Poor planning and unresponsive…
Joe C
Submitted this review about
Allied Auto Transport Inc.
Review made Live: 9/21/2017 1:24:00 PM
From the first conversation I had with Dave Bailey, my primary contact at Allied Auto Transport, my emphasis was to have the car arrive at the destination (Corvallis, OR) by a particular date - Sept 8 2017, to be specific. We intended to fly out and help our daughter get situated for grad school, so the dates were defined by the school's calendar and our airfare purchase. When asked, I expressed that I was completely flexible regarding pickup dates, but the delivery date must be held firm - in fact, I would have been willing to hand over the car nearly a week sooner if that would have helped. Of course, we also understood that the unexpected could happen, so we planned travel around a delivery as early as the 6th or as late as the 11th.
Nevertheless, we settled on scheduling pickup, at our home in NJ, on August 31, with Dave's assurances that this would allow the delivery schedule to work. However, when the car was still in my driveway the next day (Sept 1), we called to point out that we hadn't heard from a driver yet, and were told to get the car to Kearny, NJ (64 miles away, returning during NY metro area's rush hour). For the inconvenience, we'd be given a $100 reduction in the fee. So, we did. At that drop-off, we were forced to wait in the lot for another 45 minutes (our presence seemed to annoy the guards) before the handoff could be accepted. Finally, we were told it should take 7-10 days (apparently contradicting Dave's plans) and that it should be leaving NJ the following morning (Sat Sept 2 - already 2 days behind schedule).
We didn't hear further until I called on Wednesday the 6th. At that point, I had checked my credit card website and was surprised to see that we were charged the full fee on August 31 (no $100 reduction, and a full 2 days before the car was on it’s way). I pointed this out to Dave, and I asked about the car's progress/whereabouts. Dave said he'd have to check on both issues and get back to me. He didn't get back to me.
On Saturday the 9th (the car now 1 day past the target delivery), I tried calling Dave, but this time spoke to Bobby (didn't catch his last name). He informed me that the car was in Flagstaff, AZ, and would likely arrive in Corvallis by "Tuesday or Wednesday [12th or 13th]". This was bad news, as we weren't expecting to still be in the area beyond the 11th - but for the first time, I was given what appeared to be real information.
On Sunday, Sept 10th (now 2 days late), I called Dave again, with 2 goals: 1) get a new delivery estimate, and gauge his confidence level, 2) urge for any expediting that might be possible. Instead, I was dropped into voicemail, where I asked - for the 3rd or 4th time - for a callback. I didn't get a callback.
On Monday, Sept 11 (now 3 days late), I called and spoke to Bobby again, who again provided solid information (even though it was bad news). The car should be arriving Wednesday evening, and he seemed confident since he had spoken to the driver. I wouldn't be there to accept delivery, but at least I now had a degree of certainty that I could plan around.
On Wednesday, Sept 13 (now 5 days late), I finally got a call from the driver (though I was now back in NJ). We sync-ed up with my daughter, who had to miss an orientation event to take delivery. The car arrived in good condition, and the transport was now complete 13 days after the contracted pickup date.
Of course, I have not heard from Dave since. Instead, I have contacted my credit card company to place the payment in dispute (I was promised a $100 discount, but deserve more for the poor planning and lack of responsiveness).
There are several common threads in all the above:
- Dave doesn't initiate phone calls - at least not to me. I believe there were at least 4 occasions when I expected a call from him. In fact, all conversations with Allied happened when I initiated the calls.
- Bobby was willing and able to provide the information he had.
- Hearing bad news, at least in this case, felt much better than having no information.
I should also point out that before our delivery was initiated, I was very happy with the explanations and terms as Dave described them. In fact, we even recommended Allied to a friend (same destination, similar pickup point). I won't make that mistake in the future- this is a service that can only be judged properly in hindsight.
