Good Broker
Richard Van Hyning
Submitted this review about
Mercury Auto Transport
Review made Live: 7/12/2010 7:08:00 PM
Mercury Auto Transport contracted Elite Auto Transport San Bernardino to transport my 1973 Chevy Nova from Riverside, CA to Wichita, KS. Mercury did a great job with the customer service and contracting aspects. If you look at the late pickup/delivery times I pointed out in this review, please don't let it dissuade you from using Mercury. Eric connected me with a carrier who held a great record with their company in the past, but unfortunately this just happened to be one of those times when a previously reliable business associate became unreliable. The carrier (Elite Auto Transport San Bernardino) was several days late to the pickup, forcing my friend in California to post-pone his relocation out of the state and racking up an extra $200 in expenses on his part. The carrier stated that his truck was in for maintenance; every day for 5 days he would tell me "It will be ready in the morning," then "This afternoon it should be good to go," and finally "Hopefully I'll be on the road this evening." My friend repeatedly cleared his schedule to meet this driver, and even missed his college graduation to try and meet the guy. He NEVER called me, and getting a hold of the carrier was nearly impossible, even when the owner of Mercury Auto Transport attempted to do so personally. During transit, I only heard from the carrier once despite repeated calls to try and set up an estimated delivery time. Upon delivery, the carrier stated, "They threw me in jail in New Mexico because they didn't clear out a ticket I paid off a year ago." The highway patrol in New Mexico also forced the carrier to purchase three new tires (delaying the delivery further) because the ones on the trailer were in such ill repair. My vehicle was poorly secured on the trailer, as I actually watched the back wheel come off the trailer when the carrier pulled into the parking lot near my house to deliver it. Thankfully the loosely attached chains they attached to the vehicle caught it before it fell completely off, and the wheel rolled back on the trailer. Furthermore, the window on my Nova was left down after the carrier drove it on the trailer. 1800 miles with a window down; I'm glad there weren't any storms.
As I've said, Mercury Auto Transpot, as a broker, was great. They did everything in their power to contact the carrier when I had problems, but when people don't answer the phone there is just no reaching them no matter what you do. Eric was very professional and did everything he could to resolve my problems, as well as everyone else I spoke with at Mercury. Some time into the ordeal, the owner gave me his personal cell phone number and actually volunteered himself to be a personal customer service agent for me. He resolved problems efficiently, and toward the end of the ordeal I was somewhat relieved to hear them say that they would likely not be contracting any more vehicles to Elite Auto Transport San Bernardino.
Bottom Line: Mercury Auto Transport is a great broker. They have excellent customer service, they are very professional, and they placed my needs/problems at the top of their priorities every time I spoke with them. When it comes to carriers, however, avoid Elite Auto Transport San Bernardino like the plague. I would definitely do business with Mercury again, as I'm sure the problems with the carrier just happened to be bad luck.
