PSS International Removals

We can't begin to say how bad the service from this company was. They initially go to great lengths to present the company as experienced and skilled in international removals, providing a professional service and how they will keep you informed throughout the move...DO NOT BE TAKEN IN! They charged for every little thing, demanded upfront payments at every stage in the process before they would progress the removal, sent incorrect invoices and dragged their feet throughout the whole process. When the container EVENTUALLY arrived in Brisbane, we had to pay $850 to have 3 pine cones removed from an artificial christmas tree and for part of our outdoor furniture to be cleaned as some dirt and a few old leaves had been found underneath it - when our possessions were being packed, the PSS removal staff assured us that they inspected all items to avoid such issues - obviously not! To add insult to injury, when our possessions were delivered and we found several damaged items,PSS demanded a £100 fee to cover the cost of"handling" our claim - we were told that this was stated in the document which was signed at the outset. The cover is NOT insurance cover....PSS take your substantial premium and state that they will provide the cover....Believe us, this nothing other than a money making scam by PSS. We spoke to the owner of a removal firm here in Australia who found this completely unprofessional.

We met another couple in Australia who had also used PSS and were equally disgusted with the service and are currently in dispute over damages incurred.

There are numerous other failings by this firm we could list, all of which are just too many to mention. Suffice it to say that, having paid well in excess of £12k. we were seriously depressed and stressed throughout our dealings with PSS and would NOT recommend using this company to ANYONE!

Move size: 4 Bedroom Home Service cost: £13000

This company is an absolute joke. You never hear from the 'move managers' after paying the initial shipping fee, they don't bother to update that your goods will be delivered in 6 months, rather than the quoted 8 weeks and they have the gall to ask for additional fees once they have sent out the goods. Reading reviews here I can see I should also be terrified that most of my goods will be broken when they do eventually arrive! The company refuses to write back to any emails to update on what is happening with all my belongings. Not a company I should have trusted with all of my worldly possessions.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: £300

The two guys who came to pack up my house full of 'stuff' did a great job. Very organised and thorough with what they did, everything well wrapped. Basically done in one day and ready for loading into container next day, I needed a 20 foot container. The time consuming part was the form filling for Australian Customs and for insurance purposes. It does take time, and it does take thinking about. Be very sure you insure the items important to you, no point in insuring a jigsaw or coloring book. I was able to follow the progress of the contain via a marine traffic app. It took just one month from loading at Felixstowe a week after pick up to unloading in Brisbane. Two items, dog related, were picked for additional cleaning and disinfecting, which cost extra but I had been advised this could happen, done quickly and returned to rest of shipment. Overseas Packers and Shippers handled to import and delivery in Queensland. They also did a great job, though because of my need to be interstate shortly after arrival, plus it being a rural delivery, it took a bit longer than usual for delivery which was not the fault of the company. Delivery crew also did an excellent job. Nothing broken, damaged or missing. Communication maintained throughout, pricing upfront so I knew what was involved. From first home visit to get quote to delivery crew leaving, the process went well for me. My advice, plan as far ahead as you can, make sure you read every little thing and spend time reading and completing the forms required correctly, and pay in good time for payments to clear.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: £4200

We used PSS for our move from the UK to Australia and they have been an absolute nightmare. We had 2 prior major moves with other companies with no issues at all, but PSS have been a disaster. Some examples: 1) They completely under-estimated our volume of goods, so we ended up paying around 50% more than their 'fixed price' quote - and if you don't pay they may hold your possessions to ransom, relying on the small print in the contract which says you pay for any errors they make. 2) They say they use their own removals teams but in fact subcontract virtually everything in the UK and overseas - the only PSS employee we met was the salesman. 3) They delivered dozens of items damaged and broken through inadequate packing and handling - (which cost over £12,000) from TV's to washing machines, fridge-freezers and hi-fi equipment. 4) They accept responsibility for nothing - everything is somebody else's fault in their eyes. 5) You can forget about their complaints process and BAR membership - in practice they just ignore it and BAR seemingly turn a blind eye and even outsource their complaints process!). 6) Their expensive insurance may be worthless - we paid £1000 just for this, and 6 months after our move we've still not even had a visit from a loss adjuster and no progress is being made towards settlement. I could easily list another another 20 things they have messed up throughout the move. Seriously, if you're going to entrust all your worldly possessions to someone, really do your homework, shop around, forget the sales pitch promises and read ALL the small print, or you might be very sorry indeed. We just wish we had read the reviews online first and found out how terrible they really are, as PSS may well ruin your new start in a new country. Check out the other people they have misled and moves they have mis-managed on the other review websites like removalreviews.co.uk.

