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General good practice with a moving company will involve having someone visit your home to (as a minimum) assess how much stuff you want to take with you – the “volume” of your move. A professional mover focused on providing you a good service will also use this opportunity to understand more about your requirements and make sure they have all the information they need to give you a detailed, fully inclusive price and to make sure you have all the information you need to be ready for and comfortable with your move. If you've only just started thinking about booking removal surveys and aren't sure what to expect then here''s our guide on how to get an accurate quotation...
If you’ve never had a home visit from a moving company before and are unsure of what to expect then we've prepared this guide to give a bit of advice on what to expect and how to prepare in order to make sure you get the most out of it and have all bases covered.
In summary, here how to get an accurate quotation for your international removal:
1. Show the move consultant EVERYTHING!
For an accurate quotation to be drawn up correctly, you want to make sure your move consultant has seen every room in your house where there is furniture/belongings to be moved. Let them see inside any large storage cupboards and don’t forget the loft*, the garage, the basement and the garden shed.
*you can expect the move consultant to view your loft if it is properly boarded and lit and has safe access, the same will apply for having crew remove items from it on moving day. If it is not ask the move consultant how they would like to deal with this area as different companies may have different procedures.
In the garden don’t forget about any plants, garden furniture or ornaments you will be moving. These will need to be taken into account, especially for space required on a vehicle.
If you are planning on buying anything new that will need to be moved also try to give the Move Consultant an idea of what this will be - don’t be tempted to ‘sneak this in’ on moving day. Chances are it wont cost you much more to include it, but the moving companies planning team will allow the size of the vehicle that best meets the volume of goods to be moved, if you add to the inventory and don’t tell them in advance this can mean you don’t have enough space to take everything and it could cost you more time, money and stress to sort this out on the day.
2. Be prepared to answer questions during removal surveys?
It is the move consultants job to understand your individual situation and what you want and need and to then take all this information and build you a tailor made solution based around what you’ve told them. They will need to get an idea of:
Budget - If they ask about your budget, be realistic. Remember, these are your worldly possessions and you want to make sure that they will be moved safely. You don’t have to give a lump sum in response to this question, but try to explain to the move consultant what is most important to you and what elements of your move you might be willing to arrange yourself. For example, if money is your major consideration then you might be able to undertake some of your own packing to reduce the time required for a crew to move you, but if you’re short for time and need a bit more help then the moving company can include this in their quote.
Dates – Do you know when you want to move yet?
Flexibility – Do you need exact dates or do you have a window the mover can work with? You might find they can offer you better prices for certain dates where they are less busy. Flexibility is also important to consider when you have a smaller amount of belongings to be moved and might be able to utilise a part load service – this is where your move is done in conjunction with other customers in the same area so you share the costs of the vehicle operation.
Weekend Moving - Bear in mind it can be more expensive to move on a weekend as the moving crew would likely command higher wages for working unsocial hours.
Completion dates - If you are completing on your house sale on the day of the move do you know what time keys to your new property will be available and what time you need to be out of your current home? Any delays here could involve the move taking longer than you think and this could mean extra charges.
3. Do you need any additional services?
A house move doesn’t always just involve packing, transport and unpacking. What about the climbing frame in the garden? Will that need taking down and putting back up? All your pictures are hanging nicely on the walls now, but who is going to put them all back up at the new home? Same goes for lamp shades, clocks or mirrors.
It’s also amazing that no matter how much of a clean freak you are with the housework when all your furniture and belongings are taken out suddenly you find dust and dirt in all kinds of new places! Do you have time to clean the place you’re moving out of before you go or do you just want to leave? Same in the new home – it’s nice to have your new place clean before you start putting things in and make it harder to get there, are you going ahead to do this or do you want someone else to do this for you? Do you want to be able to ‘live’ in your house ASAP? Maybe a bit of help unpacking will allow you to hit the ground running quicker and get back to normal life and priorities!
If these sound like things you'd be interested in, then ask your move consultant whether the company offers any additional services, such as a handyman or housemaid.
For lots of other information on getting removal surveys or just general advice on moving house, check out our complete guide to the removal process.
