Collegeboxes To Return

Harvard College has contracted with the same storage and shipping company that elicited complaints from dozens of undergraduates who had used it to store their belongings last summer. The move has sparked skeptical reactions from students, many of whom will have to use the service this year.

The College considered a range of other storage companies, and even engaged in negotiations with one, but ultimately decided to stay with last year’s choice, Collegeboxes, Associate Director of Residential Operations Zachary M. Gingo ’98 wrote in an e-mailed statement yesterday.

Gingo said administrators elected to use the company again—despite last year’s difficulties—because of major changes in Collegeboxes’ operations over the past year and the company’s ability to handle the College’s substantial storage needs.

More than 500 Harvard students used Collegeboxes’ services last year, according to Scott Neuberger, the company’s president and chief financial officer.

An e-mail sent to all undergraduates on Tuesday, signed by both Harvard Student Agencies (HSA) and Collegeboxes, emphasized the company’s new “100% satisfaction guarantee,” a pledge to provide refunds to students who say they are dissatisfied with the service. HSA has endorsed the service.

Last fall, Kirkland House resident Eric P. Lesser ’07 collected e-mail statements from more than 40 students who had stored their belongings with Collegeboxes over the summer. The e-mails cited problems ranging from lost futons to misplaced paperwork to delays in receiving insurance claim checks.

Kirkland was particularly affected by those problems because the House’s storage space underwent renovations last summer, and the College used Collegeboxes to store residents’ belongings, at no cost to students.

Last November, the Undergraduate Council passed a unanimous resolution lambasting the company’s practices and calling on the College to “sever ties” with Collegeboxes.

Other factors that swayed the administration included not only the money-back guarantee, but also positive references from other schools and Collegeboxes’ familiarity with the Harvard campus, Gingo said.

Neuberger said Collegeboxes has identified and addressed the flaws in its operations that led to last year’s problems.

Among other changes, Collegeboxes has created labels specially designed to stay on furniture, established round-the-clock customer service, and made it easier to file insurance claims, with a less bureaucratic process that has been moved online, Neuberger said.

“I’m really confident that the changes that were brought about have improved my company tremendously and has yielded a much better service than existed in the past,” Neuberger said.

But Lesser, who never got back a couch and two rugs that he and his roommates stored last summer, said he remains unconvinced that Collegeboxes’ services will improve this year.

“Their behavior last year shows that they don’t really have much regard for what their written policies are,” he said. “If past performance is the best indication of future results, I would warn people to be a little careful.”

Michael R. Ragalie ’09, chair of the UC’s Student Affairs Committee, said he was “disappointed that the Office of Residential Life couldn’t find a suitable alternative.”

“I think that Collegeboxes did a very poor job last time, and they shouldn’t be awarded with the contract again,” he said.

HSA President William B. Hauser ’08 said he had expected that students would react negatively to the College’s decision, but noted that “the complaints and the issues raised by students last year have been examined thoroughly and were a huge part of the review process.”

Students who will not have to pay for Collegeboxes’ services—residents of Dunster and Mather Houses, which this summer will undergo basement renovations—will still be eligible to receive money if they are dissatisfied, Neuberger said.

And the money-back guarantee will not only apply to lost items. Students who file complaints with Collegeboxes simply saying they are dissatisfied will also be able to receive reimbursements.

Discussion over Dunster’s e-mail open list this week was largely critical of the decision to contract with Collegeboxes again, revealing students’ apprehension toward taking the opportunity to use the service for free.

Others said any money they would receive if their belongings are lost might not be enough to cover the full cost of the items.

—Staff writer Victoria B. Kabak can be reached at vkabak@fas.harvard.edu.