Moving Tale or Horror Story?
The A-Z of Going From A to B
There's a right way to organise a home removal...
When a move goes badly, it is a hellish nightmare. When it goes well, it is an ordinary nightmare. As the cliche has it, moving is up there with bereavement and divorce on the stressometer.
Stress Busting
Money - and your willingness to spend it on one or more aspects of home removal - can ease your burden enormously.
...And there is the other way.
Various kinds, and levels, of help are available: packing and unpacking; notifying the electric company and other relevant people and organisations; arranging for someone to watch the cat or the kids; cleaning the old place, sprucing up the new.
You don't even have to be there yourself. You can outsource all aspects of the task and nip over to Spain or Skegness for the duration of the move: while you are away, professional packer-uppers will pack everything in your old home, oversee the move into the new, and organise cleaning, curtain-hanging and other tasks.
What's the Worst that Can Happen?
Bad enough so that you don't want it to happen to you.
How's this? You and your removal truck containing all of your possessions arrive at your new home only to find that the occupiers have not yet left, and have no intention of doing so—not, at least, on that day, even though they are supposed to vacate. You can't go back to your former home because it is no longer your home, and new occupiers started moving in the instant you departed. Your removers need to empty the truck, which they need for another job the next day. And if, like most people, you are moving on a Friday, you may have no hope of even beginning to get the problem sorted until Monday.
Or this? On the day of the move into a new home, and with the removal men already starting to load the truck, you learn that your new home has just burned to the ground. Workmen getting your new home ready for you were using welding equipment and accidentally started a fire in the loft.
Or these?: the removal men can't unload because the new home has no floors or has been flooded by a burst pipe. The front door is blocked by wasp and bee nests and the removal men won't start unloading until pest controllers arrive and deal with the pesky insects.
Do these things really happen? Yes, say the experienced removal men I interviewed for an article, "Don't blame the removalists" (The Independent).
Sometimes on Sundays, Usually on Fridays
Most people move on a Friday, especially the last Friday of the month in March, June and September.
If you must move on a Friday, keep in mind that the demand is unusually high for that particular day, so book your truck/removal company well in advance.
And expect to pay extra: because demand is so high, many moving companies charge higher rates.
Is Your Removal Company Insured and...?
For major moves, insurance is vital. Ask if your remover is insured, and ask, too, to see their certificate. In addition to verifying that the insurance is valid, you also want to check some details, such as the amount of legal liability cover. The website of the British Association of Removers (http://www.bar.co.uk) also has useful information.
International (Cross-Border) Moves
The trade body for overseas removals is FIDI and a list of their member companies worldwide is available on their website.
Telling the World
Sending out change-of-address notices is relatively easy in the hands of internet companies (such as iammoving.com and www.moveme.com) dedicated to the purpose.
These help-moving sites provide a comprehensive list of gas, electric, water, broadband, mobile phone and other companies and organisations, such as TV licencing and the DVLA. You click on the relevant names to compile your list, which also jogs your memory about your store and loyalty cards, gyms, charities, banks, insurance companies, trade unions, professional bodies, local councils (for council tax) and magazine and other subscriptions. Because they provide a list, you don't have to search for their addresses or your account numbers. Notification reminders work in both directions - you notify your old gas and electricity suppliers that you will no longer require their services as well as sign up with new suppliers.
The sites also provide links enabling you to find packing boxes, new utilities suppliers, and other moving-related services.