Caveat emptor: The Dubai Expat Relocations Story


Posted on January 31, 2019



Moving home is stressful enough, but in 2014 hundreds of Dubai expats lost their household goods and personal effects after paying Moving Company thousands of pounds. This is the story of Dubai Expat Relocations.

Expat Relocations was owned and managed by 2 British Expats who built a professional looking website, and presented themselves as expert removalists in Dubai. The truth is however that Expat Relocations provided moving quotations that were much cheaper than other Dubai Movers such as Crown Worldwide, Allied Pickfords, and Santa Fe Relocations . And Dubai Expats were duped by the sales skills of Expat Relocations staff, and once the quotation was accepted the company demanded full payment up front. With the money and the clients goods in their possession, Expat Relocations would demand more and more money, blaming additional customs costs, and unforeseen shipping charges. However in many cases clients could not pay and so Expat Relocations simply disposed of their goods. A sad story which resulted in great loss and anxiety for the duped expats, and jail time in Dubai for the British owners of Expat Relocations

How to avoid being scammed?

If you are planning on moving to Dubai ClickMoves recommends the following top tips:

  • Get at least 3 quotations from reputable Moving companies. We at ClickMoves would be happy to provide a quotation for your move, but we strongly recommend that you go to some of our competitors for an alternative moving quotation  from Crown Worldwide, Allied Pickfords, and Santa Fe Relocations
  • Check the terms and conditions of business carefully to ensure that you do have a legal claim under your origin countries jurisdiction to make a claim if your goods do not arrive at destination.
  • There’s no obligation to pay all of the door to door fees up front. Clickmoves would request a deposit prior to packing, and the balance payable just before delivery. This gives our client full security.