S & M Moving Systems

Description of Work
S & M Moving Systems moved us from Virginia to California. Despite national snow storms the process took 11 days, but filing of claims and the final determination for damages was not completed until October. S & M uses several independent contractors and they subcontract other companies to perform specific aspects of the move. The ratings varied greatly among the individuals performing work. The scoring above is based on the employees and the independent contractors who work for S & M but would unlikely be available for hire by an individual consumer. The drivers personally own the moving trucks they drive. The drivers and the technicians that inspect damage claims and do repairs are independent contractors. But it is our understanding that S & M regularly hires the same people and companies for their moves. We don’t know whether the crews that packed and moved were employees or independent contractors. The east coast crew did not wear any ID or uniforms nor did there appear to be any dress code. 2 of the 3 crew members on the west coast wore similar uniforms – polo shirts, shorts, white athletic shoes. S & M is an agent for United Van Lines. Other agents for United Van Lines performed certain tasks on behalf of S & M. For example, in Virginia Greg Sherig with Hilldrup Moving & Storage inspected our belongings and made the estimate for S & M. Hilldrup provided all the packaging materials and made the determination that we could not re-use the moving boxes and packing paper we had saved when S & M moved us to Virginia from California 4 years earlier. Hilldrup removed the boxes we could not use for recycling, and relayed all information to our S & M Move Coordinator, Judy Clark. Judy arranged for Movers Specialty Service to pack and crate our grandfather clock and box a flat screen TV at the origin, and Bay Area Crating Service to service, uncrate and set-up the grandfather clock and unbox the TV at our destination. S & M has a contract to handle moves for my husband’s employer. They were paid $19,000 to pack and move our household goods which had a final packed weight of 17,600 lbs plus $3,000 to transport our 2 -4 door passenger cars cross country on an open two tiered auto transport vehicle. S & M handled payment and fees to the other companies, independent contractors, etc. The crew took 2 days -4 men the first day and 3 men the second day to pack; one day for the 4 men to load but they worked very slowly finishing at 9 PM; and 8 days to deliver. The cars were delivered in 7 days. They fill the Moving truck with multiple households and the auto transport vehicle with multiple vehicles so depending on where you are on their pick-up/delivery route and road conditions will affect when delivery occurs. We had an estimate of 5 days to ~2 weeks for delivery. We had to be available by phone and received one day’s notice for delivery. We declined S & M’s unpacking service although it was covered. We knew from past experience that they unpack faster than we could put things away and things can’t be properly checked for damage. We had 9 months from delivery to file any claims for damages. S & M also offers to remove boxes and packing materials after unpacking. The estimated weight was 1,600 lbs less than the actual weight and 1,000 lbs less than the actual weight during our move 4 years earlier. No one could explain why they would estimate less than the minimum possible weight (the weight determined 4 years earlier). Judy Clark was our “Move Coordinator”. She oversaw the entire process. She determined our needs and arranged and dealt with the various companies, independent contractors, etc. to get the job done. The crew who handled our household goods in Virginia consisted of the driver, Paul Armijo who had 10 years experience. He was in charge of the 3 man crew – Glen, who trained Paul; James who had 4 years experience; & Paul’s nephew Jacob who worked with his uncle for the past 2 to 3 years. Another driver, Mark Lojek, handled transport of the cars. In California, Paul was again in charge and a different crew of 3 men handled our household goods –Juan Garcia; one may have been named Mike, he mostly stayed inside the truck; and another whose name we don’t remember but was very good. Karen Guzman is in charge of S & M’s damage claims. Her husband, Raul Guzman, inspects damages and does repairs. They do not reveal their relationship unless asked. When we had problems with Raul, Karen sent out a second technician Tony Martin owner of Martin’s Classic Restorations in Lodi, CA to handle the claims damage. We are now in dispute over a denied damage claim. Tamara Noland of United is handling the dispute for the company. We would rate the following people as follows: Judy Clark – move Coordinator Quality & Professionalism: B Responsiveness & Punctuality: A East Coast Packing and Loading Crew Quality: C one or two individuals may have rated a B, Jacob may have rated an A Responsiveness & Punctuality: A Professionalism B West Coast Packing and Loading Crew Quality, Responsiveness, Punctuality, Professionalism: A Mark Lojek Quality, Responsiveness, Punctuality, Professionalism: A Raul Guzman Quality: B Responsiveness: C Punctuality: A Professionalism: D Karen Guzman Quality: B Responsiveness: C Punctuality: B Professionalism: D

Description of Work
Our employer had a contract with them and they were hired to move us from California to the east coast (household and two cars).

Description of Work
S&M Moving Systems moved me from a duplex into an apartment.

Description of Work
Pack & Move & unpack 3400 square foot house from Charlotte, NC to Santa Clara, CA

Description of Work
THE COMPANY WRAPPED & LOADED FURNITURE & BOXES FROM POINT A TO POINT B. THIS WAS A LOCAL MOVE OF LESS THAN 15 MILES.