We will give you the best price
They mean: You live in a posh area. You are worth a few quid extra on the quote.
The best price for them or the best price for you?
At the end of the day, the removal company has to make a profit to stay in business. But what you are prepared to pay must offer good value for money or you will look elsewhere.
The best price, therefore, is what works for both parties.
Cheap is not always good, and generally, you get what you pay for, or somewhere down the line, some unexpected costs will be thrust upon you.
The safest way to know what the ballpark figure for your home removal costs is is to get quotes from a number of removal companies.
If any estimate is wildly cheaper than the others, ask yourself why.
The removal industry is very competitive and prices are fairly uniform, what sets others apart is usually customer service.
It is easy to get a removal company cost estimate by clicking here.
You may also like to read: What are the Average Home Moving Costs? In this guide, we break down the cost of moving home yourself vs the cost of hiring a good removal company to do all the hard work for you.
Our offices are being refurbished, so, for now, we only have the mobile telephone number
They mean: Once we have your stuff in our van, we will be long gone.
So you are prepared to hand over every last one of your worldly possessions to a complete stranger who will only give you a mobile telephone number. Oh, and you will pay them to take your stuff too. Really??
Removal Company scams, although rare, do happen, but there are steps you can take to protect yourself and your goods from moving day scams.
It is worth doing a thorough investigation of your removal company to ensure that they are a legitimate business, after all, they will have every item you own in the world in their possession.
You may also like to read: Removal Company Scams and How to Avoid Them. In this guide, we highlight the most common moving scams and how you can protect yourself from being their next victim.
We have a documented complaints procedure
They mean: Our complaints procedure is full of legal jargon that you will need a degree in Klingon to decipher.
If you want proof of just how evolved nanotechnology has become, take a look at the small print of your terms and conditions document.
If your removal company is a member of one of the removal trade associations then there are set procedures and guidelines that the removal company must adhere to when dealing with any complaints.
It would be prudent to ensure you know exactly what your removal company’s complaint procedure is.
It is always worth looking at reviews of any removal company you are considering hiring.
The bad reviews, which are normally left after damage has been caused, are a good gauge of how quickly or fairly the removal company deals with claims of damage.
You may also like to read: Home Moving Insurance: Do I Need it? Being underinsured is one of the most common mistakes people make when moving home. In this guide, we tell you all you need to know about insuring your home move.
We have many years of removal experience but have just started a new business
They mean: We have closed down, and opened under a new name, more times than Prince.
The trouble is with the internet, people keep discovering who we previously traded as, and due to the bad reviews we had, we cannot get any more work.
Trusting your home move to a new removal company in itself is not always dangerous, just take the time to check them out thoroughly and be sure in your own mind that they will offer you the services you need.
Often a new company will be eager to impress and will want some glowing reviews to help kick-start their business.
Equally, they may have embraced new technology that an older, more established company is less willing to adapt to or invest in.
You may also like to read: What to Know When Hiring a Removal Company for the First Time. If you have never hired a removal company before then you will find this guide invaluable. In this guide, we show you what a removal company does, what you need to do, and what they will and won’t move to your new home.
There is no need for us to belong to a trade organisation
They mean: None of the trade associations will have us, or as Groucho Marx said ‘I wouldn’t want to belong to any club that would have me as a member’.
Whilst being a member of one of the removal industry trade bodies is not compulsory, or a definitive sign of a good removal company, there are benefits to you as a consumer if they are.
The removal company must adhere to certain standards of service and have a clearly defined complaints procedure. The trade bodies will also act as arbitrators during any dispute that may arise between you and the removal company.
It is especially prudent to choose a removal company that belongs to a trade association should you be moving overseas because of the added complexities of customs clearance and dealing with local issues.
An international moving association will have a network of partners who all adhere to the same standards of trade and service.
You may also like to read: Removal Trade Associations. In this guide, we explain the different trade associations and why if a company is a member it has certain benefits for you as a consumer.
All our staff are fully trained
They mean: We play football for the local pub every Sunday morning.
If your removal company claims that their staff has undergone any training, ask to see the evidence.
At the end of the day, it is your hard-earned money that is being spent on your home move, and you need to be sure that the removal company will provide the best possible service for you.
If the removal company makes a claim such as we undergo extensive training, or we have won awards for such and such, ask to see the certificates.
The removal company should be justifiably proud of any awards they have won or the fact that they invest in their staff.
If they are making false claims about such things, what else can you not trust about their sales pitch?
You may also like to read: How to Compare Removal Companies. In this guide, we suggest a list of things to know so that you can compare the different quotes for your home move consistently.
We are very eco-friendly, the environment is important to us
They mean: We walk to the takeaway next door and our burgers from there come in recycled packaging.
If your removal company bills itself as eco-friendly and that is important to you, then quiz them on exactly what they do to help the environment.
Moving home can be wasteful, and historically was not that eco-friendly, but times are changing.
Rather than cardboard boxes some companies now use plastic crates, and vehicles that are electric or run on biofuels, they recycle waste paper at their offices, uniforms can be made from sustainable materials, and they encourage staff to cycle to work.
Technology is also helping to save the planet, and many removal companies now use video for the in-home moving survey.
The in-home moving survey is crucial as it allows the removal company to accurately assess what you want moving, and thereby can give you a far more accurate price for your move, and enables them to make a moving day plan.
By using a video-based app they can do this survey at a time that is convenient for you and is also far more environmentally friendly.
You may also like to read: Eco-friendly Ways to Move Home. In this guide, we explain how to choose an eco-friendly removal company and other ways in which you can make your move more eco-friendly.
So, as we said at the beginning, this is very tongue in cheek, and no disrespect is intended to the many excellent removal companies who will provide an outstanding service to you during your home move.
We are just highlighting the fact that marketing is getting more and more sophisticated, and you need to be wary.
Don’t take everything at face value, and do your homework when hiring a removal company.
Like every industry, there are good and bad companies.
But follow our advice and take the time to thoroughly research any removal company you intend to hire.
Hire in haste and repent at leisure.
You move home rarely, it is not a cheap thing to do, and all your worldly goods will be entrusted to people you do not know.
But get it right and hiring a good removal company is worth every penny.
Don’t forget to visit our home moving blog which is packed with more tips on how to make your home move cheaper, quicker, and safer.
Also Read
Share your thoughts by leaving a comment