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August 2018 by David Dewey
Recently our neighbor used Golden Gate Moving and Storage to move up near Colfax. The truck driver got stuck when he drove off the shoulder of our private road. He called a tow truck to help him get back on the pavement and in the process, damaged a tree and took out part of our corral fence. Numerous emails and calls to the so-called President of the company resulted in assurances it would be taken care of. Weeks later and he still has not gotten his insurance company to contact us. Had to turn it over to our own homeowner's insurance. I've worked with a number of moving companies and have yet to find one the is reliable and honest. This one is no exception. Would give it no stars, but that option is not available.
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August 2018 by Eric M.
We had a representative from Golden Gate (Allied Movers) come to our house and give us an estimate. The estimate was a little high but lower than most of the others. We decided to go with this company, just due to the fact, I did not want to move myself. Going from Vallejo to Fairfield 17.6 miles. We agreed on the date of August 2nd. The quote was for three movers at a rate of 176.00 an hour, and one hour for drive time. All of which was fine, and we agreed to the price. We also agreed on between 8:30 am and 9:30 am. August 2nd came and 9:45 came and no movers. We called the company and they stated they were filling up the truck in their yard in Concord. Why wouldn't you adjust your time early to make the appointment? They finally showed up at 11 am, not from Golden Gate, Not from Allied but from a third company. There were three movers total. Two of the movers were fine, and the third one Keith, was on his phone the whole time, took at least 12 smoke breaks, was having some sort of personal arguments with what appeared to be his baby's mother. Everything they came across electronics wise, they asked if we were selling, that seems a little shady to me, at this point we were behind the 8-ball and needed to go, so I ignored most of it. A good amount of the items they moved, they bitched and moaned about due to its size, all which were inventoried on the original quote. Keith majority of the time was nowhere to be found until the light stuff came into play. When he did have to lift anything heavy, he dropped items a couple of times, luckily nothing broke. We have a rather large BBQ and decided it could go through the house, to make it easier on them, we had hardwood so it wouldn't have been an issue to sweep any ash up. Keith grabbed it by the outside burner plate instead of the handle (which its designed for) and bent the burner almost 20 degrees. They finally got everything loaded and away they went. we left approx 20 minutes behind them, and when we turned one of the corners, they were all sitting on the sidewalk eating an ice cream from the local delivery guy. (which they tried to charge for time) Everything seemed to unload smoothly, again with only the two movers. after inspection of some things, we inventoried 2 missing boxes, BBQ cover was torn, and one of the Grill knobs for the propane side was missing (how does that even happen)? He knocked 30 dollars off the price due to being done earlier than anticipated. Again the main guy asked me if we were selling any of our stuff, and commented on our really fancy video security system. We called the moving company the next day, we paid for three guys and only two were used, we feel like we got ripped off. The main company Golden Gate said that they subcontracted the work, and they were sorry for the experience, but she highly doubted we would get a refund or partial, and it would not be coming from Golden Gate. My advice, pay the extra 200.00 and go with another company, I learned my lesson, and will be doing so the next time we move. If we can get a partial refund for the third guy that never did his damn job, I will be more than happy to change a star rating.
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January 2018 by Adam Gordon
I have never had my personal effects treated with such disregard in my life. Upon delivery, there were dozens of damaged items, crushed boxes, and missing items. Items had been literally dumped into boxes and sealed shut. No packing, no wrapping. GGM&S is the local Allied Affiliate for the SF Bay area. Allied undercut the estimate of two other moving companies by $3-4k but if I had to do this all over, I would have paid the extra money. To begin with, Allied couldn't get a driver assigned to our shipment so instead of my stuff being loaded on to an Allied truck, it was loaded on to some shuttles and brought back to their warehouse for storage until a driver could be located. Our delivery window came and went without a driver remaining assigned. We'd had several assigned, but the drivers backed out. The initial amount offered by Allied due to the delay to cover incidentals is a totally laughable $350. But I kept pushing and got to four figures. When the driver finally arrived nearly two weeks beyond our delivery window, many of the moving boxes had visibly been crushed. Each box opened had at least one item broken or damaged. Additionally, some items never even made it and had gotten stuck in a different warehouse. When they were finally delivered, they too, were damaged. If there was one bright spot, it's that the staff was always friendly, courteous, and willing to help. Though, I suspect that will change when I contact Allied corporate about this affiliate and the poor job by the packers.
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November 2017 by Jim D.
While the delivery came through on the last day of the promised ranges and a few items were damaged, the overall move went better than expected. My advice is to first inventory the current condition of all your possessions with the driver before any packing/loading begins. Also have several friends to help monitor the packers to ensure they don't drop things and take precautions. In addition, try to ensure your load won't be touched between the time it is loaded and the final delivery. The move coordinator was very helpful in following up to file a claim for the damages that were incurred.
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November 2017 by Tim R.
TL;DR: helpful and courteous and professional, but they lost some of my stuff for a week. I had a cross-country relocation, and used Golden Gate (as the local Allied affiliate) to move my stuff. They were willing to do a lower minimum move size than most other companies (roughly $3,500 minimum for an off-season move), and I was generally impressed by the professionalism and thoroughness of the guy (Alan) who did the initial estimate. Unlike many of the reviewers here, I had no real problems with the movers on either end: they were courteous and prompt, and generally responsive to inquiries. They picked up my stuff and dropped off my stuff when they said they would. The truck driver was involved at both ends of the trip as part of the moving crew, and it was clear that he took personal responsibility for my move. I never felt like I was at the mercy of a gigantic, faceless bureaucracy. This was nice. That said, out of 20 of my boxes (again, not a big move), two were lost. The driver was clearly disappointed, and he went out of his way to find them (in Boston!) In fact, he made a special return trip into NYC just to deliver them to me a week later, so I can't complain too much. But then again, it's not something that should have happened in the first place. Overall I'd recommend Golden Gate, but make absolutely sure that you pay for the insurance, and document *everything* -- take photos of every box you pack and write down the contents -- so that you'll know what you've lost if something does go missing.
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February 2017 by Sharon Haber
The moving agent we worked with, Allen was very helpful and responsive.
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October 2016 by Thomas Pindelski
Jeff from San Diego was the consummate professional, packing, driving from the Bay Area to Scottsdale and unpacking. Unreservedly recommended. Further the packing, loading and unloading crews at either end were superb.
