American Van Lines Reviews 328

First off, I want to say that the movers themselves were excellent—professional and efficient at both pickup and delivery. Unfortunately, my experience with American Van Lines’ customer service was another story.

Emails and voicemails went unanswered, and phone calls were hit-or-miss. Finding someone who genuinely cared about helping was difficult, and at one point, an agent accidentally left me off hold so I could hear her chatting about personal matters with a coworker.

My move was from Seattle to Georgia. Pickup did not happen on the scheduled date. For delivery, I had requested one month of storage with a delivery date of July 28, 2025. That day came and went with no call from the company. On July 29, I had to contact multiple agents before learning—only then—that I needed to fill out a form to release my items from storage. No one had explained this beforehand.

My belongings didn’t arrive until August 8—nine days late. In the meantime, I also received a bill of lading with an incorrect balance, which took several more calls to correct.

In the end, I was billed properly, but the process was unnecessarily frustrating. While the movers were great, American Van Lines’ customer service made this experience far more stressful than it needed to be.

1 star – Be Aware - Absolutely Unacceptable Experience!

I hired this company to move my condo based on what I thought was a professional, flat-fee service. The sales rep, came to my apartment for an on-site survey and confirmed the full list of items, including all the essential appliances like my refrigerator, range, dishwasher, microwave, washer and dryer. These were clearly listed in the signed contract and inventory.

On moving day, the truck arrived four hours late, and the driver immediately told me he wouldn’t be delivering the appliances unless I paid extra, despite the fact that I had a flat-rate contract. He claimed he was only being paid by the company for 4.5 hours of labor and said delivering everything would require an extra 1.5 hours, which I’d need to pay for out of pocket. When I refused to be extorted, he refused to deliver my appliances.

I spent nearly a week trying to get a response from anyone at the company. Calls to their main office line, direct lines to several representatives and to the rep's cell who set it all up, were ignored. Zero accountability.

Finally I had to hire a different moving company to finish the job at my own expense, and lost another full day of work in the process.

Bottom line: This company broke its contract, extorted me, ghosted me, and left me with massive inconvenience and extra cost.
It is highly advised to avoid them at all costs!!!

BEWARE!!!
If you have experienced deceptive or unethical practices by American Van Lines, you are encouraged to file a complaint with the Florida Attorney General's Office.
American Van Lines has engaged in practices that we believe are unlawful and in violation of consumer protection laws, including but not limited to:
* Issuing low initial estimates and dramatically increasing charges upon delivery ("lowball and upcharge" tactics);
* Holding personal property hostage until excessive fees are paid;
* Failing to deliver goods as agreed, and refusing to provide clear information on the location of undelivered items.
Summary of Our Experience:
In March 2025, we entered into a binding agreement with American Van Lines and paid a substantial deposit. We were instructed to provide 7-10 days' notice before pickup. We contacted the company three weeks in advance to update our inventory list. Despite repeated calls, no one responded until five days before our move-out date, when we were hastily given just 2 hours to approve the updated list--an unreasonable and unacceptable timeline.
The company ultimately refused to pick up all of our belongings, citing an increase in items in the garage, and failed to meet the agreed possession date required by our home sale. We were forced to make costly last-minute arrangements to store and move the remainder of our household ourselves.
On June 6, 2025, American Van Lines arrived to pick up our belongings and demanded an additional payment, which they later could not provide me with that amount off the balance due. Since that date, we have made daily calls with no resolution.
As of June 19, 2025, we have not received confirmation that our belongings would arrive by the scheduled delivery date of June 22. On June 26th they called @7PM with out their 24 hour notice period and on the 27th, only a third of our shipment was delivered, and over 50% of that was damaged. Despite this, AVL demanded full payment. Per the driver on 6-27, he told AVL that he did not have all of our items but AVL did not notify us that it was a partial delivery, and demanded payment in full, once they did show up most of the Items arrived broken, missing parts, or improperly packed. For example, 2 - custom computer were thrown into boxes without the proper packing, a laptop tossed into the bottom of the same LARGE 100lb box, a glass vase, and pictures was thrown into a box without wrapping, and beds were delivered without legs, remotes, or power cords--rendering them unusable.
Worse, documents we signed were altered post-signature to support the increased charges. This is a serious violation.
As of July 26, 2025, we still have not received all of our items, and American Van Lines cannot or will not confirm their location. One representative claimed the items were in Colorado, while a company executive later stated they were in Wyoming. We have video evidence from a driver showing the conditions and manner in which our property was stored--unprofessional and possibly unsafe.
July 5, 2025 - Ongoing Damages and Business Disruption
On July 5, 2025, we received another partial delivery of our belongings. Once again, a significant portion of the items were damaged, many beyond repair. The continued mishandling of our property by American Van Lines has not only resulted in personal loss but has also severely disrupted our business operations and my professional responsibilities.
To date, American Van Lines has refused to acknowledge or offer solutions for the clearly inadequate and careless custom packing performed on June 6, 2025, in Utah. Despite paying for this premium service, items were packed improperly, often without necessary protection or labeling, leading to widespread damage.
The lack of accountability, repeated delays, and failure to communicate or rectify the situation have substantially hindered our ability to conduct business and perform essential job functions, causing both financial and reputational harm.

