On 11/27/09, we contracted with the Padded Wagon to have them move our art and household goods from NYC to Florida for $11,000, the "Guaranteed Price (Binding Estimate)" stated in their contract. The $11,000 fee was midway in the cost submitted in the three proposals we received from different moving companies. The deposit we gave to the Padded Wagon was, as requested, 25% of the total amount for the moving services, $2,750.

On the day AFTER our goods were moved out of our NY home, 12/8/09, we received a revised contract from the Padded Wagon entitled "ACTUAL COST" which more than doubled the guaranteed price from $11,000 by adding an ADDITIONAL $12,443 to the total the company demanded that we pay them if we wanted to receive our goods in our new home in Florida. Their revised charge for moving services now came to $23,443. The company representative warned us that our belongings would be placed in storage, for which we would be charged, until we met their demands in full.

We were concerned about getting our household belongings as well as avoiding the significantly increased risks of damage to our marble sculptures in their being moved in and out of a warehouse. I did, therefore, authorize credit card payment for the delivery of our goods, signing myself, "Hostage. . ." with each of many signatures in order to communicate the coercive conditions under which we were required to sign for our goods. This excessive charge violated our written agreement with the Padded Wagon, Inc. as well as the explicit regulations of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration of the U.S. Department of Transportation regarding Guaranteed Price/Binding Estimate.

At present, we and several other scammed consumers have filed complaints with the New York Better Business Bureau against the Padded Wagon. Despite the fact that our complaint was filed more than a year ago, the Padded Wagon has been stonewalling the BBB mediator even though the company promised to settle more than half a year ago. Absolutely nothing they say can be trusted, even in their dealings with the BBB.