Removal company or van hire?

Yorkie1

I moved a similar distance as you, though without family etc encumbrances / assistance.

Paid for a removal firm to pack and move me - best money I ever spent. The stress of not having to live around lots of boxes while packing myself was immeasurable.

Procrastinator333

2 moves ago, we did it ourselves. We were moving from a 3 bed semi to another 3 bed semi. But out of rented and in to one we were buying. The rental was part furnished. No white goods coming us. We had quite a few people helping us. It was one of the longest days of my life. We did it, but wow it was hard work.

Roll on to our most recent move. We now have a full house of stuff, we have a 2 year old, my other half is pregnant and we are selling / buying.

The complexities of getting packed, then loading a vehicle in such a short space of time, then unloading as quickly, with the amount of stuff we had were just too much. We paid someone this time round. What I would say, if you are going to pay for a removal firm, it is probably worth getting the packing service. We didn't quite go for the cheapest quote, but we paid £1,150 for the move, and £350 for the packing. £1,500 in total. The packing part was not that expensive. And it really was quite amazing to watch. They have just done it so many times, and they have all the materials. 2 people came the day before the move, arrived at 9am. They left at 4. In that time, every single thing was packed. And nothing was broken or damaged. And in terms of the total cost of the move, the packing was not the biggest part of the cost by a long way, well worth it.

Good luck with your move whatever you decide!

PasturesNew

If in doubt and if in a larger house (3-4 beds) then a removals company's probably best as they're fast and experienced.

I just moved and used anyvan. Happy with the service, but it did highlight to me the differences between removals firms and man/van. Removals firms are more focussed on you moving house; man/van are more about moving stuff from A to B then dashing off to their next job. Also, when I changed my contents insurance over (having booked the van), they said they were only insured if the removals were a "proper firm", and some man/van wouldn't be. Mine were considered a professional moving firm based on advertising on anyvan, their level of membership, their advertising description of themselves, but it's something to be mindful of.

3-4 beds + a kid's a lot of hassle and responsibility with tight time constraints and you can't afford for a man/van mentality of "shifting stuff in vans for several people in a day" to be focussed on the same goal that you have in mind.

Kynthia

Once you have enough stuff to fill a house, rather than a small flat, you are definitely looking at being better off having a removal firm. If you can move over a few days and have lots of assistance then perhaps you can DIY it, but not if you need to be out by lunchtime due to your buyers moving in. Lots of large furniture and white goods are also easier with a removal firm, who will often dismantle it, take it to the correct room and put it back together. Firms also have wardrobe boxes so you can just take all of your clothes from your wardrobe and hang your clothes in them the morning of the move, which is much easier than packing them all.


I moved a few months ago from a flat into a house and it was hell even with a professional firm, although we did have a 7 day old baby and no sleep. However I would never ever move without a firm again as it was still hard to move that much stuff. We might have saved by moving on a Tuesday as they are in most demand on a Friday.

jaylee3

Removal firm every time!

girlcalledpanda

We've always had furnished properties so no big things to move, now we're in unfurnished and have lots of big things including a large dresser. OH thinks we'll be hiring a van but I'll be looking for a man with a van for the big stuff, only going down the road so we can take a lot of small stuff ourselves.

LandyAndy

jaylee3 wrote: »

Removal firm every time!

Definitely. Probably some of the best money you will ever spend.

pinkteapot

When we bought our last house, the sale completed at 11am. We went to get the keys and the EA didn't have them. The vendor turned up with them at 4:30pm. He thought he could self-move out of a 4-bed house with a van. It took them all day. We were very lucky that we weren't moving in on the day itself (we weren't in a chain that time). If we'd been sat outside with our removal truck we'd have been fuming.

If this feels like your first real, grown-up move, please get the professionals in. Don't underestimate how many trips it'll take you to transport your furniture. As others have said, if you're in a chain then your buyers will expect you to be out by lunchtime.

Try to complete on a Tuesday/Wednesday. People always want to move near the weekend (Thursday/Friday) so these are busier for removals companies. You can haggle the price more with them for the quieter days.

girlcalledpanda

Also if you do it part you part removal company don't underestimate your stuff! When we moved from a flat to a house I'd packed but left bits for us, it was after the removal van had been and gone that I realised that our 'small' amount of stuff really isn't when transporting in a car! The kitchen is like a tardis for stuff in cupboards you forget about.

marlot

Nobody has mentioned insurance. If you check your policy you may well be covered for breakages but only if its packed and moved by a professional firm.