Consumer Warning:
We strongly advise against using American Van Lines. Based on our experience, this company is disorganized, unaccountable, and exhibits a lack of transparency and internal controls. If you are considering a move, we urge you to thoroughly research all options and avoid this company preventing a similar outcome.
Buyer BEWARE!

The move was fast and efficient, however communication was lacking for when the truck was to arrive. Once they came to load up, we had everything delivered within 24 hours which was totally unexpected but very much appreciated.

We used American Van Lines to pack our belongings and move from VA to NC. First impressions…they had their act together. The initial call, the virtual walk through, the price and the sales person made me feel like we made the right decision. Even when I had to change my packing/moving date, no issues. A few days before the move, they sent the inventory list from the virtual walk through and there were things missing. Of course, now they want more money which I had to pay half or they wouldn’t come for the move. Then moving day…4 guys show up, lead guy spoke English, the rest did not. From the get go, I could tell they only wanted to get in and out with little regard to our belongings. No labeling of boxes, stuff just thrown in boxes, belongings getting crushed by the weight of stuff thrown on top and no consideration for anything fragile. To make things worst, the lead guy left mid day so there was no way to communicate with the three that were left to finish. Surprisingly, it does appear everything made it to the destination but not all in one piece, however, the morning they were supposed to deliver, the driver called and said they forgot to collect the rest of the payment and that they would not deliver until payment was made which was on the weekend so you can imagine how difficult it was to get somebody to make a payment, but was finally able to get someone. Handmade Christmas ornaments got broken, business suits stuffed in boxes(even when we paid for wardrobe boxes) and really there are too many things to list that will not be usable again. If you need a moving company to pack and move your belongings, I strongly advise you to not use American Van Lines, but if you do, pack your own stuff if you want to be able to use it again.

Efficient Careful Move

Customer service & diligence with team leader.

This is my second move from Maryland to Florida with American Van Lines. They get the job done … nothing broken either.

Terry and crew. Very courteous and professional.

Great driver and mover! Really pleasant experience.

Omar, our van driver, came to our home located at 7000' in Sequoia National Monument. Loaded up and delivered on time and undamaged. Exceptional service

Packing was excellent. Delivery on time. Polite, Competent Employees.

I would never recommend American Van Lines. I was reassured multiple times prior to my move that everything would go smoothly and that my items would be picked up without issue. On moving day, the crew arrived and immediately told me that many of my belongings either wouldn’t fit or couldn’t be taken—despite me providing accurate inventory in advance. I was left scrambling last-minute to figure out what to do with essential items, and no one at the company took accountability for the miscommunication.

What made the experience even worse was the complete lack of support after things went wrong. I was met with indifference and no meaningful attempt to resolve the situation. The emotional and financial stress this caused was overwhelming. I regret ever choosing this company and strongly advise others to look elsewhere for a reliable mover.

After I posted my review, I was contacted by at American Van Lines. Her initial response was a generic, form-like message that failed to address any of my specific concerns or offer meaningful resolutions. When I pointed this out, I received a slightly more personalized response—but still without any effort to actually resolve the situation. At that point, I chose to stop engaging in the back-and-forth.

About a month later, I received a phone call from AVL. The real purpose of the call became clear—they wanted me to revise my review and asked what it would take to make that happen. I was initially open to updating it to acknowledge that someone had reached out, but I made it clear I would not remove or alter the truth of what I had written. They then offered me $350.

