Polley's Moving Service

If you would like to know what a day in moving h*** is like, spend it with Mr Polley. Once again, he arrived late. The crew arrived without any "tools of the trade". In other words they came ill prepared for the job...unless you count Mr. Polley's change of shorts. They brought no tape guns, marking pens, wrapping paper, boxes, bubble wrap, dollies, etc. This is a detail he should have made known up front to allow the customer time to buy the materials. Fortunately I'm an experienced packer and had my own supplies. After chit chatting (which he said was off the clock but later demanded to be paid for) two of the workers split off to pack and Mr. Polley spent the next hour or so wandering through the house talking on his cellphone to his connection at the mover's warehouse checking out the price of packing paper and bubble wrap. He piddled here and there with the male worker in attempting to pack some boxes. Within the first 30 minutes a small apothecary jar with sentimental value was broken. At one point Mr. Polley disappeared and even his crew wondered where he was. He was in the bathroom...for at least 30 minutes or longer. When my elderly (78 year old) father stopped by and brought me a sandwich and milkshake, Mr Polley wanted to know where his was. He asked my father where was his and told him he could bring him a McDonald's. Later when a friend of mine and I were packing some boxes Mr Polley approached me and said they were going to lunch and he expected his customers to give him $20 for lunch or treat them to Outback Steak House. I offered him sandwiches from my refrigerator, but he turned his nose up at the offer. Mr Polley and his male helper took at least one 10 minute smoke break every hour and the other male worker left the house at least once. He also informed me that he wasn't a professional packer, which was evident by the way he was balling up clothes and throwing them into boxes. The porcelain hooks on an oak mirror that were on the mirror this morning are broken off the mirror now and when I asked if they at least got packed, I was told they didn't see them. I imagine they were sucked into a black hole... Mr Polley's wife seemed to be hard working and she did seem to spend her time doing her job and not frittering her time away. Mr Polley was belligerent and wanted to do things his way...not to please the customer. For instance, his big hobby horse was moving my expensive grandfather clock. We have moved this clock several times. There is a method to it...remove the weights and the pendulum and anchor the chime, then wrap the clock in furniture pads. Mr Polley's method was to leave the pendulum in, stuff pillows around the pendulum and then wrap bubble wrap around the clock. He did not seem to think to highly of a female's opinion or a woman's instruction concerning her belongings. In other words, Mr. Polley, was rather misogynistic. As the day was winding down, I think he and his crew were weary of the packing. We were also running out of book boxes. I presented up $20 for one of them to run to the store for some book boxes. Mr. Polley asked for gas money. I explained that was all I had, but they could buy the number of book boxes we might need and use the rest for gas. He never seemed to fail to grab a chance to try and "nickle and dime" you to death...and he wasn't very subtle about it either. He'd wink at you when he was trying to get money or something out of you, and I guess he thought that was charming...but it wasn't...it was annoying. Many of the boxes aren't marked and at the moment the only clothes I have are the ones on my back. I suggested they end work when the crew member returned with the boxes and they did. It was a little before 5:30. They had arrived for work between 10:30 and 11:00 and taken about a 30 to 45 minute lunch. At best they worked 6.5 hours. My husband talked to Mr Polley and discovered that he did not have a truck line up for in the morning, so there was no way he could possible get an early start. My husband agreed (generously I might add and my friend who stayed with me a good part of the day agrees) to pay the crew for 7 hours or $245. Mr Polley and his crew were following me to the bank where I was going to withdraw the money to pay them. My husband had called him to discuss the payment. As I pulled up to the ATM machine, my husband called me to tell me he had fired Mr Polley and about the same time Mr Polley pulled in behind me and told me I owed him $300. For some odd reason my bank card would not go into the ATM and I had to drive to another ATM where I withdrew the money. By this point Mr Polley had walked up to my car and was leaning on it and his head was almost in my window. I explained to him what he would be paid, that my husband had already discussed it with him. Well, he went ballistic. He got red faced and started threatening me and my husband. He said he would get a lawyer and/or turn us over to the "credit agency". He said the reason he demanded to be paid $300 was to cover a "trip charge" and for lunch. He said in anyone tell you they're not charging you a trip charge they're lying, because every one does. I looked at him and said, "Well, Michael, then you lied because you didn't tell us about this charge until just no. You gave us flat rates and are just now adding on these other fees. That wasn't part of your quote and not what we made a deal for." He kept saying everyone got a trip charge and I said, "Michael, every one has to drive to work." Employers do not pay people to drive to work! They also do not pay for their food. He was so hostile and threatening my friend and I thought we were going to have to call 9/11 and have the police assist us. People like Michael Polley are bullies. Someday he might threaten the wrong person...like an IRS agent who realizes he's working on a cash basis and just may not be paying taxes on his income. So, whatever you do...do not use this company or any company that might use Michael Polley. Run from him and them like your head is on fire or like someone has scream "fire" in a theater...don't live to regret it like I did...