In the movie The Last King of Scotland, the story of the rise of Ugandan Dictator Idi Amin, there is a scene of a tense moment between the dictator and his foreign advisor, Nicholas.  Amin is angry with his advisor and holds him responsible for the negative consequences of Amin’s own actions. He asks, why did you not tell me what to do? The advisor answers, “I did!” to which Amin retorts, “But you did not persuade me, Nicholas. You did not persuade me!” I find this scene frequently relevant to issues related to certain problems related to moves and a class of consumers who only want validation of the poor choices they are about to make.

A very unfortunate issue that is on the rise, particularly in urban areas, is the increase in cargo theft related to moves. We are seeing a rise in items disappearing off the tailgate and the curb. There have become areas where the prudent course of action is to protect the shipper's belongings by having a person stay with the truck while the required number of moving crew members proceed with the load or delivery. It really doesn’t matter if the shipper or the mover supplies that individual; other than if supplied by the mover, there will be an increased (necessary) cost to the move. My opinion is that the mover has a responsibility to PERSUADE the shipper of the necessity. I get all the objections on both sides: it’s too expensive, I’ll lose the sale, etc.

Let me share with you a recent real-world example of this issue. A high-quality local mover had a moving job into an apartment in the center of the city where the mover was aware a large homeless encampment was right down the street. The mover advised the shipper of the security issue, but the shipper wanted to contain costs and said that they would watch the truck as the small crew delivered it to the upstairs apartment. The shipper was less than diligent in their duties to watch the truck, something the mover was aware of but, wanting to avoid confrontation, failed to address immediately. As a result, two high-end carry-on metal suitcases were stolen from the back of the truck. The shipper blamed the mover for the theft, even making them feel as if they were criminals, then filed a claim for over $20,000, stating that the two suitcases were filled with high-end items. They also used their technological sophistication to trash the mover on social media. The shipper went so far as to record the mover’s unfortunate and ill-advised call, expressing his indignation related to his perception that they were calling him a criminal and then posting his call on social media. They also filed a complaint with the Bureau of Household Goods and Services related to violations of paperwork and practices.

If we can step back and view this without emotion, this story has several valuable takeaways. To me, the most important is that we need to persuade consumers of issues related to the safety of crews and belongings. There is no job worth doing if the consequences involve an unreasonably high risk of injury to staff or financial loss greater than the project's total revenue.

On behalf of CMSA and our families, we wish you joy and good cheer, shared with family and friends this holiday season, and all the best in the year ahead!

December 2023 - CMSA Communicator