Avoid Being a Hostage Load Victim During Your Next Relocation

As the first line of their creed declares, Airmen are warriors, and a common trope about warriors that holds true is that they tend to wander. According to The Soldier’s Project—an organization that provides a safety net of psychological care for military service members and their loved ones—a military family typically moves every 2 to 3 years but may move more frequently, depending on the specific nature of the military family members’ jobs.

Moving you, your family, and all your belongings can be a Herculean task under perfect conditions, but it can be almost unbearable when dealing with a moving company that has no respect for its customers, the law, or the military. According to the American Association of Retired Persons, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) received almost 900 so-called “hostage load†complaints in 2020, a year when only 8 percent of Americans relocated. A hostage load occurs when a dishonest mover or shipper refuses to immediately release the goods on demand or otherwise exerts unauthorized control over a freight by refusing to deliver the load at the scheduled time and place of delivery, or refusing to provide the customer information on the location of the freight.

Hostage load scams are not exclusively perpetrated on the elderly. An Augusta Chronicle article focused on a firm that manages relocation for certain military personnel and is accused of exaggerating prices and overbilling the federal government. If proven, the charges may subject the company—which moves soldiers to and from Fort Jackson in South Carolina and Fort Gordon in Georgia—to millions of dollars in penalties and fines.

In an attempt to weed out crooked movers, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) for DOT advises keeping an eye out for many red flags, such as moving company websites with no local address and information about their Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) registration or insurance. They might also demand a large cash deposit before the move or attempt to get you to sign blank documents before beginning to load your goods.

Unfortunately, scammers who claim you owe them more than a previously agreed-on price may not be knowledgeable on laws they decide to break. Calmly remind them that, pursuant to 49 U.S. Code 14915, any person, motor carrier, or broker that holds a household good (HHG) shipment hostage is subject to a $10,000 civil penalty for each violation, and each day the goods are held may constitute a separate violation. The FMCSA may also suspend a broker or a motor carrier’s registration for 12 to 36 months. If that warning fails, you can report any HHG fraud allegations to the OIG Fraud Hotline by calling 1-800-424-9071 or sending an email to [email protected].

The last line of The Airman’s Creed focuses on never leaving Airmen behind. Do not leave your precious belongings and memories behind with disreputable movers; be aware of, keep an eye out for, and know how to avoid becoming a victim of fraud when moving.