From time to time, moving horror stories hit the news. Here are a few of the scams reported by the media.
CAM posts these stories to help educate consumers about the pitfalls and extreme tactics that the rogue element will use against uninformed consumers. It doesn't matter if it's in the USA or Canada, they scheme the same.
It truly is your responsibility to know who's moving you and all of your worldly possessions.
Here are a few of the more recent stories.
2023
- *new* Apr 20, 2023 (CTV News Regina) - Regina couple says movers lost or damaged 100k worth of items including cremated remains
- *new* Apr 4, 2023 (Chek News) - Victoria roommates’ belongings damaged or missing in moving truck crash
- Feb 18, 2023 (Vernon News) - B.C. movers sue and win, but court still finds they overcharged
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Feb 11, 2023 (Vernon News) - B.C. mover sued after billing for 8 hours travel for 1 kilometre move
2022
- Nov 4, 2022 (CBC Marketplace) - Busting movers: Inside the Police Raid
- Nov 4, 2022 (CBC Marketplace news article) - Inside the police bust targeting movers accused of scamming customers
- Sept 1, 2022 (Vernon News) - B.C. woman sues movers who overcharged, broke possessions - "In the last four years, the company has been in the small claims court 54 times."
- Fall 2022 - Various police services are now involved in the recent Toronto Police Service investigations into a group of Toronto-based moving scam operators. Read about the investigations, media stories and victim advice here.
- July 1, 2022 (CBC News) - Video shows mover's truck smashing into man's car. But he's on the hook for $10K
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June 28, 2022 (CAM) - Canadian Association of Movers Warns of the Increase in Moving Scams. “CAM has seen an increase in the number of incidents in which consumers are being victimized by rogue operations who call themselves movers,” says Nancy Irvine, President of the Canadian Association of Movers. “This trend has skyrocketed in the past few years, during the pandemic, with opportunistic, faceless scammers capitalizing on the new trend in which 90% of consumers go online to source their services,” she continues. Read the full press release below.
- May 10, 2022 - Better Business Bureau warns of moving scams. The Better Business Bureau is telling people to be aware of moving scams in this short news clip from the Newfoundland Herald (May 5, 2022). And here's more from the BBB and CAM: Global News Canadians warned to be aware of fly-by-night moving companies . Here's a warning for Airdronians (May 17, 2022).
- Mar 4, 2022 - (CBC Marketplace) - Secret trackers and hidden cameras expose how some movers can be ripping you off
- April 26, 2022 - Stuck in California, this McGill student paid movers to ship his stuff home. 2 years later, it's still missing
- Shippers, ASAP Moving and Transport and Canpar Express, say they can't find any trace of Randy Li's 21 boxes that contained thousands of dollars worth of valuable goods, even though each box had a unique tracking code. Here's the CBC Montreal News report.
- April 21, 2022 - Disappointed Winnipeggers urge caution when hiring a moving company
- Eight customers of Buff Moving and Storage say they scheduled the company to help them move, paid a deposit but received no services. Read the CBC News report here.
- April 14, 2022 - Toronto resident feels scammed after paying nearly $1,000 to movers. A Toronto resident feels defrauded after her moving bill doubled during the moving process. The moving company, WeePack Movers, says the final invoice can sometimes be higher depending on the time and number of items involved. Police have been investigating a moving scam where a customer's belongings are held hostage in order to extort money. Check out the CityNews report here.
If you are still not convinced that you need to research your mover, then read more.
