Hollander International Moving and Storage Co

It went very well

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The salesman promised to always be available throughout the entire process. I called him once I had chosen Hollander (the other mover I considered was booked the week I needed to move) but did not reach him and did not get a call back from him. I finally called the office and ended up working with them from there on out, so the promise was rather empty. The plan for the move was for a three day pack/move/delivery due to the second stop that was needed. Just days before the move, I was asked to allow movers to pack both locations at the same time to cut down the overall time. I informed the office that I did not have a second person to watch the second location and Hollander suggested that I simply leave movers in my home to work without supervision while I went to the other location, sixty miles away, which I refused to do. It was then made into a two day move with packing and loading the larger home in one day, then packing, loading the second location and delivering on day two. I think the rush to cram things in resulted in the damage that my homes suffered as well as the issue of them not wanting to drive in Chicago traffic to get home after the delivery. Packing - I found napkins rings dropped on the floor and overlooked. The packers left tape roll hanging on the 100 year old latch of one of the stained glass windows. I have found sets of items scattered across several boxes in ways that made no sense. For example, two glasses of a six-set where in one box and others were found in boxes from other areas of the house unrelated to the kitchen. A top of the blender was in one box and the base was in another. A box spring was dragged on the floor resulting in two long and deep scratches in the second floor hallway - right where buyers looking at the home would be able to see it. In the end, they offered a payment of $350 as they reported it could not be repaired without refinishing the entire second floor hall and two adjoining rooms - so I would have to pay for the rest of the refinishing and they would contribute only for the scratch - but the refinishing would not have been needed if not for the scratches they did. No floor protection was put down at all in the first location – the driver said later that he had changed trucks and could not find any. At the second pick up, once they were done using a side door, they left it propped out allowing the summer heat to come continue to come in. They had propped another door with a door stop jammed up at the top – both of these doors were left open after they drove off and I was left to get the wedging out. At the new home (delivery) where there were pristine wood floors, they did put down floor protection on all walk ways. Unfortunately, that did not stop the movers from again dragging large items on the floors in the bed rooms which resulted in scratches to the floors in several rooms. In addition, a wall was scratched as well. They did send the repair company to address the floors at the new location and that repair was satisfactory. They did not yet send someone yet to deal with the damage to the dry wall where the paint was scratched. I was never asked to sign anything verifying any prior damage to items but was asked after the delivery to sign blank screens on a tablet and later once I got the actual print out, I saw a list of my items and their assessment of condition. The driver did take responsibility right away for the floor damage in both locations but that did not really help with the fact that it did not need to have happened at all. They each needed to simply wait/ask for help to lift and place things rather than drag on the floor.

unknown

Normally I would wait until the end of an experience to rate, but I don't see how Hollander/Mayflower/United can possibly improve the experience beyond one star at this point.

First, the packing team took longer than expected to pack, so rather than make us wait around, they offered to lock up when they left - instead, they left all the doors to their house wide open. Not just unlocked, OPEN. Front door, back door, garage door - in Chicago. We moved out of state, so never would have noticed if our neighbors hadn't been kind enough to call us and let us know.

Then, on the arrival end, we have just experienced our fifth delivery delay. On this most recent delay, they haven't even bothered to give us an ETA, instead we're simply told that our belongings will probably arrive within the original delivery window (e.g. three weeks after packing, instead of the original 1 week that they strongly insisted was likely). At no point did they call to let me know these changes in delivery dates, instead they let me call them and leave messages after they fail to confirm.

With two children under age three, we've been without beds, cookware, toys, or clothes while trying to settle into a new, empty apartment and starting a new job. I've had to buy inflatable beds, paper plates/utensils, duplicate cookware and meals out, and if the late summer weather doesn't hold, I'll probably have to buy clothes. Unbelievable.

I doubt I'll ever use any full-service mover again after this experience. PODs, UHaul, and three guys I hired off of Craigslist for past moves were all much better, faster experiences with no tears.

unknown

They have been good so far, we are still in the process of getting moved in.

unknown

My daughter is completing this review. It was a mess and continues to be a mess
(1) Estimate was 700 pounds off which caused my moving and storage rates to increase dramatically
(2) Driver mis-labeled form and marked estimate for a higher valuation amount than I had requested ($500 impact)
(3) Unable to provide basic commercial terms (e.g., monthly or daily storage rates) without mathematical errors
(4) Rude and dismissive customer service agents
(5) Complete unwillingness to adjust rates dispite contraction with estimate and mathematical errors
(6) Lied about ability to adjust rates and told me to contact local agent and United Van Lines, both of which told me that the agent had responsibility

We had some travel time and needed some time to get our new location set up before they delivered our belongings.  They were good on unpacking and delivery.  We only had one issue. The trailor they used was a frieght box that wasn't clean.  There was a fine black dust that covered all of our belongings.  Nothing was damaged by this dust, so no harm done.  We were able to track the truck from start to finish and only had one piece of furniture that was damaged.  Overall, we are pleased with the experience!  The movers did a great job helping us out!  We had 16,000 lbs of belongings they moved!

