Pickens Kane

Most Recent Comments

• January 2023 by Woody S
  Pickens-Kane ReviewI was helping my friend make his big move to California from Chicago area. The move was completed on November 25, 2022. I looked into United/Mayflower Van Lines and Allied/NorthAmerican Van Lines.Both United and Allied had local affiliates and both made appointments with me right away in July to come in and survey the items to be moved. Both gave me expected estimates so they were in the running for the bid. I also contacted 3 other companies, one local and two internet-based. The local company was very accommodating but I sensed that moving cross-country was not their forte. Do not go with internet-based company! They gave me suspiciously low estimates-below my expectations- so this was very concerning. I told myself not to be tempted with just the low cost and the internet review sites helped me decide not to bother with them.So it was down to United and Allied Van Lines. They both gave me very similar estimates. But, what made the big difference for me? It was my interaction with Mike Donahue of Pickens-Kane. Of the 2 agents (United and Allied) who interacted with me in person, Mike was very meticulous with his list, forthright and reassuring. Mike continued to follow up with me and answered every question. He provided me with information and his demeaner was in every way very professional and experienced. He told me my moving date is guaranteed and that I can make plans around this date. My friend and I were very impressed. I gave my trust to Mike and Pickens-Kane soon after. Deitra was my move coordinator and she provided me with the necessary documents and forms to complete thereafter. Deitra handled the final details and reassured me of the pack and move date that was set earlier.Phil the driver/manager arrived with his crew of 3 men, Isais, Hector and Edgar right on time and began at 8:30 am and the packing and loading into the smaller transport truck was completed by 2:30 pm. I was very impressed and reassured. Phil was very professional and his experience with cross-country moving showed. Phil discussed with me the timing of the drive and the expected date of arrival at the house in California.While I waited for Phil’s arrival on November 25th, Adrienne handled the final details of the payment and coordination. Phil kept his promise and arrived on Friday November 25 in the morning. He maneuvered his huge truck in front of the drive and reassured me that the neighbors will not be stuck in their driveway if they need to get out. He had 2 men with him, Angel and Edgar. They worked tirelessly from 8:30 am to 2:00 pm unloading and putting boxes and items in place. Yes there were a few Ikea type cabinets that suffered from the move because these were never supposed to be moved, I suppose. But considering the whole move everything went very well with 99% of the items arriving in good shape.Some constructive criticisms that I can make? Yes there are a few. When Phil arrived he told me of the company policy not to reassemble the shelves at the destination. I thought this was odd but I understood the reasons. However, I wished that I was informed of this policy at the time of the packing/loading so I can memorize or take pictures of the shelves when they were in place before they were disassembled for the move if I knew beforehand that I had to reassemble them myself. Both Angel and Edgar were very efficient but they both understood that they were only to reassemble certain items. I had to ask them each time I encountered shelves, where these shelves belong and their answers were always “I have no idea”. I can’t blame them though, they were not the ones who took them apart.All-in-all I give Pickens-Kane 5 stars in my opinion. All because of Mike Donahue, Phil, Deitra, Adrienne and the movers. Yes, the move was expensive and stressful. The cost I cannot do much about or complain about. But, because of Pickens-Kane and the individuals mentioned above, my stress level was reduced significantly. I would definitely recommend Pickens-Kane for your cross-country move. Thank you Pickens-Kane!
• December 2021 by HWS HWS
  Always a great place to visit! Enjoy coming to their whse to load or unload! All the people are friendly kind and helpful! Thanks see you soon.
• September 2021 by Diane Picco
  Hard working, very polite, and well organized. We would recommend this company to anyone we know that is moving. The only thing was our wardrobe boxes werevery crushed.
• January 2021 by Robert D.
  If a complete GONG SHOW is your idea of a good move, this is your mover. I have moved long distance several times and this was by far the worst experience through which I have ever suffered. Any one of the things that happened would have made the move a challenge: The movers damaging private property at neighboring homes and in the development? Yep The movers damaging my items? Yep The movers fighting me tooth and nail to avoid paying my insurance claim on the additional insurance I bought from them? Yep The movers jackknifing their truck, requiring a wrecker to extract it? Yep Allied Pickens managed to do all this and more which is actually kind of incredible. If you are a masochist or you want to see the world burn, these might be the guys for you. However, if you are trying to ensure a smooth move during a stressful time, probably a good idea to look somewhere else. It might be a good idea to look just about ANYWHERE else. I feel like a troupe of traveling circus clowns would run rings around the entire Allied Pickens operation....ugh 0/10, would not recommend!
• December 2020 by Thomas Gerrard
  nice people
• October 2020 by Scott Tyler
  I work for another agent visiting was easy loading was easy. Staff was friendly. Overall great experience.
