The Sunshine Boys Moving & Storage Co

Called and were able to provide an estimate immediately and accommodate our time scheduled. They showed up on time, packed the truck quickly, were careful with our belongings and arrived at the final destination in a reasonable time. They even helped with moving some pieces of furniture in the house. Very pleasant people as well.

I would NOT recommend Sunshine Boys Moving to anyone. An absolutely horrible experience with this company. Before I even booked with Sunshine Boys, I asked the Sunshine Boys Operations Coordinator if they would subcontract out our job because I definitely did not want it subcontracted out. She said no - they would not do that. Yet, that?s exactly what they did after they had our items in their possession. I told their Operations Coordinator that our items were going into storage and asked what she recommends needs to be done differently for that (as opposed to going straight into a home). She advised that we keep our furniture wrapped in blankets during storage. She said her movers would pack our furniture in thick cloth blanket pads for the move but at the other end (storage facility) they would replace those cloth blankets for paper blanket pads at $3.00 each. I said that would be great because the cloth blanket pads are much more expensive than $3.00 each. So I called Sharon while our items were in transit to make sure they would have paper blanket pads to switch out at the receiving end. She assured me that they would have paper blanket pads at the receiving end. Upon delivery of our items, the driver had no idea what I was talking about when I asked where the paper blanket pads were. There were none. In addition, I needed to know what kind of truck would be delivering our items so I could reserve the correct storage facility ? some storage facilities cannot fit a semi-truck on their lot. The Operations Coordinator informed me it would be a 26? box truck and not a semi. So I reserved a storage facility that was close to where we were staying and that could accommodate a 26? box truck but not a semi-truck. While our items were in transit, we were called by the delivery driver to schedule a delivery time and learned that he was indeed driving a semi-truck. Over the course of one week we were given roughly 10 different delivery timeframes. The driver first called to say delivery would be Tuesday, Feb. 8th. Then it was changed to Wednesday, Feb.9th. Then it was again moved to Thursday, Feb. 10th. Then on Thursday, Feb 10th, the driver called four separate times giving us four different timeframes: first 1-4pm, then oddly it became 9am-1pm, then 2-4pm and finally 4-6pm. Yet even with four different times, our belongings still did not show up that day. Then we were assured it would be Friday, Feb. 11th. Guess what? Nope, no delivery on Friday, Feb. 11th. So then we were told Saturday morning, Feb. 12th no later than 9:00am. Our belongings did not arrive until after 1:00 pm on Saturday. Finally, five of our boxes were smashed. Even a box with ?Fragile? labeled tape wrapped entirely around it arrived smashed. My son?s wooden toy car was broken (missing a wheel). A bathroom cabinet showed up missing the cabinet door knob and a corner of the top broken off. As the truck door was opened on the delivery end of our move another box labeled "Fragile" was lodged between two boxes and barely dangling 6 feet above the truck floor. Just another example of the care that was taken with our belongings. Who knows what else may be broken - we?ll find out once we get it out of storage and unpack everything. Again, DO NOT use Sunshine Boys Moving. REPLY TO COMPANY RESPONSE: Based on the company's response below - they are using the one coordinator as the scapegoat when the entire company is responsible. She is not the person who smashed our boxes, damaged our items or stretched out the delivery date/time over one week. We were offered roughly $30 from the company in recompense for this horrible experience and service. We declined their offer because had we accepted that measly sum and signed the settlement agreement, we would have been prohibited by terms of the agreement from posting this review. Superficial and hollow company response.

This is the second time I have used Sunshine Boys. The lead mover, Sergio, was excellent. Many of my furniture pieces are Mid-Century Heywood Wakefield and they took great care in padding and wrapping everything. They made the move a lot less painful - who likes moving? I would use them again with no hesitation

They were great. The service turned out well. I would use them again in the future.

