Route Removals

Our move was not a positive experience. The removalists themselves were fantastic, but the manager (Avi) was very unprofessional and difficult to deal with.

Firstly, head office didn't give the two removalists our phone number nor the correct address, so they were an hour late. Head office never once tried to contact me. I finally went down to the street and found the removalists ringing random doorbells.

Once they had transported the boxes to our new house they had to call head office to confirm they could unload. The manager (Avi) was not in, so I spoke to another team member to confirm they could proceed. When Avi called me back he was incredibly rude, and demanded to know who had authorised them to proceed. He threatened to fire the individual on the spot as only he could give the authorisation. I refused to name the individual as I did not want their role to be in jeopardy.

Avi then demanded extra payment of £80 as the number of boxes was more than I had guided (I had said it would be 55 boxes, it turned out to be 65). This raised the total cost from £180 to £260, quite a significant increase. When I asked how he arrived at that figure, he said he made it up, and it was at his full discretion. He held our boxes to ransom and refused to unload them until I agreed to pay him the extra amount. Despite my attempts to calmly discuss the matter Avi continued to be extremely rude, shouting several times.

I would strongly recommend not using this company - Avi's rudeness, disrespect for his own staff and complete lack of moral compass speaks volumes.

On the flip side, the two removalists were fantastic - very friendly, and genuinely apologetic for their manager's behaviour. They also moved all of our boxes in and out without damaging anything. This was one of the removalists' first week and he was afraid he had made a mistake joining the company.

Service cost: £280

[NAME EDIT] quoted me £300 for move. He came to
My house and looked at my furniture and said it will be a little more than I quoted. I asked how much and he said “don’t worry I will contact the office”. He left with my belongings and said I will see you at your new home. He never arrived. I called him and was told the van was pulled over for being over weight. 6:30 p.m, he text to say he wanted £950 for the move. I refused. He telephoned at 8:00 pm saying if I did not pay then my furniture would go into storage at an additional £250.
I offered to pay if he turned up outside my house with my belongings. He refused.
On Monday 18th December I will go to court and obtain a court order to recover my goods and seek damages from this dreadful company. I am a professional paralegal so please contact me and I will assist you for free to bring compensation claims against this company nash.trevor@rocketmail.com.

Service cost: £950

The good - was able to assist when things went wrong..


The bad - Like the other reviews on here..I only wish I had read these before I had booked with Route Removals! I will share the costs I have incurred as a result of using this firm. £500 quoted, for a 2 bed mid terrace - no wardrobes or white goods. Had packed everything ourselves. On day of moving, van turned up which wasn't big enough to take our stuff, when I called [NAME EDIT] he insisted that the van was big enough and that my wife hadn't been quoted for the shed or patio set - called her a liar and said that he would have to make 2 trips or we could arrange to store elsewhere..this doesn't include the 3 cars and small van we loaded ourselves. Additionally, to cut a long story short, my move didn't happen on the day (solicitor another issue!) and due to route removals using 3rd parties and only booking for 1/2 a day, we were told that there would be additional costs to pay for waiting time despite my wife asking if it was a flat fee. I was then told by the removal men that if I didn't give them £500 cash, they would take my stuff away! in the end my furniture had to go into storage and in order to retrieve it and have delivered on the Monday it would cost an extra..£1,950!! 4 x's the original amount. I had no option but to agree. Was delivered on the Monday and found that 1 item (sideboard) was cracked, 1 item (garden storage box) was also cracked and left with a hole in the top and a pair of skates I use to move heavy equipment had disappeared. When I asked [NAME EDIT] to replace of reimburse I was advised that the best he could do as a 'goodwill' gesture was £50 - not even enough to cover the costs of replacing the skates. The rail service that is offered is a waste of time, our clothes were thrown in the back of the lorry on collection and delivered in the same way..thrown in wardrobe and left on the floor. So in summary, £2,700 plus drinks for the drivers, 1 item missing, 2 damaged items and a service that was well short of what was expected. I would never use this firm again..even if they paid me!!

Service cost: £2700

 I found Route Removals online although I felt a bit paranoid because of the negative experience comments, however I was assured that the move will run smoothly and in which they kept their promise!

Route  Removals were absolutely fantastic from start to finish. Staff  were friendly and fast to respond to my long list of questions and the quote was reasonable.

The collection was arranged to suit my schedule and delivery was right on time. 
My old house was particularly difficult for them as it is a upper floor maisonette and therefore everything had to come down the stairs. They were very careful with our items and with the furnishings/walls/wall paper etc. They were courteous at all times. When we got to new property there were more challenges - such as the narrow stairs at the entrance to our flat , however these were tackled in a flexible manner again  Absolutely A star service all the way through. What hard workers!!

Service cost: £550

This company should be shut down. They made what is already a stressful experience - moving house - immeasurably more stressful and upsetting. Where to start.. they gave themselves 3 days to pack and move our house. On day 1, two unfriendly men - they looked like teenagers - turned up very late in an unmarked, beaten up van with a completely flat tire, and started boxing things up (without labelling the boxes). They lasted four hours. At one point I came back to my house having gone out to find our front door open (we live in a not very safe part of London) and one of the men asleep in his van, the other one nowhere to be seen. On day 2, it was one guy for 3 hours (there was still a lot to be packed). On Day 3, 2 men turned up, with a second van, only for them and the van to disappear in a couple of hours, leaving a great deal still unpacked. There was no answer when I tried to call 'Route Removals'. In the end I had to get 3 friends to come and help pack the house. At 7pm 3 men finally turn up, and we packed up the house until 11pm. No blankets were used, and boxes were not secured. We then drove to our new property, and spent until 3am unpacking, and it would have been longer, except I now had 5 friends helping. It was absolutely awful, particularly as my wife was in hospital with our sick baby. AND ON TOP OF THIS, we had to pay twice (Quoted cost £1500 x 2) as the bank account we deposited the first £1500 in apparently 'closed' just after the money went through, and we were then forced to deposit another £1500 otherwise (they told us) they would not turn up. They have refused to refund us the money, and we are currently taking them to the small claims court. AVOID AVOID AVOID!!

Service cost: £1500

Never been more disappointed by a service in my life. I was made to feel so reassured by Avi and Jay to then be so upset with the state of my furniture and other belongings..to now have no response to emails. We’ve worked very hard for the things that we have with our daughters and will not be able to replace the items that have been damaged mostly their brand new furniture. I have spent the last few weeks in tears..move yourself or if you can afford it pay the people with the good reviews.

Service cost: £350