Relocating in or out of Texas? Here's how to choose a moving company and avoid costly headaches
First came marriage, then the big move. Newlyweds Rachel Ogden and Will Schmidt said when they needed to relocate from Garland to Oregon this summer, they did plenty of research for hiring a moving company.
After getting quotes from multiple companies, the couple settled on Texas Movers Group, LLC, which is based in Addison. They trusted that a business with 4.8 stars out of 5 on Facebook, 4.6 stars on Google and an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau would be the best option to handle their long-distance move.
Despite all of that research, a question remained unanswered that they didn't even know to ask.
Missed deadlines
According to the contract, the company picked up their belongings in early May, with delivery scheduled between June 9 and June 18.
The couple told the I-Team those days came and went, with few answers from the movers.
"First, they would get frustrated and say something along the lines of, 'We don't have to give you daily updates,'" Ogden recounted. "And we would respond and say, 'We're not asking for a daily update. We're just asking for a general update.'"
The couple continued living in a virtually empty apartment, rotating between the same four outfits and cooking meals with one pot and a toaster oven.
"It almost felt like we were camping in our own apartment," said Ogden.
Then, on June 24, nearly a week past the deadline, Texas Movers Group called with shocking news. The driver had stolen the load and disappeared somewhere in Montana.
Ogden and Schmidt shared a recording of a phone conversation in which a TMG dispatcher named Michelle told them the truck was last seen in Montana on June 18.
It was during that call that the couple first learned a completely different company had possession of all their belongings. Texas Movers Group had hired a company called All Seasons Moving & Storage to make the cross-country trip.
The newlyweds said that was the first time they learned a third-party carrier was involved.
"We understand the business of it, it makes sense that they would hire someone else," said Ogden. "But they didn't start using that terminology until the theft happened, and I think that was their way of cleaning their hands of the situation."
If they had known, Ogden and Schmidt may have hired another company to handle their move.
Tracking down their possessions
Ogden and Schmidt were concerned, but they also knew something the movers did not: An Apple AirTag was tracking their things.
"Will had, just at the last minute, put an AirTag in one of my jewelry boxes," said Ogden. "And I'm so glad he did, because, you know, we were told that our stuff was in Montana, and it clearly never left Dallas."
The device showed their belongings were not on the road or out of the state, but 10 miles south of where they had originally been stored. The couple filed a police report with Garland PD and Ogden flew down to meet the detective at the storage unit with a search warrant.
Once Ogden could show that her phone showed the AirTag was located inside one of the units, the manager cut off the lock and rolled up the door. There sat all of Ogden and Schmidt's goods.
"It was definitely immediate relief," Ogden recalled. "And then that's when we discovered that there were two other clients' items in the unit with ours."
Emma Mingo was one of those clients. She told the I-Team she had lived without most of her belongings for four months.
"I cried so hard because everything I own was in the truck," she said.
The newly pregnant Mingo had spent that entire time sleeping on a cot since her bed and other furniture had disappeared.
Adding insult to injury, the customers said, is the damage done to their items.
"Boxes were just obliterated," Ogden said. "There was terrible water damage [and] mold growth on lots of stuff."
Mingo told the I-Team she had to immediately throw away her mattress and several other items.
The items are back where they belong, but the mystery around the truck and its driver continues. The I-Team found filings that show All Seasons Moving & Storage is based in North Carolina, but a website with that name belongs to another company with no affiliation.
Texas Movers Group did not share contact information for the carrier they contracted for the job.
What to ask when looking for a moving company
According to a trade group representing movers in Texas, the contract should include carrier information.
"Everything has to point back to the contract," said John Esparza, a spokesman for the Southwest Movers Association. "There's a reason why that contract has stipulations in there, why they have to have that agreement, and why there is state oversight over what those contracts look like."
Ogden and Schmidt's contract makes no mention of a third party. The estimate includes a section that mentions the use of "partner carriers" but "only when doing so would expedite" the move.
Esparza said companies must be clear with customers about who is doing the job.
"If you're not going to be the person that is coming to pick up that load, then that should be the first red flag," said Esparza.
When considering a mover, customers can ask if the company they are dealing with will be who is picking up, storing and transporting their possessions. If not, ask for the name of the company and the Department of Transportation number of the company that will be.
Ogden and Schmidt said Texas Movers Group offered a partial refund. Paperwork shows Mingo received a full refund.
Garland PD issued a warrant for the All Seasons driver. The I-Team was unable to find a good contact number or email to reach the company.
In an email to the I-Team, Michelle Ohana from Texas Movers Group said:
"Texas Movers Group is a federally licensed and authorized interstate motor carrier of household goods. William Schmidt contacted Texas Movers Group to move his shipment from Garland, Texas to Hillsboro, Oregon. Texas Movers Group packed and loaded the shipment, then transported the shipment to be held in storage for subsequent transportation to Oregon. Texas Movers Group subsequently engaged All Seasons Moving & Storage, an insured interstate household goods carrier licensed and regulated by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Motor Carrier Number 01630399 to transport the Schmidt shipment to Oregon. All Seasons, and its predecessor, Express Moving & Storage, are companies with which Texas Movers Group has previously worked on multiple prior occasions with more than satisfactory results."
Texas Movers Group maintains it had nothing to do with the thefts, and is cooperating with police. In a statement to the I-Team, the company blamed Schmidt and Ogden for not revealing that the Air Tag was with their belongings:
"However, while Texas Movers Group and the Garland Police were searching for the shipment, Mr. Schmidt located his shipment with an air tag imbedded [sic] in the shipment. This information enabled the Police to find the shipment, and Mr. Schmidt transported the shipment to Oregon himself. Mr. Schmidt did not have the courtesy to notify Texas Movers Group that the shipment had been located. Of course, Texas Movers Group is pleased that the shipment was found and reached its destination. Had Mr. Schmidt advised Texas Movers Group, instead of sitting idly by and letting Texas Movers Group continue to search for the shipment, Mr. Schmidt's issues could have been addressed more quickly."
