Currently working with colonial vans to ship my things across the country. I will have a review as soon as things arrive.

Moving is always stressful and the last thing you need is a company that provides more stress. Colonial was a big disappointment and added stress to our move from VA to GA. They did not meet the dates listed on either end of the move and it is uncertain how many times they moved our belongings from one truck to another but I know it was at least twice. (That translates into in and out 4 times!) If you expect compensation for lost or damaged items read the contract (60 cents per pound). They broke and antique, wooden bed headboard worth over $1000 and it weighted less than 75 lb! Understand that they may have as many as 5 families on one truck and your items may be moved about within the truck and this can delay delivery by a considerable amount. We have missing items but trying to keep inventory on 90 boxes and furniture items during a move (and the paper work in impossible to use) is impossible. Regardless of your carrier, lower your expectations. read more

Please learn from our mistakes and avoid Colonial Van Lines at all costs. I wish we had read the many bad reviews before we signed up with them because we could have saved ourselves a lot of time, money, and trouble. This company grossly overpromises and under delivers. Like most of the people leaving reviews, our CVL estimate was significantly lower than those of other companies. It has become exceedingly clear that CVL purposely gives low estimates only to upcharge you when it is too late to change moving companies. (Also, fun fact, CVL is a broker, not a moving company, so they are not even the ones moving your things, and in turn, have very little clue about when and how your move will happen.) We moved from California to Colorado. When we got the estimate, we were told a shuttle might be required at an extra cost to pick up our belongings, but the pick up driver would tell us. In each call leading up to the pick up day, I asked about the additional charge and was told only the driver would know. On pick up day, 8/5, I specifically ask the driver if he was using a shuttle, he said no. In fact, he wasn't even picking up our things in a branded truck, it was an enterprise rental... We get to CO and CVL calls. They cannot tell us when our stuff will arrive, but they are ready to go over the invoice of what we will pay before they will deliver our possessions. They say the weight was significantly more than the estimate and that the delivery will be over $1000 more. Also, they will charge us for the shuttle because they insisted it was necessary. I tell them about all their previous assertions that only the driver knows and that the driver said it wasn't a shuttle. CVL had no actual record of what truck came and asked us to send a photo. After we sent a photo, they again insisted it was a shuttle, despite what the driver said, and that we would have to pay that and the extra weight cost before they would release our things. Our delivery window of 8/8 to 8/16 comes and goes. CVL called every few days during that window to say our belongings were sitting somewhere in Nevada, there was no driver, they have no idea when there will be a driver, and there's nothing that can be done about it. At no point did they offer anything to make up for the fact that we were stuck indefinitely without any of our belongings. We finally got our things delivered on 8/27, ELEVEN DAYS after our delivery window ended. CVL offered a pathetic $300 for significant delay, which was ironically less than what we were forced to pay for the shuttle that was never actually needed for our pick up. CVL insists that you have to pay everything before they will offload the truck. Apparently, the customers are the only ones expected to uphold their end of the agreement. As the truck is getting offloaded, we can see crushed boxes, dented furniture, and a stand up lamp that was completely destroyed, which makes sense because the movers hadn't even attempted to wrap/protect it. Really glad we paid for all the "extra weight" of our now broken belongings. Our delivery confirmation says "paid in full" and "$0" remaining balance. I received an email a few days ago insisting we owe another $800, the delivery confirmation is wrong, and if we do not pay immediately, they will also start charging us late fees. Apparently to CVL and their movers, the written estimate, shuttle fee, delivery window, and delivery confirmation with their own driver's handwriting and signature stating "paid in full" and "$0" are completely meaningless and don't have to be even remotely followed. Yet, the terms that say they will hold your things hostage until you pay in full for their embarrassingly bad service, that they will pay you pennies on the dollar for everything they break and damage, and that they will give you $30/day for being as late as they want, are non-negotiable. Do yourself a favor, pay more at the outset for a reputable company that will stand by its agreement, treat your belongings with care, and accurately represent its service and fees. I promise it will save you time, money, and a lot of aggravation in the end. Like the others, I will report CVL to U.S.D.O.T. in the hope that others will be spared the awful experience we had, and continuing to have, with CVL. read more

****Update**** Al and the resolution team at Colonial Van Lines worked hard to resolve the issues we had with our move. It took some time - be patient - but eventually we found an acceptable middle ground. I must still caution everyone to find out if your move is being subcontracted, and check the reviews for the subcontractor before you make a deposit. ****Original**** We contracted Colonial Van Lines with a move from CA to TN. Colonial subcontracted Cal Van Lines to execute the move. We had the following problems from Cal Van Lines with our move: (1) - Late Delivery (2) - Unprofessional Movers (3) - Irresponsible & Dangerous Packing Job (4) - Disassembled Items Left Disassembled (5) - Inadequate Muscle (6) - Missing Items (7) - Damaged & Destroyed Items The truck arrived two weeks after the early date, and 8 days after the "absolute latest" date. Despite having over 400 pieces to unload, two guys showed up for the job. One was a skinny old smoker who couldn't carry much. The other was so out of shape that he got exhausted and threw up a number of times. They called and asked for more help and were refused. I spent the entire day unloading the truck and carrying in furniture. I also had to reassemble at the furniture and move boxes into the right rooms. When the drivers opened the trailer I saw a number of our boxes had fallen off the stack and were on their sides. About 1/3 of our boxes were shipped on their sides, and another 1/3 were shipped upside down(!!!). Several furniture items are scratched and worn and other items are broken. Our very-nice mattress was wrapped up and strapped onto the back of the truck. By the time it arrived it was wet and had mildew. Bad things happen - I get it. However, if you're in the business of moving people, you should know how to take care of their possessions, move them without damage/loss, schedule trucks, etc. read more