Management is really good and reliable. It was painless scheduling the job. Grant walked me through what to expect and provided a solid estimate. Their cost was higher than the other quotes given, but Grant quickly built a rapport and level of trust wit me. The movers showed up on time. They were professional with the only goal of moving my goods as fast as possible. There were not many breaks, with men standing around, complaining. They spoke very little and did work. I was moved out of the old place in 3 hours and in to the new place in 2 1/2 hours. Prior moves took 2 days! I was not completely packed when they arrived. So part of the move was the men putting loose items in a few wardrobe boxes. All went excellently - until the end. I wanted to tip the movers and mentioned that I only had a $100 bill, no change. The foreman said that he would get change. I asked him if he would do that and bring it back... he thought I meant take the $100 and distribute it to the men. Two hours later, I called asking when he was returning with the change... however this was resolved. Next, when unpacking, I noticed three things missing/broke. One of the guys apparently YANKED the coaxial cable from behind my small TV and pulled out the entire connector. TimeWarner was not able to reconnect cable to the TV. I had to purchase another [old TV - but Still... I only moved one block away]; Next, a shelf from a bookcase was missing - never to be found again. They said it was not left on the truck. The shelf was there when the movers came - I moved one block away...no shelf. This was not resolved. Lastly, my nice suitcase is nowhere to be found. It is pretty much brand new - used once - but part of a matching set. This was also not resolved. When I communicated with management about the events/loss, initially the response was protective. As I stood my ground, they made me feel as though I was trying to cheat them or twist their arm. It is hard looking at the bookcase with the missing shelf. I have trips planned this year - and now have to purchase another suitcase. I replaced the TV... The ending events broke my heart. Up until then, I was in love with the company. Will I use them again? I really don't know. I'd need to get double insurance. If it were not for the ending events, I would give them all A's - but loss is a major thing.

I had a few wet boxes due to storage and they were supposed to reimburse me $50 for using Angie's List, but they didn't and I even called a few times.

It was super easy. I called in the morning and they were at my house in the late afternoon. Loved the same day service! The entire move took about an hour. I was very pleased. Guys were great!

It was not a good moving experience. They packed all the electronics by throwing them into a box, and not taking any of it apart. When we opened the box the keyboard and computer were broken. They also damaged some of our furniture.

We got great service from the Sunshine Boys from the time that I called for an estimate. The man I spoke with was very clear about costs, and up front with the fact that although the estimate might be a little higher than other places, he preferred to be over, and then charge less if necessary instead of springing surprise price increases on us the day of the move. The guys who came to move were prompt and courteous, and it took them about half the time they expected, so we ended up getting charged much less than the estimate, which was great. They helped us move our apartment, but also helped us move some old furniture we were getting rid of and not taking with us, which was great. Nothing was damaged in the move, and they put everything where we had planned it to go. Great service, and a pleasure to work with!

I emailed Sunshine Boys through their website on, or around Tuesday, January 18th, to see if I could get an estimate for our move. Instead of waiting for a reply, I decided to go ahead and call the office the next day. I spoke to a woman who said she would have "Richard" call me back to set up an appointment for an in-home estimate. I never received a call from Richard, or anyone. On Friday, January 21st, I decided to call back to see if I could set up the appointment. I got the office's voice-mail, so I left a message explaining that I had called before and was still waiting for a call from Richard. I asked if someone could call me back so we could set up the in-home estimate. For some reason, I never received a call? or an email... at all? ever. I was very disappointed since this company had such good ratings on Angie?s List, but there were other companies with good ratings, so we called around. Needless to say, we went with another company for the move. The other company was great, so we were happy in the end; we were just a little confused as to why Sunshine Boys would have such bad customer service. They have a lot of great ratings on Angie's List, so I'm sure they're very good, we just had a bad experience.

The truck arrived 40 minutes late. The 2 man crew was very methodical about wrapping and packing our furniture. It took them almost 4 hours to move everything out of our house when I was tld the whole job would take 4 hours. The transfer from our home in Los Feliz to Eagle Rock took the crew almost an hour! This is a 15 minute journey.. at most 25 minutes. We were charged full time for this transfer. They were so slow moving items into our home.. I actually ended up helping them move stuff as it was taking so long. At the time I was 5 months pregnant. One of the crew members stepped in dog poop and tracked it through our house. We had just put BRAND NEW carpet in the house. All together it took 7 and a half hours... a job I was told should have taken 4 hours at the most. I called and complained and never heard back. Very pushy sales people... crew does not live up to there promises. Would not use or recommend again!

