SHAWNEE, OKLA. - Wanda Robinson is ready to hit the panic button.
“Oh my gosh I hope I didn't lose my stuff forever,” she said.
She says the moving company that won't give back her stuff is B&B Transportation Services out of Sherman Oaks, California.
She’s sick to her stomach over what's missing, like the antique pump organ from an old ship her dad left her and a bedroom suit that belonged to Wanda's grandparents.
Nothing is expensive, but there is major emotional and sentimental worth.
“In fact there is one more thing that is in there, a suitcase with things from my dad,” she said. “He passed away last year. It's all of his personal things.”
There are dozens of online complaints and a D minus rating with the Better Business Bureau that show B&B Transportation has a history of jacking up the price on customers and using shady tactics to get more money!
Wanda's quote was for about $1200 dollars to haul 13 items from Wanda's mom's home in San Diego to Wanda's place in Shawnee.
Her mom felt uneasy about the movers, so she took out her camera phone and started recording them.
She said, “So they show up and tell my mom she needs to pay $650 dollars.”
It's alleged the movers were able to get her mom to write them a check by saying the 650 payment would be applied toward Wanda's $1200 bill.
Wanda says that wasn't a part of the agreement and she gave the movers strict instructions to put the payment on her credit card.
She believes the movers tricked her mom into paying cash, so she couldn't dispute the charges on her credit card later on.
The In Your Corner bottom line:
Some movers will claim your furniture and boxes weigh more than what was originally quoted and they'll keep your stuff hostage, until you pay more!
Someone from the moving company answered our call right away and told us her system wasn’t updated yet, so she couldn’t give us any information about Wanda’s delivery.
There is one bright spot.
The woman told us Wanda's belongings are on the move!
She promised to give us a tracking number just as soon as her system updated with the driver's information.
“It will be a wonderful surprise if that happens,” Wanda said. “I will be very surprised.”
Wanda waited 24 hours and no one ever called back with the tracking number.
She’s in the process of filing complaints with the appropriate agencies.
Her estimate was non-binding, which means actual charges can go up within reason.
The biggest takeaways are do your homework online and read the fine print!
We’ll let you know what happens with Wanda’s stuff.
For state to state moves contact the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
They are the agency that regulates movers and can fine and suspend or revoke a moving company's operating license.
Their agency has received 18 complaints on B&B Transportation since January.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration urges consumers who are considering a possible interstate move to visit www.ProtectYourMove.gov. This website educates you on what what to look for when hiring an interstate moving company, understanding moving fraud, searching for movers in the national database of registered moving companies, submitting a moving fraud complaint to the National Consumer Complaint Database, and much more.
Consumers who feel they are victims of moving fraud can file a complaint with FMCSA through the agency’s National Consumer Complaint Database (https://nccdb.fmcsa.dot.gov/nccdb/home.aspx) or by calling 1-888-DOT-SAFT (1-888-368-7238) Monday through Friday between the hours of 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Eastern Time.