I get a lot of people telling me that they are thinking of hiring a van to move themselves. Rarely I even get people who tell me that hiring a van is going to be cheaper and easier than hiring us to help. Rarely!

I won’t ever tell you not to hire a van and do your own move, but if you are thinking of hiring a van and doing it all yourself, here are some things to bear in mind and some handy pointers.

  • You will have to travel to and from a hire company to collect a vehicle.
  • Your vehicle will not come equipped with any of the necessary equipment for a safe and breakage-free move.
  • You will have to pay a deposit on the vehicle, normally between £100 and £300.
  • If you have an accident you will have to pay an excess, normally between £300 and £800.
  • If there is ANY damage to the vehicle your deposit will be retained. (Our vans have been hit by cars while they were stationary and we were unloading – the cars have always driven off).
  • You will have to pay for and put the fuel in the vehicle.
  • If you cannot complete your move in one day, or if you must move on a weekend, you will pay for at least two day’s hire of the vehicle.
  • You will have to lift, carry and stack every single thing into the van, and take it back out again – please don’t put your back out and have to take a week off work!
  • You will have to drive a vehicle you are probably not used to driving, and drive it when it is full of all of your belongings.
  • You will (probably) not have any insurance cover which protects your household contents while they are in transit.
  • You will have to wait 2-3 working days from returning your vehicle to receiving your deposit into your bank account.

OK, so I am a little bit biased, but a lot of people don’t consider these things when they are planning to do their own removal. So here’s what you get when you hire a firm such as ourselves.

  • The vehicle will arrive at your door on the specified time and date of your move without you having to go anywhere.
  • The vehicle will come with pads, blankets, and straps to protect your possessions
  • The vehicle will come fully equipped with 2 or more strong, trained and experienced men who will be happy to help you, won’t complain or moan about how heavy your washing machine is, and know exactly how best to load the vehicle to get everything in and protect your fragile belongings. They will even put everything exactly where you want it!
  • At the end of the day when everyone is tired, you won’t be dreading battling the traffic to get the van back to the hire firm.
  • You will pay one, pre-agreed fixed fee for your removal, with no hidden charges for extra fuel, or scratches to the van.
  • And the best bit, you won’t need to lift a finger! Not unless you choose to point at where your heavy wardrobe is going. Or if you are kind enough to put us a brew on – coffee with milk and two please!

So if that's not enough to put you off and you are still thinking of taking on your own removal, all credit to you. Here are some tips:

  • Make sure everything is ready the day before your move, so you have as little to do as possible on the day.
  • If your van has a luton shelf above the cab, fill this first with boxes, bags and small items. You should load the van as if you intend to fill it even if you don’t think you will, it’s much easier than re-arranging your load later.
  • Once your luton is full, bring out the large items first. You should have some old sheets, blankets, duvets, cardboard boxes – anything really that can be used to protect your furniture in transit. Where items touch each other they WILL rub and be marked, as you go over potholes, round corners, and over speed bumps.
  • Any gaps between larger items should be filled with small items and boxes wherever possible, again protecting from rubbing.
  • All large and tall items should be secured to the walls or floor of the van.
  • Once you are loaded and ready to go, please drive carefully. Your vehicle will now have an increased stopping distance. And the last thing you want to have to do is a crockery crunching emergency stop, so take it easy!

Good Luck!