On November 10, 2010, my belongings were delivered to me at 3806 Calverton Drive, University Park, MD 20782. Tim, the driver of the truck, had thoughtfully called me twice as he drove across the country, to tell me when he would arrive. He called other men to help him, and they were efficient about unloading my belongings. There was much going on at my house that day because the electrician and the locksmith were also here. I paid Sunshine Boys $10,610: Check #4050 for $5150 on October 28, 2010, and Master Card for $5460 on November 4, 2010. I also gave tips to the men that did the actual moving in both places. However, when I looked closely at my belongings, I found much damage. Unfortunately, Sunshine Boys took inadequate care of my belongings between the time they were picked up in California and the time they were delivered in in Maryland. Examples of damage: The MOMA lampshade and the Calder mobile that hung from the ceiling were damaged beyond repair. ($75) The footstool belonging to the reclining chair in my bedroom was broken irreparably. ($150) The expensive solid walnut room divider, about 9ft by 6ft, composed of about five cabinet sections plus shelves, has bad scratches in the wood. ($280) The expensive solid walnut wall unit, about 6ft by 4ft, composed of one cabinet and many shelves, has bad scratches in the wood. ($200) The TV table of solid wood, had a top portion that can turn on the bottom portion so that the TV can be turned in any direction. The small dowel that connects the two portions was missing. Also, the glass doors on this TV table no longer fit together. ($75) The two Tiffany-style lamps have broken sections in the stained glass shades. ($700 each) Of the five wardrobe boxes, only one was intact. The tops of the other four were all mashed in. ($75) My woven clothes hampers and waste paper baskets were damaged, two so badly that I trashed them. One of the wood sling chairs was missing the foot-long dowel that held up the sling. ($25) Multiple breaking of dishes, vases, lamps, etc. ($500) And there is more. These are just the major things that I remember. In January and February I called Sunshine Boys at 877-697-8674, the number listed on the internet, about four times, always getting a number-disconnected message. Then I called Angie?s List, who gave me the number 310-592-2047. That got through to a polite female clerk at Sunshine Boys, who said I should talk to the boss (I don?t remember his name) who was out of the office, but she would have him call me. She also told me that I could call their insurance company, but I am 82 years old, and when I realized that completing all their forms would take me several days, I rejected that laborious task. I kept calling the Sunshine Boys office, always getting the clerk who claimed the boss was out, but he would call me the next day. The boss never called me back. Finally I called Angie?s List to give a negative report.

They did excellent! The service was great and they were on time. They were finished before the time they quoted as well. They were very conscientious of my parents' belongings.

They did a really good job. They showed up on time and were really nice. They had everything they needed to pack our stuff. They charge by time, and since the piano did not take long to move, them moved the rest of the stuff for us as well.

Showed up on time and got it done like professionals. I would recommend them.

My mom's stuff was very high quality and expensive. In our home, we just had an enormous amount of stuff squished into our small home. These guys were punctual, friendly and only two pieces got damaged from the entire move. One was a delicate handle on a decorative teapot and another was a dent in a canvas picture due to another item leaning against it. I think that was pretty good for the sheer volume of furniture and boxes they moved and packed. None of the furniture got dinged/damaged in anyway. I have had professional movers at least 6-7 other times in my life (my husband was in the Navy) and most of them were horrible. These guys were great. They were easy to work with and good at what they do. Also, they were kind. They wouldn't even let me carry a small box to my car and insisted on helping me. The owner was very responsive to all my questions and requests. I would definitely reccommend them to others. There prices were competitive. They were in the middle of all the quotes I got. I think overall I got what I paid for. The only thing I think they could have done better was to protect wall art/pictures. They often just wrapped them with paper but really they should have put cardboard inbetween each one when several were boxed together. Having said that, only the one already mentioned got damaged......but it still was a concern for us.

