The Bug Voice

 Informative Moving News and Relevant Moving Articles.

 FMCSA Continues to Protect Consumers by Cracking Down on Rogue Interstate Moving Companies.

WASHINGTON - Unscrupulous interstate moving companies that violate federal consumer protection and safety regulations will continue to be targeted for investigations and prosecutions by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), which today announced the results of a recently concluded strike force investigation involving nearly 350 moving companies located in 13 states and the District of Columbia. In all, 1,140 violations of federal regulations were recorded, resulting in nearly $325,000 in assessed fines.

"Interstate movers with fraudulent or rogue operations are hereby put on notice: federal investigators will be knocking on your door in the future and you will face serious legal and financial consequences," FMCSA Administrator John H. Hill said. “During this strike force alone, six companies received federal fines in excess of $27,000.”From May 5, 2008, through May 16, 2008, FMCSA, in cooperation with state law enforcement and consumer protection agencies, conducted focused compliance reviews on carriers hired to transport consumers’ personal property across state lines. For a list of companies cited during the strike force, The strike force targeted states that received the most complaints in the National Household Goods Consumer Complaint database.

In fiscal year 2007, FMCSA received nearly 4,000 complaints. The compliance reviews were conducted by federal investigators in Arizona, California, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Texas, and Virginia. "We owe much of our success to our state partners who eagerly participated in the strike force," said Rose McMurray, FMCSA chief safety officer and assistant administrator. "Our state counterparts, including state commercial vehicle enforcement units, consumer protection agencies and the state Attorney General offices, were an integral part of this ambitious effort. We will continue working together to protect the public from these rogue and often predatory moving companies."

 Federal Court Grants Request for a Temporary Restraining Order to Stop Unsafe Motor Carrier from Operating.   

WASHINGTON - The U.S. District Court for South Dakota on Tuesday granted a request of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), the U.S. Department of Transportation (D.O.T), and the Department of Justice (DOJ) to immediately halt the operations of Action Carrier, Inc., of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, an unsafe interstate motor carrier that had repeatedly refused to comply with federal motor carrier safety regulations. "We have no tolerance for operators that attempt to continue operating while potentially endangering the traveling public," said John H. Hill, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administrator. "We will continue to work with the DOT and DOJ to halt the operations of any carriers that attempt to continue operating after their authority has been revoked.

"Federal District Judge Lawrence L. Piersol granted DOT's request for a temporary restraining order preventing Action Carrier from continuing to operate in interstate commerce after its operating authority was revoked by FMCSA because the carrier did not have the necessary liability insurance. Federal law requires interstate motor carriers to obtain operating authority from FMCSA in order to conduct operations, to have minimum levels of public liability insurance, and to file proof of the insurance with FMCSA. Action Carrier has a history of continuing to operate for extended periods after revocation of its authority for failing to meet FMCSA's insurance requirements. Over the last year, FMCSA initiated three separate civil penalty proceedings for operating without insurance and operating after revocation of authority. The most recent revocation order issued by FMCSA was on October 6, 2008. Following that order, FMCSA and state authorities documented at least 16 additional incidents of illegal transportation in interstate commerce by Action Carrier despite the latest revocation order. The court scheduled a hearing on a preliminary injunction for next Tuesday, November 25.

   Home burns on moving day.