Moving day is the one part of the process where a mistake is immediate and physical. Our panel is vetted, insured and booked against your real completion date — and when that date moves, they hear about it the same day you do.
Vetted & insured panel · England & Wales
UK averages run from about £432 for a one-bedroom property to £867 for three bedrooms and £1,590 for five. Long-distance moves over 100 miles cost considerably more — around £1,500 for a three-bedroom. Price depends on volume, distance, access, stairs and whether you want packing included.
Why book through us
Completion dates slip, usually because of something happening three links up a chain you have never met. The problem is rarely the slip itself — it is that you find out on Tuesday, remember to ring the removal firm on Thursday, and by then your slot has gone to somebody else.
When your legal work and your removal booking sit in the same group, a change of completion date reaches the removal firm at the same time it reaches you — not a week later.
Every firm on the panel is insured, checked and held to the standard we would expect for our own move. Removals is an unregulated trade — anyone can buy a van and a website.
A price given over the phone without seeing your house is a guess, and guesses get revised upwards on the day. Panel quotes follow a video or in-person survey and are fixed.
What it costs
Most removal websites will not tell you this, which is exactly why we will. These are national averages for a local move — use them to sanity-check any quote you are given, including ours.
| Property size | Local move | Over 100 miles |
|---|---|---|
| 1 bedroom | £432 | £800–£1,200 |
| 2 bedrooms | £603 | £800–£1,200 |
| 3 bedrooms | £867 | around £1,500 |
| 4 bedrooms | £1,196 | around £2,000 |
| 5 bedrooms | £1,590 | around £2,500 |
| Full packing (3-bed) | Around £400–£500. Fragile items may carry an extra charge. |
|---|---|
| Unpacking (3-bed) | Around £200 on top, for the team to unpack boxes at the other end. |
| Storage | Container storage through a removal firm is usually cheaper than self-storage for a whole house — you are not paying for daily access you will not use. |
| When you pay | Most removal firms require payment in full in advance, typically at least a week before moving day. |
Figures are UK national averages published by the HomeOwners Alliance. We re-check these annually.
The bit nobody explains
Almost every removal firm advertises that it is fully insured. Very few explain what that cover actually does, and the gap between what people assume and what is written in the terms is where moving-day disputes come from.
Liability is not the same as insurance. Many firms carry limited liability under their standard terms rather than a policy that covers replacement value. Ask which one you are getting.
Cover is usually capped per item. A high overall figure can still mean a low limit on any single thing. Ask for the per-item limit in writing.
Boxes you packed yourself are often excluded. If the firm did not pack it, they generally will not cover it for breakage — they cannot verify how it was done. This surprises almost everyone.
High-value items must be declared. Anything unusually valuable needs listing before the move, or it falls outside the cover entirely.
Cash, jewellery and documents travel with you. Passports, deeds, medication and valuables are excluded as standard. Put them in your own car.
Check for a BAR-registered firm. Members work to a Trading Standards Approved Code, are audited annually at every site, must protect your advance payment, and must offer independent dispute resolution through The Furniture & Home Improvement Ombudsman — whose decisions are binding on them. Without that, your only route is court.
What we arrange
Some people want a van and two people. Some want to hand over the keys and come back to a made bed. Both are fine.
Fixed quote after survey
Loading, transport and unloading, with everything placed in the right room at the other end. Blankets, straps and trolleys included.
Around £400–£500 for a 3-bed
The whole house boxed by people who do it every day, with materials supplied. Add unpacking at the other end for roughly £200 more.
Fixed quote after survey
They pack the crockery, glassware, pictures and mirrors; you do the books and clothes. The sensible middle option, and the one most people should choose.
Fixed quote after survey
Beds and standard flat-pack are usually included. Fitted wardrobes, modular units and garden buildings are quoted separately at survey.
Fixed quote per week
For when your sale and purchase do not complete on the same day — more common in a chain than anyone admits. Loaded into containers and delivered when you are ready.
Fixed quote after survey
Moves over 100 miles, planned around completion times and driver hours. Often a two-day job with an overnight, which is priced in rather than sprung on you.
Moving day
A typical three-bedroom local move. Completion money often does not clear until early afternoon, so keys are rarely available before then — a good firm plans around that rather than sitting outside waiting.
8–9am
Walk round, agree what goes and what stays, protect floors and doorways. You should have finished packing the night before.
3–4 hours
Furniture dismantled and wrapped, boxes loaded by room. Final check that the loft, garage and shed are clear before the van leaves.
Usually after 1pm
Completion funds clear and the agent releases the keys. Take meter readings at both properties while the van is in transit.
2–3 hours
Boxes go to the room written on the label, beds reassembled, and a final walk round before the crew leaves.
Before the van arrives
Finish packing the night before. The single most common reason a move overruns is a customer still filling boxes when the crew arrives.
Label for the destination, not the origin. Write the room it goes to at the new house. "Kitchen" is useful. "Under the stairs" is not.
Keep an essentials box in your own car. Kettle, mugs, tea, chargers, toilet roll, medication, and something to eat.
Sort parking at both ends. A suspended bay or a word with the neighbours beats a crew carrying your sofa 80 metres.
Empty the loft, shed and garage. These are forgotten every single time and they are what makes a move run into the evening.
Valuables and documents travel with you. Cash, jewellery, passports, deeds and medication are excluded from cover as standard.
The one-stop difference
The date your removal firm is booked against is the date your conveyancer is working to — not a date you relayed from memory over the phone.
When a chain moves, the removal firm is told at the same time you are. That is usually the difference between keeping your slot and losing it.
If your specialist report found work that needs doing, our trades panel can be scheduled for the week you move in rather than three months later.
Common questions
Tell us the property size, roughly where you're moving to and your expected completion date. We'll arrange a survey and come back with a fixed price — including packing and storage if you need them.