569763-CV-A from CA to FL. Service was friendly and helpful. The individual subcontracted companies and movers were all wonderful to deal with and very thorough. My only problem was with the delivery company waiting until the last minute to send over our payment forms (which could have held up our delivery date) but Colonial was very accommodating and helpful in getting it taken care of. read more

After I posted my review on Yelp, within hours Donna from Colonial called me to talk about the issues we had with this move. She listened to my story about what we experienced and seemed truly concerned and willing to try to make up for a super stressful experience. We are missing a valuable sentimental item and she made several calls and visits to her boss to try to find it. Even though we weren't successful, I believe she really did care and did as much as she could to help us find it. In my book this was great follow up and showed that Colonial did care about their service and wanted to make sure this doesn't happen to anyone else. I would have loved for this move to be 5 stars from the get-go, but I will give Donna 5 stars for her effort in making things right. Thank you, Donna. read more

DO NOT USE COLONIAL VAN LINES. We saw on the Department of Transportation website that they are a carrier and not a contractor--that is, that they have their own trucks. I guess not, because they contracted Cal Van Lines for our move from the San Francisco Bay Area to the Detroit Metro area. We were told our window was between June 11-21, and that this window is guaranteed, per the shrewd sales person that serves as your point of contact until they actually pick up your stuff. Our sales guy was super responsive, then we were handed off to an account manager, Jared Boomer, who was supposed to call 72 hours before the before the move, during the move to 'check in,' and afterwards for an update. Well neither my husband nor I received any of them. I talked to two other folks from QA and someone else who werejust calling to review inventory and insurance. Instead, I had to call Jared three times over two days to see when the movers would arrive at our apartment to take our stuff away. NOT ONCE did I get a call back, but rather I caught Jared at his desk and he told me he had to check with Cal Van Lines (which was the first time we were told it would NOT be Colonial moving our stuff) and that he'd call me back. Instead, Cal Van Lines called me directly. Jared did not check in at all on moving day, or even 48 hrs like the movers said. So after three days, my husband called and must have had great luck that day because Jared picked up the phone. A week later, I called Jared for an update. I left a voicemail in the AM, then again at the end of business day (6 PM EST). Then I called the next day. And then the next day. He finally picked up and told me he'd give me a call on Day 5 of our window. I called twice, left a voicemail the first time. The same day, my husband called (apparently his number is not associated with our job). Jared picked up again. It became clear that Jared was screening my calls. What Jared didn't know is that my husband had already called Cal Van Lines directly, who told us they would be missing our window. Jared tried to give us a song and dance about how he'll have an update in 6 days (which is OUTSIDE OUR GUARANTEED WINDOW). He then put us on hold and called Cal Van Lines, found out we had spoken with them, and still insisted that he'd give us a call with an update and refused to acknowledge that we'd be outside our window. It has been 10 days since they picked up our belongings, and the truck is still in California. The business is a scam. They make no effort to honor these 'guaranteed' windows. They have an elaborate set up where one person is in charge of one slice of the pie, like one guy responsible solely for upselling you on moving insurance. Avoid at all costs. In hindsight, I would have paid that extra $2K for Bekins. read more

Colonial Van Lines is dishonest and unreliable. They completely failed in their contract with me to move my whole life from Colorado to Virginia. Despite having signed a contract on 7/16/21, and being given a moving window of 9/1-9/4, they never showed up, had to be begged to tell me the truth on 9/2, and offered no explanation or compensation for what ended up delaying my move and costing me double. I could not be more disappointed or discouraged that what should be a reputable company could treat a consumer so poorly. DO NOT USE COLONIAL VAN LINES! Lucia Waterman Virginia Beach, VA Job 1024235-CV-R1 read more

Most of my things have finally arrived in one piece and the nightmare is over. Ann e boyer is a slick little con artist who will try to sell this company as reliable. Don't believe a word she says. Lost a box with priceless art made by my deceased grandfather. Most of the boxes even though they were packed and reinforced very well arrived torn apart. broken valuables that are too light to spend any more of my life on the phone with claims if you give this company anything but a one star review you're a bad person, because you know that they really are terrible but you got suckered into giving them a better rating avoid avoid avoid read more

