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Original poster

Is a removals service worth it?

106 replies

YesEllis · 26/06/2021 09:30

Moving 45 mins away, 3 bed house to 4 bed house, we have lots of stuff.. been quoted £440 for removals, option £125 on top for packing service. DH insisting we can do it ourselves for £100 if we hire a van for the day, says that it isn't worth the money we could save and spend on nice new things for the house.

Surely it's worth it? We both work, we have young kids, surely it's just so much easier to pay and have it largely sorted for us?

Last time we moved we had nothing so did it ourselves, but we've got so much now (+ 2 kids we didn't have last time!) I just can't imagine the stress of trying to DIY it.

OP posts:

stooped · 26/06/2021 10:44

Best money I ever spent.

Hallyup6 · 26/06/2021 10:44

No, no, no and again, no. We moved a small 3 bed two minutes down the road and got our own van on the advice of other people. We took one load to my parents' house the day before, then loaded the second lot up ready for the morning. We then had to wait until 3pm for the keys before my dad and husband could set off to the new house for the first time. While they were gone I began chucking the entire house contents on the front lawn, knowing that our keys needed to be at the ea by 5pm. It was 4:15pm when they got back, at which point we had to begin loading the van again. I then had to take the keys whilst they were loading the van from the garden, having kept a key back to lock up and post through the letterbox. Fortunately our buyer was at work and wasn't intending to move in that day but they'd have been mightily pissed off with us otherwise.

The most stressful day of my life and absolutely not practical. For the sake of a few hundred quid, get someone in.

Camomila · 26/06/2021 10:46

We packed ourselves last time (2 bed flat so manageable) but used a removals service and it was great - they dismantled the beds and reput them up where we wanted them in the new flat. They also took doors off their hinges/back on again to get the sofa through - all stuff that we could technically have done ourselves but would have taken a lot longer for us/been stressful.

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JonathanRipples · 26/06/2021 10:47

That is such a cheap price you've been quoted!

Definitely do it- our movers packed up our flat about 100 times quicker than I could have and did a great job.it was one less thing for us to have to worry about or do.

You will of course need to have a massive sort out and declutter before they come or they'll be packing up all your crap to move with you 😂

Best money ever spent in terms of house moving!

ThursdayWeld · 26/06/2021 10:48

PAY IT!!!!! Unless you want your marriage to collapse on moving day.

Keep the kettle, teabags, milk, sugar and mugs out for them, and buy biscuits. Keeps them happy, and energised!

You will also have the sheer joy of saying "Told you so!" when your DH can't believe how much stuff you have, and how long it took even with movers...

hauntedvagina · 26/06/2021 10:48

Use them, they're amazing, and your quote is very cheap.

OccaChocca · 26/06/2021 10:48

Good grief, there is no way in a million years I would hire a van and do it myself.

Have you never moved before?

I like to pack myself but we always use a removal company. Last time we moved we had a big lorry and three or four men. It literally took them an hour or so to empty our house. They work really hard and are very quick. For the sake of a few hundred quid you are nuts to think you will do it yourself.

HollyGoLoudly1 · 26/06/2021 10:51

100,000,000% worth it. I had always done it myself until we had kids. We had a removal company for our last move and I would never, ever do it myself again. It's a drop in the ocean of moving expenses and I would honestly pay triple if we ever move again.

Yes, yes, a thousand times yes.

LaughingDonkey · 26/06/2021 10:52

Absolutely worth every penny and quote seems reasonable too. And you will stay sane.

We have been moving several times over 8 years and used to do it ourselves. The hassle of doing multiple trips, dragging around heavy furniture and numerous boxes is not worth the time and energy. And mind you - we had no children.

Last time we moved was 25 minutes away from 3 bed to 3 bed. It was 3.5 tonne box van and two men. While we have packed everything ourselves, the two men did the lifting, dismantling furniture and drove the van. They then unloaded said van by bringing boxes into rooms (boxes were labelled) and reassembled the furniture. It took us 2 trips and all move was done in about 7 hours.

I will never move myself again.

FinallyHere · 26/06/2021 10:54

packing service included reassembly and plumbing things in

Do check the small print of what is included so that there are no nasty surprises on the day.

A packing and removals service is so worth it, just be absolutely clear about what you are paying for

Oh, and agree upfront how to mark things , like the kettle, bedsheets, things for first night as to go in the car with you. These people will pack at speed, anything not marked will get packed.

Defiantly41 · 26/06/2021 10:59

Also, very likely your household insurance will cover the move if done by professionals, and won't if you DIY. One dropped appliance/TV/piece of furniture and it would have paid for itself.

Plus they are super fast as they do it all the time, so you can focus on all the last-minute stuff that will inevitably happen.

I would never move myself again, always professionals

Feebeedeebee · 26/06/2021 11:01

Yes, definitely worth it, including the packing. Will the van he'd hire take everything in one go? If this is a sale/purchase move, you can't move in stages as you'll have to have everything out of the old place and won't have the keys to the new place to start putting everything in!

