My Complaint Filed with BBB Regarding Transport Services
T.Z.
Submitted this review about
Transport Services
Review made Live: 1/20/2010 9:03:00 PM
Below is a summary of a complaint that I filed with Better Business Bureau or BBB (West Palm Beach, FL 33407, Phone: 561-842-1918) regarding my unpleasant experience with Transport Services back in July 2009.
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I placed my auto shipping order on 07/10/2009 with TRANSPORT SERVICES to ship my car from New York to Hawaii. Before I finally decided to go with them, I spoke to Bill (ext. 202) and specifically asked if I can put personal items in the car. Bill said yes, as long as the weight is under 100lbs. My car was picked up as scheduled in New York by NATIONWIDE AUTO SHIPPING (714-235-2135) on 07/17/2009 with personal items in the car, and on its way to California in an enclosed truck. A few days later, I found out from Alexandra (ext.200) over the phone that MATSON (800-462-8766) will be the company who ships my car from California to Hawaii by boat, but she never mentioned a word about MATSON's specific rules which prohibit any personal items inside the car.
On 07/28/2009, my car arrived at MATSON's port in Long Beach, California. On the same day, Alexandra called me at around 3:19pm (EST) and told me that my personal items have been thrown out from the car by MATSON, and that was the very first time I was informed about MATSON's specific rules. She further told me that I have to pay the extra shipping fee out of my own pocket to ship those items back to me. I complained that she had the responsibility, but apparently failed, to inform me about MATSON's specific rules on personal items before my car was even picked up from New York. Therefore I argued that she or her company must be responsible for the extra shipping fee to ship my items back. She denied her fault and argued that it is written in their contract that I, the customer, am responsible for any damage and/or lost to items left in the car. I said that this is a totally different situation, because my items are neither lost nor damaged, and if I were told clearly from the very beginning about the rules but still ignored it, then I would certainly take the responsibility. But I was never clearly informed in the first place, and Alexandra, as a manager of her company. should know better about the rules, and I believe this was certainly not their first time doing business with MATSON.
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The above complaint was filed on 07/28/2009 and processed by BBB on 07/31/2009. By 08/28/2009, BBB informed me that Transport Services did not respond to the complaint even after two contacts.
However, as I was doing a follow-up today regarding the case, I just noticed that Transport Services did finally make an initial response on BBB's website to the complaint on 11/04/2009, as follows:
"Company's Initial Response - Posted 11/04/2009
Company states that all of our calls are monitored and recorded for security, training and quality purposes. All sales reps made the customer fully aware that three should have been no belongings insude the vehicle. We apologize for any inconvenience that this may have caused, but we are not at fault."
And below is my rebuttal to their response that I just wrote few hours ago, which is yet to be processed by BBB as of this moment:
"If the company (TRANSPORT SERVICES) does have a recorded phone conversation that actually shows that the sales reps did inform me specifically that I cannot put anything in the car when I specifically asked if I could do so, before the driver from NATIONWIDE AUTO SHIPPING picked up my car on 07/17/2009 in NY, then by all means I will be more than happy to hear that recording myself.
And if the company has been having this phone recording all the time as a proof, then why did the sales reps never mention the recording to me when I called the company and complained on 07/28/2009?
Further, since my initial complaint, between 07/28/2009- 08/12/2009 (the day I picked up my car in HI), the company never contacted me or provided any further services again regarding the status of my car, and I had to keep track and contact MATSON all by myself just to find out its status and get instructions on how to pick up the car. This simply proves again the company's failure and lack of responsible service on informing and satisfying the customer's needs.
And I shall also mention that I did pay an extra of nearly $800 out of my own pocket just to ship all my personal items back."
Above is my own true story so far with Transport Services as of today, 01/20/2010, and I hope this will serve as a warning to whoever wants to go with them.
