Moving Companies - Consumer Information And Rights
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The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, an agency of the U.S. Department
of Transportation, administers commercial regulations governing the interstate
transportation of household goods. For information on the Department's role in
overseeing the household goods moving industry, please see the Federal Motor Carrier
Safety Administration's web site at http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/factsfigs/moving.htm.
DOT's Office of Inspector General (OIG) investigates complaints against household
goods carriers alleged to have engaged in egregious and intentional patterns
of defrauding consumers. Since 1998, OIG, in conjunction with the Federal Bureau
of Investigation and other law enforcement agencies has investigated five other
schemes across the country involving egregious cases of fraud against innocent
consumers of household goods carriers.
OIG generally does not investigate individual consumer complaints about a household
goods carrier, such as those relating to the quality of service or disputes
over cost or property, absent indications of these being part of a scheme to
defraud. Examples of the types of cases that OIG does not handle include:
• Goods damaged or lost in transit, handling or storage;
• Carrier's failure to arrive on time or failure to complete work timely;
• Carrier's failure to use agreed-upon size of truck;
• Carrier's failure to provide a large enough crew; or
• Carrier subcontracting the assignment without customer's authorization.
In general, OIG investigates household goods carriers alleged to have engaged
in a egregious and intentional pattern of defrauding consumers by:
• Using a fraudulent bill of lading, such as making, altering, copying,
publishing, or negotiating a fraudulent bill of lading;
• Deliberately providing a "low-ball" estimate to lure customers
and then withhold or threaten to withhold the customers' household goods unless
they pay an additional, exorbitant sum; demanding significantly more than the
quoted price;
• Failing to observe their rate schedules or tariffs as required by regulation;
• Knowingly assigning a fraudulent weight to a shipment ("weight
bumping");
• Obtaining money or property on false or fraudulent pretenses;
• Interfering with commerce through theft, extortion, or threats or violence;
• Making false statements and/or knowingly making or using false documents;
or
• Violating Federal criminal law by engaging in conspiracy mail and wire
fraud or money laundering.
Consumers seeking to file a complaint with FMCSA can call a toll-free number
1-888-368-7238 (DOT-SAFT). Complaints can be filed online at http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/factsfigs/moving.htm.
Information on consumer rights can be found at http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/factsfigs/moving.htm.
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