Complaints about North American Van Lines

Thgese are just a few of the complaints against North American, the supposed "Sacred Cow" of the household good moving industry.

A link follows these excerpts so you can search of many many more, in the thousands.

"My family have been a victim of a bait and switch. We were trying to move from San Diego, California to Washington, DC area to provide better education for my son who has Down Syndrome. My wife seeked several moving companies for a bid on our move. North American won in more ways than one. They gave us a cheap price at the beginning then half way through the day of loading the household goods, they said that the weight is more than they expected and wanted my wife to sign a new contract (bait and switch). The old contract which stated that the cost would never exceed 10% of the original estimate. Because we signed the new contract, it voided the old contract. What a [lie]. I just got hired to DC and had to be there in less than two weeks.Earlier on the day of the move, five burley guys showed up at our house to move but demanded tips, very intimidating. My wife and my son were home alone with them. She complied with them for a $50 tip. The movers later said several packaging items were not included like tapes and had to be added. They wanted to charge us five dollars per rolls of tape used. It came to 22 rolls, incredible! Other hidden charges keep coming up, too. When they asked my wife to signed the new contract, it was almost noon and she even anotated that on the new contract. She had no choice. It was either signed or they had to empty the half way loaded truck. I still cannot believe they did that. My wife thought we could disputed the charge later. When we explained it to our bank, they said their hands were tied because it was a binding contract. I explained and complained to them but they said it was a legal matter that we had to pursue. These movers are really sneeky. They know that little people like me wouldn't take them to court for a few thousands of dollars and if we do, we would win only on principle. No lawyers in their right mind would take our case. When they finally delivered our stuff, the driver and his assistant were sick and our goods were damaged with water. All of our mattresses were wet. They dropped boxes after boxes even my 32-inch TV. I had to feed them so that they would feel better and have energy. I even help loaded the truck to affset another hidden charge and almost threw out my back. I was hurting afterwards. How's that for pouring salt into my wounds.The move occurred in early December of 2008. My wife hace made close to 30 calls to the movers regarding the new contract and got nowhere. Becasue she said we were going to file a dispute, the moving company deliberately withheld our goods til the last minute. We didn't get our household goods until mid-January. We were promised two weeks time. We had no way of staying warm at night in our new rental. It was very cold at night and we stayed warm during the day by going to Walmart and places like that. We were miserable. My son who has Down Syndrome, didn't sleep well because he did not have any of his comforting personal items. I am infuriated for what they did to my son. What they did to us was unethical and inconsiderate beyond human compassion. How they can do this to people and still wake up the next day and be proud of what they do. They should not be in business. Tempers flare between my wife and I. It was an emotionally drainign experience. This fiasco has put a $4469 dent in our finance in a time when we're facing foreclosure on our home. I am at a loss for words.
Keith N Frase of Land O' Lakes, FL March 9, 2009
North American used Cord moving and storage to move us from Memphis to Tampa. They delivered our goods to a storage unit and apartment building. I immediately noticed that itmes were damaged. It was also odd that the movers left in such a hurry and forgot to get there check. It turns out that they stole a new LCD tv and damaged four sets of bedroom furniture, a new grandfather clock, destroyed an amoire and apparently stole several of our boxes as well since we have never been able to find them. I contacted Cord moving and they asked for there check. I said no until the situation is resolved. They sent a claims adjuster to our house and offered a settlement for $ 2170.00. We estimiated nealry $20,000.00 for the damage and theft of our property. We also noticed that by endorsing the check we have agreed to settle. Needless to say the check is still not signed nor have I sent payment in to them. They are not excepting any resposibility for the damage or theft except for the grandfather clock. I have already contacted friends with the Memphis Police Department on the stolen items especially the TV which was valued over $1000.00 dollars. There response was totally unacceptableWe had to replace two bedroom sets for my girls and are still trying to get the grandfather clock repaired. It has already cost me more than I owe them just to get our itmes taken care of. We are tight for money and cannot afford to replace the tv and some of the other damaged items will not be replaced because of the cost. I am trying to fix some of them myself but the fact was that all of our furniture was brand new and I have two infant daughters and they can't wait for Cord to fix the situation. The need to have a place to sleep. Our dining room furniture is damaged, we have an armoire in pieces, two nightstands are broken, an antique armoire is damaged, two wooden selfs are destroyed, plus an air compressor and stroller are damaged. We can't afford to fix or replace these items."