Move size: 4+ Bedroom Home Service cost: £12000

If you value your personal belongings and have expectations of professional and fair treatment I would avoid this company at all costs. PSS proudly state on their website a 'stress free move,' I beg to differ, my experience with PSS has without doubt been one of the most stressful experiences of my life.
I paid PSS a total of £4,245, this included so called 'professional export packing' and standard liability insurance.
PSS damaged 150 of our personal belongings due to the negligence of their packing team. Seeing treasured possessions stuffed, jammed, crammed, squashed, squeezed and forced into boxes without adequate packing was extremely distressing. The damage was endless: packing tape on furniture & sofa cushions, broken furniture, bedding & linen used as replacement packing, handbags & shoes shoved into boxes without packing, books torn & bent, clothing used as packing around an old stool. I was completely horrified and broke down in tears many times while unpacking. I can understand damage from a dropped container or some unforeseen circumstance, but to see 150 belongings damaged as a result of laziness and careless disregard is unforgivable and entirely avoidable. Unfortunately the worst was to come. The subsequent aftercare by PSS was and is even more appalling. It would appear literally once the ship has sailed PSS do not care about their client. After submitting my claim they left me to their incredibly incompetent claims settlement agent. They sent out a loss adjuster, but it would appear her findings did not suit them even though it was deemed 'fair and reasonable' by their own NZ agent. They then ignored my questions with regards to the loss adjusters findings and proceeded to 'make enquiries' for another 4 months. At no stage of 'making their enquiries' did they ask me any relevant questions and they steadfastly refused to accept the loss adjusters findings!
The behaviour of PSS and their claim settling agent Removal Claims Service has been evasive and unprofessional. The settlement offer was significantly reduced from their own loss adjuster findings. The application of an average value and depreciation is without grounds and not in line with their own terms and conditions. The settlement was full of alarming errors and inconsistencies.
Seven months on from discovering my damaged belongings I am still waiting for the claim to be satisfactorily resolved.
PSS make many warm and reassuring statements on their website including 'our customers receive the same level of care and attention we would expect ourselves.' These are just insincere, empty words if you do not follow them up with actions. The true testament of a reputable , professional company is their aftercare, how efficiently they respond when things go wrong. In my opinion as a client PSS have failed in every way possible.

Service cost: £4245

I moved to Australia and used them for my removal. They were all lovely and replied to emails, all very helpful until they got the payment. On the day of removal they made damage to my floor which my landlord didn't raise so I didn't end up making a fuss with PSS. My parents were also relocating so in the time, I referred my parents to them which was a MISTAKE.

Again all very helpful until they got the money. They damaged my parents hallway lighting which now cannot get replaced and the new buyers are still after us to replace it.

They refuse to reply to me on emails and the goods are still in storage here, with the company on this side refusing to release them until PSS hve confirmed that an outstanding invoice (that they haven't even sent to me) is settled. I have chased them for payment for about 3 months and also to deal with the damage to parents hallway.

Still no further along and im being charged ongoing storage charges here with PALMERS REMOVALS - They are also incredibly difficult to deal with and il be making a separate review about them. They offered £100 off a £1000 invoice that remained for about £250 worth of damage to my home as a 'goodwill gesture' after chasing them for three months. My shipping remains in storage here because they failed to reply to me for updated invoices and I now have an empty house, with them holding an invoice that they hve not replied to me about since June about over my head. I ended up having to threaten them with a bad review and they removed £100 off the bill as a 'gesture of goodwill' but the board of directors has now apparently taken that away because they didn't like the threat..! My goods still remain in storage with Palmers in Sydney not delivering until PSS release the hold.

Honestly SUCH a stressful move I would really really not recommend this company; after the money and zero service or after sales care.

I would also make sure you ask upfront for ALL payments due. They sent us additional invoices for the increase in oil prices which were completely unexpected and the invoice hell we still remain in.

Move size: 4+ Bedroom Home Service cost: £6500

For a professional mover they do not go out of their way to do anything proactively.

They took days to reply to calls (as my dedicated move manager was always on the phone), or days to reply to emails.

They did not check eligibility for me to ship my goods, turns out I had the wrong VISA for the customs paperwork, but of course this was only discovered at the last minute leading to a cancelation fee for a pickup that NEVER even happened.

PSS expect YOU to know the processes and procedures to ship goods internationally, that was the reason for hiring them to do the job but when they don't do things correctly be ready to pickup extra costs (in PSS imposed fines!).

I tracked my kit (Apple tags are great) and could see it was sitting in their warehouse for over 8 weeks before shipping by then "global prices had risen" so I got a further invoice for increased shipping fees.

In my world when you hire someone to do a job they

a) Go though a checklist to ensure everything is ok before things kick off

b) Give you a quote that's final.

c) Keep you informed about what is going on, in this case where are my items at every step

You will get NONE of these from PSS so BE WARNED

Move size: Partial Move Service cost: $1500

I contacted PSS because a friend recommended them for my move from London to Florida.

PSS gave me a 'Door to door quote' for my shipment. They collected my boxes in November and told me that they would be delivered to Florida sometime in January.

In their quote they specifically requested that I keep my boxes under 30 kg each otherwise I would incur an overweight surcharge.

Fast forward to June and my boxes were finally delivered. They were is a really bad shape, late, beaten up and broken, but at least they arrived.

PSS contracted an American company to pick up my belongings from the port and deliver them to my home.

Between PSS and their American counterpart, I was asked to pay random and unexpected, additional charges 4 times.

The most frustrating part was that PSS had contracted a lower weight allowance, with this American company, than what they had agreed with me, so I got an email from the American Shipper essentially explaining to me that they were holding my belonging ransom and unless I paid the additional costs, I wouldn't see my boxes.

I made several unsuccessful attempts to communicate to PSS that this charge constituted a breach of our contact, but they replied that the 30 kg allowance per box was only for pickup, it didn't apply once my boxes got to America...

An important detail they forgot to mention when they quoted me.

In short I ended up paying about double the initial quote.

I noticed that the reviews of many customers share a similar experience.

My best recommendation is that you try and find a professional company that's not going to blackmail you to extort more money from you.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $2500