Sergio and three-person crew arrived exactly on time and worked relentlessly for six hours, coping with 50 steps (down), dozens of heavy book boxes, and plenty of odd-shaped items. They were professional yet informal, making the move more like working with a bunch of good friends who also happen to know everything there is to know about wrapping, lifting, workflow, loading and unloading a van and then "re-loading" it all into a storage space without wasting a cubic inch. Very much a team effort, with smart division of labor to keep the move going like a conveyor belt. Impressive, to say the least.. Even the rain, which fell during most of the move, didn't stop the Sunshine Boys from brightening our day.

Overall adequate job. Two teams arrived with two trucks. I had suggested that 2 trucks was unlikely to be necessary, and they weren't. There was a $70 gas charge even though the move was no more than 5 miles. I can't be sure whether avoiding the second truck would have avoided some of that charge. The movers worked diligently. But clearly some of the movers were very experienced and a few were not that experienced. Sometimes movers have blankets or paper to put down on hallways, etc. I was surprised that they didn't have any. So there was a scratch left on a hardwood floor. Decent overall, but not stunning. Also, you should know that they strongly market through Angie's list. They ask specifically at the end of the job for favorable reviews on Angie's List. I don't have problems with any such ask; however, there should be transparency (especially if any discounts or other inducements are provided). In the past, I've used Chris's Moving Men, and if I have to move again, I'd probably go back to them.

