Why are removal companies so expensove and varied in their prices.

ReadingTim

youth_leader said:

I was very disappointed when I engaged a local firm and they charged me £1200 to move two minutes down the road.  I tried to get the price down and they said the 18 steps at the front of the house and difficult access for the lorry was the reason for the high quote.

I have seen people recommending 'late key insurance' which I assume covers expenses if you cannot move in on the day.

Driving the van is the quick and easy bit - packing and unpacking it is what takes the time, so is where the bulk of the cost is.  Obvious if you think about it.  

TheJP

Statex2_2 said:

Hi, weare moving from South Essex to North Norfolk 120 miles. I have recently received estimates from several removal firms. The prices are so varied . Long established companies seem to be between £5 and £4 thousand pounds. I was told that my contents were equivalent to a 4 bed house but I have a 3 bed house. Removers from comparison stes seem to be around the 12 to 15 hundred mark. I expect variations but such a big difference is surprising. 
One comparison site company is City Removals Ltd. has anyone experience of this company? They seem to belong to various trade organisations etc.and have 5 star feedback but why are they a quarter of another company.

Are these low priced companies reliable, what happens if they do not turn up on removal day. The whole process is a nightmare.

The difference here is i can only guess is the established firms have come out and quoted based on contents they have actually seen. Where as the comparison sites are a guesstimate and will likely be higher or even worse they send a van for average contents of a 3 bed house but in fact what you have would fill a 4 bedroom house.

Statex2_2

The comparison site companies carried aout a video survey over whats app

ArbitraryRandom

I think it would be sensible to check with them what would happen if they/you had underestimated. 

I'm thinking you should probably think about what you can realistically get rid of/replace so it never goes in the van; how much would it cost for them to sort a larger/second van on the day; could you get local storage if some of it needed to wait until a later time; could you take the excess by doing a second trip yourself (the cost of staying overnight in a travel lodge near your old home) 

If the extra costs still work out less than the more expensive company and you're comfortable with the contingency/risk then going for the smaller/cheaper option sounds like a good way to save some cash. 

Statex2_2

We have packed all the boxes ourselves and only a few things to pack the day before moving. But the big boys still quote for 12 rolls of tape , 4 rolls of bubble wrap 150 boxes etc. Individual items not priced but a complete job price. My third thought is that they do not want the job because it is 120 mles or 3 hours driving. They probably only want the local jobs as a  recent newspaper atricle stated that most people only move within 5 miles of their original home.

One company said that the beginning and the end of the month are the most expensive. I said ok I will move in he middle of the month but he still quoted £5k.

Murphybear

I’ve always found the best companies are local firms with good reputation and 5 * reviews. They are generally a lot better than ”man and van”  but a lot depends on how much stuff you have and how far you are moving.  We moved from Northants to the middle of Dartmoor and they did an overnight move.  They were brilliant.  

For our last few moves we’ve had a partial pack service for the kitchen items and all the china and glass.  It didn’t cost much more and was well worth it.  A lot of firms won’t pay out for broken glass/china if they haven’t packed it themselves.  

SkeltonDust

My tuppence.
I used a website called Shipley or something like that for first move in 2011 from Southampton to Wales.
Same again when moved from Wales to West Leeds.
Again from Leeds to North Nottingham.
All was pleasure, same provider from Bedford area on Shipley website,with reasonable price.
Last move four years ago, to Derby; used different provider and it was awful experience.
All my moves were work related and I could have used the most expensive company as the expenses were refunded. I packed my belongings myself, after sourcing the removals stuff online. This kept the overheads low.
So, I believe the big names are used by people who donot pay by themselves but by their work/ NHS/ BBC/ politics etc.
HTH

ArbitraryRandom

SkeltonDust said:

I used a website called Shipley or something like that 

If you mean 'shiply' then it's worth being aware that this is a third party broker, so provide a quotation service for independent traders. I've used them before for large ebay items sold as collection only and not had a problem; I quite like the idea of using a spare bit of space in a van heading in my direction anyway. 

That said, booking a full removal is a slightly different arrangement and I've also heard their dispute resolution process isn't the best if there is a problem. 

SkeltonDust

@ArbitraryRandom
Mine were full removals, not single or few
items.
So I thought I'll provide my experience.

ArbitraryRandom

SkeltonDust said:

@ArbitraryRandom
Mine were full removals, not single or few
items.
So I thought I'll provide my experience.

Yes, sorry. I just read my post back and it sounds like I was being critical. I was just wanting to make it clear that they were brokers/middlemen not a removal company, so it's worth googling for reviews of whoever quotes. But I agree that they're a useful website and a good way to get a wider range of quotes.