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Move turns ugly after company raises the price, takes off with family's belongings

What are your rights when moving?
Posted at 2:55 PM, Aug 20, 2016
and last updated 2016-08-20 14:55:39-04

A Tampa woman's move turned ugly after she says the company demanded more money in the middle of the job. We found Florida law is clear when it comes to what movers can and can't do but it is not always enough to protect consumers when they are at their most vulnerable.

This move proved to be the worst of her life. Eve-Lynn Gornbein hired Dolphin Moving Systems after they quoted her $910 over the phone.

Pictures show crates, boxes and moving materials on the truck when it arrived. Eve-Lynn says the workers took numerous breaks and delivered one of two loads on day one. But it is what happened on day two with the second load that concerns state regulators.

Department of Ag and Consumer Services investigator Frank Pitts says movers must inform customers of any price increase before they load the truck.

The movers left with the contents of my Gornbein’s home after demanding that she pay $2500.

The movers spent 12 hours on the first day, but she says that is just not possible.

Then the price jumped from $2500 to $3300 dollars, according to texts from the manager at Dolphin Moving System. Gornbein says the texts from manager Ernie Mcnabb took on a threatening tone regarding the possibility of auctioning off all the family’s belongings.

Dolphin's owner Greg Dolphin contends Gornbein wasn't honest about how much she had to move and refused to pay for the first day in full. Dolphin also sent me GPS logs to prove the time they spent on the job. Now state investigators say they will sort it out and determine if the company broke the laws which could mean fines or a refund for this customer.

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