Hiring professional movers is a big decision- a decision which you should never undertake in haste.
It affects the entire experience of the moving day- either negatively or positively.
You don’t want anyone and everyone to come and enter your home and go through your belongings. Therefore choosing the best removalist is of the essence.
Here we’ve jotted down the top 10 most essential questions you must ask before hiring removalists.
Let’s dig in!
1. Do you have any references or testimonials of previous clients?
Before hiring any removal company, this is the first question you must ask your removal company. If you’re moving valuables, including antiques or fine arts, you must ask your prospective removalist company about their experience. Most of the removal companies include client testimonials on the website, most of which are curated to provide the best reviews.
To be on the safer side, consult with your friends and family and co-workers, and ask for their opinion. Another way to find unbiased and trustworthy reviews about the company is to check their Google review.
2. How will my belongings be moved and protected?
The second most important question to ask your removal company is how they’re going to handle your items before and after the move. Put forward these few queries:
- How are they going to move your belongings? Are they going to use a truck? Do they own the truck?
- What tools will they use to load and unload your items from point A to point B?
- How will they pack your fragile items and large furniture before the move?
- Are they going to use the truck to move only your items, or do they have a backload?
- Are the workers the employees of the company or third-party contractors?
The main purpose behind asking these questions is to make sure your belongings are in good hands, and you can trust them.
3. What is inclusive in the quote?
A lot of removal companies, especially cheaper ones, tend to hide extra fees in the initial quote and bury it deep in the depths of the terms and conditions
Before hiring removalists, you must know what is included in their quote? Does the quote include insurance? Do they charge extra for additional hours? What services are included in the quote? Are there time charges for extra packing and unpacking included in the quote? Do you have to pay a deposit in advance?
There have been many stories where families had nightmares dealing with such fraud companies, where their belongings were confiscated until they paid the “surprise” extra charges. Hopefully, you don’t want to be one of them!
If the company is not upfront about the prices initially, they will never be upfront with their services.
4. Do you cover insurance?
If you’re moving your valuables over a long distance, this question is a mandate for you. There is no 100% guarantee against accidents, and you should be prepared to be protected in such a situation.
Most moving companies offer moving insurance, included in the quote, and even provide extra insurance facilities. You should ask the removal company what is included in the insurance cover? What does the additional insurance cover?
These questions will help you to make better decisions as to whether you should continue with the insurance option of the removal company, or would you go for your own insurance company.
5. Do you provide packing services?
If you are someone who doesn’t have the time to pack your items before moving, then you must ask this question to your prospective removalist company. Ask them whether they provide packing services and if yes, what are the rates?
Though most removal companies offer affordable and flexible packing services and assist in packing every item, many packers also extend their services to unpacking your belongings in the new place, making things faster and easier.
Make sure you enquire all about it.
6. What extra services do you offer?
Most removal companies understand the stress and the headache of moving. Therefore to make things easy and smooth for their clients, many companies offer extra service.
Ask your removal company whether they provide any extra services. If yes, what all additional services do they provide? What are the charges for such extra services?
All these questions will help you to get better clarification about the company and its services.
7. How much experience do you have?
This question will help to determine the professionalism of your prospective removalist company. The longer they’re in the business, the more experienced they’re to handle your belongings – safely and securely.
If they are in the business for a long time, handling regular boxes won’t be an issue for them. Even when it comes to larger and heavy items like sofa pool tables, large furniture, antiques-they’ll know how to handle it well.
8. How are the fees calculated?
This question is important! Unless you’re not sure about their charging method, you must inquire how they are going to charge you for the services.
Some removalist companies charge their clients by the hour, some charge by distance, some charge by the volume of the property they are moving and some by their manpower.
Before hiring removalists, ask them how they have calculated their quote to better understand the charges you are paying for.
9. How long does the transit take?
Though it is not a very important question, it’s still a good idea to know the amount of time it will take for your belongings to reach the final destination.
The time varies depending on the time of the day, the distance between the homes, the day of the move, and several other factors.
If you’re a person who likes to plan everything beforehand, then this question of expected delivery time will help you a lot to plan your move.
11. What do you need me to do about the move?
This is the last yet one of the most important questions to ask before hiring a removal company. Ask them what they’re expecting you to do before they show up on a moving day.
Some may require you to dispose of some goods before they pack and move your things. Someone may tell you to save them a parking space so they can assess your property easily. Some may tell you to put your pets away and various other bits of advice.
This will make the process easier and faster – both for you and for your removalists-rather than wasting time on things that could have been taken care of previously.
Bottom line
Hiring a trustable removal company puts you through a lot of doubt. Make sure you take note of all the questions you want to clarify before you finalize one. With the right resources and questions, the process becomes way easy.
Hopefully, you find this article helpful! Thanks for reading!