On the day of my move into my new house, there was a light snow. I made sure the driveway and walkways were well shoveled. When the movers arrived, I let them know that I had all the wood floors in the house refinished 5 days prior and asked if they could be extremely careful. Shortly after that, the foreman put down a HUGE amount of salt all over the driveway and walkways and the movers couldn’t help but track in big chunks of salt all day. Very little of the salt broke down outside because there was almost no snow and absolutely no ice to dissolve it. After the movers left I had to vacuum the whole house because there was so much salt all over that would surely scratch my floors if left on my floors. At the end of the move, the mover’s seemed anxious to leave. I was there by myself all day and had no-one else to help me take inventory. The foreman made me feel like I didn’t need to go thru the inventory because he stressed that all my vaults (they had put my stuff in storage for 6 weeks prior to delivery to new house) had been opened on-site and that there was negligible chance of anything being missing I felt pressured to sign the pages without going thru the inventory. What I really wish I’d done was take a look thru the van before they left as I will explain shortly. It is my contention that I would have found two broken and opened boxes in the van. After the mover’s left, I walked outside for the first time to get my mail. It was then that I noticed large broken pieces of clear heavy plastic or Lucite like the kind used in a heavy plastic serving tray. Some of the pieces had a smooth, slightly curved edge and lead me to think that they were part of my Tupperware vegetable tray. At this point I thought that maybe they had somehow broken the tray and not told me about it. During the move, I noticed that the movers were bringing stacks of boxes on a dolly, down the van’s ramp and immediately down my sloped driveway at a very quick pace. It looked unsafe and I mentioned to the mover inside my house who was folding blankets that it looked unsafe and that I was afraid the mover would fall and hurt himself. The man inside assured me they did this sort of thing regularly and there was no cause for concern. It is my contention that he may have done exactly that and fallen with the two boxes in question, broken the boxes open and much of the contents, including the plastic tray broke. Then, perhaps out of concern for getting in trouble, he picked up the pieces and loaded them back on the truck. The fact that they never noted that SOMETHING made of heavy plastic got broken during the move seems extremely suspect. When someone with Hollander finally asked them about the plastic, weeks later, their response was less than forthcoming. They stated that MAYBE a plastic bin got broken but they didn’t recall a bin getting broken. First of all I can assure you NO bin was broken. I was moved on a Tuesday and completely unpacked by the following Sunday. I emptied all the bins and boxes. Every single one. If they broke something, why didn’t they report it to me immediately after it happened and in their report. If they didn’t think they broke a bin (which they didn’t) then what? If it wasn’t a broken bin then what was it? The two boxes that were missing were both distinctive for different reasons. The smaller box with brand new bedding was bought and packed prior to the move to put on two single beds for my two sons when they visited. My sister flew in from Texas the day after the move to help me unpack and I went thru every box trying to find the new sheets to make a bed for her. We never found the sheets . The second box was my largest box. It was a box filled with most of my kitchen items (including the Tupperware tray). At my old home I set up a very large box marked "Kitchen”. I first filled this box with my larger items that wouldn’t fit in smaller boxes. As it got closer to the move date, I filled the box with all sizes of kitchen items. I worried that the box was too heavy and showed the movers when they arrived. They assured me they were fine but did mention as they moved them out of the house that they were heavy. This box never arrived. I had asked the movers to leave all boxes in the basement except any kitchen boxes that might be too heavy for me to carry up the stairs. Those were to be put in the kitchen. I specifically expected my big kitchen box to be the one they brought up. After they left I noticed that the only kitchen boxes they brought up were three fairly light ones. I realized in less than 24 hours that these two boxes were missing and contacted The mover. they felt certain they would turn up and said they would initiate an investigation.   Hollander refused to file an insurance claim. What I don’t understand is after paying for insurance on the moves and the storage, how they could deny the claim. I bought an expensive wooden coffee table crafted by artisans in the rainforest of St. Croix 25 years ago. The movers decided to take the legs off for storage. When they delivered it , the mover used a power drill to put the legs back on, BACKWARDS, drilling 12 new holes in the bottom of the coffee table.By my best estimate, they lost almost $1500 worth of my items. The owner refused to help in any way. I should have used a less established, less expensive mover. I couldn't have done any worse.

Frank was our sales rep when we were looking for moving companies to move us out.  He came to the house and followed up with a comprehensive proposal.
Terrance and his moving team moved us out efficiently in early May and into their storage in Elk Grove Village.  We packed most of our own stuff, but they did a fine job of packing and protecting furniture.
Terrance and team moved us into our new place in late July and were outstanding in every way: upbeat, accommodating and very hard-working.  They maneuvered furniture into some tight spots without any damage to walls and doors, and even happily reconfigured our bedroom when we decided that the initial arrangement wasn't going to work for us.
We would use them again without hesitation.