It was my understanding that I would add a note to my review stating they made an effort to address my concerns, though I told them it felt like they were trying to buy a better review. At the end of the call, however, Theresa casually mentioned that I would need to sign a release, update my review and rating, and only then would they send the check.

After reading the release, I was deeply uncomfortable—it essentially required me to remain silent about my experience and threatened legal consequences if I spoke out or posted publicly. I emailed Theresa to inform her I would no longer be moving forward with signing the release or accepting the payment.

This experience raised serious concerns for me. I now wonder how many of AVL’s positive ratings are the result of similar payouts tied to silence agreements and coerced review updates. It feels dishonest, manipulative, and misleading to other consumers.

If I could give them a -10 I would. They came a day early to pick up with no notice on June 11. It is now July 7 and we still don't have our belongings. They put them in storage without our knowledge and now giving us the runaround trying to get them delivered. They have not shown up when promised. No one calls you back or answers the phone.
We have called a minimum of 15 times leaving messages with no return calls. The 5 times we got through promises were made either they would call us back ar they gave us a delivery date and time and no one showed up. We spoke to a Terry, Kimberly a few times Deanna. All very nice but read from the same script. Finally on July 7th we spoke to Kimberly again who assured us that our delivery was coming between 12 and 12;30 .and she would call us at 12;30 to check. No call.came but delivery person Zach called to.say he was on his way. Zach and John were wonderful, but they are contractors. It turns out American Van Lines are brokers not movers.
If we did not fight with them we would have been charged an additional 2552.00 for storage that we did not contact for. They held our things until the last minute
STAY FAR WAY!!!!

BEWARE – DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY! GET INSURANCE (Not Theirs!)
I strongly advise against using American Van Lines. This company is completely disorganized, unresponsive, and lacks any clear internal process. No employee could ever explain what was happening with my move. Calls were rarely returned, and I was constantly transferred between departments, none of which seemed to have any information. You're lucky if you ever see your belongings again.
In March 2025, I signed a contract with American Van Lines and paid a substantial deposit. I was told I needed to give 7–10 days' notice for pickup and delivery. I called three weeks in advance to update my inventory list, knowing it would be different from the original. I was told someone would reach out to me within two days — that never happened. I had to call back myself, and five days before we were due to move out of our sold home, I finally received a list to review. They gave me just 2 hours to respond. Completely unacceptable.
I sent what I could and told them the list would need to be finalized the next morning since they failed to provide enough notice. After that, there was no contact until three days before our move-out date, at which point they told us they couldn’t pick up our items because there was “too much” added in the garage and they wouldn’t be able to meet the possession deadline on our home sale. We had to scramble and make alternate arrangements for everything they refused to take.
Though they finally showed up on June 9th, it was not a standard COD (Cash on Delivery) experience. They demanded another large payment at pickup, which they later claimed was “lost.” Fortunately, we had paid with credit cards, or we might never have had proof of payment.
Since arriving at our new home, I’ve called every single day trying to resolve the missing payment issue. As of today (June 19, 2025), I’m still waiting for confirmation that our items will be delivered by the scheduled date of June 22. I have zero confidence they will meet it.
June 19 a manger gave me a call and wanted to resolve the issues, Quote from the email” Thank you for taking the time to speak with me today. I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience the delay may have caused. We truly appreciate your patience and understanding.
To help make up for the delay, we will be providing compensation. Additionally, I’ve attached your last two signed estimates for your records.
Please send over any out-of-pocket expenses you’ve incurred so we can review them as part of the compensation process.
I will also be giving you a call tomorrow to follow up and ensure everything is on track. In the meantime, if you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to reach out.” From the Customer Service Assistant Manager, they waited until closing on Friday to send and email that I did not respond to them that is why they did not call. Another diversion and smoke and mirrors.
Compensation? A measly $30 per day. That barely covers a fraction of the cost and stress we’ve endured.

You think you are hiring professional movers, but these are day laborers with a rental truck. They were 3 days late (!) and when they did show up, it just got worse and worse. Poor communication, damage to the house, haphazard packing, ruined items.

They were great when they sold you the contract, then they stopped caring about anything and were impossible to get a hold of. The men are hirelings and not professional movers. The worst experience from any company I can ever remember.

