Fantastic Services review: Moving services and end of tenancy cleaning - terrible service, fraudulent quote, failure to perform contract, damage, intimidating behaviour

Dear Sir/Madam,

I would like to complain about the work Fantastic Services provided to myself and my partner on 10 October. I would also like to request a refund. Our reference number is 2309111052SYS. We have already complained over the phone and via email. However, we have not heard anything back to date. I have provided a full account of our experience below. Fantastic Services is in clear breach of contract and should provide an appropriate refund.

1. Our entire customer experience was awful. The work was quoted to be finished at 7pm on Tuesday, 10 October. It was only part finished (with much lifting and moving on mine and my partners part) by 1:30am. This is the result of negligent and poorly organised staff. We had sent through a very detailed video of our flat and all the property to be moved. We also provided a full and complete itinerary of items to be moved. As such, the quote provided at the outset should have been accurate. There were no delays with parking at either residence. Instead, the delays were due to a lack of efficiency and organisation and the fact the team started an hour and a half late. Added to this, it appeared that the first team deliberately went slowly, knowing that they could get us to agree to pay them more once they had applied sufficient duress.

2. If performed correctly and in an organised manner, the packing, moving, and unloading/unpacking should have been finished within the allotted time (9am to 7pm). However, the team turned up over an hour and a half late, took excessive breaks, and did not work in an organised or competent manner, as one my reasonably expect from a £1300 per-day moving company.

3. £308 was illegally taken from our account on 11 October. This amount was not consented to. An invoice has not been provided, nor has an explanation. We suspect that this amount was charged for the hours the additional team spent finishing the job that the first team abandoned. Any agreement to pay additional charges on our behalf was obtained under duress. It does not constitute a valid contract.

4. The team arrived at Hadley Highstone (EN5 4PY) to collect the first 8 small boxes 1.5 hours later than quoted. They then arrived at Willes Road (NW5 3DN) at approx. 11:30am. I have a time-stamped photo on my phone establishing this late arrival time. To have stood a chance of finishing the work in accordance with the quote, they should have been to Willes Road by 10am.

5. The fact they were so late to Hadley Highstone (EN5 4PY) in was due to the team not leaving in time sufficient time. On arrival to Willes Road the Team Lead complained about the traffic, which did not make any sense. This time must have been factored into the quote. There was nothing unusual on the roads that day, so why a team from South-West London was selected to do the North-London based job in the first place is a mystery. Presumably someone should have given some thought to this logistical issue.

6. On arrival, the moving team personally assured me that they would have the job done “no problem” within the agreed time. They looked in each room, observed the work they needed to do and confirmed again they would be fine.

7. The team proceeded to pack exceptionally slowly. They did not tackle the bigger jobs of disassembling the bed, wardrobe, and table first. If this had been done first, they could then have packed the boxes around them. However, on reflection, it seems these were left until last so that they could hold these items at ransom for additional pay.

8. As an example of the teams’ negligence, they had turned the gas hobs on in the kitchen. I was in the opposite end of the flat but could smell it. I went to the kitchen to see what was going on and it was so thick that you could taste it in the air. The hobs were clearly on, so I turned them off. Opened the windows and advised the team to give it 5 minutes to let it clear. If I had not been there, then I honestly think there could have been an explosion.

9. At 2pm, the Team Leader asked me if I had any boxes as they had run out. The reason for this is that they brought 20 x large boxes and 20 x small boxes. The job that we paid for required 20 x large boxes and 20 x MEDIUM boxes. As such, I stopped working (I was working from home) and walked to Kentish Town Road to purchase three large boxes and two medium boxes for the team. I paid £33.95 for these items. Please see receipt attached. I would like this money to be refunded to me as the contract clearly states that Fantastic Services covers all moving materials.

10. At 3:10pm, the moving van had still not been loaded. I approached the Team Lead and reminded him that the cleaning team were due at 4pm. I asked if he could get everything done and if he needed my help. Again, he told me everything would be done “no problems”. I asked him if he could clear the kitchen and bathroom first, as per Fantastic Services recommendations. If I had not requested that he did this, I am in no doubt that it would not have been done and the cleaning team would not have been able to get into the bathroom or kitchen. Why were they so poorly organised?

11. The cleaning team arrived at 4:50pm. This was almost an hour later than quoted. Despite this meaning that I had to wait at Willes Road until they finished at 6:20pm, this did at least allow some extra time for the movers to clear the kitchen. However, they had not cleared the bathroom by the time the cleaners arrived. I had to do this myself.

12. For the last hour of the loading process, I helped carrying numerous boxes and furniture. The team continued to work without any sense of time or urgency, despite knowing they were only contracted until 7pm. Again, this suggests they were either a) deliberately going slowly so that we would need to pay them extra or b) they were completely negligent in their approach to the job, falling way below standards reasonably expected.

13. At 5pm, the moving team had loaded the van two-thirds full. I have a timestamped photo on my phone of this. This image establishes that there was sufficient room for the bed, wardrobe, table, and numerous other items to have been packed in the van.

14. The team assured me they would be back for the larger items (bed, wardrobe, and desk) after they had unloaded what was already in the van at the new property in Dartmouth Park.

15. At 5:10pm, the team told me they needed to take a lunch break. They assured me that it would take no more than 20 minutes. It should be noted at this point that the team had numerous breaks for food, drink, and cigarettes, throughout the afternoon day.

