Removals companies

lisyloo

Don't know how much sorting you've done, but I would go through an exercise of getting rid of everything you don't need.
If it's worth selling (bearing in mind postage, packing, ebay fees, paypal fees etc) then sell it.
If it's not worth selling but useable and isn't electrical then take it to a charity shop.
If you have any old blankets, duvets, sheets then a local dogs home would be very grateful.
If it's not good enough for a charity shop or dogs home then recycle or bin it.


It's not worth paying people to move stuff you haven't used for a decade and it's a great opportunity for a clear out.

Slinky

In all the removals threads on this site, bearing in mind it's for money saving, I've never ever seen anybody say that they regret paying somebody else to do the packing for them. It really is worth paying the extra for.


ETA we saw the move from hell unfold opposite us where the vendors were doing a move with a rental van, and their purchasers had the professionals in. The vendors has only just got the keys for their new house when their purchasers turned up. The poor purchasers ended up with their stuff being shoved into the garage, and the removers were loading up the hired van with the vendors stuff just to get them out so they could get in.



Just don't do this!

SallyDucati

I've sort of experienced both in the last 18 months.

I helped my sister move approx 10 miles in the NE. She hired a van company through anyvan. Firstly I will say the 2 guys were great, but. If I hadn't persuaded her to back up the on-line quote with a phone call the company would not have fully understood that she needed the amount of furniture moving and she wouldn't be able to assist. It took 2 trips to move everything, and took most of the day between all the packing the van and unpacking (and the 2 trips). I think in total she paid about £175.

I moved 6 months ago from a 2 bed flat to a 3 bed house 12 miles away. and used a proper removal company. 3 guys turned up at 7:50am. Big van packed by 09:00, removal guys went back to their depot to wait confirmation I could move into the new place (depot was only down the road). Me and sis went shopping waiting for 'the' phone call. Got the call at 2pm. Called removal company, dropped off my flat keys picked up the house keys and met the van at the new place. Everything unpacked and in the relevant room in 30 minutes! And they put protective film down so as not to track dirt in. Cost me £583. (Did my own packing)

I would ALWAYS go with a removal company, so much easier.

Oh yes, and they and another company who quoted would have put my motorbike in the van as well had I been able to siphon off the petrol! Would have saved me a trip.

danlewi2

Definitely get removal people - I moved into a third floor flat (no lift) - after moving out of parents house. Moved all my furniture and bits stored at parents in cars and a relatives van, going up and down the stairs with the big stuff was hard work, but the smaller stuff was the most painful as there was so much.
Roll on 4 years as I moved from a flat to a house and obviously accumulated more stuff in that time period, I managed to pack all the stuff in boxes. However got professional removal men in to do the heavy lifting down the 3 flights of stairs. 4 men and lorry arrived and - wow the strength of these guys made it look easy. One guy carried a large bookcase by himself! We moved in the following day and the removal guys met my father-in-law at the new house and had most of it unloaded before we even got there.

Takmon

I have the opposite point of view to most posters and i personally wouldn't use a removal company at the prices they typically charge.
Packing is easy and you have plenty of time to do that in the weeks up to exchange plus it allows you to sort through your stuff as your pack and throw away anything you don't want anymore, paying £150 for this seems silly to me.

On the actual move day a rented/borrowed van will be the fraction of the cost of a removal service. You just need to get a few friends to help and it won't take long at all loading and unloading the stuff. I've helped other people and they have helped me in the past and it's always gone smoothly.

The poster above spent £583 to move 12 miles, that's not exactly a small amount of money. Doing it yourself it's one day of lifting moving and hard work and you save £583; seems a no brainier to me.

Chimpy9

I’ve had a quote of £510 to move from a 3 bed semi detached 3 miles away. They arrive at 10am and we’ve got them until 5pm. They provide 30 boxes, dismantle/reassemble furniture are fully insured. I would much rather spend the money for less hassle. If you have family/friends who are available to help then man and can may be a good option.

middleclassbutpoor

We are paying for this when we move next month - We had a few quotes but went with the one that held professional membership to the British Association of Removers. .

Paying £300 for packing service - best £300 I will be spending given I don't have to deal with being tired and grumpy and stressed.

I don't need to worry about guessing how many boxes to order and materials being wasted etc.

Given the amount of money being spent in the transaction, I just see it as an expense where actually its minimal for the stress/time/hassle it saves.

SarahB89

£900ish to move a 2-3 bed house 200 miles, packing included. Literally handed them the keys at 8am, went out for breakfast, came back and the van was packed, met them at the new house mid-afternoon. They took apart any furniture that would dismantle and rebuilt it at the other end. The cost got recompensed by my employer, I had to provide three quotes and they'd only let me claim the cheapest, but we went mid-market. I had one quote that was £2k+...
The cost for packing is one I would pay every time. It meant being able to live 'normally' right up to the day before, and not have to worry about whether things would survive the trip.

newbieFTB

I paid £400 to move from a 2 bed (+garage) around a mile away... worth every penny and I would never skimp on removals. That was for 3 men doing the move, they make it look easy but having done a DIY move once myself I know it's not! Also things like a heavy oak chest filing cabinet which I didn't think looked right downstairs so asked them to move it upstairs, only to realise it was better downstairs so they brought it back down!



Most professional movers will want to come round and do a quick survey before quoting so they can see exactly how much stuff you've got. I had 3 different quotes and this was the middle but they got great reviews online so went for them based on the reviews.

removalistsofuk

Well having been through a similar situation in the past. It would be difficult to predict the cost of your move,as it depends on many factors such as numbers of belongings, type of belongings and the distance to be covered.