They gave me a date to start within their 3-day window so I made my plans - vacation, hotels, etc. The the night before they called and said they would not make theh promised date, or the contract 3-day window. In reality they did not have anyone to do the move. They subcontracted to someone who then subcontracted to a team who didn't know how to pack. Arrived in town with no boxes, arrived at site 6 hours late, total time to pack less than 1100 sq feet was 12 hours ending at 3:00 a.m. Not a single box marked with contents or even room it was packed in. Clearly don't take their dates seriously as compensation for a missed pick up is $50, which wouldn't even cover a hotel room. Company web site inaccurate on executives; promised response to letter written was 10 days late. Don't do it. read more

Like a lot of the reviewers on here, things started off badly with a no-call no-show on a Sunday. I was thrown off a bit by this and tried to reach my account rep but no one was available since the office was closed. The truck arrived the next morning though. The movers that showed up were Anthony and Xavier. I was moving a 3BR home out of state and had most of my stuff already packed. I had a 65" 4K TV (less than 4 months old) and a couple of other TVs that they packed for me. The estimate I was given turned out to be off by a few thousand pounds but that was my fault. If you hire professional movers, they usually charge by weight, so be prepared to really get that estimate as close as possible so you won't have any surprises. The biggest complaint that I had about Colonial was the lack of communication when the promised pick-up and delivery times were both missed by 1 day. I think it could have been handled better by them. The reason I'm giving them 5 stars is that when the movers arrived at my new home, the truck was packed perfectly. I hooked up my TV and it was just fine. They packed it as well as the manufacturer did when I first got it. They were both friendly, respectful, and hard-working. They both unloaded the truck with great care and speed. They placed everything where instructed (which only took me pointing out where the boxes go -- I had labeled the boxes based on the rooms I wanted them in) and there wasn't a scratch on anything. I was initially put off by the office staff's attitudes, and I still think there's room for improvement there, but in the end everything was delivered in a timely manner and there has not been one broken, scratched, or dinged item to be found. The last complaint I have is the way that the final payment was handled. The initial deposit felt very secure, with the first rep handing it off to a verification rep to get the CVV on the card. The final payment was a piece of paper, a copy of my ID and card, which I argued against giving to them. I ended up giving in at the last part in the interest of just getting it closed up. I highly recommend that Colonial figure out a better way to handle those final payments. I hate that initial promises were broken and that things were handled poorly at first, but the end-result was well worth the initial aggravation. Anthony and Xavier did an amazing job! Thanks guys! To the Colonial office staff, even though we started off on the wrong foot, I sincerely hope that you improve your communication and payment collection methods. If these two things are fixed, I'm sure there will be plenty of 5 star reviews to come. read more

UPDATE: Donna at Colonial Van Lines Inc reached out to me about the issues we recieved during our move.  The company helped resolve the issues and I am now completely satisfied with the service I received.  Donna was a pleasure to work with and she made everything right.  Pleasure working with her to resolve the issues. read more

The Worst Moving Company I've Ever Dealt With Not only were they never able to tell us a time and date for our delivery, when we bugged them to find out when it was happening and they gave us a date, they never showed up. The sales people were unresponsive once the deal was done. We also had to tell them 5 times what was being moved. We never got an accurate estimate or an actual weight for the shipment - even though you are charged by the pound. Avoid these guys. In the years that I've had moves (local and cross country) I've never encountered a company so unprofessional and incompetent. read more

When I was promoted to my new position at work, unfortunately they would not help with the relocation. I did my own research and found Colonial Van Lines and they were very professional from the very start. They did not give me that salesman feel. I was explained everything and given everything in writing to match what was going to happen. I want to thank you all for moving all of my belongings and not damaging anything in the process. I will and do highly recommend Colonial Van Lines! read more

This is an update to my original review of Colonial Van Lines. After reading my review, Donna reached out to me and asked me to call her for a resolution. I don't know of any other company that has a resolution specialist dealing with customer complaints and helping to resolve their issues. Donna was patient, courteous, and she heard me out with each communication. She was empathetic and worked relentlessly to provide me with a satisfactory resolution. Based on her efforts and professionalism, I give her 5 stars. For the company, I upgrade them to 3 stars as much of my issues were with the movers and not CVL. With Donna's help, they took responsibility for their lack-luster customer service and has offered some renumeration for my ordeal. I am please with their follow up and follow through and this satisfactory resolution. read more

Initially we were overcharged for some packing materials that we did not use. The initial quote and final bill were in line with what we expected aside from the packing materials. Donna from Colonial Van Lines went above and beyond to satisfactorily resolve the issue. The entire process was professionally handled and delivered in the time frame promised. All items were delivered in the same condition they were in at pickup. Items that were disassembled were reassembled at drop off. All of our items were placed as we instructed the movers and had no issues. read more

Update: the customer service representative Teheria who was apparently assigned this case has still not contacted me. Additionally, I received pictures of additional stuff left behind from the movers from the tenants who moved into our home this morning. This entire saga is becoming hilarious in a Im-not-laughing at-all kind of way. See additional pictures of stuff left behind in our kitchen cabinets below. read more

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Do not hire this company. We had a signed contract several months ahead, and then on the day of the proposed move, I had no information from them and had to call 5-6 times to get any updates on when they were planning to come. Then it got pushed five days later, with no assurance that they could even do it that day. On top of that, when I called the customer service person and they were extremely rude. I never write reviews but this one was warranted. read more

