Company Response Review Report Review
If you love your car,don't use Direct Express Auto Transport

Jalon Anderson Submitted this review about Direct Express Auto Transport
Review made Live: 12/10/2009 1:13:00 PM
I had a 67 convertible shipped through Direct Express Auto Transport. They subcontracted the job to AY trucking. The car arrived when it was dark. I was asked to go to a dark parking lot to pick up the car. After the car was off the transporter I was asked to look at it. I looked at the car and it seemed OK so I signed the bill of lading.

A few days later I noticed stains on the top of the convertible. On closer inspection they were oil stains. The car on the upper level of the transporter had leaked oil on the car.

I called Direct Express Auto Transport. They told me to contact AY trucking. I did and AY provided their insurance information.

The insurance company ignored me. I had to call Direct Express Auto Transport to get them to make the insurance company do something. The insurance company finally got a hold of me 2 months later after repeated emails and calls from me to Direct Express. The insurance company told me that since I signed the bill of lading, there was no proof that the car above the convertible on the transporter leaked oil on the car roof. They were not going to pay for it.

I told them there was no doubt the car on the transporter above the convertible leaked on it because of the oil spots. They look just like oil spots on a driveway underneath a parked car. The insurance lady said "so what".

After the insurance company told me they would not accept the claim, I called Direct Express to tell them my car was damaged by the shipper they subcontracted with, and the insurance company was refusing to do anything.

Direct Express Auto Transport, who had been so friendly up to then, told me that since I signed the bill of lading the situation was my fault. If I wanted the damage repaired I was going to have to go to small claims court.

As long as we were just talking about me shipping cars or about my damaged car, Direct Express was as friendly as can be. When it came down to money, a dispute about paying for damage to my car, Direct Express told me I was on my own and could go to small claims court.

Direct Express Auto Transport KNOWS that AY trucking company insurance screws people. The lady I talked to at Direct Express said she had dealt with this situation before! Yet they took my order and sent my car through AY trucking, knowing that if it was damaged the insurance company for AY trucking would never pay.

If you love your car, don't ship it through Direct Express Auto Transport. If your car is damaged in transport and you don't go over it with a microscope and a flashlight in the dark of night when they deliver the car, Direct Express Auto Transport will tell you "Too bad for you. Go get your money from small claims court."

They are completely unprofessional too. When I called to complain they had some kind of part going on in the background. The woman I was talking to had to mute her end of the conversation because the people in the office were yelling and screaming so loudly. Think about it. You are angry about a damaged car, you are talking to the transport company representative, and after every sentence she releases the mute button so she can talk, and you have to struggle to understand here because the screaming and yelling party in the trucking company office is so loud it drowns the woman out.

Direct Express Auto Transport seems like a company run by 20 year olds. Look at the pictures of their workforce. They also seem to have the sense of responsibility of a 20 year old.

Do you trust your baby, your collectible car, your four wheel drive, your brand new sports car, to be shipped by a company run by 20 year olds screaming and yelling in the office like a they are at a high school beer party?

If you do, you can be sure that if your car is damaged the only help you will get from Direct Express Auto Transport is a suggestion to go to small claims court. That is if you can hear the suggestion over the yelling and screaming office party in the background.
Shipment Details
Origin State:
New Jersey
Pickup:
On Time
Destination State:
California
Delivery:
On Time
Customer Service
Honesty:
Knowlegeable:
Promptness:
Customer Service:
Review Details
Quote or Order Id:
71221
Quote or Order Cost:
$900

Car Condition
  • Vehicle was damaged
Company Response
Mike Rupers from Direct Express Auto Transport Submitted this response.
Response Date: 12/10/2009 4:18:00 PM
Our outstanding record speaks for itself. While we are empathetic, we also realize that Mr. Jalon Anderson bought a 1967 vehicle and signed the vehicle inspection report saying that it was received in good condition. It is difficult to get the toothpaste back in the tube once you do that. If there were oil spots on it, there is no telling when in the last 42 years that might have happened. Direct Express properly provided Mr. Anderson the insurance information, his claim was investigated and because of his signature, the insurance adjuster denied it. Had he noted the problem, there might have been a different outcome. That said, we are sorry that he had a problem. We wish Mr. Anderson every success in all his future endeavors.