1-800-PACK-RAT Reviews

So I made sure to keep reaching out if something was explained a little differently. I was met each time with consideration and respect and was left a little less anxious after each call. Numerous representatives gave me the same info on delivery/pick up from old address and delivery/pick up from new address. The portal that PackRat makes available to their customers shows the exact final price that was given to me.

There have been no hidden charges that I see so far, and everything appears to be on the up and up. Now, Pack Rat told me that the driver will call before drop off of empty container. I have made the decision to take that day off of work. I DO NOT want to miss that phone call! It was stated to me, CLEARLY, by each representative, that because their bookings are full, the driver will move on to the next delivery if I don't answer that phone call by the 2nd try. Check your portal to make sure they have your phone number listed correctly and and any other #s they can reach you at if for some reason you might not be able to answer the primary #.

To those reading some of the negative reviews, this is the area that APPEARS to be where things could get delayed and/or pricey.... that, accompanied with, changing pickup and delivery dates after you're on their calendar already. Ok folks! Hope my review has helped those looking into long distance moving! I will reach back out mid December to let everyone know how it all concluded.

Everyone to whom we spoke--both office workers and truck drivers--was pleasant, courteous and helpful, even when we needed to change our initial delivery/pickup dates. AND, when we left a missed item in the pod, PackRat even sent someone to check out the pod days later to see if the item was still there and actually followed through by contacting me with the answer (sadly, they did not find it, but it was our fault for missing it). We had an excellent experience with them and were very pleased with their service and customer care. I recommend them!

The driver in FL was excellent as he had a great attitude and worked with me to reposition the units to where they fit perfectly in the driveway as space was tight on our street. The driver in CO didn’t have a good attitude and didn’t put the units exactly where I wanted them but it worked out fine. The units were well built, made of all steel construction. We had no damaged items upon arrival but a lot of that was due to careful packing of the unit and protection of our items with blankets. Really impressed with the customer service and fair pricing, we will definitely use them again for our next move. We were skeptical given some of the poor reviews, especially since Pack Rat is a sister company of Zippy Shell which has really bad reviews. Zippy shell was cheaper but we went with pack rat and are glad we did. Hope this helps someone.

The initial contracted fees were easy to understand and the final expense was exactly as initially agreed upon. There were no discussions of any upcharges. I used two – 16 foot long containers which held more weight than the other leading competitor. The units appeared very strong and the end swing door was very solid. Included with the move was two locks which worked perfectly with the doors. Overall, no disappoints and a solid 5 star experience.

The driver backed over our wellhead, causing 750 dollars in damage and us to be without drinking water for 24 hours in our new house. The second pod finally showed up the following day, after calling customer service AGAIN, only for them to tell us our job ticket was complete. We had to argue with the agent that half of our stuff was missing, only for them to realize that there actually was another pod on the work order. Every time I had called customer service, they wanted to confirm that they could pick up the pods on the scheduled date. How could I confirm the pick-up date if I didn't even have the pods delivered yet?!?!

I had to reschedule all of the help I had lined up for the move and inconvenience their schedules because Pack Rat couldn't communicate and keep track of our order. I submitted a claim form for the wellhead about 6 weeks ago, and I still have not heard a determination on whether or not they will pay for their damage they caused to my property. I will change my review if I get paid for the damage.

Original Review: Oct. 25, 2023

Wow Pack Rat…. They are something. When requesting a container, the service was amazing and prompt. I called on a Friday afternoon and they delivered the next morning. I needed a container to begin for a move with an unknown closing date this was in August. Now we are in October. Just after paying my 3rd months’ rent on the container (which was totally fine as it was how long the process took for us) I had now given this company over $700. Finally, we were ready to move, so I called the day I found out our closing date for both the current and new home - unfortunately it was only 5 days into the future. I know it was short notice, but it was something we could not help.

While speaking to a main rep I was told that they had nothing available the Monday we closed on my old home, and in fact nothing until the following Monday. They also informed me nothing was available prior to Monday (if I wanted to quickly pack it up). I was then connected to my local warehouse manager who repeated the same information. He told me I should have called sooner and basically what did I want him to do about it. They were overbooked already. I told him I would empty to container and to just come get it. He said that would still be that Monday at the earliest (10 days in the future). I asked to be connected to billing as I just paid another $243 for this month’s rent for a container I could no longer use. He said sure he would connect me, but they don’t offer refunds. I was upset to say the least and said I would call back as I had no desire to speak to anyone at that point.

I then had to text the new owner and ask if I could keep a useless container in his single car driveway for a week. He was very accommodating and understood this was an unforeseen issue. My wife called back later that day to see if there was anything that could be done (which there wasn’t), but before locking in the date a week after closing (10-23) the main operator said let me see if the local manager can do anything. She tried to reach him, but no answer, so she said she would have him call my wife back. He never did.

Later that night I attempted to just lock in the date (10/23) on their website which was now booked for the day. I now had to select to the next day. I did call the next morning and again spoke to main hub, who said that yes, the earliest date is now 8 days after my closing (12 after initially requesting a pickup). I inquired why the local manager did not call us back. There was not any solid answer. I essentially felt at this point if I was anything less than accepting of what they would offer me I would never get this thing picked up. I locked in the day 8 days post-closing and happily agreed to pay a $52 removal fee. I rented a U-Hall and emptied the container into truck along with the rest of my house and moved on Monday the 16th.

Fast forward to the Tues Oct 24th (Pickup Day) after getting a call the day before confirming a pickup time between 330-5pm I text the new owner and asked if he could not park in his driveway during that time so they could come get it which he was fine with. At 6pm the day of the pickup I again text new owner to make sure all went well. Guess what??? it did not. The Container was still there.