Absolutely the WORST company in existence. Refuses to answer questions clearly, contracted my move out to some dubious third-party who has conveniently stayed out of contact, lied repeatedly regarding the location and handling of my belongings, and has now confirmed they won't make the promised delivery date. Have spent over $5k with this company so far. UPDATE 11/8/2017: I am now out almost $7,000.00 to this company and the carrier they chose. Their carrier showed up two days late, then waited until their truck was empty to tell me that they had only brought half my items. I'm now expected to wait yet ANOTHER week for the other half to arrive. UPDATE 4/18/2018: My household items eventually arrived at my home on 11/19/2017 - a full three weeks past the date they were initially promised. I was refunded a partial amount by Colonial, but still ended up paying almost $6k - much more than I was initially quoted for the move. Additionally, all of my grandmother's china was shattered by the carrier Colonial chose to use. They claim that carrier is no longer in their network, but that doesn't magically put back together china that managed to survive two world wars and two continents, but couldn't make it through one move across country with their 'guaranteed' movers. Because I was given a partial refund, Colonial has asked me to update this review to claim I was satisfied with my experience - which is in direct violation of the Consumer Review Fairness Act of 2016. While I'm happy to update the review with the conclusion of my experience, I would strongly caution everyone thinking about using this company to look elsewhere for their moving needs. read more

From beginning to end the contacts were helpful: clearly explained, quick follow up by email of the agreements made. Price was in the middle compared to the other estimates I received. The gentlemen who picked up my items were courteous and explained everything very well. The guys who delivered were also very good. Rebuilt all the furniture that had been taken apart and placed all items in the indicated spaces. Only two minor points of critique, therefore four in place of five stars: The delivery exceeded the indicated time window by twelve days. This had no serious consequences for work or personal life, but was quite annoying. I did not receive advance notice of when the delivery would take place, therefore the movers had to wait outside for some time, before I could conclude a meeting and rush home. Again: no disaster but should have been better. read more

Colonial helped make my move from New York to Florida effortless. I barely lifted a finger and all my stuff arrived to Florida unbroken and safe. Thanks! Job Number: 575983-CV-A read more

This review is based on the experience getting a quote only. I submitted video and got a quote back that seemed like an accurate summary of my items. After that it took 4 emails for the sales person to give me an estimate for packing services. At the end, I said I was going to choose a lower quote and they replied "I know this was going to be your response. Good luck." Just a rude way to close out a conversation. Like I owed him something. Made me glad I chose not to contract with them. read more

Overview: I had a terrible experience with Colonial Van Lines (CVL) and the agent they assigned to me. I then did more research on the company and uncovered a litany of red flags, which I will detail below. Basically, they appear to be a shady moving broker and not the reputable moving company they claim to be. They are very likely to let you down or rip you off or both. AVOID THIS COMPANY LIKE THE PLAGUE. My Story: I scheduled a cross-country move (PA to KS) with CVL a month in advance. Because of COVID-19, they said they could not do an in-person inventory of my stuff and would need me to estimate it (red flag #1). I was then charged a ridiculous ~$2100 down-payment, over half of the entire bill to reserve the truck (red flag #2). The move was to be paid for by the organization I was relocating to work at, so I tried to coordinate this with CVL; they gave me the runaround, stating that they were currently too busy to talk to my company but would do so "soon." As far as I can tell, they never contacted my organization at all (red flag #3). A few days before my scheduled pickup date (they had given me a two-day window), they called to tell me that the truck I had reserved was already full so they needed to find a new one (red flag #4). They did not know when or even if they would be able to do so. This was very stressful as my lease was ending and I needed my stuff out of there. They also wouldn't take responsibility for their error, telling me that the truck being full was "out of their control" and "not their fault" (red flag #5) - as if it wasn't their job and the purpose of my huge down-payment to prevent this from happening. After waiting for them to unsuccessfully find a replacement truck for nearly a week, I had to book a last-minute and therefore more expensive move with a different company so that I wouldn't be in breach of my lease. Luckily, I was able to complain enough to get CVL to refund my down-payment. However, when I reached out to my CVL agent to discuss my dissatisfaction and desire for some sort of compensation for the huge inconvenience they had put me through, he rudely responded "that's not my department" and then neglected to answer my follow-up emails about whose department it would be. My Research: After digging deeper into CVL's reviews on Yelp, Google Reviews, and the Better Business Bureau, it has become clear that this is a company that routinely lets down their customers and then tries to cover this fact up by paying those who complain to change their 1-star reviews to 5-star reviews. Just read some of these "5-star" reviews... and look at how many complaints CVL has had on the Better Business Bureau (https://www.bbb.org/us/fl/pompano-beach/profile/moving-companies/colonial-van-lines-inc-0633-90045426). Nearly 300 total and nearly 100 in the last 12 months! This is not normal for a reputable company. As far as I can tell, CVL is a very shady MOVING BROKER (i.e., a company that coordinates other companies/individuals to actually do the move) rather than the reputable MOVING COMPANY (i.e., a company that actually does the move) that they claim to be on their website. This means you are rolling the dice on who (if anyone) they will get to come move your stuff. You might get lucky and have a good experience, but you may get some totally random people without any knowledge, experience, or accreditation. You might even get no one, like I did. Then, when you complain (as nearly 300 people have) on review websites, they apparently reach out and pay you to change your review and sign a non-disclosure agreement so that they can continue to sucker people in and claim to be "rated as the nation's top long-distance mover." What a joke. read more

