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#1
07-30-2003, 12:23 PM
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UHAUL! *shakes fist angrily*
 UHaul basically has just bent me over my desk and had its way with me. I reserved a truck for tomorrow because I am moving. I called up today to figure out when I could pick up my truck and *surprise* they have canceled my reservation without even telling me and now I am left with no truck and no way to move. That the fuck am I supposed to do? I have a mother fucking reservation number, they already charged my credit card some bullshit $5 fee but I will not be getting a UHaul truck tomorrow. I asked the white trash customer service lady if it was company policy to randomly cancel reservations without even calling the person and the bitch smacked her gum and was like "Oh yeah, we do it all the time." How do these motherfuckers stay in business?????????????  Anyone in DC have a large truck I could borrow...
__________________
"Turns out not where but who you're with that really matters"- Dave Matthews Band 
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#2
07-30-2003, 12:32 PM
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...let me get this straight.
They took your reservation. They charged you a fee. ...and now, when the time has come... they refuse to give you a truck. Precisely what was it you paid for? And thanks for the heads-up. If this is how U-Haul does business, if I ever work with them, I'm going to read the damn fine print...
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#4
07-30-2003, 12:42 PM
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[Seinfeld]
Clerk: I'm sorry, we don't have a car available for you. Seinfeld: But I have a reservation. The reservation keeps the car here. Clerk: I think I know why we have reservations, sir. Seinfeld: I don't think you do! Audience: Wild applause [/Seinfeld]
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#5
07-30-2003, 12:52 PM
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Call the U-Haul place back. Tell gum-smacker you want her supervisor, NOW. If she doesn't have one, or claims to own that franchise, tell her you're calling corporate customer service and you'll escalate this until she delivers the truck herself, does all the packing, driving, and unpacking, and pays YOU for the priviledge.
OK, that last might be a bit excessive. But this is U-Haul's CS number (1-800-789-3638), and I expect you will get satisfaction if you call them and tell them what happened. This is NOT U-Haul's standard way of doing business (I've used them many times and never had a problem), and I don't think they'll be at all happy to find out that one of their employees is claiming it is. Good luck.
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#6
07-30-2003, 12:57 PM
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Ryder did the same thing to me when I moved last year. U-Haul bailed me out, sorta - they had a truck twice as large as I needed, which I took anyhow. It broke down later that day (but after we'd finished moving, thank god).
I think both companies can get away with abysmal customer service because (1) nobody used them more than once a year or so; and (2) because there are really just the two of them in the market, you don't have any real option to go with another company.
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#7
07-30-2003, 01:02 PM
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Quote:
"Making a reservation reserves a truck, but not a specific place and time." Me:  Him (again): "Making a reservation reserves a truck, but not a specific place and time." So, in whatever passes for U-Haul's reservation system, our truck, instead of being in Charlottesville on August first, was, perhaps, in San Diego on July 20, or maybe in Bangor, Maine on August 7, or perhaps Peoria in the year 2525. Our truck was now a mere leaf in the stream that is the space-time continuum. I have no explanation, but that was his answer. tramp, if I had a truck, I'd help. But your entertainment center would look damned silly riding on the roof of my little car. Best of luck to you.
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#8
07-30-2003, 01:03 PM
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I moved my mother to Colorado to help save her the $10,000 professional moving cost. (Total cost, about $3000, not including my vacation time).
My only stipulation was that she was to contract a RYDER truck, as I would not move cross country in a U-Haul. I've learned my lesson before.
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#9
07-30-2003, 01:08 PM
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I will never forget calling the UHaul place to confirm my reservation and hearing loud rap music (I like rap, just not at customer service) and the sound of a party in the background and trying to shout over the music to the rep...
__________________
"Sir, we'd like permission to search your pie."--Captain Stottlemeyer, Monk Playing City of Heroes? Find the Dopers you know and love here. In one of life's great ironies, we play on Virtue. GMRyujin is now known as Doomtrain. Now with 30% more doom. Doom! DOOM!
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#10
07-30-2003, 01:09 PM
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Quote:
I'm on the phone with Customer Service now... the lady there just called me ridiculous!!!!!!!!!!! WHAT. THE. FUCK!
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#11
07-30-2003, 01:12 PM
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The same EXACT fucking thing happened when I went to move my mom. She had reserved a truck, paid the $5 fee, and when we called to find out when we could pick the truck up, SURPRISE, reservation cancelled.
