to think the moving company should pay

[pilpiloni]

We have just relocated between countries. We had the shippers do all the packing and paid a lot of money for it. So they pack and box everything. Second day, just before we have to leave for our flights, they finish.

Foreman tells dh to do a walk through but doesn't accompany him. Dh knows closets have all been cleared of stuff and doesn't check in closets.

An hour after they go, just as we are leaving, we see a big box in the downstairs closet. We call the movers to let them know.

Now we have an email saying too bad, so sad, you did the walk through and said all ok. If you want to ship it, $1100.

We paid this company a lot of money as the professionals. I feel they need to step up the plate and come and get the box. Yes, dh should have opened closet but he didn't think they'd put a big box in the closet and knew there was nothing of ours in those closets. And the foreman should have walked through with him as they are the professionals and it's their job.

What do you think mn? Aibu to think the moving company should take responsibility for this or is it actually our fault and we should suck it up?

[GoudyStout]

It was $10,000 to move from the UK to the US 15 years ago (and that was via a major contract that covered a lot of moves each year).

[WeatherwaxOrOgg]

I'm so glad they've admitted fault in this - thanks for the update.

It's unbelievable that they even tried to wriggle in the first place

[IceMaiden73]

It's clearly your DHs fault. He was asked to do a walk through, he didn't bother to open cupboard, it's down to him.

You would also be U to leave a bad review

[ThumbWitchesAbroad]

Oh thank goodness they've sorted themselves out!

[pilpiloni]

Company are ponying up and coming to pick up the box.

Moving companies in the US charge silly money. This company weren't the cheapest but they weren't hugely more than the cheapest quotes we got. We went with them because of their good name and many people in my company have used them. It is most definitely in their interest to keep the good reviews coming for people in my firm!

[HoneyDragon]

I disagree. Professional movers often back houses when the clients isn't there. They should've gone through the house properly and if they wanted your dh to do one, it should've been accompanied,

[Viviene]

YABU it was your responsibility to check. If you know, you check, if you think you know, you check twice. Unfortunately this might be very expensive lesson for you.
I wouldn't threaten the company with negative reviews, they might be more helpful if you actually play a damsel in distress.

[PHeadPH]

Totally their fault. We've done way too many several international moves and you are paying for them to look after the move.

[MintyChops]

Totally their fault IMO.

[Fratelli]

11 grand? do you live in a castle?!

[Discobabe]

Yanbu. If I was asked to do a walkaround I'd be looking for odd random items that may have been missed. Not a huge box, which I'd assume they'd notice and pack, rather than shove in a closet. Surely they do their own walk around/inventory/box no's check before getting the customer to do the final one too?

[Orda1]

11k

Their fault IMO. Assuming you're American, I thought you were the kings of great customer service!

[WeatherwaxOrOgg]

100% their fault imo.

You emptied those closets - WHY would your hub check them in case a remover had opened the door, put a full box inside and closed it again, it's completely unfair.

Plus, the foreman should have been there too ensuring that every room was properly checked and agreed.

For $11000 there's no reason not to expect this as reasonable service.

I really hope they ship this for you without additional charge.

[OhTheRoses]

preens

[beetroot2]

Its your DH's fault.

[pilpiloni]

Because they have an inventory of boxes which they need to ensure is loaded on the truck. What dh signed off on was the inventory list but he said it was pages long.

I do agree dh should have opened the closets even though he knew they'd been fully emptied. But he's not a professional mover and they were the ones with the inventory list who didn't load the box. That's why we paid them $11,000

I don't think they feel fully responsible as there was no apology but fair enough, as long as they ship the damn thing, it doesn't matter!

[Floggingmolly]

The dh did not know the cupboard was empty . If he'd taken the trouble to open the door; he'd have seen the "person sized box" lurking within.
Who actually put it there is pretty irrelevant when your dh was tasked with doing a walk through and certifying the place was empty.
Which he did; while inside a cupboard lurked a person sized box...
How on earth could they be held responsible?

[pilpiloni]

Result! We just had a (very curt) email from the manager asking how to arrange pick up of the box. No mention of any additional fee.

[pilpiloni]

I don't know if they lied that foreman accompanied or if the manager just assumed. They still haven't replied to our earlier mail.

I do feel that we have some responsibility in that dh should have checked. But I also feel that the company are the professionals and should have accompanied him and should also accept some of the responsibility given that they are the ones who packed and labelled the box and left it in the closet.

We can't check what's in there as we ourselves left for the airport an hour later.

Definitely will try to argue our point. We paid $11000 for this shipment which is no small sum! Plus $400 tip for the movers. So an additional $1100 seems unfair.

[AliceInUnderpants]

It's a person sized box? Book it onto an airplane seat. Claim it's a cello.

[SquinkiesRule]

Either way it's a mess up. Open the box, see whats there, and either pay the money and then fight for it back, or do what we did with a lot of things and send it to the thrift/charity shop or buy another suitcase and pack to the max weight and pay the $40 or whatever it is from your country for an extra suitcase. Do it ahead of time as it's more at the airport.
International moves suck, I hope we never have to do it ever again. 5 times is enough for me.

[JeanAndTonic]

Sitting on the fence slightly here, I think it's a fuck up for both your DH and the shipping company. As a PP said, I would actually check each and every cupboard if asked to do a walk through before signing off (as I would do with any contract). I'm not sure I'd trust anyone to be as thorough as me with my stuff. But, they have been paid to do the job for you which I would take to mean that they'd do it thoroughly. When we have moved internationally I have checked everything but moving internally I have given them the benefit of the doubt and assumed that they knew what they were doing, it shouldn't actually make a difference how far you're moving if you're paying them to take care of your stuff. So, I think that I would probably pursue this further, look at the contract again and ultimately, let them know that they were in charge of packing up your belongings and that their employees should be responsible for things that they have packed, labeled and then hidden (obviously not hidden intentionally but they did put the box in a closet). That's what they're paid for, yes? I would probably get on my high horse and it might all end in tears but at least I would have tried. From experience though, they would normally rectify the situation for the good of their reputation.

[LyndaNotLinda]

I think it's their fault too. They put a box in a cupboard your DH knew was empty and closed the door (I assume).

Plus they lied about the foreman walking through, plus they said they'd finish up if you'd had to leave to go to the airport, meaning they accepted responsibility for clearing the house entirely.

[GoudyStout]

Did they give you an inventory of numbered boxes? Did they sign it to say everything had been loaded onto the truck?

Last time we did an international move we had a list with every box listed - we we offloaded we had to sign to say we had received every box.

$1100 sounds like it could be an air shipment price?