Client ordered to pay B.C. moving company after dinner break issue | Daily Hive

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A BC Civil Resolution Tribunal dispute between a woman and a moving company was ruled in favour of the moving company, after she failed to pay the full invoice.

On The Move Express initiated a legal dispute against the customer, claiming it was owed $900 for its services. The moving company claimed an additional $162.50 for GST, stating that it had inadvertently omitted it from the original invoice.

The customer claimed that the invoice should be reduced to account for the breaks that movers took and for items that were damaged in the move. That included an allegation that the company took a 1.5-hour-long dinner break.

If this case sounds familiar, it’s because we previously covered a similar case involving a customer who filed a chargeback against a moving company after alleging the company’s employees were taking excessive breaks.

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According to the case details, the customer hired the moving company for a residential move scheduled to take place on February 4, 2024. The customer signed a contract stating that she agreed to pay $180 per hour for a van with two movers.

On The Move’s owner claimed that the customer verbally agreed to pay an additional $100 an hour for a second van with two additional movers. The customer didn’t deny this.

After the move was complete, the movers charged the customer $3,250, which included 2.5 hours for one van at $180 per hour and 10 hours for two vans at $280 per hour. The invoice had a $0 charge for GST, and the owner reduced the invoice by $100 to account for some damaged items.

According to the decision, the customer had already paid a $500 retainer, followed by two additional payments of $1,000 and $750.

Along with the claim that the invoice was too high, the customer claimed that the movers arrived at 9:45 a.m. instead of 9 a.m. However, a witness statement from the customer’s sister said they arrived around 9 a.m.

One of the main points of contention in the case was the topic of breaks. The customer said the movers took breaks, including the aforementioned 1.5-hour-long dinner break. She also claimed that one of the trucks had to leave for a period of time so that one of the movers could obtain medication.

Additionally, she claimed that one of the movers took a van and left early, leaving behind one van and three movers. (Sounds like a high school math problem).

All of these claims were denied, and the tribunal preferred the moving company owner’s version of events, thanks to the witness statement provided by the customer’s son and sister. Those statements nullified the customer’s claims about breaks and departures.

The moving company agreed that a mover had to leave to get medication and that there was a dinner break, but not as long as the customer stated.

A contract between the parties states that the customer is not obligated to pay for the movers during breaks, meals or medical emergencies; therefore, the tribunal found it reasonable to deduct $280 from the invoice. The tribunal noted that the moving company had already deducted $100 for damaged items and did not order it to pay any more for damages.

With the $280 deduction, the tribunal ordered the customer to pay $782.50 to the moving company, including $720 as debt and the remainder in tribunal fees.

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