I hired Colonial Van Lines to move my belongings from New York to Florida, and it was an awful experience. The first bad sign was when someone called to tell me I would be charged an extra $1000 due to my belongings being over the weight limit. However, things went from bad to worse after that. The second bad sign was that my account manager showed very poor communication skills and a distinct lack of professionalism -- I spent two and a half weeks having to call her numerous times per day, and when I finally got ahold of her every day she would tell me that the truck with my belongings on it had "broken down," that the truck would be fixed "tonight," and that my belongings would be on their way and possibly be delivered "tomorrow." Two and a half weeks later the truck finally was fixed. Third, I was then given two days' notice that my belongings would be delivered, which was problematic as the elevator had already been booked a few days out, so I had to beg security to let the movers deliver my belongings at 5pm. Fourth, then I (finally!) received my belongings, three hours late, at 8pm. Fifth, my bed slats missing, and the driver promised to bring them down on the next trip to Florida, but then didn't return my texts asking about the slats for the next nine days (as of today). I'm still waiting for my bed slats, but I won't be surprised if they never show up. I will say that there were some acceptable parts of the move: I ended up working with a resolution manager who was very nice, good at communicating, and professional, and I did receive most of my belongings. But overall I would never recommend Colonial Van Lines. read more

Please please please do not book these scammers!! My husband booked them in April for our cross country move that is happening in July. They were definitely the cheapest quote out there, so we said yes because it saved us about $1000. Edwin was the man who quoted us, and it was well under what we knew we had, and we kept telling him that we had more items. He said they would give us the truck and if we went over the total square foot that they quoted, we wouldn't be charged. So we said okay, let's do it. He was extremely nice on the phone, so we felt confident. Well, after one negative review after the other started rolling in, we decided to cancel and get our $965 deposit back. When my husband canceled, the gentleman on the phone was rude, and couldn't believe we were canceling their service. He said that they are a "5 star" company, even though now, they are s 2 star company. After his rant, he didn't say anything else, and just transferred my husband to accounting. They said we will receive our refund in 2 weeks. My husband thought that was a long time to receive a refund, but we said thank you and hung up. Almost 4 weeks come around, and no refund. My husband called and transferred him to accounting, where they said we will receive an email with everything. Well, no email, and he called back and they said that they are processing May 6th & 7th cancellations and our date of May 15th will be processed in the next week or so...well that doesn't sound good that they have so many cancellations. 2 weeks come and now we can't get ahold of them. I read a review that they flag peoples phone numbers that are wanting something from them, which is what I believe is happening. I filed a complaint with the BBB, and hope we will see that money because we need it for our move in 9 days. Please don't go with them. I hope that their company closes since all it is is a big scam, and they tell you that their pricing is amazing only to screw people on their move day. I thought that maybe the couple of negative reviews that were made at the time wouldn't be us, and that we would get a good experience. Oh was I wrong. Pray we get our money back since they pretty much stole it from us. read more

The worst experience I ever had. We got rip off. The driver who is a subcontractor was upset because I didn't tip him with good reason. The price doubled from when we started. We couldn't be there at the time they delivered our Stuff because we coming from Vermont to Oklahoma. So a friend met them at the storage place. He stole so much from us from antique tables coins etc. He dumped heavy boxes on top of fragile glassware. We are still thinking of things he stole. I hope no one has to go through what we went through. Please choose wisely read more

DON'T USE COLONIAL VAN LINES!!!! Just the worst! From a dishonest sales coordinator to a person who couldn't give us a pick up date (he quit the day after our call, but his voicemail still worked) to only 2 movers who showed up in an unmarked semi to a late delivery to hourly workers falling off the truck ramp and our items missing or broken - Colonial Van Lines is the most horrendous, neglectful, careless company ever. The two movers took two days to load the truck. We were told our things would be delivered on the 17th, then we received a call from the truck driver our stuff would arrive on the 15th. With the out-of-state move, we had to rush to get a hotel. The 15th comes... No movers, no call, no email. We sat in the empty house. We were told it would be no later than the 18th. We didn't get our things (bashed, broken or outright missing) in two separate trucks on the 21st! Then the inventory list doesn't match anything. A couple movers leave right after the job starts, leaving the foreman to call for hourly workers. They had never moved anything - ever. One guy had his shoelaces untied and he fell off the ramp. Another time he was dragged down the ramp on his knees. This is nothing to say of the damage they did to the new house or the worker whose kid locked herself in the bathroom and the girlfriend who took video inside our house. Colonial Van Lines took no responsibility and said, "whoops. That's unfortunate. You can file a claim for the broken things." They are a third party, broker mover with awful service, terrible communication, and the worst product. You are better off burning your things and starting from scratch or putting them in a dump truck across the country. read more

