we walked into the kitchen to find them with the refrigerator door open and getting two cans of coke out. And again, it would have been mentioned on the day of the move, HAD I RECEIVED A CALL BACK!

5. I understand you cannot take responsibility with boxes you did not pack. But when asked to be careful and observant as to what the box says, I don't think it is too much to ask from PROFESSIONAL MOVERS! If they were truly professional, they would have acted as such.

6. We have not been compensated "well and above what was needed." The difference between a 4 man team and a 3 man team IS NOT $200 - it was only $78. You can see this clearly on the bill. Our original balance was $1,090.00 for 4 men. The new 3 men balance was $1,002.00, which was lowered to $900.00 after the discussion about the broken desk. I would not consider us getting a "free truck" - we just ended up getting what we asked for in the first place. It is not my fault they had problems. If that had been communicated clearly, we might not be in the situation we are in now. Yes, all articles were signed as "received in Good Condition" but nothing had been unpacked or even looked over clearly. It was late. The men were getting ruder by the minute and we were just ready for it to all be over. I was also WAITING FOR A RETURN PHONE CALL! Several items had been found to be broken and I stated as such on the message I left and that I wanted to discuss this with the manager or the person in charge. And yet, no call was returned. And again, I did not feel comfortable or deem it appropriate to discuss this with the men who were at my house.

There is a reason we hired this company. They market themselves as "Professional Movers." I would only expect them to act as such. Our belongings were not treated with the care you would expect from professionals. We had used this company before and saw how true professionals act and care for your belongings as you move. This was the reason we used them again. The first round was wonderful! The second was a disaster. Any maybe, if we hadn't used them before, we wouldn't be here now. I wouldn't have had something to compare it too. But I do, and I know it could have been way better. The first time they moved us, there wasn't a scratch on anything! NOTHING WAS BROKEN! And they had the tools necessary to move us. What happened to this company between March and August?

And I find it curious to see that they did not comment or mention anything about their worker (the man in charge of the move) who stuck his head in our bathroom sink, got water all over the bathroom and then proceeded to drip the water all over our brand new wood floors. This was appalling and very unprofessional. This alone is inexcusable and I think deserves to be addressed. No one paid me to clean up after his mess. I should never have been put in the position to clean up after him.

A professional is defined as a skilled practitioner or an expert. Our experience with this company clearly shows that this company is in no way an expert in moving. If they were, they would have taken more care in concerns their customers have. They would have returned phone calls, especially if they know there are issues to discuss. They would have communicated clearly if there was a problem in meeting the customers needs. They could have told us up front on the phone they were sending a two man team and a smaller truck, but would send another truck later. The men didn't know anything about what we had requested when they got to our apartment.

Professional movers...that is what we hired. That is what we expected. IT IS NOT WHAT WE RECEIVED!

To validate this complaint or to see the documents for yourself, click on the link below under the heading that says, "BBB and A-1 Razorback Moving Company Documents."