Original poster

YesEllis · 26/06/2021 11:03

So what do I need to do in advance of packing service? Literally just de-clutter and leave everything else where it is? It sounds too easy!

OP posts:

MilduraS · 26/06/2021 11:05

I forced my DH to pay for removals when he moved from his flat to our house. He was planning for the two of us to do everything with one of his friends and thought it was just another expense on top of an already expensive time. The movers arrived at 8am and the entire contents of his second floor, 2 bed flat was out in 40 minutes. A few minutes after they left he said it was the best money he'd ever spent. If we had done it alone it would have been a good few hours of work and I don't think his massive fish tank would have survived my lack of coordination on the stairs.

AutumnOrange · 26/06/2021 11:06

Packers/removals men are like locusts - they are all over your house packing, dismantling (then putting together at the other end) removed white goods and refitted at new house - it truly is amazing to watch how quickly they do it. They numbered the boxes from each room and at the new house I numbered each room so they knew where to put them. We kept them supplied with tea and biscuits and also bought them lunch from the local bakery. They were fucking amazing. Cost us £800 but to be honest if I were to move again I would pay twice that. They are definitely worth it.
Think how much you pay an estate agent (who are often crap) and the % the removals will cost out of everything. So worth it.
My kids were in bed (put together) by 8pm and we were on the sofa eating a takeaway with the dishwasher ready to go when we had finished.
Just don’t forget to empty your kitchen bin - I did forget and it got moved to the new house still full 😂
Removals and packers are with their weight in gold!

ineedaholidaynow · 26/06/2021 11:09

@YesEllis exactly that! You can mark things up where you want them in the new house, if you are moving things about in the new house. Otherwise just say put in same rooms as they are now currently and watch them go! We actually went out for lunch when they were packing DM's house as you end up with nowhere to sit! Remember to empty rubbish bins otherwise rubbish will come with you

Malin52 · 26/06/2021 11:09

We paid £2000 to have a removal firm pack up our 2 bed flat in London and ship it to NZ! They were incredible. 8 men came in and whirlwinded round in 3 hours and drove off. They take books of shelves. Dismantle things. Pack clothes into hanging boxes. Label everything. It was the best money I ever spent.
We then moved house with that stuff in NZ and decided we'd do it ourself. It was a FUCKING NIGHTMARE. 3 weeks of boxing things. 2 days of various combinations of friends doing shuttle runs in 3 cars and van. Stuff everywhere. I'm still searching for things 3 months later. Never ever again.
Pay the money and give them a massive tip and get in tea and biscuits.

Tip: label things you don't want moved. They will box up everything. Including the half empty bin 🤢

ineedaholidaynow · 26/06/2021 11:10

Always a good idea to put some essentials in the car (if you have one, to stop them packing things you might need in a hurry), or just specify a container, place in the house that they don't touch.

safariboot · 26/06/2021 11:18

If you DIY move you will be late vacating, you will piss off your buyers, you could even end up liable for their extra costs.

Hire the removal company.

PastMyBestBeforeDate · 26/06/2021 11:20

The other massive plus if you have dc is that you can live normally until the day before your move. Their toys, clothes and everything else stays where it is and isn't half packed away for weeks. Their beds stay in place and then at the new house the beds are in place before bed time.

CuriousaboutSamphire · 26/06/2021 11:28

@SGChome20

Personally I’m with your DH on this one but I do like organising and packing so I’d start weeks before and actually enjoy it. I’d also use it as a great excuse to have a massive clear out. There would be a sense of achievement in doing it ourselves. I seem to be in the minority though so maybe I’m just a tight ar*e like your DH!

Ah. I spent weeks clearing out before the Packers came. But I put it all back where it would belong, so I could see it would fit and so they would know where it went.

I had a second clear through when unpacking too.

It made decluttering really easy.

CuriousaboutSamphire · 26/06/2021 11:31

@YesEllis

So what do I need to do in advance of packing service? Literally just de-clutter and leave everything else where it is? It sounds too easy!

You don't actually need to do anything as they packed everything, even the contents of your bins.

They have wardrobe boxes and all sorts of clever shit.

But yes, use the time to declutter rather than pack.

Original poster

YesEllis · 26/06/2021 11:34

The one thing I had already done is put all our clothes into recycling bags. Time to unpack them all so that they pack them nicely then

OP posts:

Toddlerteaplease · 26/06/2021 11:38

Just remember to empty the bin!

Aroundtheworldin80moves · 26/06/2021 11:39

Last time we moved we hired a transit van... basically the biggest you could get on a normal driving licence. It fitted a 2 bed sofa, two beds plus mattress, a dining table with the legs taken off, 2 chest of drawers, 2 bedside tables, suitcases of clothes, a couple of boxes of belongings per person, 2 boxes of plates etc, television and cabinet, garden chairs and coffee table. Bedding. Washing machine and dishwasher

Not even a quarter of our stuff. That came on the normal removal van a few weeks later. It took two of the an afternoon to load. And similar to unload

Don't underestimate how much furniture etc you have. We couldn't have done it for a normal sell-buy move. Only worked as we still had our rental house in a different town for a while.

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