Really Came Through For Me...
JB
Submitted this review about
Honest Auto Movers
Review made Live: 9/1/2012 7:10:00 PM
My wife's 40th birthday gift was a Nissan convertible that I searched the whole continental USA for. I finally found a car in Austin, Texas and needed it shipped to Pennsylvania on VERY short notice. Initially, I had a competitive quote from Capt'n Mark (Honest Auto Movers) of around $650. I read his comments on the HAM website and when I spoke with him, he said that he couldn't guarantee vehicle delivery. I ultimately decided that I wanted to go with a company that could "guarantee" that the vehicle would make the trip in 3 days in order to make it to my house on (or before) my wife's birthday.
One company, Fast Auto Transport, promised they could get it to me in the time frame I needed, by paying double what the going rate was. So I placed my job with Fast Auto Transport and was told that it the vehicle would arrive on time. NIGHTMARE ensued: the trucking company assigned to my job would not answer their phone. The Nissan Dealer in Texas was never contacted regarding pickup. Almost 2 days worth of emails voice mails, and phone calls to Fast Auto Transport... Nobody would pick up the phone there all of a sudden, my emails went unanswered. Got one phone call the next morning from them saying "Uh, the truck broke down and needs repairs, but they are still going to make it on time." After that, no more communication from them, even thought I was frantically calling and emailing them. I finally sent an email that said "Cancel my order immediately, I'm going with someone else. That did get a two line email response of "OK, sorry it didn't work out." Now I was really behind the 8 ball, having only 3 days left to get this gift to my house in time. In desperation, I called Capt'n Mark and explained the situation hoping that his reputation and online reviews were true...
Capt'n Mark was truly saved the day for me: He immediately (as in 30 minutes later) got the job reposted, and used his insider contacts and knowledge of the industry to get my car shipped to Houston first, then to PA. Apparently, none of the other companies I spoke to had "figured this out", and they all said there was no way to get a car from Austin to PA in 3 days. I believe that Capt'n Mark knows his business better than most. Because I had already posted the job for $1100, the bidding truckers wanted that amount even though I probably could have gotten it done for significantly less if I had gone with Capt'n Mark in the first place... my fault entirely, but I was really hoping to get this surprise birthday gift to my house and paid for it accordingly. Read his website for good discussion and insight into how the whole bidding process works.
The company who took my offer was Ground Force One. They wanted another hundred dollars on top of my $1100 offer, which I paid, so it ended up costing me 1225 total. Ground Force One picked up the car that night even though they were reluctant to do it at the last second. Pick up from the Dealer occurred as stated on 8pm that night. Ground Force One was responsive to my email and kept me updated on the car's progress. The car was delivered to a gas station about 2 miles away from my house (rather than at my door) because I live in a country area and the Trucker was afraid he couldn't negotiate the roads... I really didn't care at this point because the car at least arrived on the day it was supposed to get there! My wife was really thrilled and totally surprised. The car arrived in perfect condition on an open carrier- also great advice from Capt'n Mark, as I was originally going to get is shipped in a closed container: he pointed out that the car arrived at the Dealer in an open carrier, so why would I want to ship it for 3 times the cost in a closed carrier? That definitely saved me a great deal of money and was the kind of advice I would expect from someone who knows the auto transport business to give a customer!
I would wholeheartedly recommend Capt'n Mark because he has the connections and knowledge to get things done. One piece of advice: he talks so fast that he is almost impossible to understand if you are talking on a cell phone connection. Also, he is so busy that you will not get much explanation of things over the phone. However, he managed to do what nobody else was able to do...and I spoke with many companies trying to get this done. He was very responsive by phone and email, which was wonderful, especially after the experience I had with the first transport company that let me down. I had a horrible feeling when Fast Auto Transport wouldn't return my calls and emails... I started wondering if they were a complete scam and I was being taken advantage of. I will be using Capt'n Mark and Honest Auto Movers in any future car transportation I need.
