Home removals in Hemel Hempstead, Watford and West Herts

What does a home removal cover?

A full home removal is the whole job: loading everything you own on to a lorry, driving it to the new address and carrying it in to the rooms you point to. Most firms will take apart beds and larger furniture that will not go through a door in one piece and put them back together at the other end, and most will carry boxes you have packed yourself. Where you want the firm to pack as well, that is a separate service, and there is a page about it on this site.

A move within Hemel Hempstead or Watford is a short drive, but the loading and unloading take the same effort whether the lorry travels two miles or two hundred. The firm will want to know what is at each end: a house with a drive, a terrace that opens on to the street, a flat up three flights or a cottage down a lane.

When should I send an enquiry?

As soon as you have a likely date. If you are buying and selling, the moving day is normally the day of completion, and that date can shift until contracts are exchanged. Say so in the enquiry, so the firm can explain how they handle a date that moves. Renters have more control, since the move happens when the new tenancy starts and the old one ends, and many people leave a few days of overlap to clean and hand back keys.

What happens at a survey?

Before giving a price, a removals firm will usually want to see what you have, either by visiting or by a video call where you walk round each room with your phone. They are working out how much lorry space your belongings need, how many people the job takes and how long it will last. Be honest about the loft, the garage and the shed, because anything you forget to show still has to go on the lorry on the day.

The survey is the moment to point out anything awkward: a piano, a glass-topped table, a wardrobe that was assembled in the room, a fish tank or a large planted pot. It is also when to ask whether the firm would collect packing materials afterwards, and whether storage is something they can arrange, if you think you might need it.

What is worth sorting out before the day?

• Clear out anything you do not want to pay to move. Charity shops, the council's bulky waste collection and local selling sites all take time, so start early.
• Defrost and dry the freezer, and empty the fridge, the day before.
• Label boxes with the room they are going to at the new home, not the room they came from.
• Pack a box of things you will need on the first evening: kettle, mugs, toilet roll, phone chargers, bedding, a change of clothes and any medicines.
• Keep passports, keys, documents and anything valuable with you rather than on the lorry.
• Take meter readings at both addresses and photograph them.
• Set up Royal Mail's redirection service, which is paid for and runs for a set period, before you go, and tell both councils about council tax.

Where will the lorry park?

This is the question people forget. A removals lorry needs to get close to the door, and in a permit zone or a street with marked bays, parking it for several hours can mean asking the council to suspend a bay or issue a dispensation. In Hertfordshire the county council is the highway authority, and parking rules are enforced by the borough and district councils: Watford Borough Council in Watford, Dacorum Borough Council for Hemel Hempstead, Berkhamsted, Kings Langley and Tring, and Three Rivers District Council for Rickmansworth and Croxley Green. Each has its own form and its own notice period, so ask early, and ask the firm whether they or you should apply. Sort the same question out for the address you are moving to, which may fall under a different council entirely.

What should I ask the firm before agreeing?

• What exactly is included, and what is charged extra, such as extra stops, waiting time if keys are late, or a second day.
• What happens if completion is delayed and the move cannot go ahead on the booked day.
• What cover they carry for your belongings while in their care, what it excludes, and what they expect you to arrange yourself.
• Whether they hold a goods vehicle operator's licence. A firm needs one for any lorry over 3.5 tonnes gross weight; a firm that only runs smaller vans does not.
• Who will actually turn up: their own staff, or people hired in for the day.

Get the answers, and the price, in writing before you confirm.

What are my rights if something goes wrong?

A removals job is a service, so the Consumer Rights Act 2015 applies. The firm must carry out the work with reasonable care and skill, and anything they told you that you relied on when agreeing the job forms part of the contract. If no price was fixed in advance, you only have to pay a reasonable one. If something is broken or lost, raise it with the firm in writing straight away and keep photographs. Citizens Advice can explain your position if you cannot resolve it between you. None of this is legal advice.

What should the enquiry include?

• both postcodes, and a note of what kind of home each is
• the number of bedrooms, and whether there is a loft, garage or garden to clear
• any item that is especially heavy, large, fragile or valuable
• whether you want packing done for you
• the date you are working towards, and how firm it is

With your consent, one local removals firm that covers your postcode receives the enquiry, if one does. We cannot say whether any firm has space on a given date; that is for them to tell you.