May is National Moving Month, the start of the busiest time of the year for changing homes. If you're planning on moving, Local 12 Troubleshooter Howard Ain says there's something you need to consider buying, even if you're only moving a short distance.
Judy Woods and her husband were only moving a short distance from one part of Maineville to another. They hired a moving company and say the move went well until she used her washing machine. Woods says, "I did laundry about a day before we moved but I cleaned the sheets and stuff like that that they moved with. I noticed that the washer wouldn't spin out."
Then she says the whole washer stopped working. She immediately called the moving company. Woods says, "There was a young fellow name Jason that came out here, and he was a mover. He looked at it, and he said he was going to have to call someone that worked on the washers."
Woods thought it was damaged while a mover took it downstairs one step at a time. A week later a second man came out, but Woods says, "He said that because the washer was too new he'd have to call someone that was used to working on new washers."
But no one else came out and Woods says she called back several times. Woods says, "They're not going to help us. I know we read the contract, we thought there would be no problems someone would come out and fix our washer and that would be the end of it, but no one came out."
At this point, two weeks after the move, Woods has decided to go ahead and replace the washer. She says the company doesn't seem to be able to to fix it, and she needs a washer. Woods says, "We need to have our washer working. We've been to the laundromat now 3 times in between the calls and it's ridiculous."
I contacted the moving company and was told, "The Woods informed us they would hire a certified electrician to inspect the unit and would let us know the result. To date, we had not heard the outcome of the inspection and we had not denied any claims."
I suggested Woods ask the Better Business Bureau to mediate the dispute because the mover is a BBB member.
The American Moving Association recommends purchasing full replacement value insurance when you move. It costs more upfront, but it can eliminate headaches after you move. In fact, it's mandatory that all interstate moves must include such protection in your estimate.
