So, this is interesting. Because I've posted warnings for consumers (such as here) about the perils of entrusting your household goods to one of the many scammers who infest the interstate moving game, some sloppy online marketing company apparently thinks I'm a moving company (see screenshot of email, click on it to enlarge it).
That email may not seem like much, but it's really quite revealing: it shows that, when you do a typical Google search for long-distance moving companies, the sites you are most likely get from your search are precisely those sites where the scammers buy their leads (that would be you). They buy leads from these facade websites, and when you call them, you don't realize that you're already halfway to being scammed.
The only surefire way I know of to avoid these moving scammers is to NOT find your mover via an internet search; I'm afraid it's just asking to be ripped off.
Remember: The interstate moving game is entirely unregulated Somalia hiding in plain view in the middle of America. Every year, thousands of Americans are victimized, and they shake their heads and wonder how it's possible that there are organized crime gangs operating in interstate commerce in America and the feds do nothing. Long story short, we're getting another taste of the bitter harvest from the deregulation mania, the delusion that if streamlined, smart regulation is good, no regulation at all must be even better. When the Gingrich Congress killed the Interstate Commerce Commission, they killed the only agency with a mandate to prevent the interstate moving scams; in theory the FBI should be on the case, but they're too busy infiltrating peaceful demonstrations.
Bottom line: You have no reliable protection from any government against these scammers. You're on your own, so the only smart thing to do is avoid them in the first place. Ask anyone who's been ripped off by the moving scammers; they'll tell you that it's much better to pay more up front to a reputable mover than to pay the same or even more to the scammer who may or may not eventually decide to give you your goods back after a anguishing months- or even years-long battle.
That email may not seem like much, but it's really quite revealing: it shows that, when you do a typical Google search for long-distance moving companies, the sites you are most likely get from your search are precisely those sites where the scammers buy their leads (that would be you). They buy leads from these facade websites, and when you call them, you don't realize that you're already halfway to being scammed.
The only surefire way I know of to avoid these moving scammers is to NOT find your mover via an internet search; I'm afraid it's just asking to be ripped off.
Remember: The interstate moving game is entirely unregulated Somalia hiding in plain view in the middle of America. Every year, thousands of Americans are victimized, and they shake their heads and wonder how it's possible that there are organized crime gangs operating in interstate commerce in America and the feds do nothing. Long story short, we're getting another taste of the bitter harvest from the deregulation mania, the delusion that if streamlined, smart regulation is good, no regulation at all must be even better. When the Gingrich Congress killed the Interstate Commerce Commission, they killed the only agency with a mandate to prevent the interstate moving scams; in theory the FBI should be on the case, but they're too busy infiltrating peaceful demonstrations.
Bottom line: You have no reliable protection from any government against these scammers. You're on your own, so the only smart thing to do is avoid them in the first place. Ask anyone who's been ripped off by the moving scammers; they'll tell you that it's much better to pay more up front to a reputable mover than to pay the same or even more to the scammer who may or may not eventually decide to give you your goods back after a anguishing months- or even years-long battle.
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