6/13/2025 - UPDATED TO SHARE AMICABLE RESOLUTION:

After I posted my original review, I received a phone call from Theresa, a customer service representative with American Van Lines. After sharing my experiences with her, she apologized profusely for our troubles and spoke with management. They agreed to refund half of the extra money that we paid. In addition, they promised that customer service training, especially in the area of returning phone calls and emails, would take place. I am writing this update to point out that while I have seen many bad reviews and even written a few, I have never had a company step up accept responsibility, and try to make amends. This apologetic attitude and willingness to make it right have made me decide that if I do need to schedule another move, I will certainly give American Van Lines another shot. Very few companies these days are willing to extend an olive branch and make any sort of move towards pleasing their customers. American Van Lines wins my vote even with the bad experience because they tried to do what was right and that is very rare indeed!

Whatever you do, steer clear of American Van Lines if you're moving. If I could give them zero stars, I would. I selected American Van Lines to help my daughter move back to our area because my husband is ill and I need help with his care. I read many reviews and made my selection based on both price and the great reviews and thought that I was choosing a good company to assist with the move. I could not have been more wrong! It started off well enough with a decent quote and I felt they weren't nickel and diming us to death. As we got closer to the move date, I updated them several times with a new itemization list to ensure we were being charged correctly but never got new confirmations. I also noticed that I was having trouble getting anyone on the phone to confirm the actual date of pickup for the household goods. About a week before the move, I was getting a little frantic as I could not seem to get anyone to actually pin down a day that the movers would be there. I don't think it would have been so much of a problem if we had not had so many moving parts. I was flying in to assist with the move and had very specific dates for both the flights and the hotels. When we finally arrived on the actual move date, I didn't hear so much as a peep out of American Van Lines. I called them 11 times the day before to try and get confirmation of the time for our household goods pick up. I even tried to get a manager on the phone with no success. I got off the plane, met my daughter in the airport pickup, and we went to have a quick dinner. After dinner, we still had not heard anything from American so I went to check into my hotel hoping to resolve the issue the next day. As I was checking into the hotel, I got a phone call from the driver of the truck saying he was on the way to pick up our household goods. He said he would be there within 20 minutes but we waited more than an hour. The truck that finally arrived was not marked as American Van Lines and the driver did not have the correct itemization of goods nor did he have any idea that he was to pack several TVs and glass tables even though I was specific about those items on the original itemization. By the time we got back to the hotel it was almost 11:00 at night. If that had been all that went wrong, I would not be writing this review. However, when we got to our destination, a completely different moving line showed up with our household goods. Instead of American Van Lines, it was United Van Lines. The gentleman delivering our furniture seemed completely unaware of what was going on and could not provide any answers. He also did not have a correct itemization of goods and we ended up having to pay more than $700 extra. The paperwork he showed me did not match what I had signed and several of the furniture items were broken. At the end of the day, we did not try to file a complaint with American as I feel a lack of decent customer service and complete lack of communication are indicative of a serious company-wide breakdown. Although I spoke to a "manager" at one point, it seems our complaints and concerns were brushed away and ignored. We never did receive the promised managerial call back and we felt we were deceived. Once they have your money, they don't seem to care.

