cottonbud

Can anyone give us advise? We have moved into Italy and arranged for The Move Corporation (midland removals) to deliver our furniture. We paid in advance 1900+VAT to them for our furniture to be delivered week commencing 7th Feb. As we were over on the amount, they agreed to collect the rest from our uk residence and bring it with what they had already collected. Although we expected additional charges, we were not prepared for an extra £1330+vat, which is what they asked for. As at the time of posting this thread our furniture is still not here, they put the charge on us once we had arrived in Italy, our belongings (everything) is on the lorry including personal papers and they are now saying that they will deliver only the paid for amount, they havn't collected the rest from the uk and they want to charge me £1200 for storage of the rest until they have cleared payment into their bank. Does anyone have any advise as to what i can do, i have 2 small children, with only a couple of changes of clothes andno toys, furniture or anything that they are familiar with. I have agreed to pay the removers once i can get my personal papers off the lorry. Help!!!!

TestaRossa

Firstly, having had something similar happen to me with a well known removals company, they will not deliver your stuff until you have paid the additional amount for storage. Secondly, you need to go over all the small print on the back of the forms you signed when you handed your stuff over to them to see whether they can put these charges on you - I think you will find they can.
Thirdly, if you are talking having had a whole house removal then even with the additional £1300 you have got a good price!! I paid £2600 for a half-house, no sofas or white goods, bookcases etc. then I paid storage and transhipment - make sure that is included in the additional £1300 should you decide that they deliver this - I paid an additional £600 for permits and a smaller van to bring my goods into Florence from the football stadium. I would query the storage cost - how long is this over? Again check the small print, there should be information about storage costs there, if there isn't this might be your negotiating point.

Unfortunately, from experience, because they have your goods and they have lien over them i.e. they can keep them when they are not paid, I think you will end up having to pay this money out to see your things again. You could try, as we did, to negotiate, but our strong bargaining point was that the accounts department sent us an erroneous statement that had the incorrect and much lower amount on it. Even so we only got about £500 knocked off. At one point they offered £35.....

cottonbud

Thanks for your advise, i can't believe their attitude, i am so angry. I know weve got to pay it and i don't have a problem with that, it's just the fact that they are so unreasonable in their demands, knowing they have all my possessions.

TestaRossa

Oh yes, believe me, I KNOW exactly where you are coming from! It's because they have your stuff they can do this! At one point I think my OH was very close to telling them to keep it all! If me and the children hadn't had a say in it I think he would have walked away. I still have a folder with the dozens of e-mails etc. that we sent and received. As I say the cherry was the £600 for transhipping - make sure that is included! If I hadn't asked them to get their office here to check it out my stuff would have arrived in the pantecnicon at the stadium and sat there while they made the arrangements to bring it over to me!! Can you imagine what that would have cost me?!! Somewhere in your contract will probably be something about reasonable access - this is normally all related to access to the land your property is on, if this applies, any width and height restrictions on your street - very common here! - restrictions to traffic without the correct permits entering the city you live in (applies to Florence where there is very limited access without a permit) - any costs of having your comune close off a section of your street if there is no off road parking for your lorry. Check this last one if it applies as the police will come and move your lorry on if it needs a parking permit, but if you have it, assuming your lorry will park directly on the road outside your property, it does mean you can get the police to come and tow anyone that parks there within the dates of your permit. I had to get this done, it was great fun watching all the cars being towed!!

cottonbud

Hi, Just thought i'd give you a quick update. Paid the money on the promise our furniture would be here this morning (sat). Still hasn't arrive, there now saying monday aternoon!!!! Think i'll believe it when i see it... The rest of my furniture that is supposed to be on this delivery is still waiting to be collected from the UK. Perhaps it's a good thing ive paid on a credit card!!!!!!

TestaRossa

Could be the weather delaying ferries over in the UK? Let's be optimistic! Glad you are getting it sorted! From my experience finally seeing all your stuff again makes it worth it! But it also makes you not want to do it again!

The funniest part for me, when my stuff finally got here (we left it in store for 12months for various reasons including the delay while we argued the cost with them!) was just how much there actually was! It just kept on coming and coming......! Some stuff is still boxed up in the loft!