Removals firms

What to put in your job description

• Where you are moving from and to: the towns, or the first part of each postcode.
• The date, or the dates you could do, and whether it is fixed, such as a completion day.
• How much is moving: a few items, a one-bedroom flat, a three-bedroom house or an office.
• Anything large, heavy or fragile: a piano, a wardrobe that doesn't come apart, glass or artwork.
• Access at both ends: stairs, a lift, a narrow street, and how near the van can park.
• Whether you want packing, taking furniture apart and back together, storage, or a clearance of what is left.

Don't put your name, phone number or address in the description: every trade who covers your area reads it. Your name, phone, email and address go only to the trades who take the job (3 at most).

Questions to ask before you hire

• Will you visit, or do a video survey, before you give a fixed price?
• What does the price include: packing, boxes, taking furniture apart, and how many people and vans?
• What does your goods-in-transit insurance cover, and what is the most it pays for one item?
• What happens to the price if my completion is late, or you have to wait for the keys?
• Is there a charge to cancel or to move the date?

Registers and schemes to check

There is no legal register for removal firms. Some belong to a trade body, such as the British Association of Removers, whose members agree to its code of practice. A firm whose vans weigh more than 3.5 tonnes needs a goods vehicle operator's licence: in Great Britain you can look one up on GOV.UK, and in Northern Ireland they come from the Department for Infrastructure. We don't check this for you yet.

What the job usually involves

• A survey, in person or by video, so the firm can see how much there is and plan the vans and people.
• Packing, if you want it: boxes, wrapping for fragile things, and taking beds and wardrobes apart.
• Loading, the drive, and unloading into the rooms you choose at the new home.
• Putting furniture back together, and taking away boxes and packing afterwards, if agreed.
• Storage between homes when the dates don't line up, or clearing things you aren't taking.

How quotes and visits work

For a house move, a firm usually needs a survey, in person or by video, to give a fixed price; for a few items, photos and a list are often enough. Ask whether the price is for the job or by the hour, how many people and vans it covers, and what happens if your completion is late or the keys come late.

Ask for a written quote (a fixed price) rather than an estimate (a guess that can change), and for what it includes. If you agree a job in your home, you usually have 14 days to cancel under the Consumer Contracts Regulations; if you want work to start sooner, you may have to pay for what has been done.

Safety

• Keep valuables, documents, medicines and keys with you, not in the van.
• Tell the firm about anything very heavy, such as a piano or a gym machine, before the day: it may need more people or equipment.
• Keep children and pets away from the doors, the stairs and the van while it is loaded.

Insurance

Ask about goods-in-transit insurance: what it covers, the most it pays for one item, and how to claim. Ask too about public liability insurance, which covers damage to the buildings at either end. Your own home insurance may cover your things during a move: read your policy.

Guides for homeowners

• How to compare quotes from local trades

We take jobs from anywhere in the UK: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Trades choose the postcode districts they cover.

Removals firms by town and city

England

Scotland

Wales

Northern Ireland