IF YOU VALUE YOUR MONEY, RUN AWAY FROM THIS COMPANY The only reason I'm giving this company one star is because of the movers themselves. They took great care of our belongings, got them to our new location on time, and nothing was broken. That is where good things about this company end. I wish I listened to the other reviews. When we initially called Colonial the first lady we spoke with told us: 1) She would be our account manager and the only person we would be working with. LIE! We had multiple people calling us saying they were account manager and asking us the same questions over and over. 2) She told us that all the movers were Colonial and they don't outsource. LIE! I'm glad at this point since the movers were the best part of dealing with Colonial. 3) She did our initial estimate. Putting our belongings though their "computer program" to determine a weight and price. This system must not be calibrated correct because was their initial estimate wayyyyyyyy off. 4) She told us that it would be one truck that would pick up our belongings and delivery them. LIE! They sent a smaller truck to pick up the item, then repack them on a larger truck, and then repack the on a smaller truck for delivery. Not a huge deal just be honest. Before our move we were contact by ANOTHER account manager, for our pre-move estimate. Surprise, surprise our new estimated weight had now gone up dramatically. Now we had to pay an adjustment to our original deposit since the weight changed. The day of the move comes. The movers walk in and the first thing the guy says is "Man, this is way more than what they estimated you!" This is where more fun begins. 1) Even though we told the first lady account manager with how many steps it was from our front door to the loading dock, the movers tell us that it is consider a long move and slap on a $125 fee. 2) During our pre-estimate, we explain we had mirrors (Floor length) that we wanted moved. She stated no problem it would be $27 for a mirror box. Well, that is not true. That is for one box and our mirrors apparently need multiple boxes and slap us with another $300+ fee. 3) Colonial added more than $500 worth of fee/extras day of that were never told to us. Our $3,200 initial estimated move, by end of day, turned into a $5,000+ move because Colonial does not know how to properly estimate belongings and weights. It almost feels like they come in at a super low rate to get your business and by the time your final pre-move check-in happens where they double the price it is too late to switch to another company. We were called during and after the move by multiple people from Colonial asking how the move was going. We stated our concerns and disappointed with each one of them. All we got were, let me speak with our finance team and see if anything can be done. Never heard back......from any of them. In the end our belonging made it on time and in one piece but the deception from Colonial was too much. Save yourself money and a headache. Don't go with Colonial. ** Updated Review - I am raising my review to 5 stars due to Donna in resolutions. She was able to negotiate an acceptable compensation amount for our troubles. Donna is a shining star in this company and a pleasure to work with. read more

I'm updating my review because Colonial Van Lines called and offered me compensation for issues I encountered with my move from California to Ohio. The young lady I spoke with was professional and helpful. I still feel this company needs to improve on communication and clarity with customers. I hope this type of situation does not happen to anyone else. Meredith Epperson read more

Avoid this company like the plague. Would give 0 starts if I could. Long story short they cancelled on me the day of my move after every one of my possessions was stacked up on a NYC street corner. STAY AWAY read more

Good Service. Easy to work with. Had some issues but its a move and they worked with us to resolve.

This is an update to my original review when I detailed a few scheduling issues I experienced with Colonial. We all know that moving is extremely stressful. Essentially your life is turned upside down and you hope and expect your move to be as stress free as possible. I've moved 9 times and I have yet to have a perfect move. We are all moved in now. Our boxes have been opened and our things put in their new place. None of our things were damaged and the movers were fantastic. Ultimately, this is the result we wanted. Unexpectedly, I was recently contacted by Donna Rose to review and discuss my issues. Donna listened and addressed my minor issues quickly. I give Colonial Van Lines a huge thumbs up for taking this bold step in ensuring customer satisfaction. I will move again and will use Colonial Van Lines with the confidence of knowing that they will make things right when the inevitable happens. read more

This company is a complete scam. They booked my move only to have other movers insist (after they loaded all of my stuff) on a cash payment to take my items away. I packed everything myself they charged me a surplus packing fee, a distance fee etc and calculated the total volume as 2X what it actually was. Then their delivery was 3 weeks late and when the driver showed up, he demanded a CASH payment for me to get my things!! When I reported this to Colonial Moving Services they said they would address the issues (and the damage which included $800 Television and 2 lamps) and then blocked all email from my email address. read more

Donna provided excellent service and resolution of issues. She is a pleasure to work with.