Would NEVER use this company again. My move was scheduled to take place Thursday May 29th 2025 (pick up) with delivery taking place on Friday May 30th 2025. I called the customer service line on Wednesday to find out the pick up time for Thursday as I had not heard anything from them up to that point. I also wanted to let them know that I would be using a different payment method than I did for my initial deposit. The wait times on hold are ridiculous- I was disconnected twice after someone picked up. I called a third time and was finally given a pick up time frame between 12 & 2pm on Thursday. The movers arrived at 2pm as of Thursday - no issues there. I asked the driver what time my items would be delivered to my new storage unit on Friday and he told me 12. I headed over to the new storage unit by that time and at 12:15 I called customer service for an ETA. They told me between 12 & 2pm and that they would call me when they were 30min away. 2:30pm rolled around and still no phone call. I called customer service and was told they are in route but unable to provide an ETA at that time and that I would receive a phone call once one was determined. 3:30pm rolled around with no call back. I called customer service again twice - it took so long both times to get a customer service rep on the line that an automated message told me to leave a voice mail. I finally got a hold of someone at 4:00 who told me that the driver had an emergency and wouldn’t be delivering my items until Saturday May 31st. He told me the delivery would take place between 8 & 10am. As I was speaking with this representative, another one called me - beeping in - to let me know about the emergency and that my items would be delivered on Saturday May 31st between 11am & 1pm. I had her verify the time since I was given two different time frames - she confirmed it was 11-1. Saturday I called customer service at 11:15 to confirm we were still on track for delivery, and was told that the driver wasn’t able to make it and that my items would be delivered Monday June 2, 2025 between 11am & 1pm. The supervisor I spoke with told me she gets in after 8am in Monday and would call me that morning to confirm, but I never received a phone call. I called customer service at 8:30am and was on hold for a long time- finally I was told we were still on track for delivery today during 11am and 1pm but that I would receive a call back by 10am with a confirmation as the warehouse manager was still figuring things out. I asked if I could speak with the warehouse manager and I was told that they “do not speak with customers”. I did not receive a call back so had to call customer service back again. Was on hold for a long time once connected and then was told that they don’t have an ETA because they “are trying to find a driver”. Still no resolution.

UPDATE 06/08/26
As of 4:00pm on Monday I was able to get a hold of the original supervisor that I had been expecting a phone call from and she told me that there was an issue with the truck and the movers would not be there that day - she told me they should be delivering my items the following day (Tuesday June 3rd). The movers reached out to me themselves on Tuesday morning letting me know that they were in route and would be at my storage unit between 12:pm and 2:00pm. A little while later, Theresa from American Van Lines, called me to discuss my experience so that we could come to an amicable resolution. I talked with her in-depth about my frustrations and concerns with the experience, and that we would talk further once my delivery was made. My movers arrived at 1:30pm. The movers themselves were wonderful. All of my items arrived safely and with care. They also took extra care while unloading into my storage unit to ensure I had access to certain items if needed while they were being stored. Theresa and I further talked post-delivery. She validated my concerns and my experience, and we were able to arrive at an amicable resolution.

I normally do not do “bad” reviews, but in this case, I will make an exception. We hired AVL to make our move earlier this month from Acworth, GA to Little Egg Harbor, NJ. The process started out great and Warren, the sales representative, was great. The problem began immediately upon the movers showing up. First, they had no packing material because they were told we would pack everything. I have moved about 7 times and NEVER have I packed everything in my house. They had to leave mid-packing to go get packing material. Then amazingly after packing about 1/3 of the truck, they announced the stuff in our garage had not been added to the original invoice. From day one they new we had a 4 bdrm, 2 ½ bath, 2-car garage. The next thing I know is I’m being up charged $2700. When I told them I was not going to pay that, the “blackmail” scheme came in. I was then told if I don’t sign the new invoice and pay the additional cost, they would have to tell the movers to stop! So, after waiting for over a month for the move, and having to be out of our home in a few days, they have you by the balls basically. So, I very reluctantly paid the extra $2700.
Next came the “massive scam.” The truck they sent was not large enough to carry all my belongings! But the worse part of it was they drove away leaving about a third of my stuff there and telling me I had to pay for another moving truck!! When I talked to their management, they kept stating “you paid for exclusive use of a 26’ truck!” I said, “No, I paid for American Van Lines to move me. I had no idea what size truck I would be need, that was your job to assess.” Then I was told by Rosa, “I would have to pay them for another move, or move the rest myself!!! Who does that to a customer?
Luckily, I found a mover heading from Florida to NJ and passing through Georgia the next day. However, I had to pay an additional $3900 for that mover. By the way that moving company (Payless Moving) was great and extremely reputable! Their contact information – PaylessMovingSJ.com (856) 784-3077.
So, I say all this just to warn others who may be looking at using American Van Lines. They are basically cons and money grabbers. Using a up charges and blackmail to get you to pay more than the original quote because they have you by the balls when you are in the middle of a move!! My advice, avoid AVL completely if you don’t want to be ripped off!!

The workers were very helpful, obviously knew their job, very organized!!
Unlike previous movers I’ve used, they treated my furniture with care as if it was their own.
I will use them, if necessary in the future, and will highly recommend them.
This goes for the movers and the office staff—all very efficient.
Thanks so much.