16. The team did not arrive at Dartmouth Park until 6:10pm. A full hour after they departed. This is despite the fact it is an 8-minute drive and there are numerous food shops on the way up where they could have purchased lunch and taken a 20-minute break.

17. On arrival at Dartmouth Park, the team was able to park easily, right next to the entrance of the house. However, with only 50 minutes of the allotted time remaining, and with most larger items at Willes Road, they told my partner (who was at the new flat by herself) that they would not go back to Willes Road.

18. Two members of the team (the Team Lead and the Weightlifter) laughed in my partners face. They were rude, bullying, and intimidating. They told my partner that they had informed head office they could no longer do the job. They even stopped unloading the van for a period of time at this point.

19. I arrived at the new house in Dartmouth Park at approximately 6:55pm. I had walked up to the property after the cleaners finished. I asked the team what was going on, and why they were no longer going back to Willes Road, and why they had stopped working temporarily. I was met with anger and aggression. In particular from the large weightlifting staff member. Fantastic Services has since emailed us to explain that this team member was having a bad day – as if that should be acceptable.

20. On my arrival at Dartmouth Park, the Team Leader blamed Fantastic Services for giving them the job in the first place and said they weren’t able to do it. We explained that we needed the job finished as our bed and other property were still at Willes Road and we needed to be clear of the property and had nowhere to sleep.

21. My partner, Bridey received a call from “George” in Fantastic Services head office. George said he would send a second team. We protested the need to send another team and the additional costs that George alluded to. However, we agreed because we had absolutely no choice. The other option was to nowhere to sleep and have no means of moving the rest of our belongings to our new flat within the next 18 hours.

22. I helped the moving team for about 30 mins from 6:55 to 7:15pm. This greatly sped up their slow and disorganised progress. We got all of the items in the flat by 7:25pm, at which point the team said they would work no more. They had not worked the 8-hour day that we had paid for at this time.

23. At 7:15pm, the Team Lead informed me he’d forgotten his jacket and phone charger at Willes Road. As such, I walked back to get them for him. Despite being on foot, I still made it to the property ahead of the three men in a van. They had stopped again for food and refreshments at the Co-op on Junction Road on the way down (meanwhile, I had not eaten since 10am). This slow and time-wasting approach to their work had continued the entire day.

24. I waited at Willes Road until 9pm for the two additional members of Fantastic Services to turn up. This team were far more organised and much more customer service orientated. They worked well to disassemble the furniture the first team were too lazy to attempt. With my help, we got the new van packed and unloaded at Dartmouth Park Hill by 11pm.

25. Going back to the property to finish the moving job that the original team negligently failed meant that the property needed to be cleaned again the following day. In addition to that, charging £202 for a 1.5 hour cleaning service performed by two people with lightweight equipment is exorbitant. The small, travel-sized vacuum cleaner they brought was not up to the job.

26. The cleaning team did not do a thorough job when cleaning any of the surfaces. We needed to scrub them all the next day. We should be refunded appropriately for this element of the work we paid for.

27. If the original moving team could not complete the job within the set timeframe, they should have alerted us straight away. Failing that, within a couple of hours of being at our property it should have been apparent to any reasonably skilled moving team that they would need to work faster or let us know they would need help. They did not do this. I specifically asked the Team Leader at 3:10pm if they could do the job as agreed and reminded him that the cleaning team were due to arrive at 4pm. He assured me at that time (as he had throughout the morning) that they would be fine. On this point, it should be noted that the second team were very clear in their belief that the work should have been completed on time. They were very critical of the approach and behaviour of the original team.

28. The moving team did not unpack a single item in the new flat. The arrangement was for both packing and unpacking. This was not done at all. We should not be paying for this service as it was not received.

29. Damage to walls: The movers damaged the walls at Willes Road on moving the furniture out. They then scratched and damaged the walls in Dartmouth Park Hill upon moving items in. Our ground floor neighbour had to tell them to behave and be more careful at around 6:30pm. Please note that if my letting agent seeks to recover any monies for damage to either property from me then I will be following up with you about this separately.

30. Damage to property: The movers dropped and threw several boxes in anger upon arrival at Dartmouth Park Hill. We are still assessing the damage at present. One item dropped due to negligent carrying was a £250 record player.

I like the £308 to be returned immediately. This was taken illegally. Additional hours worked were agreed to under duress and despite our protestation. In addition to that, I am also seeking damages resulting from the abuse directed to my girlfriend, the damage done to property, and the fact that we had to re-clean Willes Road, and do so much of the loading and unloading and the entirety of the unpacking ourselves. For this, I consider 50% of the £1,304 fee that we paid to be a reasonable amount. This comes to £652.

Therefore, the total refund I am seeking is £993.95. By way of a breakdown, this covers the £308 additional fee obtained under duress, £33.95 for packing materials I had to purchase, and a 50% return of the fee we paid due to works not being completed. I would also like you to confirm that our membership of Fantastic Services has been cancelled. We have requested confirmation of this in clear and unequivocal terms on numerous occasions, but no one has confirmed this has been done.

Please do be advised that if we cannot resolve this dispute amicably, I will take the matter up with Citizens Advice and London Trading Standards. I am very concerned about the way you operate and feel that others need to be informed.

I hope to hear from someone at your earliest convenience to discuss this matter.

Yours faithfully,

Mr. SC

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