If you want a moving company from hell, this is it. I made an account for the sole purpose of warning you guys. 1. Delivery window is a joke: It has been 4 weeks since the promised deadline, and I have yet to see any of my stuff. I don't even mind the wait, it makes financial sense for a company to consolidate the shipments; but you'll keep getting told that you'll receive items/update in a few days, and for each of the past 4 days, I've been instructed to be available for delivery; so far, I've used up 1/4 of my vacations for the year, and I've got back pain from sleeping on the floor for 6 weeks (would've just bought a new damn mattress if I wasn't constantly expecting my stuff to come in a few days), so thanks for that. 2. Don't trust the estimate: they will try to hook you with low estimate only to hit you with all kind of charges later on, (despite how comprehensive the initial estimate will sound) 3. False advertising: All the delivery people are contracted, and I've yet to see any van or person with the colonial logo. If your boxes get trashed like FedEx shipping, it's because they hire the same people. There's no tracker, no standards. 4. "Insurance" is a joke: if they take everything you own and dump them on the side of the road, you are still liable for more than they will reimburse you 5. Ridiculous agreement form: basically written that they are not liable for anything that happens, and you can't sue them in your local small claim court, but you are liable for payment. If the form actually carries any weight, that is. So, thanks, colonial. You managed to separate me from all my possession, my $6.5k, and only things I got in return are depression and anxiety (that I managed to keep under control for years), crippling back pain, and loss of my future vacations. 1-800-273-8255 is the suicide hotline, keep it handy if you want to proceed. I'm sure all this is not unique to this particular company, but buyer beware. (On one hand, the people that you communicate with sound nice at least, too bad they have no control over the situation) read more

This is an update to my latest review from July 16, 2018. FINALLY our furniture has arrived and the UP side to all of this, is that the Resolution Manager, Teheria J. has diligently worked to "right" so many of the "wrongs" that happened in this "furniture fiasco". And I am HAPPY to report that our household goods have been delivered, although several items suffered extensive damage. But Teheria worked "tirelessly" to get the claim expedited for settlement. Which definitely alleviated the "blow" of the experience, as well as sent the message that they DO care about the hardship and negative impact on us as customers, resulting from the delay. We are extremely appreciative to TEHERIA and Colonial Van Lines for taking the time to address ALL of our concerns and reconcile the issues!! Thank you for the tenacity to achieve a positive outcome! read more

I have not received my deposit refund ($400+) from this company, and my emails and calls are blocked.

Update: I used Colonial Van lines for a move last year and it was a very challenging experience. I am changing my review to 5 stars solely because of Donna, on the customer support escalations team. Donna listened to my issues and provided an agreeable path to resolution. Donna is fantastic, I am changing my review to 5 stars, solely because of her. ---------- This is the first time I've written a review on Yelp but I felt compelled to help others not make the same mistake I did. Do NOT use Colonial Van Lines. Avoid them at all costs. I would rate them a 0 star if I could. I read these reviews and still went with them because they were significantly cheaper than other options for my cross-country move. In the end, my move was an absolute nightmare and I ended up paying significantly more in the long run because they were over 2 weeks late for my delivery window and I had to stay in a hotel. The relationship started off on the right foot. My pickup was fine. It was within the pick-up window, they said I would get 48 hours notice and I got closer to 12 but that was fine. The movers were on time and efficient. I felt confident with my choice to go with Colonial after my pick-up. But everything changed with my delivery. My original delivery window was 10/14/2021-10/26/2021. As Oct 13 approached, I called Colonial and asked for an update or estimated departure date for the truck and they said they couldn't provide an update. I called almost every day during that time to try and get a sense for an estimated timeline for my planning, every call, they simply said 'no update." As we neared 10/26 I was getting very angry and frustrated. The lack of any updates of any kind was unacceptable. All my possessions were sitting in a warehouse somewhere and I was forced to stay at a hotel. After my delivery window passed, I called every single day. Each day the exact same conversation was had, my Account Manager said 'no update, we'll let you know as soon as we have one.' He was not helpful at all and I escalated to customer service. Customer Service told me a subcontractor had my items in a warehouse and unfortunately they don't have visibility into when the truck was leaving for my destination. This was incredibly perplexing to me - how do you not have visibility into the deliveries of a subcontractor that you hired? I signed a contract with Colonial Van Lines, not the sub. There were many days where I called Customer Service and the call ended with me being in tears. There was an utter and complete lack of communication or updates of any kind. I ended up finding the subcontractor's number myself and starting calling them daily for updates. Finally, 16 days after my delivery window (and having to spent 15 days in a hotel), my items finally arrived. When the subcontractor arrived with my things, they parked in a parking lot next to my apartment complex, they told me it would be considered a 'long haul' and there would be an additional $300 charge that needed to be paid before they unpack any of my items. I was furious. I called Colonial and they were zero help and said it had to be paid before I could get my items. Colonial said just pay it and we'll resolve it later (update - it was never resolved.) At that point, I just wanted my things and for it all to be over. All in all, my move was 9 months ago, it was an absolute nightmare and I'm still working on getting my claim payment. The subcontractor thread continues, part of my compensation was from the sub, they're refusing to pay it and Colonial says they can't do anything about it. I received $30 a day from Colonial for not meeting the delivery timeline. That wasn't a dent in the money I had to spend on a hotel and the overall frustrations experienced. TLDR: Absolutely horrific experience. Avoid at all costs. Would not recommend Colonial to my worst enemy. read more