They made no attempts to contact us regarding this or anything. They made good on a truck for that day, however it still pisses me right the fuck off when I think about it. Sam
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#12
07-30-2003, 01:14 PM
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Were you the one who was warned (too late to help) about this in that other thread about companys that should be bankrupt?
Damn, how art imitates life! I'm going back and looking at that thread to make a note to pay attention to whoever posted that UHaul was a POS!  I have 2 trucks sitting idle today. In Nevada. _____________ "Lets get them meek bastards NOW!"
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#13
07-30-2003, 01:15 PM
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tramp,
Maybe there is something you can do, or at least add to another’s ability to do something. I’ve pasted a link below for rants regarding businesses. Take these rants with a little salt, however, when the same story keeps coming up over and over, there must be some truth to it. There are 40+ complaints re: U-Haul. I was investigating a cell phone provider & did a little research here. I found they all had complaints, so it came down to the those with the fewest, least objectionable, complaints. Click to see more
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#14
07-30-2003, 01:21 PM
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This is exactly consistent with my own few unfortunate attempts to rent things from U-Haul, and those of several friends. They cancel reservations all the time, or simply don't record them in the first place. And if they do actually save your reservation, they take no action to make sure they'll actually have the thing you reserved. I can't believe they stay in business.
The one time I rented a truck from Ryder it couldn't have gone more smoothly. I'll never rent anything from U-Haul as long as I live, and I encourage anyone who asks to do the same. They're one of the worst companies I've ever dealt with.
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#15
07-30-2003, 01:26 PM
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Quote:
The woman "threatened" she was going to call the corporate headquarters on me -- I told her to go ahead. Never heard anything else about it, but likewise I'm avoiding UHaul.
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#16
07-30-2003, 01:27 PM
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I'm pleased to report that my first (and only first so far) experience with U-Haul went well. I flew one-way from Boise to Wichita to help a friend move here. I made a reservation to pick up a truck in the Wichita area. When I was called the day before to have my reservation confirmed all was well until he told me that his business (an auto body shop that rented U-Haul equipment on the side) was only open until 3:00 PM (it was a Saturday). I told him that my flight would not arrive until that time, so he agreed to stay at his shop until I showed up. His shop, as it turned out, was only a few blocks from where my friend lived. The whole process went well. The only difference was that I had a 17' truck and had only requested a 14' truck, so I was charged for the price of a 14' truck rental. I'm glad it turned out this way since it turned out that a 14' truck may not have been big enough. The truck ran well, had a damn good AC and handled well throughout the entire 1,400-mile trip, and turning it in upon arriving back home was a no-hassle experience.
My experience was good, but as with just about everything else in life, YMMV.
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#17
07-30-2003, 01:39 PM
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Quote:
As in, ridiculous for making the complain, or ridiculous that any employee of theirs would do this, you must have misunderstood? In either case, using that word is a definite no-no if you want to keep the customer happy. Maybe you should call corporate, next, and demand to talk to the CEO. His name and the corporate 800 number are listed on the U-Haul website. Man, I've rented from U-Haul at least 8 times over a 10-year period, and I never had a lick of trouble with them. *shakes head*
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#18
07-30-2003, 01:42 PM
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friedo, that's EXACTLY what I was thinking!!!
I'm unfortunately not surprised this is happening to you. I've heard similar stories about U-Haul before. A coworker has had similar experiences, and he will now only rent from Ryder. I've used U-Haul probably 3 times, and thankfully haven't had an issue. On the occasion where they didn't have the size truck I reserved, we actually got a bigger one, and weren't left holding the bag. I hope you can resolve this, because I'd be shitting bricks.
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#20
07-30-2003, 02:01 PM
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tramp, I feel your pain. We went through the exact same crap with UHaul a month ago when we wanted to rent a small truck to haul some scrap wood and other detritus to the city dump.
I made a reservation about a week ahead of time, but when they didn't call to give me a pick-up time, I called them. Lo and behold, my reservation was cancelled and they gave me some line of bullshit about how *I* had called and cancelled it! I think not. We ended up hiring a private hauler. Lesson learned. In the past I had only dealt with Ryder, and in the future they will get my business as well. I hope you can figure something out!
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#21
07-30-2003, 02:24 PM
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Same thing happened to some friends of mine. They reserved a truck and went to pick it up and there was no truck. They were told their reservation did not guarantee them a truck. I don't see how that makes any sense!
