Florida couple trusted movers with everything they owned. 2 weeks later, a friend found their child's bed being sold online

A simple, routine decision, one that thousands of families make every day, can sometimes lead to life-changing outcomes. This was the case for Catelin Bales and her military veteran husband when they hired a professional moving company to facilitate their move from Central Ohio to Florida. Despite following all the proper procedures, signing contracts, paying thousands of dollars, and handing over the keys, the couple was devastated to discover that their belongings were being auctioned online. This unfortunate situation prompted them to reach out to NBC4 Columbus (@wcmhnbc4columbus), which reported on their story on July 2, 2026, garnering over 13,000 views.

The contractual agreement

The entire story started when the Bales contacted an Illinois-based moving company, Stanford Van Lines, to handle their relocation from Central Ohio to Florida. The family did everything right and agreed to a plan where the movers would store their household items, which consisted of everything from clothes to their family heirlooms, for 30 days before making the final delivery in Florida. Everything was fine, and the couple relaxed, expecting the company to hold its end of the bargain. Bales never expected the family heirloom her grandchildren loved so much to end up in the hands of strangers for a few bucks.

The property was placed in storage

Stanford Van Lines arrived at their residence in Central Ohio to pack and collect the family's possessions. However, instead of keeping the items with themselves, the company transferred them to a Columbus facility run by Public Storage on Ambleside Drive. Just two weeks after this, Public Storage, for unknown reasons, auctioned off the contents of the unit without the Bales family's knowledge or consent. A liquidation business based in Mount Vernon purchased the locker through a standard, legal storage auction and began processing the inventory.

A devastating discovery

It was only after this that one of the couple's friends noticed the family's belongings on an online auction and sent a photograph to them. The family, obviously, upon seeing this, was left shocked to find strangers bidding on their deeply personal heirlooms, including their children's photos, beds, military memorabilia, and even a childhood guitar. "My whole life’s been ripped out from under me,” Catelin Bales said. "A few people have described it as like I feel like my house burnt down to the ground because I have nothing left."

Progress being made

While the Bales remain stranded with all their stuff no longer with them, some progress has been made since they contacted Better Call 4. The business that bought the unit from the auction has revealed that they want to make things right. However, they can only do so after the Bales agree to remove them from any liability, as they've processed stuff and thrown away things they deemed of no value. While it is business to them, for the Bales, even those things were priceless. 

That said, their lawyer also commented on the matter, as he continues to fight for the couple. "My clients have done nothing wrong here," he said. He then explained that they went exactly by the book and that he'd been trying to resolve everything and get them their stuff back. At the same time, the auction has been halted by the company. This means that their stuff won't be getting sold anywhere, at least for now. Hopefully the Bales will be able to work something out and get their belongings back within the next few weeks.

Most movers complete the job 

While the Bales are going through a rough time with the moving company misplacing their belongings, overall they get the job done. In fact, 60% of customers that hired movers were satisfied with their job, as their things arrived on time and in good shape. That said, approximately 1 in 5 customers, or roughly 19% of people, reported that the moving company either damaged or completely lost their goods, according to a survey held by This Old House. 

'This sounds like a racket'

Nonetheless, the people are furious regarding this situation with the Bales, as they want them to sue the moving company. @darthmom1019 wrote, "Sue the crap out of the moving van company! This is so wrong on too many levels!!!" Meanwhile, @melodies5622 commented, "2 weeks??? You have to pay 30 days up front when getting a storage unit. Did the moving company just drop everything in a unit and walk away?? This sounds like a racket that all the companies are involved in. Investigation! Criminal charges!"

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