Diana of Klamath Falls, OR February 15, 2009
"we moved from temple TX to klamath fall or north American van lines moved us. they dropped and broke some of our thing lost 9 boxes and someone broken into our file cabinet and stold 4yrs of taxes paper. as result of this our identity was stolen. i have had credit used by our people, and our bank account was used by someone.we are senior citizenthis has put a big stress on us the.our identities has been stolen. our credit cards had to be cancel and our bank account had to be cancel. i have had to put a freeze on our credit. called the police,FTC,IRS.SS credit bur. our credit cards and bank cards had to be replaced. we had to prove to the complany that we did not make the charges on our account. my husband both have bad heart. what can we do. thank you"
Donald of Homosassa, FL November 8, 2008

"My expeience with North American was frankly awful. First the moving crew spend more time trying to hustle tips from me and my family instead of loading. Then, there was no driver going to my drop off destinnation. The load ended up being 10 days late to storage, so I paid for an empty strorage facility. Best of all, they lost a leg to my cherry dining room table, broke a leg off my ty stand and I ended up with some tools apparently stolen. My daughter actually witnessed the leg being broken off the TV stand. North American denied any claims stating that my underage son signed the inventory. Of course the inventory was basically unreadable and didn;t list all the items moved anyhow. The North American staff is uncaring. In total it's best to throw all your furniture away before letting North american move you, it's less aggravation. Stay away."
Keith N Frase of Tampa, FL November 5, 2008

"North American showed up on time to pack my house for a move from Memphis to Tampa. Everything went great and I was actually feeling okay about the move until the gentleman doing the packing said that someone else would be picking up my items. The first thing is they underestimated the size of the truck that they needed and I had to leave some of my yard decorations as well as craming things into the minivan and on top of it. He said that he could get another truck but it would not be until the next day and we had to be out of our house. I also had to ask that certain items be protected. The driver showed up a day late stating that he did not have the right phone number which I gave to him just as he left. The guys unloaded some of my items to storage and I already started to notice damage. It wasn't until we reached my apartment that the real damage was apparent. All of my furniture was damaged. I had two brand new cribs, two new dressers and hutches that were damaged. I had an amoire that was in one peice when it left but showed up in seven pieces. A complete loss. I also had an antique amoire that was damaged. Even the strollers for my girls were damaged. I refused to pay since the amount I owe North American will not cover the cost of replacing my items. I am filing my claim right now so I guess we will see what they say. It's funny that the driver never even asked for payment. I guess he realized what he had done. I will have to replace to complete bedroom sets and cribs and an amoire."

Glenn of Washington, DC October 10, 2008

"The movers deliberately misinformed/lied to me about my delivery date and my initial estimate (I ended being charged an extra thousand dollars or so--think their subcontractor also manipulated me on the volume/cost he charged me for, but I foolishly let it slide at the time, in the false hopes that my possessions would be well handled and I would be taken care of). Then when my goods arrived over a week late, several items were damaged. I repaired one item myself, and spent several hours completing thorough, detailed claim paperwork, only to receive a curt, one sentence email saying I was not eligible for compensation, but not adequately justifying this. I continued to call and email, and was avoided, and have received no further response to my grievances after several months. I have given up pursuing the matter because I don't have the time and money to continue going after these unprofessional people, who I feel should not be allowed to remain in business. I have reported them to the DOT already, too. Not sure of the exact amount, but the detailed claim I presented to them for replacement/repair contained $500-$1000 in estimated damages to a desk, hutch, kitchen service, and bed roller. I did not even account for miscellaneous cosmetic damages to many other mishandled items."
Cindi of San Antonio, TX September 12, 2008

"We moved from California to Texas in June 2008 and we had never moved out of the state or cross country and North American assured us that we had nothing to worry about and that they were there to help us take the stress away but they added to the stress instead. They not only damaged the items that they had, they destroyed our brand new house. They didn't cover our hard wood floor properly and so now we need the entire area replaced but when I put the claim in and I went above and beyond what I needed to do, they would only give me half of my repair cost. They said that there is always some liability on our part and that because the driver didn't put it on the paperwork then they were only going to give us half. Well, I explained that not only did the driver have no professionalism but he never did any paperwork. He wanted to leave so bad that he didn't do anything. The two individuals that helped him unload were so rude to him also that at one point the driver and one of his helpers was closed in my office getting ready to physically fight! They didn't leave until 11:30 pm and our house was a wreck! I will never do business with them again and I hope that no one else does either.
Terra of Rio Rancho, NM August 26, 2008"