Ultimately they found a truck for them at a distant Uhaul that my friends had to go pick up. But I will never use Uhaul ever after that!
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#23
07-30-2003, 02:38 PM
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The more I think about that, the more crazy it makes me.
If five dollars and a reservation does not guarantee one a truck, then what is one paying for? What does "reservation" mean under the circumstances? My first thought is, "Tell me, clerk, do you feel that stealing my five dollars for your boss is worth it to YOU? Will your boss split the money with you? And will you still feel it was worth it after I have picked up this desk and shoved it down your throat?" At the very least, they'd have to WORK for MY five dollars... hell, I'd feel obligated to hang around and give them a full tilt nightmare at a dollar a minute. They would NOT want to pull that stunt on me twice. I've never dealt with U-Haul. Rented a Ryder truck a couple of times. They never gave me any reason to complain. ...but what this one U-Haul franchise is doing now very much disinclines me to EVER want to do business with them... I mean, this is some BAD advertising...
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#24
07-30-2003, 02:44 PM
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This happened to me too!
Made the reservation online, paid the fee, called a day prior to moving to confirm and found out they just randomly cancelled my reservation. Didn't feel the need to call me and let me know or anything, no no, just felt like cancelling my reservation for shits and giggles, apparently.  And here I was thinking it had to be a fluke.. U-Haul sucks. Thank goddess there's like 10 different places in my area so I was able to get another one.
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#25
07-30-2003, 02:52 PM
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Ah yes, just remembered they tried to pull that "you called and cancelled your reservation" bullshit on me too.
After I told them they were full of crap and I most certainly did NOT call and cancel my reservation and no, I did not have a husband who would've called or another family member who would've called, they just said "oh well, don't know what happened". My anger has begin to bubble up again at this and it was over a year ago!
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#27
07-30-2003, 03:07 PM
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Another victim of Uhaul's idiocy here. I reserved a 10-foot truck well in advance of my move. When the day came, I had friends there all ready to help me move. I called for the truck, but they claimed not to have one.
I proceeded to rip the clerk a new one. I don't usually do that, but I was really pissed and my friends weren't too happy at a potentially wasted trip, either. Finally the clerk relented and offered to call other Uhaul places around town to find something for me. She eventually did, but it turned out to be 26 fucking feet long. That was one white-knuckled drive across town in heavy daytime traffic that I hope I never have to repeat.
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#28
07-30-2003, 03:09 PM
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Wow, tramp. That's pretty messed up. Does Uhaul have some sort of employee interview process where they screen out the competant, polite people and only hire assholes?
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#31
07-30-2003, 03:17 PM
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My sister went through a similar experience a few months back. Except she had been warned by a co-worker that a reservation does NOT mean that a truck would be there. (Seinfeld: "Taking the reservation is really the easy part. Anyone can TAKE a reservation. The crucial part is HOLDING the car.") She called the local dealer directly the day before she was to move to confirm her truck would be there. The manager told her that he had no reservation for her and no truck available. She gave him the confirmation number and he said no one had called that order in to him. He also said that in the future she should call the local dealer directly and not deal with the 800 number. He found a truck for her about 40 miles away, but it was such a royal pain that she swore she'd never use them again.
If you want an easy $$ franchise, open up a mom and pop rent-a-truck operation right next to a UHaul place.
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#32
07-30-2003, 03:20 PM
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I'm not normally on the litigious side of things, but if I were you I'd start documenting who's told you what and when, especially the insults. After all, I'd find it hard to believe that a company that charges you, fails to honor a contract, and then ABUSES you when you try to seek a remedy isn't begging for a lawsuit of some sort.
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#34
07-30-2003, 03:58 PM
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Oh man. Reading this thread is fueling the anger within Happy.