Sunshine Boys Moving and Storage picked up my goods in storage, signed a document that all goods were in perfect condition, then proceeded to deliver them to my new address. They then, after extorting and embezzling some $9,626 in cash and from my bank account (I had previously paid a deposit of $4,300), proceeded to hire thugs off the street to unload my goods. Member Comments: Fraud, Extortion, and Embezzlement 1. Charge of $1,056 to my credit card. Sharon (our contact at Sunshine Boys Moving) insisted that Peter (the driver) had told me about the charge of $1,056 over the phone, and that I had authorized the transaction. This is not the case. I had no knowledge of this transaction until I checked my account online on the 28th of December. Peter did not at any time notify me of this charge. Also, a transaction is only authorized if the cardholder authorizes it, which I certainly did not. Sunshine Boys Moving obtained my money by embezzlement. 2. Charge of $3,070 to my credit card. This charge was embezzled from my account whiled I was driving my youngest daughter and two dogs across the country. Sharon said that the charge was authorized through email. No such email was ever sent. This is also embezzlement. 3. Extortion of $5,500. When the moving truck with my goods arrived, Peter said I needed to pay him $5,000 before he would unload one piece of furniture. I withdrew $5,000 cash from my bank and returned. Then he changed the price to $5,500 and I paid him an additional $500. He started the work, and here was no mention that charges of $1,056 and $3,070 would also be on the my credit card. 4. Fraudulent charges. Breakage. I paid thousands in time and materials to have my things rewrapped but they were not re-wrapped and many of my most precious things were broken. My blue Brazilian granite table, which we had hand fabricated with a double ogee edge, is in pieces. Sharon says it was broken when the company picked it up from storage, but I have a document signed by Sunshine Boys saying that everything they picked up was in perfect condition. Several legs are broken off china cabinets, my set of Theodore Haviland Limoges is in pieces, and my 20' palm tree was bent beyond repair. A mirror broke and the shards were placed in my room. What did they expect me to do with them? How can Sunshine Boys Movers charge us for extra wrapping materials when they did such a terrible job? Sharon said that the other movers had wrapped out goods for a local move, and Sunshine Boys rewrapped them for a national move. Our broken goods and changing the price from $8,900 to $14,126 are the result of this "re-wrapping." Unprofessionalism 1. The movers were argumentative and hostile. They did not listen. I would ask things to be put in certain rooms and my wishes were not granted. When I finally was able to get them to move a large chest of drawers to my husband's room in a specific place which I showed them, they moved it to the middle of the floor and totally blocked the bathroom. My husband needs help getting to the bathroom by wheelchair. This blocking of the bathroom was intolerable. The men were unpleasant. Also, they kept leaving as the day went on and only three were left by the end of the day. 2. The movers caused a lot of damage to the walls and floors of my apartment, which is not surprising in that they were local men he picked up on the streets. Do you think he had time to train them in professionalism? Judging from the dings in our walls (new), missing paint (newly done), and scratched floors (new), I'd say he had not. 3. The driver, Peter, was psychotic. One minute he would be screaming at me, the next he would be charming and accommodating. I am not accusing him of having taken drugs, but my training as a psychologist suggests that his behavior was consistent with someone who was abusing amphetamines. A. He sneered and said, "Oh, you're Jewish and the company is Jewish." While I didn't expect him to say, "My goodness, you're Jewish, how lovely," or, "Some of my best friends are Jewish," I certainly didn't think the matter was one to sneer over. B. When he asked that I bring him water, I brought him water from the tap, since I hadn't any other. He refused it because he said it was poison. C. Our building manager, Yorum, while Peter was in hearing distance, asked me to remind the movers not to damage the wall paper. Peter, though he was not addressed, retorted that he had been in much better buildings. It was rude and only the beginning of the unprofessionalism. D. Peter would go from being too nice to being extremely rude. The personality shift was very unsettling. He threatened to leave with my f urniture still in the truck because the move was taking too long and he wanted to go to New Jersey to be with his sister. I had to call the police because he kept on saying he was going to leave. He threatened to leave again and the police had to be called again. Peter also told my daughter that she was smart but not smart enough. Whatever he meant by that, it was most inappropriate. E. He twice kicked our little dog. She's a puppy and she was trying to mount my leg. I have my own way of dealing with this. Peter for some reason took offense to her actions and kicked her. F. Peter kept calling Sharon about leaving while our stuff was still on the truck, which we found very distressing. 6. General chaos A. They left a huge disorderly pile of boxes outside my apartment for me to deal with. B. There is a real problem with my husband's wheel chair. I left the charger on top of the chair, and asked by note that they be packed together. They were not. My husband can sit in his chair, but it has run out of charge and he cannot move. I am finding it very difficult to attend to his bathroom needs. C. The original date was December 18th for the arrival of my furniture. As I drove across the country during a storm, we saw other huge trucks driving alongside us. Our stuff did not reach us until December 24, because Peter found it more to his liking to go to Kansas City first. There was no communication to expect a delay. I called Sharon and told her that I had been sleeping on the floor for three days. I know their contract's small print says the goods may arrive up to two weeks after the appointed date, but a responsible company would have been in communication about this delay. They said they'd call me if there were any problem or delay, and they did not. It's as if they had said, "Well, we have your money and your credit card number, are prepared to extort $5,500 from you, so we have no problem!' D. As noted previously, the police came three times during the move, and three reports were written. Peter was disrespectful, refused to talk to them, and hauled out his cell phone and began to talk in Spanish. Summary statement. I chose this company because it was highly rated by Angie's list. From this rating, I can infer that at one time, they may have provided their customers with good service. But at the present time, I feel that they should be avoided like the plague.