Time for yet another reach out. I called local number, and no one answered. I called main line and the system asked if I wanted a call back when rep was available, so I said yes. 15 minutes later I got a call back at which time I was placed on hold for over 20 mins before a human spoke to me. He could see the notes that said driver ran out of time for a pickup, but nothing about a reschedule. He seemed surprised no one reached out to me. He called local manager and was told it would be picked up by 9am the next day, but I would get a call beforehand. I never received a call, but I was able to confirm from a family member driving by my old home that the container is indeed gone. Kudos to the worst service possible.

Now if you would like to agree with local manager that said, "Like a plane gets booked so do we and you should have called sooner". I would counter with why? They still didn’t come when they were supposed to. If I had changed my closing to the 1st date available for Pack Rat to pick up and drop off my Container (A move 1.8 miles in total distance). If I had asked all parties - buyers, sellers, lawyers, and banks to use the date the storage bin company can move our stuff – (literally their sole function) they still would have failed because they did not come the day they were supposed to.

I would not have had all the essential items I would have needed to sit, sleep, eat, and just live on because it still would have been sitting on the new owner’s driveway. No one called to explain what happened. No one offered any sort of compensation. Honestly, I truly believe if I even raised a complaint, they would still not have picked this thing up. I could not think of a worse company to use, and I recommend any other option available to you it must be better. They are the worst.

The second and third pods went a lot smoother. After getting all 3 pods filled, they were transported to Utah. I scheduled delivery for October 12th. On Oct 11th I called customer service to ask what time I could expect the delivery. I was informed that not every facility gives you a window. I was told I would get call 1 hour before delivery. Well Thursday Oct. 12th 9AM, I hear a truck pull up in front of my house and honk. My husband had to go out and rearrange cars, so the pods could be set in the driveway due to our HOA. While backing the first pod into the driveway the driver hit our tree and took down a pretty large branch.

My husband informed the driver it wasn't a big deal, and the branch was hanging low. We asked the driver when we could expect the 2nd pod. He said he had some stuff to do, and he would be back. Around 2 PM he returned the same way, no call and a honk when he arrived. I then scheduled the pickup of both empty containers for Oct. 16th, by calling customer service. I advised the operator of the no call to let me know when they were coming, and the honking. I asked if he would note my account to please call 1 hour before arrival. 8:45AM Oct. 16 the same driver shows up to pick up the empty pods. The driver backs up and starts to load the pod. As he is bringing the pod back to the truck, the pod gets stuck on a tree branch. It very well could have been pushed up and then it would have been fine. Except the driver showed no regard that the pod was causing the limb to break.

The driver gets the pod on the truck and acts like nothing happened. I asked why he didn't stop and let me move the branch? He proceeded to say, " It's your husband's fault for not being there to help him". I very well could have helped him. The driver then said, "Your husband said it was no big deal to break the tree." I told him it was not a big deal the other day as the branch was hanging low. However, it is a big deal today as now the tree is very bare on one side. The driver proceeded to talk very loud at me. I had HVAC guys at my house and, even they said, "what the heck is this guy think he is doing, and who does he think is talking to a customer like that". It was VERY unprofessional and a very poor example of customer service.

The driver then said "When he returned with my last pod, he was going to set in in the street". This statement made me so mad as we have an HOA and NO parking on my side of the street. I went inside and tried to call customer service. I spent 47 minutes on the phone talking to a representative, and being transferred to a supervisor, that I never talked to. I hung up and called back to spend another 13 minutes on the phone without talking to a supervisor. I called back and 54 min to get the same result. I called back again and spent another 27 min on the phone. This time I told the representative I didn't want to be transferred. She informed she didn't have a supervisor available. She would email them and have someone call me back today.

When the driver showed up at 1:30PM, again with no call. He said nothing to me, put the 3rd pod in the driveway and took the 2nd empty one. I finally received a call from a supervisor at 5:30PM. The supervisor said if I wanted to file a for the broken tree, he could get the paperwork to my landlord as we are renting. He then told me he could compensate me $100 for the situation. This to me seems like an insult. I feel like none of this should have ever happened. I would not recommend Pack Rat for your moving needs, especially the Utah location.

So it was a huge surprise to me when on October 1st, my debit card was charged $312.10, which I assume to be October rent. I of course called and the response would be absolutely laughable if it wasn't for my frustration of their logic...so these are their "two" explanations that both end with "the payment is valid and will remain."

1. Supervisor Tammy stated that I would only be responsible for October rent if the container was returned un-emptied, and that I asked on several occasions during the phone call that I would not have to pay October rent and Supervisor Tammy assured me I wouldn't. This is not in dispute, as the call was recorded.

2. We both agree this last payment was an October payment...but, I'm beginning to believe, since they take payments out on the last day of the month, it was an August payment and they don't want to fess up on that my 1st month wasn't waived...I don't care, as long as I get my refund!

So the 1st scenario played out like this: My payment on August 31st was for August, and this payment was for September, October will be paid on October 31st if the container comes back un-emptied, so "payment is valid and will remain."

Well, hold on... In my agreement with 1-800-PACK-RAT the 1st month was waived, was that not the case? Was our agreement not held up as per my contract? Hmmmm... So the 2nd scenario played out like this: Container was dropped off on July 31st and the fee was waived until August 30th, and on August 31st you were charged and yes, that was for September rent, the $312.10 just debited from your account was for October 1st - 31st "payment is valid and will remain." WHAT???

Now, I may not be seeing something, but the calls are recorded on their part, I filed a dispute with Bank of America, the Better Business Bureau, and Call To Action (local TV channel). I hope this company will do better...soon!