If you’re planning on moving home, then you’ll already be aware that there’s a lot to think about. One of the biggest things to take care of is hiring a man with a van for the day of your move.
Most people will look for a service by searching for ‘man and van near me’ or something similar and while this is a good way to find local movers, you still need to take steps to make sure you hire someone who’s professional and reliable.
Below, we’ll be looking at some of the ways to prepare when hiring a man with a van as well as the differences between a man with a van and a removal company and some good ways to keep costs down.
Preparing for moving day
- Make sure your items are securely packaged – This one is very important. If your items aren’t all packaged and ready to be loaded into the van when the person you’ve hired arrives, this could easily slow down the whole move and result in you being charged more. As well as making sure all your items are packaged well, you should also ensure that they’re labelled properly. This will make it much easier for you to unpack at the other end.
- Make sure your property is easily accessible – Another very important thing to do in preparation is to make sure your property is accessible. This might be easier in some cases than others, depending on where you live and how much space there is on the road in front of your house.
- Stay in touch with the person you hire – There are plenty of reasons the person you hire could need to contact you on moving day, whether it’s to inform you of a delay or just to confirm what time they’re going to be there. For this reason, it’s important that you make yourself easily contactable.
Should I hire a man with a van or a removal company?
While a man with a van and a removal company do the same thing i.e. help people by moving their possessions when they’re moving home; there are some differences.
Whether or not you should hire a man with a van or a removal company depends on a few things, the main ones being –
- How many items you have – Because a man with a van might not have any employees, they’re usually better to hire for smaller properties, such as a flat or 1-2 bedroom house. Removal companies will usually be more suited to larger properties, such as 3-5 bedroom houses or large offices.
- How far away your new property is – Man with a van services usually cover local moves, within the same city or slightly further. If you’re moving to a whole other part of the country or even abroad, a removal company will be more suitable.
- The type of items being moved – A man with a van is generally better for moving everyday household items. If you have more specialty items that need to be moved, such as a piano or something that’s very high value, then they might not have the necessary level of insurance to cover them.
- If you want to pack yourself – Removal companies tend to offer packing as an extra service but that isn’t always the case with a man with a van. Therefore if you want to pay somebody else to pack for you, a removal company might be preferable.
Are there any ways to cut down costs?
- Book in advance – One of the best ways to make sure you don’t pay more than you have to when hiring a man with a van is by booking well in advance. As soon as you know when your moving day will be, it’s a good idea to start contacting people.
- Book during off-peak – There are peak times of the year when you can expect to pay more for the services of a man with a van. This being the case, it’s better to book during quieter times of the year if possible.
- Get quotes from different people – The internet has made it very easy to get quotes and it’s certainly something you should do in this instance. People who provide man with a van services are often working freelance and set their own rates, so they can vary a lot from one to the next.
Benefits of hiring a man with van near me
- Suitable for multiple types of removals – A man with a van will usually be able to help with multiple types of removals, including same-day moves, office removals and small, local moves.
- Saves time and money compared to doing it yourself – Although it might seem counterintuitive, you can actually save money by hiring a man with a van instead of taking the DIY approach. The cost of hiring a van for the day so you can take care of things yourself usually ends up costing more than hiring somebody, especially when you take fuel into account. For smaller properties and local moves, it’s nearly always better to hire somebody.
- Convenient to book – With so many man with a van services having websites now, it’s very easy to get in touch and book a survey for your house. You can also obtain quotes from multiple services at once by using one of the many quote comparison sites out there.
- Usually affordable – The good thing about hiring a man with a van compared to a larger removal company is that they’re usually very affordable. Of course it depends on who you hire and how many items you have to move but usually it works out cheaper than trying to do things yourself.
How do I go about finding the best van and man near me?
Below are some of the main things to take note of when you’re looking to hire a man with a van –
- Their manner – You should be able to assess the manner and professionalism of a man with a van when they come out to your property to give you a quote. If you’re not happy for any reason, then it’s usually better to look elsewhere.
- The number of services they offer – A man with a van usually won’t offer as many services as a large removal company but they still might be able to help with things like packing and dismantling, depending on if they have any employees.
- Their hourly rates – Hourly rates can vary quite a bit from one person to the next, so it’s definitely worth contacting more than one person so you can easily compare prices. Getting quotes is usually a very simple process now, so this isn’t too much of a hassle.
- Their availability – Availability is of course going to be a big factor. It’s usually better to wait until you know exactly when your completion day (the day you receive keys to your new property) will be before contacting any man with a van services near you.
Conclusion
You should now be more confident about how to go about finding a good man with a van service near you. Provided you prepare properly and take the necessary steps to hire the right person, there’s no reason your moving day has to be a stressful experience.