I made arrangements for the move with Joe at Sunshine Boys Moving and Storage. I provided a list of items to move and advised him that there would probably be additional items. The original quote was for $1700 for 30 items. The contract states that $237.00 would be charged for each additional 10 items. Sunshine Boys never actually completed the move. They evidently contracted the job out to a company called Super Movers, without notifying me. The cost of the move was raised to $3100 upon the truck's arrival for pick up. The total number of items that we received was 56. Based on their contract, the additional charges should have been $711.00 per the number of items that were delivered. They either overcharged us or there are approximately 20 items missing or a combination of both. I filled-out and sent them paperwork regarding the missing and damaged items as well as the billing discrepancy. The missing items include: trim for a large rosewood wall unit, the upper section of a 2-piece antique sideboard, oars and cast iron brackets from an antique rowing machine, handles to a refrigerator, and a box of tools. They also dropped a very expensive Scandinavian table, which split the top into two pieces. They also broke glass doors and dropped the relatively new refrigerator, multiple times. The refrigerator now doesn't work and has a large dent in the side. The items were delivered on Oct. 18. I contacted Sunshine Boys Moving and Storage on that same day and on subsequent days, having spoken with Joe and Sharon. After several weeks, I was referred by Sunshine Boys Moving and Storage to the Law Offices of Jeffrey D. Nadel. The lawyer initially dealt with the complaint, but he has just informed me that he will no longer be dealing with this issue as he no longer represents Sunshine Boys Moving and Storage Co. He then directed me to Richard, the owner. I have attempted to call Richard several times and have left messages, but have yet to hear back from him or any other representative of Sunshine Boys Moving and Storage. While the lawyer was still representing the company, he said that they were going to send an inspector out. We left everything as it was delivered and haven't moved a single box. Not being able to unpack after almost 2 months, I cannot determine what else is missing. I was not only over-charged, but I also didn't receive the 5% Angie's List discount. As of December 17, 2010 and a phone call with the owner, he claims he called me and left a message. I have answering machines and voicemails, both my home and cell phone clearly printed on the quote. It?s been two months and two days after the move. I left many messages for him during this time. He did apologize and reiterated he?s on my side. The only problem is that he?s not going to pay me. The company he sub-contracted with will be paying me. He was screaming at me and telling me I was arrogant. He told me I could do this the easy way or the hard way. The most disturbing part of the conversation is that I contacted them the day they delivered the items. They emailed me a blank report form and I faxed it back with the claims. They never responded and 3 weeks later, they told me I had to talk to their lawyer. Their lawyer, Jeffrey Nadel, eventually wasn?t representing them and I called the owner who never responded. Richard, the owner, eventually called and kept apologizing and said he was on my side. The lawyer also told me they were sending an inspector and I shouldn?t unpack anything and I have one wardrobe of clothing that has been opened for my mother essential. This wardrobe box is not even part of the claim. Nothing else has been opened or moved from where they placed it. He kept informing me the company he sub-contracted with was the one to blame, telling me to keep contacting them. The relationship is between the client and the company, not the sub-contractor the company used. I explained to him that I have no contract with them and I did not request them, my contract is with Sunshine Boys. I feel my claim is very fair and caused an incredible amount of damage, items are missing, and over-charged. For some reason, I?m being called arrogant and do not appreciate this. I paid what they asked when they asked. I bought the movers lunch and tipped them handsomely. At this time, I have no interest in his sub-contractor and understand how the law works in California.

I had only planned on having them pack up my kitchen and the large items, but I ended up throwing out my back and was unable to finish the packing on my own, and it should be known that I have a LOT of stuff!! They were a bit disappointed when they showed up and saw how much there was to do (and on Valentines day...) but they were very courteous and polite about it. They were quick and efficient and did a wonderful job.

I think my prior report is a fair and accurate representation of what happened. Glad to have the issue resolved. Thanks, Angie's List and thanks, Stephanie!

I called spoke with Joe. I was not sure if I was prepared to move the very day I rang. I did at the last minute, he sent me the VERY BEST Gentlemen/Team. They were beyond efficient, they were extremely meticulous with my art work, wardrobe and breakables. They literally came in and packed my entire house loaded up and brought to new location and swiftly, carefully moved in as perfect as they moved me out. For the record; My household items took up an extensively long truck and almost did not fit everything inside. So when I recommend using these gentlemen; it was a HUGE job and they could not have been more polite, kind and helpful. Side Note: I have two big dogs- they were so beyond with service; they literally knew and made sure they knew where my dogs were located at all times. I COULD NOT BELIEVE it! There were 4 gentlemen and if I could not find the dogs- did not matter, all four of them knew at all times. (the dogs were wanting to assist so they would not stay in the backyard) I do NOT KNOW HOW ANYONE COULD EVER DISPUTE these guys. They made an awful day, "not so bad"! No, not paid or this recommendation and I do not know anyone affiliated with this company. This is A TRUE, TRUE account of my experience. Joe, whom I spoke to was accurate on the fee and could not have been more compassionate about my situation and not being prepared due to work. Would recommend them to anyone! I NEVER remember to leave comments- this one I deemed necessary!

