Moving Companies
Spartan Van LinesInformation and Alerts
Service Area
- PA
Alert Details
This business has 1 alert.
Government Action: BBB reports on known government actions involving business’ marketplace conduct:
Case Number: L16-3-1067
The following describes a pending government action that has been formally brought by a government agency but has not yet been resolved.We are providing a summary of the government's allegations, which have not yet been proven.
On December 27, 2018, the Florida Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division (FL-AG) filed a complaint against Moving System, Inc., d/b/a Spartan Van Lines and its owner for violating the Florida Deceptive Trade Practices Act, Florida Moving Act, Interstate Transportation Code, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Regulations, and to recover damages for the company's alleged deceptive and unfair practices.
Specifically, the lawsuit accuses the company of failing to honor and comply with all provisions of its moving contracts for service, charging significantly more than initial quotes, coercing higher fees by holding consumers’ property hostage before completing delivery, and demanding consumers use a different form of payment at the time of delivery then what was specified when the estimate was prepared. The lawsuit also alleges the company used inexperienced and unskilled laborers who stole property during the move and/or the storage of household goods, and caused delivery service issues, such as items arriving at their destination late, damaged, destroyed, or did not show up at all, and failed to advise its customers about the option of purchasing additional insurance in order to use the statutory insurance cap to limit its liability for missing and or damaged items.
The FL-AG further claims that the company used advertisements that were false and misleading. According to the lawsuit, the company led consumers to believe that their household goods would be loaded onto trucks owned by it and transported to the consumers’ desired locations by the company itself; however, the company subcontracted the moves and stored household goods in undisclosed and unorganized storage facilities, and mislead consumers by claiming it owned large, climate controlled storage facilities. The lawsuit also states the company does not contain an actual physical address as required, and instead provides an address associated with a mail drop or virtual office. The lawsuit further alleges that the company operates using numerous fictitious names and deposits consumers’ funds between several accounts under its different business names.
The FL-AG asks the court to find the company in violation of the law, permanently enjoin it from violations in the future and seeks restitution, injunctive relief, civil penalties, and reimbursement of the Florida's costs and expenses of investigation. For more information on this action, please visit:
http://www.myfloridalegal.com/EC_Edoc.nsf/0/99938A0FEFFDC8F28525837100721220/$file/2018-12-27+US+Moving+dba+Safeway+Complaint+-+FILED.PDF
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