Feds crack down on movers who hold belongings

Federal lawmakers are cracking down on moving companies who try to hold homeowners’ belongings hostage during a move – a scam that’s more common than many realize.

Homeowners will soon have more protection against this increasingly reported rip-off in the moving industry. It usually involves a moving company providing an owner with a lowball quote for a move. The mover then packs up the owner’s belongings onto a truck and refuses to unload it until a higher fee is paid.

Starting in October, movers who hold an owners’ items hostage can be fined by up to $10,000 a day, according to new rules imposed by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, an agency of the Department of Transportation.