Perfect service from my crew of Ray, Conrad and Dennis. Couldn't ask for better! I had planned for the smaller truck because the big one probably wouldn't fit in my new oddly-shaped driveway. I thought this would mean two trips. The crew performed a magic trick by carefully fitting all of my belongings into the truck at once, thus saving me time and money. They were truly friendly and casual. When they over-ordered lunch during their break, they brought me back a delicious meatball sandwich. As someone who forgets to eat when doing anxiety-provoking things like moving, the surprise lunch meant a lot to me. Nothing broke during the move. A+

I have used professional movers - both local and long distance - a total of 11 times. This was the absolute worst experience I have ever had including the times back in my younger days using friends and family to move my belongings. I selected The Sunshine Boys because of their reputation on Angies list. I discovered the reason why there is little negative feedback. In a nutshell, if you have a problem, they hold you hostage and negotiate a reduced cash payment in exchange for a letter saying that the move was successful. I negotiated that deal, but the letter I provided said that I was writing it under extreme duress. What you ask could that extreme duress entail? Well...how about leaving some of my furniture out in the elements in the driveway - in a beach community - for almost 24 hours and keeping other items on their truck which they told me was stored in their warehouse? Rain was imminent and my sofa, wood desk and antique table would have been ruined had I not agreed to their terms. What were there terms? A cash payment of $2,000 ( the quote was $1,500) and a letter stating that the move was satisfactory. The process started with a quote from Joe. I told him that my last move 1.5 years ago was from Philadelphia with Allied. Allied weighed my belongings at 8,500 pounds. I told him that I added 2 heavy pieces - which needed to be hoisted at my final destination. I told Joe that I had been out of work for a while and was currently employed but making much less money. So I needed to make the most cost effective move possible because I simply didn't have the money. Since I needed to have a few items hoisted at the terminating end, I wanted professional movers. I was debating on hiring movers for the heavy pieces and local day workers and an Enterprise truck for the boxes and the small pieces. Joe estimated 10 hours with 4 workers or approximately $150 per hour when you considered the 5% Angies discount. He said it would be approximately $800 if we just moved the furniture. I calculated the difference taking into account fuel, estimated hours for day workers, etc and it looked like the difference would be $300. I thought the whole experience would go better if I had them do the whole thing since I am a single woman and really didn't want to manage 4 day workers in a move - wrong decision. The Sunshine Boys called as agreed the day before to confirm the move. The workers showed up at the agreed upon date and time. They were pleasant and worked quickly. Sergio was the leader. He asked to see everything. I gave him the tour. He complimented me on the organized packing I had done. Nearly everything - probably 98% was packed and I continued to pack the remaining items when they were there. Sergio asked what the quote had been. I told him 10 hours - he said no problem .....we may finish in less. 10 hours later we were still in Pasadena. 3 hours into it, my neighbor stopped by and asked Sergio how much longer the pack up was going to take since it looked pretty well cleared out. He said 1 more hour. 4 hours after that, Sergio asked me if I would drive one of their workers back to their facility in Hollywood to pick up another truck. I did that and the round trip took 2 hours out of the day. The original truck they brought was too small. Sergio recognized this early on, but kept repositioning things on the truck to try to accommodate everything. It didn't work and his time repositioning left me with basically 3 guys instead of 4 doing the hauling. By the time we got to my destination, it was pitch black and impossible to hoist anything. The workers were exhausted. My new neighbors threatened to call the police because of the noise. Sergio told me the move would have to be completed the following day. My filing cabinet was plopped in the middle of the office. I asked them to bring up the heavy boxes and leave the lighter ones in the garage - moderate success with this request since many of the big pieces were in the garage, it was not a good idea to bring up all the boxes because there would be no ability to position the furniture when the move was completed. At this time, I thought Sergio and his team had done the best they could under the circumstances and the lack of response from their headquarters when they realized that they needed a bigger truck. Well...later I discovered a HUGE problem. I had a lot of fragile items. The items were marked with fragile red stickers. I stacked all of the fragile boxes from my 3 bedroom apartment in the dining room so they could be kept together and easily