Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/22/2025

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  NEGLIGENCE
  Transitional Design LLC (TD) caused the toilet in the condominium unit to overflow and, because the moving crew left early and did not complete their work, allowed the condominium unit, neighboring unit and building hallways to flood. This caused me $7515 in damages.
  
  THEFT
  TD did not provide a full invoice nor accounting for all the furnishings they removed from the condominium, including high-value items such as leather couch, leather loveseat, 35 end-tables and 35 lamps. This meant we were shortchanged in in auction/sale proceeds. The amount due to me from those pieces is conservatively estimated to be $622.
  
  I am asking to be repaid for the costs incurred by TD’s negligence, $7515, as well as amount due to me from the value of the stolen items, $622, for a total of $8137.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 03/11/2025

  This complaint is disturbing to both me, as the owner, as well as my staff.  We are an extremely ethical company.  The complaint of both negligence as well as theft are not true.  Transitional Design had written consent to be in the homeowner's condo to completely clear everything out as well as clean it.  This means we were an invitee and using the bathroom would be reasonable behavior for an invitee.  Apparently the toilet was not in working condition, but you could not tell by looking at it and there was no sign that it was out of order.  The plumber who later fixed the toilet told my movers that it had broken parts.  We were not aware that the toilet was running.  Also, this should have been put on a homeowners insurance claim rather than try to get the money from us.  To be eligible for a homeowner's claim, it has to be sudden and accidental (which it was).  We were not able to finish in one day because both our trucks were full with both trash for the landfill and items for sale.  The items we left behind to be picked up on a 2nd day were all trash.  The "leather" couch and loveseat were discolored and actually peeling.  There was absolutely nothing "stolen."  There is a place on our contract that asks if the customer wants us to list any items taken to the landfill or to donation.  Britta did not check the box for either one, which is common.  But there was no room in the trucks for anything else so we had to go back another day.   We did not call the customer to tell her that we did not finish, and that is poor customer service to not notify her, which is not like us.  I do admit to the fact that we should have called her.

  We did inventory everything that was brought to us.  And we sold all sellable items.  We paid ******** father, Hans $2,362.76 and provided a complete list of what sold.  Our invoice of $2,665.62 for the work we performed has never been paid.  In summary:  We were not paid for our work (2,362.76) and in good faith, we sent the customer payment of $2,362.76.  The customer's request for us to give her $8,137 is outlandish.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/13/2025

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint. 

  The owner’s response further illustrates the company’s poor planning, poor work ethic and poor communications.  
  
  I did not grant the movers permission to use the facilities in the condo.  Never have I seen a tradesman working on my property use facilities without permission.  Further, there was a staffed front desk and staffed rear entrance in the condo building, to answer questions and provide access to staff/trades bathrooms if needed.  All TD needed to do was ask.  They also had my cell phone number to call for permission, which they did not.  
  
  TD had previously visited the condo and taken pictures of the contents, assuring me they would be able to complete the clearout in 1 day.  It is surprising to see the owner admit to their poor planning in providing insufficient transport.  It is even more surprising since the building’s door logs show that TD staff were only on site for 4 hours, after arriving an hour later than promised.  Had they put in a full day’s work, on time, and better assessed the job ahead of them on arrival, they could have finished in 1 day, as committed.  Or, again, communicated with their own team and with me, the client.  
  
  As the attachments provided in the original complaint show, after the final clearout, I asked 3 times, politely, about the disposition of items missing from the inventory list.  It strains credibility than now, 3 months later, when the complaint is about to be made public, that TD suddenly claims that that ALL of the items were ineligible for sale (all 35 lamps, 35 end tables and teakwood chairs plus a multitude of décor items?).  
  
  In another example of poor communication, on Sat 8 Mar, 2025, after reviewing the BBB complaint, the owner texted me asking for a phone call, writing “I’m concerned over what looks like a lack of due diligence on our part.  I’m researching it fully,” adding “I assure you it will be a good conversation.”  At the call, the owner asserted TD had “implied consent” to use the facilities [which I dispute], said they had brought too few trucks, did say that the company would honor the previously-issued $2,766 credit, suddenly asserted that the items left in the condo were unsaleable, and then started explaining the research she had done into other people’s homeowner insurance policies.  The issue at hand is not terms of homeowner insurance – the issue is TD’s negligence, theft and poor communication.    
  
  Finally, the assertion that I have an unpaid invoice is a lie.  On the phone call on Sat, 8 Mar, the owner said that the company would honor the previously-issued $2,766 credit.  The company has never issued me an invoice.  
  
  CORRECTION:  In my original complaint, I asked to be repaid for the costs incurred by TD’s negligence, $7515, plus the estimated amount due to me for the stolen items, $622, for a total of $8137.  I should have subtracted the $2766 already credited, though I did note in the credit in my original complaint.  With that correction, the amount I am seeking for reimbursement is $5472.
  
