Edmonton woman feels taken by online moving company

An Edmonton woman is warning others to be careful when hiring movers, saying she was hit with hidden fees by a company who held her things hostage until she paid.

“The stress of what they did. The lies, deception. It's like kidnapping,” said Dawn Dagres.

Degres hired a moving company through Kijiji last weekend. At first, she was pleased with the price – about $500.

She says that soon changed.

“It went to a $1,092 – then he added something else, then another $72. Then another two-and-a half hours or something more.”

When she argued, she says the men refused to unload her belongings until she paid. In the end, Degres said she had to hand over about $1,300 to get her possessions into her new home.

“Your life is there. What are you supposed to do?”

Degres is not the only one to be faced with a nasty surprise when it came time to pay a moving company.

Ron Mycholuk, spokesman for the Better Business Bureau, says that it’s a trap many people fall in to. He says research is one of the best tools to avoid the problem Degres faced.

“You want someone who's been around, who has some trust behind them. A lot of customers who have used them, not only once but twice or three times.

And the more information you get online is always good.”

He also advises getting terms and conditions of the move in writing and getting multiple quotes for the move.