My ScrewUHaul story isn't quite as dramatic as the mysteriously canceled reservations, but IMO, it's equally ridiculous and frustrating. Late last fall, my girlfriend moved from one apartment complex to another. I called UHaul four weeks in advance to reserve a truck for her moving day (a Saturday). That day beforethe move, around 3 p.m., UHaul called my home voice mail and told me I could pick up the truck at 6 on Saturday, and that it needed to be returned by 8 a.m. on Sunday. Okay. I just assumed they meant I could pick the truck up at 6 a.m. on Saturday (silly me). I had another question I had to ask them, so I called the UHaul, and then re-confirmed I could pick the truck up the next morning. The guy said, "No, you can pick it up tomorrow night, at 6." I said, "What? I reserved this truck for one day." He said, "You're getting it for two: Saturday and Sunday." I said, "You're giving it to me for 14 hours overnight, and you think this is acceptable?" He said, "That's when your truck will be available." I said, "How do you expect me to move overnight??" (Mind you, this is October, so it gets dark shortly after 6, not to mention most apartments allow no moving after 10 p.m.) He said (I shit you not), "That's you're problem, sir." And this is where I lost it. Among much yelling, I told him he could shove that $5 reservation fee up his ass, I was canceling the reservation, and would never use UHaul again. Then the fun part came. My GF had family and friends coming from great distances the next morning to help her move. And a mere 18 hours before zero hour, we had no truck. The best part is she had alreay told her friends and family that her fantastic boyfriend Happy had made all the arrangements with the truck, and their should be nothing to worry about. So anyway, I got up early the next morning, called every non-UHaul truck rental within a 40 mile radius, to no avail. So I finally, out of sheer desperation, I walked into a UHaul place (a different one than the one I had made the original reservations with), and asked if they had any trucks. The dude said they had a 14-footer ready to go. And I said I'd take it. But I will never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever use UHell again. Happy
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#35
07-30-2003, 04:18 PM
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The exact same thing happened to my employee last weekend. She made a reservation about a month in advance and was told they would call the day before to advise of a pick up time. The day before, no call. So she called them. They told her there were no trucks available, she hadn't been given a reservation at all and was on a stand by list. They would call her if a truck became available. Now she told me that she'd called every single local office, A Man With A Van, Two Guys and a Truck and every Bubba-owned operation she could find in the phone book.
It's student season here... No, that doesn't mean we get to shoot 'em. There are two major universities here and pretty much for the next few weeks, no trucks are available to anyone. How the students manage to get them and move in, I do not know. At major personal risk, I gave her the keys to the company truck -- a brand spanking new 12' delivery truck we bought the week prior. Hadn't even used it for business yet! I explained that she and her husband were not covered under the insurance and if anything happened, it was her dime. And I handed her the keys. She got herself moved, returned the truck spotless and with no calamity and nobody got in trouble. And I didn't charge her a penny. She even handed me a five dollar bill to reimburse the company for the gas she used. If I could loan you our truck without risk like that, I'd be on my way to VA for you! So sorry this happened to you. Future reference: use Ryder or some local company. Never call the 800 numbers. Always call the local offices to make reservations. I have to be the coolest boss ever, don't you think?
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#36
07-30-2003, 04:37 PM
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I hate Uhaul as a company. THe problem is......
Well.... Their trucks are the nicest and the easiest to load! I rented a ryder for one of my moves. I have lots and lots of tools and equipment to move. A Ryder ramp is like 40' long and at a severe angle. A Uhaul ramp is about 20 feet long and at a gentle angle. A Ryder truck has a deck height that's probably 2-3' taller than a Uhaul. It's a real bitch if you're moving lots of stuff or heavy stuff. There are assorted little things too, but they don't amount to much. Too bad Uhaul SUCKS so bad. Sam
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#37
07-30-2003, 04:44 PM
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Have you tried enterprise rent a car and asked them if they have a cargo van or large truck you can rent. They are usually reasonable
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#38
07-30-2003, 04:46 PM
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tramp, once you get off the phone with Corporate, you might want to give your local Better Business Bureau a ring. Couldn't hurt, might help.
Their handy-dandy online complaint system!
__________________
"I started To Reign in Hell, but was bored out of my mind." - Doomtrain "You couldn't use absinthe as a plot device for a character forgetting a lover, since absinthe makes the heart grow fonder." -Scissorjack
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#39
07-30-2003, 06:04 PM
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U-Haul is, bar none, the worst company in America. They did this same thing to me last year. I made a reservation weeks in advance, the appointed day comes and no trailer. I have to say, that after spending 8!!! long hours on the phone with them that day, most of it on hold, I got a trailer some 40 miles away that I had to go and pick up. I would rather eat glass than deal with those bozos again. Hang in there Tramp!
