Car Shipping Ohio to California
Cindy C.
Submitted this review about
Auto Transport 123
Review made Live: 5/29/2017 1:05:00 PM
**Update: I was called today (5/30) by the Auto Transport customer service manager (Janine). She was very professional and apologetic for the issue written below and offered to compensate me with $100 for the trouble I went through. I discussed with her that I did not appreciate feeling deceived and being lied to by her sales representative and to feel free to check the recorded phone conversations to ensure that they improve on their customer service. She was very open to the feedback given and will be taking steps to improve on the customer service of the company. I appreciated her calling me to make sure that the delivery of the car went well.
I was thoroughly disappointed with the customer service of Auto Transport 123. Initially, I was looking for a reliable company with reviews that would ship my car from Ohio to California, since I was relocating. Based on the transportreviews.com website (I made the mistake of not checking other websites like Yelp), it seemed that this company was a solid one. When I called them, a lady named Tara seemed extremely nice and reliable, and went on a spiel of how it was a family owned business and she had been doing this for ten years, etc. That she would be very on top of communicating with me every step on time whenever she found a driver. She clearly said I could put up to 200 lbs in the car (trunk and backseat) of stuff as long as it was below the window level on the backseat and I recall asking her TWICE to confirm and even writing it down on my computer since other companies said no more than 100lbs. I decided to go with this company specifically so I could pack more things in the car. She said she would give me a "discount" if I gave her a wider range of dates when my car could be picked up from. I told her it could be picked up anytime between May 17-25, but that I would prefer for it to be taken on the 22. She started talking really fast, sent me the contract by email and I felt pressured to electronically sign right then rather than read it carefully and call her back later, big mistake. I didn't hear from her for over a week, and she calls me on the 16th at 5pm to tell me that my car will be picked up on the 17th at noon. I was very upset by the lack of communication, the less than 24 hr notice, and the rude tone she was using. She was no longer nice or professional, since she clearly already had the contract signed and had taken the credit card payment.
It turns out that they are brokers. The driver from White Hawks company shows up the next day, and says I shouldn't have packed the backseat and that I'm not allowed to have more than 100lbs in the car and it should only go in the trunk. He complains that Auto Transport 123 was just trying to get my business and then it gives the driver the responsibility of driving the car with stuff through different state lines where there may be a weight limit. And he wanted me to give him extra $100 so he can figure out what to do. I absolutely refused and called Tara, she was rude and said she had "never" said I could pack the 200lbs, that she had no idea where I had gotten that from, and that she had been in this business "for ten years." Said that she would not pay the driver, that it was my fault, and basically told me to deal with it and hung up. This is the kind of absolute disgusting and dishonest service you will receive from them. Do not trust them.
This was my first experience shipping a car, and let me just say that it was not a pleasant one. I felt like I dealt with a very dishonest person and a dishonest company. I was concerned whether the car would make it, and really upset about the lack of communication and lies. The driver ended up not charging me extra, and my car arrived the California. I would suggest you to directly deal with the shipping truck companies rather than to ever use Auto Transport 123. You pick a company to help you with something so important as shipping a car to another place, and for the amount of money you pay, the LEAST you can expect is decency and honesty.