After all the hidous nightmare of living barely through North American Van Lines theft of our household valued at over $1,000,000.This crime that was forced on my children and myself has left us below the poverty line. North American Van Lines, converted our property for their own financial gain. We have been informed by Noorth American Van Lines that they have sold all of our property. This criminal act of North American Van Lines is all the worse due to the fact they have cashed in Security bonds, E-Bonds,and additionl valuable income. We have and still are plauged by Idenity Theft, since all passports, death certificated, marriage lic, birth records, tax returns, Social Security Numbers etc. are and have been under the control of North American Van Lines. North American Van Lines state in their booklet provided to the consumer that if they sell your property, all money above their claim shall be sent to the person whose property they sold. Notice: I am still waiting for my check in the amount of $980,000.00. This fraudlent claim of North American Van Lines is difficult enough to handle, but the fact that now North American Van Lines has not followed through by returning my funds of $980,000,.00 is in direct conflict with their published guaranteed promise they make to the consumer.Identity theft, medical issues, detachment disorder, nightmares, loss of all things that grounded our family emotionally and psycologically to our past and our roots. Loss of living standard, loss of idenity, loss of confidence, loss of trust, the daily living with the burden of being violated by this large corporation and its ugly, and dishonest behavior to the unsupecting consumer.
Beverly of Greenville, TX August 20, 2008
My iron four poster bed had 3 of the 4 posts broken. My 17 flat screen TV was missing. It was packed in its original box so it was clear what was in the carton. The original contract called for 100% replacement insurance as part of the pricing. Later received a call that the company had 'changed their policy' and I had to pay for insurance. My goods were delayed for one week in Florida 'looking for a driver.' I was very unhappy with the 'service' and the response to my claim for damage and loss. Since I signed the paperwork before realizing that my TV was never entered on the original listing, they totally discounted this even though I called the agent in Ormand Beach the day after the goods were unloaded. I don't think anything will come of all of this. Things like this generally get 'forgotten' by the companies involved. I will end up having my bed repaired...even though I gave it to them in 'good faith.' As to my TV, I guess it is a lesson learned for me. I am just surprised that my computer made it...it was packed in its original box also.
Raymond of Palm Coast, FL July 23, 2008
Articles were delivered damaged and broken, including many valuable antiques. Boxes packed were delivered empty.Mirror missing, dolphin sculpure missing.Kirby vacuum missing. Medication was stolen, sheriff was called, have police report. When mover was confronted about the damage he said it was already like that and it wasn't. 6 people moved items into storage and he moved items out by himself. Then had the nerve to call me a fag. Nothing was handled with respect and care that it deserved for such a costly move.200 yr. old music stand had leg broken off.Almost all furniture had some kind of damage, including crushed boxes. Dining room table had legs cracked and loose. Arms on the chairs were loose. Jen Aire stainless steel refrigerator had scratches on the door.Kitchen aide Washing machine door won't latch.Lamps damaged, even one broken as he brought it into house. Antique towel rack was so damaged it's bent over.
Dan of Huntington Beach, CA June 11, 2008
We moved from MA to CA at the end of Feb, 2008. We were given an estimate and paid in full up front by credit card., almost $10,000. We received our goods on March 6,2008 in good condition and the bill of lading showed the actual cost of the move was less than $8400. North American owes us $1600, which they freely admit, after many phone calls and a letter to the presdient of the company. However, up to this time, June 11, they have told us that a check was sent to the wrong address, the wrong amount was put on a check($150, not $1600) and that they have the right to delay for six months and they are having a problem expiditing the payment. Why is it taking months to get our money back when we paid upfront in February?We are a couple on a fixed income. We moved to CA for the weather and to be near our family. We need the money!
Tracey of Wichita, KS August 3, 2006
We moved from Dallas to Wichita. It was a corporate relocation and Allied Van Lines actually packed us and loaded us in Dallas. That experience was great and we felt the packaging and care to our belongings was outstanding. The problem arose when our goods had to be stored once they arrived in Wichita. King's Moving and Storage took over from Allied once the items arrived. They were supposedly crated and placed into King's Storage. Upon arriving at our home, two months later (North American delivered the goods), we found many of our items to be badly damaged and filthy. All appliances that were shipped (washer, dry and small chest freezer) were crushed and inoperable. When bringing in a very expensive dresser, they didn't bother to use a pad on the piece or to even pad the dolly. As a result, the dresser was gouged on one entire side as they drug the dolly on it's side up 4 brick steps dragging our dresser on the bricks! As they unloaded the dresser off the dolly into the bedroom, they broke one of the legs off of it entirely. I walked into the room as it was snapping off and asked what had happened. One of the guys shrugged his shoulder and said oh well, it's not my problem. Call the company and make a complaint. I told him not to take that attitude with me and they walked out and refused to work. They sat out in their truck refusing to work because they said we were abusive. Nothing at all was said that was even the slightest bit offensive to them. Todd, their supervisor, was called and we asked him to come out and help supervise the move as we felt they were not appropriately handling our furniture, and he refused. He was very rude and said we could pack our belongings back up and have another crew some other day deliver, but it was summer time and he didn't know when they could get to it. Also, we felt insecure about them reloading our belongings and being the ones to unload them back into the warehouse. Then we found out that our belongings had been crated in 3 crates and they only had one! It took them all day to locate the other 2 crates and bring them out to our home. The driver was mad and took it out on us. Barely speaking to us and when he did, he used a very rude tone. They left us at 7pm that night with nothing assembled (they refused to put anything back together), badly damaged and broken items and a very unprofessional experience in general. We have moved 6 times in 11 years and have NEVER experienced anything like this!