  Regards,
  
  
  
  ****** ****
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
   

  

  Business Response

  Date: 03/14/2025

  Most of this complaint is simply not accurate.  It is an angry customer trying to take financial advantage.   The customer wanted us to clear out a condo that had sat unused for several years.  Our sales representative estimated the job for one day, but it did run into two days.  Many of the items that needed to be removed were not sellable and we needed to take them to the landfill.  Two of the items that were not sellable was what the customer refers to as "high end" and "stolen" were actually faux leather that was both faded in spots and peeling.  We brought 2 trucks and one truck was filled with sellable items that were later inventoried into our system.  The other truck was loaded with unsellable that were trash.  All the items left behind were for the landfill, but we needed to come back another day with another truck to take to the landfill.  A mover simply used the bathroom on this way out.  There was no clogging, and no way for us to know that the toilet was out of order, nor did they notice any flooding.  It simply had not been used for so long that parts were ruined from lack of use.  There was no sign not to use the toilet.  This was not "negligence" on our part.

  The customer should have turned any flooding into their homeowners insurance.  To qualify, it has to be "sudden and accidental" which it surely was.  The customer has never paid our bill--the estimate was $2,665 and it has never been paid.  Also we sold the items we brought back and sent the customer checks totaling $2,362.76.  Since we offer a 50/50 split, that means the items sold for $4,725, which was exactly within the amount that our sales rep said the items would sell for.

  We owe the customer nothing.  I think it will be difficult for us to get money from them at this point, and it's not worth it to involve the services of an attorney.  The money they owe us would more than cover any deductible that an insurance company would charge.  

   

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/17/2025

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  The owner’s response further illustrates the company’s poor planning, poor work ethic and poor communications.  
  
  I did not grant the movers permission to use the facilities in the condo.  Never have I seen a tradesman working on my property use facilities without permission.  Further, there was a staffed front desk and staffed rear entrance in the condo building, to answer questions and provide access to staff/trades bathrooms if needed.  All TD needed to do was ask.  They also had my cell phone number to call for permission, which they did not.  
  
  TD had previously visited the condo and taken pictures of all the contents, assuring me they would be able to complete the clearout in 1 day.  It is surprising to see the owner admit to their poor planning in providing insufficient transport.  It is even more surprising since the building’s door logs show that TD staff were only on site for 4 hours, after arriving an hour later than promised.  Had they put in a full day’s work, and better assessed the job ahead of them on arrival, they could have finished in 1 day, as committed.  Or, again, communicated with me, the client, in the moment.  
  
  As the attachments provided earlier proved, after the final clearout, I asked 3 times, politely, about the disposition of items missing from the inventory list.  It strains credibility than now, 3 months later, when the complaint is about to be made public, that TD suddenly claims that that ALL of the items were ineligible for sale (all 35 lamps, 35 end tables and teakwood chairs plus a multitude of décor items?).  
  
  In another example of poor communication, on Sat 8 Mar, 2025, after reviewing the BBB complaint, the owner texted me asking for a phone call, writing “I’m concerned over what looks like a lack of due diligence on our part.  I’m researching it fully,” adding “I assure you it will be a good conversation.”  At the call, the owner asserted TD had “implied consent” to use the facilities [which I dispute], said they had brought too few trucks, did say that the company would honor the previously-issued $2,766 credit, suddenly asserted that the missing items were unsaleable, and then started explaining the research she had done into other people’s homeowner’s insurance policies.  The issue at hand is not terms of homeowners’ insurance – the issue is TD’s negligence, theft and poor communication.    
  
  Finally, the assertion that I have an unpaid invoice is a lie.  On the call on Sat, 8 Mar, the owner said that the company would honor the previously-issued $2,766 credit.  The company has never issued me an invoice.  
  
  CORRECTION:  In my original complaint, I asked to be repaid for the costs incurred by TD’s negligence, $7515, plus the estimated amount due to me for the stolen items, $622, for a total of $8137.  I should have subtracted the $2766 already credited, which I did note in the details of my original complaint.  With that correction, the amount I am seeking for reimbursement is $5472.
  
  
  
  
  Regards,
  
  
  
  ****** ****
  
  
  
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:05/10/2023

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I placed a bid thinking it was something that I really wanted and it turned out to be something else. I emailed customer support and got nothing but sass from the employee, *****. The company refused to refund me and actually suggested I spend more money to resell it. All I wanted was a refund for the item. This all happened may 10th 2023.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 05/11/2023

  I am so sorry that this happened.  ***** should have received an immediate refund since the item she bid on--and won--was not as described in the auction.  It was an oversight on the auction managers part, and our auction administrator should have known to give a full refund.  I was unaware of the emails that were sent between our administrator and *****.  

  I left a voice message for ***** earlier today and apologized and let her know that the item has been refunded in full.  As the owner of Transitional Design, I expect our customer service to be excellent and customers's treated respectfully.  All my staff (with the exception of the individual that ***** had an issue with) have the same core values.  

  The employee that was involved in this issue has been dealt with accordingly.