Yet another unhappy, ripped off customer here. ALL our belongings stolen. Where to start... For starters, they subcontracted out the move we paid them for to another company; Best Price Moving and Storage. This was NOT disclosed ahead of time, and we've found out is a violation of Federal DOT regulations governing moving companies. Google the FMCSA and you can get the online complaint forms. The price was high, weights were overestimated for what we did manage to list ahead of the move, AND we were never given an opportunity to see the truck weighed. Another DOT violation. The theft part is the worst. The truck left our old house in California 19 days ago. Per DOT rules on driving limits, it should have taken 5 days to get here to Tennessee. We have NO idea where our property is. Stories keep changing. We've been told everything from the movers were stopping to help other movers along the way, our property is sitting in Chicago while the movers visit family, and it's still SOMEWHERE back in California after almost 3 weeks. Nothing but "too bad, not our problem, the contract delivery date wasn't binding". Why the hell was it in writing then? Tens of thousands of dollars worth of household goods; appliances to family pictures and heirlooms, all gone. Then there's the matter of the way Colonial's hired goons handled all our stuff to begin with. IF we even get any of it back, I'm expecting a good portion of it to be damaged. NEVER, EVER use this company. Warn everyone you know to stay FAR FAR FAR away from them. We've reported them to the FMCSA, law enforcement at all levels, the state departments of consumer affairs in every state our property should have passed through, have filed a claim with our insurance company so that their corporate lawyers will go after them, and are looking at civil lawsuits for breach of contract and failure to act in good faith among other issues. read more

MAY 29, 2018 UPDATE: Our final furniture was received on May 21, 2018. After my reviews and escalations, I was also put in contact with Al who has done all he can to mitigate the situation. We will be receiving $$ back from that we paid to the moving company who proved incapable of delivering timely and without damage. I can say that Colonial has stepped up to try to mitigate the issues arising from these contractor's failings, as well as the internal problems at Colonial. (original review below) This company has been terrible. They happily quoted me a move fee in November 2017 and provided me a pickup window. Colonial directly collected ~30% of the total move fee. Here's what they don't tell you: they do NOT have their own trucks, drivers, and movers. They subcontract with companies in your local region and they have ZERO ability to hold those contractors to any sort of accountability. Colonials preferred company failed to pickup within their window, causing me to go into a new month in the apartment we were to vacate. Extra rent had to be paid- had to reschedule cleaners and carpet cleaning, now to be done w/o my presence since I had to get on the road. Then, they said the pickup drivers were to be at my home within a few hours ... three days in a row. They failed to arrive two days in a row and came very late on the third day. (I had to put my husband on a plane to get to his new job in time since he now wouldn't have time to drive 2,300 miles and arrive as required.) I was told by Colonial (Dona) that despite the late pickup, our delivery window would not change. So, I began my (now solo) drive across the country with 2 cats, a dog, and a very full vehicle late on a Saturday night. 4 days after I had planned to begin the move. I arrived safely and began "roughing it" in our new home. Air mattress, two camp chairs, a folding table, etc. Sufficient for the anticipated couple of weeks w/o the bulk of my household items. The week of our delivery window arrived, Dona at Colonial called to say that "next week" would be when our items actually were delivered. I wasn't happy but I was relieved at least that we should have everything before Christmas and New Year's. However, I subsequently received more follow up calls and then even more calls, each advising of further delays. All the while Dona assured me our items were safely stored in the moving company's warehouse and not, in fact, stolen. Dona at one point requested I pay the remained of the (now discounted) move fee in anticipation of our items being delivered so "the movers don't give you any problems about it". I refused. Said we'd pay once our items actually arrived. They didn't arrive for another 3 WEEKS. In that time, Dona call me again and told me that our items were NOT in the moving company's warehouse. THEY NEVER LEFT UTAH. These movers loaded a truck, left my home, and them got some random storage unit and left my household items -- childhood piano, wedding dress, photo albums, other irreplaceable mementos, along with furniture, kitchen implements, etc. -- all just in some RANDOM STORAGE UNIT in Utah ... So -- the movers and Colonial had been lying for nearly 2 months. February 4, our stuff was delivered. Damages to several items occurred. Additionally, this company who delivered tried to deliver several items that were NOT ours and did not have all items that were ours ... but they *promised* they'd be back in two weeks with my couch and the rails to assemble my bed. They additionally required full payment, no discount. I wasn't going to argue since I wanted my things. Fast forward to today, we still don't have all our things. Colonial has offered to refund 30% of the total move cost but that doesn't begin to cover the extra expenses of living w/o day-to-day items in order to eat in our kitchen, and live normally. I put a post on Twitter and did hear from "upper management" at Colonial. I was promised a call back 1 week later with a resolution. Then they asked me to update/remove my tweets. I declined until I saw real results. The very next day, I received a call from Dona (or original rep) that I should just file a claim for our missing items since she just didn't know when their preferred move contractor could deliver them. That timing is highly coincidental - I declined to update twitter and then they stopped even trying to get me my things. The one week promise from "upper management" expired yesterday. No calls back. No solutions or resolutions offered. DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY. THEY HAVE BEEN DISHONEST AND DEMONSTRATED AN TOTAL INABILITY TO FULFILL THEIR COMMITMENTS. read more