Despite shaky performance, College Boxes returns to SLC

by Joe Lazauskas '10

Monday March 24, 2008

Thanks to College Boxes, Jasmine Rivera had to scavenge for sheets and towels from friends and went three weeks without simple necessities like a desk lamp.

“I called them at least five times, probably more,” Rivera, a junior, said of the customer service department at College Boxes, the summer storage company used by Sarah Lawrence College this past year. “I got different responses because I talked to different people. Some said to call back a certain day then I would and no one would pick up. Others said that they would call me, but no call. You can see the pattern here. They were supposed to deliver my boxes to my room before I got to a school, but that sure as hell did not happen.”

Rivera was not alone. According to Director of Facilities Maureen Gallagher, 16 students officially reported problems with the company. “Most—but not all—of the 16 problems were College Boxes’ fault,” Gallagher said. Much of the confusion was generated by College Boxes’ customer service team, which told some students that they did not have to be present for pick-up. Gallagher stressed to students in campus-wide emails in the spring that they did have to be present during pickup, but the confusion created some turmoil. “Giving misinformation was part of Colleg Boxes’ customer service woes,” Gallagher said. In addition to the 16 official complaints, an indeterminable number of students also complained about the custoomer service.
Three students’ items were not found and had to process insurance claim forms. They were recouped either the insurance-level they paid for before storage, or they were given the minimum return that College Boxes offers per box.
Heavy delays in picking up boxes also plagued College Box’s service last year. One of the problems we had last year was the first pick up date,” Gallagher said. “Due to the company’s first time dealing with our campus they underestimated how long it would take to pick up a belongings so they were hours behind for pick-ups.”

Junior Kara Rota, who worked as the campus manager at Sarah Lawrence for College Boxes last year, “found that the inner workings of the company seemed to be flaky—they seemed to have a very fast turnover of employees. There were a lot of people in small management positions in the company, mostly recent undergraduates, and they were not always so well-organized, which I think was reflected in the mix-ups and problematic situations that some students experienced.”
Despite last year’s issues, College Boxes will service Sarah Lawrence College once again. Gallagher is confident that last year’s issues will be rectified due to numerous improvements.

The company is under new ownership, though the old owners are “still on board and running the operation,” according to Gallagher. However, the customer service department will now have help sheets specifically for the SLC campus. The moving company used by College Boxes will be based in Bronxville, not 45 minutes away in Paterson, New Jersey. Two crews will work the pick-up day, and, hopefully, there will not be any pick-up delays. College Boxes employees will also have a system to scan boxes when they are delivered, so that if a student is not present at the delivery time, the exact time the boxes were delivered will be recorded as proof, and students can reschedule the pick-up at an additional cost.

Unlabeled boxes were also an issue, and College Boxes is hoping to reduce these problems—but at students’ expense. All students will be required to purchase a $45 starter kit. “The starter kit will be mailed to students SLC Post Office and it will included 5 boxes, marker, tape, label pouches, furniture tags,” said Gallagher. The starter kit and deposit also reserves students a spot on any one of the College’s four pickup dates.

“I feel that CB’s shortcomings were part of a learning curve for both the company and the College,” said Gallagher. “And I feel confident that, with these changes implemented for this time around, College Boxes will be in a better position to offer convenient moving and storage services for our students.”
But if they do not, it is likely that SLC students will not be forgiving.

Note: To help avoid problems this year, students should remember that, no matter what College Boxes says, they do need to be there to meet the movers in the spring