Removal transport options

Raymond_Douglas

I am moving out of one property that I own and will be letting, to another that I own, a few hours drive away. I will be letting the first property, but no great time pressure; the move can take place in stages, within a time period of about six weeks.

I am wondering about alternatives to either moving everything at once in one big removal van or hiring a van and making the journey a few times myself.

Any suggestions or advice?

Many thanks,
Raymond

PasturesNew

If you are able to hire a van and do it yourself, then that probably makes the most economic sense. Hiring a formal company you're paying for two men to sit on their bums in the cab for £25/hour each.

dacouch

Bear in mind "A few hours drive away" in a Luton van will cost you about £300 for a "Few trips" and then dropping it back to where you hired it from.

This is if you drive it sensibly eg 55/60mph if you drive it like a car eg 70mph you'll spend nearer £420 in diesel.

In addition you'll have to pay the daily rent of the van so I guess about 4 day @£60 a day. You'll also find most (Not all) hire companies will charge you circa 15p a mile so about another £200 in mileage charges.

Bear these costs in mind as well as the work you and your friends will need to put in if you move yourself.

If you're pricing up using a professional removal company bear the above costs in mind when comparing.

When obtaining quotes also look at companies from your destination as the total mileage is the same for the removal company whether you hire from your old town or new town.

I think you'll pay a fair amount more than the £50 per hour Pastures has indicated for a 3 man crew in a 7.5/12 or 18 ton van

Raymond_Douglas

Thanks folks - useful debate. What do others advise?


What about alternatives to either of these two options?


Part-load?


Man with a van?


Courier service? I recall my stuff being shifted by some sort of courier service when I left university in the 1980s.

phoebe1989seb

dacouch wrote: »

Bear in mind "A few hours drive away" in a Luton van will cost you about £300 for a "Few trips" and then dropping it back to where you hired it from.

This is if you drive it sensibly eg 55/60mph if you drive it like a car eg 70mph you'll spend nearer £420 in diesel.

In addition you'll have to pay the daily rent of the van so I guess about 4 day @£60 a day. You'll also find most (Not all) hire companies will charge you circa 15p a mile so about another £200 in mileage charges.

Bear these costs in mind as well as the work you and your friends will need to put in if you move yourself.

If you're pricing up using a professional removal company bear the above costs in mind when comparing.

When obtaining quotes also look at companies from your destination as the total mileage is the same for the removal company whether you hire from your old town or new town.

I think you'll pay a fair amount more than the £50 per hour Pastures has indicated for a 3 man crew in a 7.5/12 or 18 ton van

On our last-but-one house sale/purchase we moved 150 miles and decided, having been charged in excess of £4k by removers for a similar distance/quantity the previous time, to DIY. It took seven trips (might even have been eight ) and cost close to £2k.

We were fortunate that the house we were buying was empty, we had no lender to be accountable to and our vendors were happy for us to move stuff in between exchange and completion, although of course this isn't an issue for the OP.

Tbh, the hassle of taking a week to actually move and all the associated lifting/shifting far outweighed the cost of hiring the professionals, so when we moved again last year we reverted to paying a reputable removal co......the level of service they provided was excellent - lifting heavy sofa up and over a balcony for example - and was well worth the £3k+!

dimbo61

DIY is possible if you can get a couple of strong friends to carry all the heavy stuff up and down stairs.
Are you moving all the stuff from a 4 bed house or 1 bed flat on the fifth floor with no lift.
Access into and out of both properties ? Parking a big van on the drive or half a mile away ?
Big wardrobes and heavy furniture ? Or IKEA boxes ?

Raymond_Douglas

IKEA boxes. Moving (just myself) to bungalow already furnished, previously let. IKEA sofa which dismantles, rocking chair, TV, music centre, PC, books. CDs, clothes. kitchen utensils etc.

Norman_Castle

If you've got a car move as much as you can in that, possibly adding roof bars/box or trailer, then move the remaining larger or heavy items in one van journey.

Raymond_Douglas

This firm sound like they might be helpful, not for everything but for some items: a storage company that collects from your address and will return your items to, if you wish, another address:


http://lovespace.co.uk/


Good idea, do you think? Are there other firms offering a comparable service at comparable prices?

georgbaily

If you want to hire safety Removal Company, as per my knowledge there are many removal companies present to do your house removals. My advice is, the best way to go with reliablemovers.co.uk. This is one of the best and safety Removal Company. They are providing both van and man to do house removals which includes the load of doing packing, shifting, and relocating.

goodwithsaving

We got a removal firm who carried it all, unplugged things - all for only £30 extra than van hire.

Money well spent. There's a lot of carrying etc. and trying not to trip up over things. These people do it all of the time and are super quick too,