Absolute Moving System — Local services in Monroe Township

Summary: Absolute Nightmare. Arrived 2 hours late, took 3 hours just to load a 1-bedroom apartment, and turned what should have been a straightforward move into a 6-hour disaster. They broke my vanity table, damaged my coffee table, and tore my couch; and damaged my building’s elevator.

For the damage claims, they asked me to work with the Foreman who I have not heard from other than a text message 2 weeks ago.

Do not use Absolute Moving Systems. They are not worth the stress, damage, or wasted time. While it seems that some people may have had better experiences, hiring them feels like rolling the dice — and they are simply not worth the risk. I strongly recommend Dumbo Moving, Piece of Cake, Vector Moving, or Green Line Movers instead.

Details: Booking & Estimate: I had a great initial experience with Ralph, who assured me the move would be smooth. I even provided a full written inventory with photos of every item plus elevator dimensions well in advance, so there would be no surprises. Unfortunately, all of those promises turned out to be empty.

Arrival: My move was scheduled for 12:30 pm. The crew didn’t show up until 3:00 pm, already frustrated and complaining about not eating lunch. The foreman didn’t even come up to see the apartment until 2.5 hours into the loading process.

Preparedness: The crew was completely under-equipped. They ran out of tape, used old and torn blankets, had only one dolly and one hand cart, and ended up borrowing my building’s cart. I even had to provide my own doorstops.

Sloppy Handling: Their definition of a TV box was literally an old, torn moving box they taped together (and couldn’t even seal fully since they ran out of tape). To “protect” the TV, they shoved my couch cushions inside the box instead of proper padding.

Fragile-marked and “Top Load Only” boxes were ignored, tossed randomly, and stacked with no care.

My couch was under-protected with only thin shrink wrap (wrapped twice), which caused a tear. They also didn’t protect the feet of couches or tables, and dragged furniture on their feet, scratching and damaging pieces.

They threw tape rolls, drink bottles, and snack wrappers on my floor, leaving me to clean up after them.

Performance: This was a 1-bedroom apartment, fully prepped (boxes packed, bed disassembled, TV unmounted) yet it still took them 3 hours just to load. The crew constantly disappeared, wasted time, and damaged my building elevator.

Professionalism: When the foreman finally appeared, he spoke briefly to the movers and left. The crew immediately began trash-talking him in front of me and continued ignoring his instructions. At unload, another worker was added, but my wife and I had to help carry boxes ourselves just to finish.

Damages & Accountability: They broke my vanity table, damaged my coffee table, and tore my couch. These damages were a direct result of poor protection and careless handling. When I raised this, Absolute deflected responsibility and told me to work directly with the foreman for insurance claim, washing their hands of any accountability.

Value: Their pricing was not meaningfully cheaper than competitors. I only booked because Ralph seemed trustworthy, but in the end, we were completely let down.

Update: Absolute has advised that they subcontracted the move to a third party (Without informing me), and they refuse to take any responsibility.

Update 2 : What a weak response from Absolute. They even fail to acknowledge their shortcomings and come up with fake stories. See 4 other recommendations above in the review - just save yourself from the possibility of Absolute subcontracting the move to someone else and take zero...

I hired Absolute for an in-state move from a single family home to another. The initial conversations and estimate process went well however the actual move was met with a few issues, some significant, others not a big deal. The movers arrived on time and got to work quickly. About 75% of the move was going smoothly but it seems the movers were growing frustrated with items that couldn't be boxed. At one point they were throwing down items from my attic which granted they were mostly bagged clothes and items in plastic bins, however it doesn't provide confidence my items are being reasonably transported. I noticed during the final walkthrough that my custom blind in the master bedroom had been significantly damaged. I brought this to the attention of one of the movers but he shrugged his shoulders and walked off. I took images to show the hole punctured through the blind for my records.

I purchased lunch for the movers and provided drinks given it was a long/hot day. At the new house, everything was moved in generally where it needed to go aside from a few items. Worth noting, my entertainment console was damaged during the move along with a few other small and minor items. At the end of the move, the lead mover presented a price 20% more than what was agreed upon. I informed him of the price, he made a phone call and thankfully it was confirmed. I provided a tip consistent with the services rendered which was poorly received by the movers. They left swiftly and didn't bother to pick up any of their trash outside the new home.

I contacted Absolute for resolution of the two high dollar damaged items and have been given the runaround for over a week. I've provided images of the damaged items and asked for an amicable resolution with the latest message indicating a "specialist" will contact me to make a visit. Getting into the old home won't be possible and pictures of the damaged entertainment center should be more than sufficient. I've given them several opportunities to respond with a reasonable solution and its more continued "kicking the can" type responses.

I was hoping to provide them with a glowing review as things happen but its all about how those issues are resolved that make all the difference. I respect the movers have a tough job, especially during the Summer heat, but there are still standards that should be upheld. The standard insurance required by NJ should have covered the damaged items but again, it seems they have no real intention of resolving the situation in a timely manner. These folks were not the cheapest so I expected better for the...

Absolute Moving System is the most unprofessional company we have ever dealt with. From the point when they dropped packing materials at our house which included dirty paper and damaged boxes, to delivery, where they showed up in an old dirty landscaper truck, we had issues. This included running out of materials on moving day and having to wait for more to be delivered, and one rude mover who was there during packing and delivery, always grumbling and complaining.

We packed our non-breakables ourselves and had Absolute pack furniture, breakables and anything we felt would be better packed by professionals, but boy were we wrong about that. Pots and pans, pictures, bicycle helmets were just thrown into a box causing scratches, dents and nicks. Several items that were wrapped were not done properly resulting in a shattered 40 year old hand made platter, a broken handle on a chess set box hand made by my father, and a figurine. Our sofa bed (replacement value $4500) was not wrapped properly, resulting in a nicked leg and several dirt stains that we have not been able to remove. Boxes marked ‘do not crush’ were underneath other boxes, boxes were not placed in the marked rooms, and a ladder was missing from the delivery. All of the damaged/broken items were packed by Absolute.

When we tried to contact Absolute, they said we were lying about the ladder, and offered us $100 to clean the couch, which would not cover a professional service, let alone cover the things they damaged or broke. We reached out to the Better Business Bureau for assistance, after which Absolute contacted us via text and offered us $300, which again wouldn't even cover one issue. When we pressed for a larger settlement, they insulted us and said we were lying about the damages and just out for a ‘money grab’. They did not respond to the Better Business Bureau at all.

On top of everything else, our move cost way more than the estimate. We understand that an estimate is just that, however we were not told that the original quote didn’t include packing materials, tolls or a gas surcharge, and although we didn't move several pieces of furniture that were included in the original quote, the final bill was several thousand dollars more. We were also given incorrect information about purchasing our own additional insurance which prevented us from doing so.

We are sharing our experience so that hopefully others will see this review and find another company...