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#40
07-30-2003, 06:24 PM
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Ms Boods' Adventure with U Haul in Belair Road, Overlea, (Baltimore), Maryland, May 2003:
I knew I'd driven right past the club where I needed to be, so I thought, Behold! A U Haul place on the right, just up there. I shall pull in, and ask directions -- maybe he'll even let me call my friend, the owner of the club, cos I must be within 1,000 yards of the place. I went in. 'Hallo!' I said, quite nicely. Gent behind the desk, 'Whaddya want?' Me: 'Yes, rather, I'm lost, and --' Gent: 'I'm not from here, and I don't know where anything is, Fuck off.' Me: 'Hmmm...right, then, perhaps, please, might I use your phone --' Gent: 'This is a business phone. Maybe there's a phone at the 7-11 down the street.' Me: started to stammer an apologetic reply -- as he picked up the phone to call a tow truck to have my car towed from the car park since I wasn't there to reserve a truck! I had to run to my car, and pulled into the little flower shop car park next door. As soon as I went into the shop, visibly shaking and seemed a bit upset, the girl behind the counter said, 'Oh, my God, let me guess -- you were just at U Haul next door.' I did later ring the main office in Maryland, and they were shocked at his behaviour, and I believe investigated...but, crikey...
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#41
07-30-2003, 08:21 PM
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Ok, I am still so pissed off. So pissed off.
I've called every truck place in the greater DC area. I even called a place in Landover,MD and a place in Lorton, VA. No trucks. UHaul is still fucking me up the ass with a foot long spiked dildo. No trucks, no trucks at all. I don't know what I am going to do short of calling all the moving companies in the phone book tomorrow and having someone come here and move this all themselves. I'm going to write a strongly worded letter, but right now all I can do is sit in my room, look at all my boxes, and cry.
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#42
07-30-2003, 08:43 PM
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#43
07-30-2003, 08:59 PM
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Care to post their phone number or at least their store number? I'd be happy to make a call to the 800 number and inform Corporate that the actions of their franchise are the reason I will not be using them next month to move my mom.
hit em where it hurts, Hell I'll send them the invoice for the other company I use and show them a direct consequence!
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#44
07-30-2003, 09:19 PM
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Remember what I said about the lawsuit.
Also, I don't know how much stuff you have and how far you're going, but most car rental places usually have cargo vans and the like available as well. And since they're pretty low-demand, they're usually in-stock. I once got stuck driving one for a week after some idiot totalled my car, because it was the only thing the local Enterprise had available. It'll take a few extra trips, but it's better than nothing.
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#45
07-30-2003, 09:21 PM
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Their customer service number from their website is 1-800-789-3638
The specific store that is screwing me hard is the Merrifield Store in Falls Church, VA on Gallows Road. But I think that UHAUL Corporate is at fault. This is no fucking way to run a company. So stressed...
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#46
07-30-2003, 09:38 PM
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OpalCat and I were on the phone for well over an hour trying to find a truck for her loads on Saturday. We found one at a local chain place, Cenit Rent-A-Car. A 15' long cube van. Good luck!
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#47
07-30-2003, 09:58 PM
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Have you checked Penske? Last two times I rented a truck, it was from Penske (their website is through Budget). Beautiful new trucks, helpful, friendly people, everything ready exactly when and where it was supposed to be, no problems whatsoever. Check their website, find the local places, and start calling them. Oh, and their prices were SIGNIFICANTLY lower than ScrewUHaul.
I hope it works out! If all else fails, do you have a couple of friends with pickup trucks?
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#48
07-30-2003, 10:22 PM
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Quote:
I have had similar nightmares with UHauls in the DC area. The only helpful one I have found is up on New Hampshire Ave, about a mile or so north of the DC border. It's probably no big help, but I've had much better success in renting trailers than renting trucks. Of course, that only helps if you have access to a car with a ball hitch.... but it's something to think about. As a last ditch alternative, car rental places can often hook you up with a pickup or a minivan. More expensive than UHaul, but hey - they've got wheels. Good luck and hang in there.
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#49
07-31-2003, 02:06 AM
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Good Lord!
My GF is moving on Friday, and she rented a truck from U-Haul as well. Let's hope all goes well, although this thread certainly isn't encouraging. How the hell can they do this?? Personally, if I found out they cancelled my reservation a day before having to move without informing me, I'd hire a professional moving company and send U-Haul the bill, along with a letter stating that they'd be sued back into the stone age if they didn't pay for it. Is there anything in their fine print stating this sort of behaviour is normal?
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#50
07-31-2003, 02:17 AM
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Their "agreements" are so many pages of fine print that your rental time would be up by the time you finish reading them.
Obviously they can do it. With impunity. Or else how could they still be in business? Ah, the delights of corporate America -- all the profit and none of the responsibility!
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