• September 2020 by William Barker
  Great long distance moving company
• July 2020 by Benjamin Wood
  Let’s just say the high expectations set by Pickens Kane have come up woefully short. My delivery window was 6/26-7/1. As today is 7/2 and I still don’t have my stuff they’ve obviously missed their delivery window. Now, if they could actually tell me when I can expect my delivery that would one thing but they can’t. I have no idea when to expect my items. They overcommitted completely. There’s zero reason for them to have missed my window. No act of god. No misfortune or bad luck. Just inefficiency and poor service. I picked this company because they’re family oriented and owned given I have a 7, 5, 3 and 1 year old I figured they would understand how important a seamless move would be. I was wrong. My move coordinator has been tremendous which is why I am giving this 1 star instead of zero.
• April 2020 by Greg W.
  Our family used Allied Pickens Kane this month to move my mother's entire houseful of belongings into storage after she sold her house and then to Florida. Mike Donahue of Allied met us at the house, did a thorough walk through, and gave us great confidence. His crew then packed everything a few days later and they were extremely professional, neat, and careful. He coordinated crating the fragile items including a very tall antique grandfather clock and large pieces of antique furniture. I probably shouldn't admit it, but I think he is undercharging us for all the work involved on this long hall. Couldn't be happier!
• November 2019 by Carol K.
  I hate moving. There. I said it. It is right up there on my list of going to the dentist and sitting in endless meetings. But I have to say, as complicated as this move was, Pikens-Kane pulled it off almost flawlessly and that is saying a lot given other moves that I have done. Let's talk briefly about the complexity of this move. Most moves go from here to there but this move actually required 4 different component moves. From the old house in the suburbs to a new downsized apt in city, from the old house to WI, from the old house to storage, and from the old house to a location in Fort Lauderdale, there were multiple moves all over a series of weeks. Each component of this move was complex and Pikens Kane made it look easy. Mike D came and went through the house to determine how we would do all the segments of the move. He made sure the packers showed up when they were supposed to and that the trucks were loaded on the right days and sent to the right location. Not only most everything get to where it was going and on time, we had no damage with this move which is a rarity with any moving company. So hats off to Pikens-Kane! If there was any hiccup it's that one box that was supposed to get packed, didn't and unfortunately got sold at the moving sale. It caused a little drama but Adrian jumped right in to make sure it wasn't in one of the other locations before telling me it didn't get moved. Disappointing but in the scheme of things a small problem. This could have easily been averted had I been home at the time of the packing as the packers moved it from one floor to another to get packed and then it just didn't get boxed up. All in all, one of the smoothest moves I have done and I've moved all over the world. If you've got a move coming up, you should let them bid your job. It probably won't be the cheapest bid you get, but somethings are worth paying more for to get right.
• November 2019 by Laurel Slagle
  Jermaine and his team were FANTASTIC! They worked continuously, carefully and made our move so efficient. We had a lot of things to be moved and they were above and beyond. THANKYOU SO much for giving us your absolute BEST moving crew!! Laurel Slagle
• November 2019 by Vivien Kelly
  Very happy. I was sending a few furniture items to my son in Houston,Texas. The move went very well. From the pick up of my items to the actual move Pickens-Kane kept me informed and I was able to let my son know when the truck would arrive in Houston. I would definitely use Pickens-Kane if I have any future moving needs.
• October 2019 by Jeffrey Barron
  Not having moved in over 33 years was disconcerting enough but moving 2,000 + miles from Chicago to San Diego certainly required a knowledgeable company who would patiently walk us through the steps keeping us informed on a regular basis. We were most fortunate to have chosen this agent for Allied Van Lines. We can not say enough for how professional this company was and how patient they were. Our introduction came first with Chris Lidge, the Moving Consultant for Pickens Kane. He spent the most time with us when he came through our house taking inventory of what we want transported. He was never pushy but extremely thorough. The day of the move finally arrived and here again, the three movers took such great care in loading our belongings and answering our questions. The one person, though, who really stood out for us was Adrienne Ross, Pickens Kane Moving Coordinator. She was so on top of every aspect of our move, constantly keeping us abreast and always returning our phone calls quickly. She was such a delight to work with! In summary, I would strongly recommend that anyone looking for a long distance moving company use Pickens Kane. One hears many horror stories about long-distance moving companies, but I can honestly say we have no regrets when we retained Allied Van Lines to move us cross country.
• July 2019 by M ..
  DO NOT HIRE THIS COMPANY. The delivery of my belongings had 20 day window, and they were still 4 days late. The packers/ movers were supposed to use wardrobe boxes, instead tossed all hanging clothes in boxes, all other folded clothing was balled up and tossed in boxes with no regard. I had an expensive table lamp that I found later at the BOTTOM of a box with no wrapping or padding, completely shattered. They broke the shelf of an antique end table IN HALF. Countless other items were damaged and there was no order to their packing whatsoever, they just tossed things together as fast as they could. I also suspect that I am "missing" several pairs of expensive boxed shoes. Not to mention, the "captain" of the crew reeked of alcohol. Movers left packing materials all over my apartment and building hallway, which I then became responsible for. If you are interested in paying for a full-service move, spend your money elsewhere with a company that cares about your property and completing an honest job.
• June 2019 by Francisco Aranda
  Excellent company and good services