identified. I assumed in the unpacking they would be also staked neatly together in the garage while the workers toted up the heavy boxes. Again....wrong assumption...there was NO regard whatsoever to boxes marked fragile. Granted it was night and the workers were exhausted, but heavy book boxes were dumped on top of fragile items. I have had a lot of valuables broken and furniture dented. Twice I heard boxes drop and the sound of breaking glass during the move. Both times they said nothing broke. Boxes marked - Bathroom or Kitchen essentials / Unpack Immediately / were buried. Again - I think the workers were so exhausted that I'm not sure I blame them for this. It's been two weeks since the moved and I still haven't unpacked all of the boxes so I'm not sure what the total damages are. Right now I've assessed the damage at over $500 to broken items. I have moved with Allied during the last 5 moves and on 4 of those moves I've not had one item broken. 3 of those I've done the packing myself. On one move I had 1 broken dish. I still haven't found my dishes, so I'm wondering if that's one of the boxes that fell and was buried. I'll update later. I had to make payment that night, even though the move was not completed. The bill presented was almost $3,000 when the estimate was $1,500. I wrote a check for 10% over the estimate and post dated the check for 3 days later to protect myself and ensure that the move would be completed. Now to the negotiations. A total nightmare. Joe began the negotiations blaming me for everything and saying that drive time was priced at 2 times the hourly cost of the job and that he had informed me of this in the estimate. Well, at this point, I hadn't even noticed that they charged me 2X the cost for the driving time. He later told me he recorded our conversation on the estimate and that would be proof that he had given me correct information. I said bring it on... I called Graham the Manger and told him good news....Joe recorded our conversation during the estimate and that should clear up everything! Of course they called later and said they couldn't find the recording. BTW Sunshine Boys...did you know it was illegal to record a conversation without informing the other person? Eventually they brought in Sergio. Sergio said he had 24 years in the moving business and he was certain that my belongings weighed more like 12,000 pounds. I asked if he weighed the truck - no. I said that if he had 24 years of experience, then he surely knew when he first walked into my apartment that it was not a 10 hour job. He said that he was somewhat overwhelmed when he first walked in. I asked why in the world he would have then told me that he thought the move might be completed in less than the estimated 10 hrs. He said he didn't think it would be a problem. I told Sergio when he first walked in that hired Sunshine Boys because of Angies list and that I had been unemployed for a while and had little money to spare. In the negotiations, he said he didn't think it would be a problem if the job ran more - I asked why he would ever think that when I told him my financial constraints. Plus he did not give me a choice. Had he told me the problem in the beginning I still had 3 days before the end of the month to get a truck and local day workers to do the job in within my budget. But, I was not given a choice. Anyway...after a full day of negotiating, the sun starting to go down and the rain clouds gathering, we finally negotiated a deal. They agreed to compromise only after I told them that I was going to put a stop payment on the check. The check was post dated and they couldn't cash it until Monday anyway and that I was going to hire someone else to complete the move. They came back and said they would come back with my check that evening and complete the move if I gave them $2,000 in cash and a letter saying the move was completed satisfactorily. So guess what....a half hour later Richard the owner calls me and says we have a little problem. He has the check, the movers don't ....so I can just trust him to tear it up and give the guys the $2k in cash. I suggest he keep the check and I'll pay the workers the difference in cash....this is where he gets nasty. I said we both now know who we're dealing with. He then demands I give them the payment immediately and the letter when they arrive. I said no. So he insists on half the payment on their arrival - but I don't get my check. Again, NO. The whole negotiation process was brutal and I was actually afraid enough to call a friend and ask her to drive over while the move was completed. After the conversation with Richard took a bad turn, I was actually scared. Ultimately I gave them the cash after the move was completed. I also gave them a letter that states that I was writing it under extreme duress which protects me from retaliation. I also made them sign a receipt saying that they received the cash for the move from Pasadena to Silver Strand. I had two of the movers sign it and had another outside witness sign as well. This organization actually scared me enough for me to delay this report and consider not writing it all. I'm still a little afraid of some form of retaliation.