Every person I interacted with was responsive and easy to deal with, from the estimator, to the office staff, to the driver.  The final bill was actually a little bit under the estimate.  The office person answered all my questions and sent update e-mails as the moving date got closer.  The driver was excellent about keeping in touch with me on both ends of the move, and was very experienced and systematic about how things should be loaded.  I had not completed all the packing before moving day, and the crew worked with me to figure out what I could pack while they loaded other things.  The members of the crew worked very well together, and kept the atmosphere relaxed while they worked hard to get everything on the truck.  They were respectful of my home and were a pleasure to work with.  I was stressed to the max on moving day, but everything went beautifully.

They did a superb job. The driver was extremely professional and made sure everything was done in the right manner. Everything was delivered in the same condition it was picked up.

As I said, it went wonderfully.  The owner came to my house and surveyed everything and was able to correctly assess what I needed.  The crews came on time, were professional  and worked in a timely fashion.

Met with the salesman Frank on Tuesday 11/27/12 at 10AM to get a quote to move our household to Florida. He was very professional and we gave him the business even though he was not the cheapest bid we received.  We went over our moving dates several times. He called his office to make sure they could handle the load on December 24th and THEY CONFIRMED THE DATE AND TIME!!! He just called me a few minutes ago on Wednesday 11/28/12 at 5:45 pm to tell me that he was told by his boss that they cannot handle my move on Monday the 24th and wanted to come for the furniture on the 21st. VERY UN-PROFESSIONAL!!! LOST MY BUSINESS!!!

Salesman was professional and emailed me his estimate over the weekend, which I really appreciated.

Everything was great.  Hollander made the experience as pleasant as possible and never disappointed.  The crew loaded my belongings carefully and skillfully onto the truck, and the same driver was used for the entire trip.  Ultimately, none of my belongings were neither stolen nor damaged.

This involves four movers from Hollander, a truck and a lot of stuff.  The movers were honest, showed up on time, friendly and efficient. They went out of their way to be helpful. 

EXCELLENT

Everything turned out pretty well. The estimate was a "not to exceed" estimate, so that worked out well for us. They packed a few things for us, but we did most of the packing. Almost everything, including the light bulbs, arrived in tact. We had a very fluid closing date until the last minute. Hollander did a good job in working with us as changes were made.

My family and I recently moved from Chicago, IL to Bloomington, IN and decided that, with a newborn, we needed a lot of help. We got estimates from a few companies for packing and moving services. Although their estimate was the highest, we decided to go with Hollander based on their reputation. We have some very nice things and we didn't mind paying a little extra if it meant that they wouldn't be damaged. When the sales representative came to give us our estimate, she looked at where the loading of the truck would need to take place. Due to the layout of our building, she wasn't sure that a large enough truck for all our belongings could be used. Instead, she thought that they may need to "shuttle" our items back to their premises and load them onto a larger truck for transport. I questioned this, since I have seen many large trucks use the loading area and did not think that we required an extra large truck for our things. After checking with her dispatcher, she informed me that the "shuttle service" was necessary. Although it was an additional $1,100, we decided to go ahead based on their reputation. We financed this move entirely ourselves, so we didn't take this added cost lightly, but we felt that they were very professional and they must know what they are doing. When they arrived to pack our belongings, we were very pleased with their professionalism and speed. The same was true the following day when they arrived to load the truck. We were even happier when they discovered that they could load everything onto a single truck and use that same truck to transport to Bloomington. The shuttle service was not necessary after all. The truck arrived a couple of days later at our new home and they unloaded everything, placing things as we requested. After the move, I contacted the sales representative to request a refund for the shuttle service. She spoke with her manager and informed me that they would indeed refund the money for the shuttle since the service was not actually provided. She told me that she would let me know when the check would be sent out. I received no follow up, so I checked in again. I was told the same thing. Eventually, after several follow up calls and emails to the representative, she put me in touch with a woman in the billing department. This woman informed me that she had spoken with her manager and they would be sending me a check the following week. When I didn't hear anything from her nor did I receive a check, I followed up again. She again told me they would be sending me a check. Yet again, I received no check or further information. When I followed up again, she informed me that they would not in fact be issuing a check because "we eliminated the necessity of double handling which may have resulted in damages." So basically, they think it makes sense to charge us for a service they didn't provide because they saved us from the possibility of damages. To me, that logic doesn't work at all. Isn't that what all the liability coverage that they sell you on is for? Overall, Hollander does a quality job. But be very careful about what's included in your contract because you may end up paying for services you don't need or receive. And if you happen to have any problems with your move, be prepared to be brushed off by the management.

They were fast and efficient. Best organized team I have ever seen.

They were punctual. They were very detailed in the wrapping and protection of all the furniture. They also were very good about the home itself and protecting the walls and the floors. Their attention to detail was very good. There original estimate was considerably lower than the final price.