We have thousands of dollars in damage to our household goods. We had to go out the day after moving in and replace our appliances as we cannot be without appliances while fighting them over claims.
James of Knoxville, TN July 28, 2006
On 5/24/06 I had someone meet the delivery company at my new house until I arrived in late June. North American was great until I noticed that item #93 was missing due to the fact that I got someone elses item #93. I notified North American at the end of june due to the fact I had just arrived and noticed this error. My receiver did not notice the error due to the fact that the driver was calling #s out and showing no damage and those #s were being marked off. North American wants me to return the other #93 and has declined my insurance claim saying they have a signed invoice saying all my items were received. All items were received because the person thought that was my item which it was not. I paid for the insurance to cover actual value with no deductible and now they dont want to stand behind that even though I can prove I have the wrong #93 what are my options this is not right as that box contained baseball and other collector memoribilla that was not cheap and in return I have a kids chair.
Dana of Arlington, VA May 12, 2006
The driver was rerouted and then delayed with my shipment to be delivered two days past my final delivery date put on the contract. After several calls, finally spoke to Cindy (who told me her superior was the President of the corporation). I explained to her why I needed my shipment by the contract deadline and she became rude with me and hung up on me twice. I never once yelled at her nor called her any kind of name or was abusive with her. She was completely rude (along with hanging up on me), refused to give me the driver's supervisor's name (who lied to the Northern California Rep by telling him my apartment complex told him -- the supervisor -- they wouldn't allow delivery on a Saturday); she would not give me the license number of the company until I asked for it four times. I then told her I would be filing a lawsuit if she didn't get my shipment to me before the day I started an important new job. She then told me it was because of my calling that the driver was being delayed -- when I called I called the first time, I was told the driver was already delayed. The driver, Douglas called an hour after I had spent nearly seven hours on the phone with the company trying to get the issue resolved. He was verbally harassing to me and kept insisting I should have called him and not the company -- when the company told me if he didn't call within 24 hours of the locked in date (which he didn't), I was to call the company. He stated he didn't have time to argue with me but I was wrong in calling the company. He stated he was a human being who needed a day off (which was why he apparently couldn't deliver on Sunday -- a day after the contract deadline delivery date). The northern California rep and dispatcher both told me there was no reason, from looking at their dispatch screen, that he couldn't get to me by his contract deadline date, yet Cindy continued to insist he just couldn't. They owe me one night's compensation for going over the contract deadline plus compensation for the things I had to buy for my new job which I wouldn't have had to do if they had arrived by the final contract delivery date. My load was a small load and so I was placed in low priority -- and they kept rerouting him to pick up bigger deliveries. The driver, Douglas, also told me it would be very difficult for him to deliver on a weekend because of all the residents being home at my complex. I told him there are many other moving companies that deliver on the weekend with no problem. I am still waiting to see if I get my furnishings, clothing, valuables, etc, by Sunday -- a day past the contract last delivery date.
Rob of Fredericksburg, VA January 17, 2006
Although this was a very large move with guaranteed pay by the government, the company grossly understaffed the move resulting in excessive damage and lost items. Additionally, the labor provided was negligent in assembly of our furniture resulting in a king size bed collapsing while we were asleep and childrens bunk beds that were in jeopardy of collapse had we not immediatly inspected the other beds after the collapse of the first bed. The size of the move required at least five movers to ensure safety, timeliness and care of our property. North American only provided 3 movers plus the driver. As a result, numerous items were broken, furniture was incorrectly assembled resulting in collapse and damage. Many items clearly marked by the packers were not placed in the room it was marked to be placed in and most were "buried" in the basement by movers who were tired and just started throwing boxes in the basement.
Sheryl of Nashville TN (10/20/05): Shipment was scheduled to arrive from New Jersey to Nashville between 10/18/05 and 10/20/05. Arrangements had been made for the shipment to then be delivered to a customer on 10/21/05. When the shipment did not arrive, I contacted North American and was told that the shipping date had been moved to 10/24/05. No one from North American had contacted the receiving party. This delay may cost my employer a valued customer. We have recommended to our corporate office that North American be dropped as a carrier for our company.
David of West Columbia SC (8/22/05):
Read more: "Consumer Complaints about North American Van Lines" - http://www.consumeraffairs.com/movers/north_american.htm#ixzz0Fa7ThHN6&A