Planning
Whether moving across oceans or into Europe, planning early will help you to make the right decision on picking an International moving company and making sure both you and the movers are organised when moving time comes around.
There are many important things to get right to save last minute problems arising. Firstly try and arrange for International moving companies to be preparing quotations and information 3-4 months before you intend these shores.
How do you select moving companies? Recommendation is a starting point. Has anyone you know used a moving company and what their experiences were like. If you haven’t any recommendations then look for movers who are members of FIDI and who are also members of the BAR overseas moving Group. You may prefer to contact local members to you but don’t be put off by international movers from further afield as locality is not that important when choosing an overseas mover. It’s more down to their experience and knowledge of overseas moving.
Once you have selected maybe three movers then invite them to quote for your move. This normally involves arranging for estimators to visit you in your home in order to calculate volumes and packing requirements to be then able to send you a written quotation for your move. Sometimes prices can be prepared on smaller consignments providing you supply an accurate list of what has to be moved without an estimator calling. Movers can prepare prices based on the information supplied but can always adjust the pricing if the volume is different after collection.
As well as traditional methods of advertising many people will obtain movers of the worldwide web. Be very careful as many advertisements are not necessarily from bona fide movers. Pretty pictures do not mean that the ad that you are looking at reflects the advertiser. Always look for companies that have their own vehicles and packers. Their is also as in all industries people making a living from infiltrating our industry through the web and then acting as a middleman contracting the enquiry or even the move to anyone who wishes to buy the lead or to carry out the move. This normally can lead to problems but it may suit some people. The key is to be contacting movers early and listening to what each company says and to look for accreditations/recommendations to make sure you are in safe hands.
You can have your own container or can share in a groupage container to make it economically suitable if moving on an international journey. If moving into Europe container services are used for particular islands/countries although most moves into Europe are carried out by road on by furniture road trains.
Children
No matter how excited or convinced you are about moving overseas, you will always have doubts in your mind about whether you are doing the right thing. This is only natural .How will the children react to moving overseas. Well we have found that children deal with the fears and concerns better than adults. Give them credit and talk to them early in the process of moving to reassure yourselves. They tend to settle in quickly, make new friends and even deal with languages more quickly as they appear to be more adaptable than grownups that can be set in their ways. Involve them in the planning and discussions as much as possible. At first particularly the older ones worry about leaving their friends and family. Make sure they compile lists of phone numbers and emails well as home addresses of their friends and family. Get them to sort out what they would like to take. If they want to take more than you would like then let them. It will help them when their belongings arrive and also it is cheaper to ship items than to start replacing in the long run. Most children will compromise so that you don’t take rubbish. If you have several children allow them so many boxes each then this gives them a challenge and purpose when selecting what to take. You may or may not want the children about on moving day. If they want to see whets going on then maybe allow them to see the start but generally they should be away from the packing crews due to safety. They can always watch when the furniture and cartons are being loaded from a safe distance if it helps but mostly children are away from the house in case of any upset. Each family is different so parents should make their own mind up on this.
Packing
The most important thing is to know that your belongings are packed safely and ready to be moved to another country and that they arrive in the same condition when they left the UK. All international movers should have overseas trained packers to make sure the standard of packing is the same throughout. All fragile items are wrapped in individual recycled paper or bubble wrap depending on destination. Export strength cartons are used and cases are sometimes made for certain items .Special linen cartons and book cartons are used as well as hanging garment boxes if preferred. All furniture is wrapped in padded recycled blankets if being shipped or loose woollen grade X blankets if travelling by road. On some occasions export wrapping material is used on furniture being transferred by road into European countries if necessary.
Flo pack chips are also used on valuable items. The estimator will discuss packing with you to make sure the correct materials are used for your move. We also can make crates for pianos, clocks, glass cabinets as well as preparing packaging and crates for motorbikes to be shipped. All packing and marking is done in your home and a numbered shipping list is compiled by our packers with a copy for you. Most of our recommendations are because of the standard of our packing/removal crew and that also the estimator has listened and got the job right.
Insurance
We have in-house as well as external training courses to make sure our staff are well trained. Also we are members of Bar overseas and Fidi along with ISO registration and although we will take every care to protect your home or goods in transit , sometimes things can go wrong so we always recommend that you are insured.
We offer insurance that will cover the goods as well as the cost of the shipment. We offer comprehensive door to door cover, a proposal form designed to make it more easy to achieve realistic replacement values of your belongings and very competitive rates as a result of our low claim experience. We are are registered and authorised by the FSA The Financial Services Authority to offer marine insurance to our customers. Customers should be aware that products such as extended or standard liability are not insurance and can leave you disadvantaged.
Payments
Moving with a member of the BAR Overseas Group offers you financial security on your advanced payment as all moves have to be paid prior to leaving the UK.
This is standard practice and you then rely on the company to complete the move that you have paid for. It can be a real worry for customers but all members of the BAR Overseas Group provide a financial guarantee through a bond giving all customers peace of mind secure in the knowledge that even if a problem arose and a member went out of business. In this case your payment is protected through the financial guarantee allowing your goods to be delivered door to door. In recent years many examples of financially insecure moving companies accepting payment for international moves then being unable to fulfill their obligations.When this has happened customers have had to pay again and organise the move again from another country in most cases. This is why it is important to be protected by BAR giving you a cast-iron guarantee that its members protect the public even if the worst does happen.
Written by Burke Bros Moving Group (www.burkebros.co.uk)
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