Removals Advice
This page will show you How To Avoid Choosing an Unprofessional Removal Company and will provide Advice on Packing for your Removal.
There are many sub-standard operators offering to conduct removals to Greece and Italy but it is not always easy to recognise them. This page will highlight the most important factors to consider when choosing a company to handle your removal to Greece, the Greek islands and Italy.
Top 10 Points to Look For in a Removal Company
- BAR Members
- They Don't Lie About Insurance
- They Are a Real (Not Virtual) Removal Company
- Door To Door (Not Kerbside) Service
- True Specialists
- Fully Equipped to Do the Job
- Secure Storage
- Export Packing to BAR Standards
- Frequent Coverage of Greece and Italy
- Recommended by Others
1. BAR Members
The British Association of Removers (BAR) is the governing body for the removal industry in the UK, and is recognised internationally as the standard-setter for the industry. All professional UK-based removal companies will be members, and professional companies based in other countries will be "International Associate" members. BAR members are bound by the BAR Code of Practice and must act professionally at all times. This one criterion will satisfy points 2,3,4,6,7 and 8 below.
Remember that BAR membership is entirely different from membership to general haulage associations like the RHA etc - these bodies have nothing to do with the specialist handling of furniture and personal effects.
2. They Don't Lie About Insurance
A good removal company will clearly outline the differences between "Standard Liability" and "Limited Liability" forms of protection. It is critical to understand that "Limited Liability" protection is very limited. If a removal company is offering "insurance" free of charge up to a certain level (say £25,000), this is almost always "Limited Liability" protection. This means that your goods are covered up to £25,000 in total, but each item is only protected up to a level of £40 per item or box of items, and only in the event of negligence. So if flat-screen TV worth £1,000 was damaged, the customer would receive only £40 compensation, and then only if the removal firm was "negligent"! This is in stark contrast to the protection that the consumer thinks they are receiving.
On the other hand, "Standard Liability" terms and conditions offer protection up to the full value of the items as declared by the customer in advance (as long as this value is not exaggerated of course). This is typically charged at a small percentage of the declared value of the items. The removal company must offer you the choice between Standard Liability and Limited Liability protection, and if you choose Standard Liability protection then you must complete a declaration form stating the values of the goods. Be aware that some unscrupulous operators will send you terms and conditions that actually describe both Standard and Limited Liability, leading you to believe that you are covered by both. But if you do not choose Standard Liability in writing and you do not complete a valuation form then you are only receiving the (very) Limited Liability protection. You will not know any difference until you go to make a claim.
Less commonly, some small transport companies will offer "goods in transit" insurance based on haluage industry insurance. It is critical to review the fine print of this insurance also, because it is typically very limited and very difficult to claim against, much like Limited Liability. Again you will not normally realise this until you go to make a claim.
Finally, some large removal companies are FSA-regulated and are able to offer their own insurance, which is different to Limited Liability and Standard Liability. This type of insurance is normally fine and provides adequate cover, although there will be an excess charged for any claims. If the removal company is offering this insurance then they will state that they are FSA-regulated.
If the removal company tries to dodge your questions about insurance by saying that "damages never occur anyway", be very suspicious. Damages are rare for professional removal companies (less so for unprofessional ones), but it is not true to say that damages never occur. If you would like to minimise your risk by taking insurance then you should be able to, without being misled about the type of protection you are receiving.
3. They Are a Real (Not Virtual) Removal Company
Over the past few years a phenomenon has arisen of "Virtual Removal Companies" - these companies do not carry out any removals to Greece or Italy themselves, rather they are just a web site and sometimes a warehouse, and they will act as the front man dealing with the customer, while subcontracting out all of their collections and deliveries to other companies. The consumer often does not realise that this is the case. They often have catchy names like "Removals to Greece" and as a result they typically rank very highly in search engines. But they are not an actual removal company - they are more like a freight-forwarder coordinating the different parts of the transport process on behalf of the consumer. The trouble is that the consumer does not know who they are actually dealing with, who is actually in possession of their goods at any time, or indeed if they will actually speak English when they arrive.
Real removal companies will handle the entire removal themselves, from door-to-door. On the rare occasion when it will work out cheaper for the customer if a third-party specialist is used for one section of the journey (such as a collection from Ireland), the removal company will be up-front and suggest this in advance, and only proceed with this method if the customer would like to. In all other cases the removal company will handle the entire journey themselves.
4. Door To Door (Not Kerbside) Service
This may sound obvious, but proper removal companies will send enough men to your home to carry the items out to the vehicle on collection, and carry the items into your new home on delivery. Small man-and-van or man-and-truck operators will only have one man on site, so you will need to help him to load and unload the vehicle.
Some customers will ask their professional removal firm if their quote can be reduced if they only send one man to deliver (this can save money in remote locations) - this is fine but it should certainly not be standard practice. Unless the customer requests otherwise, he or she has the right to assume that the removal company will do all of the lifting themselves.
5. True Specialists
If you are moving from Cornwall to London you don't really need a specialist remover. But if you are moving to an unusual destination then it is important your removal company is familiar with the logistics and complexities involved in conducting a removal to this location. For example, Nomad International specialises in removals to Greece, removals to the Greek islands and removals to Italy. We have detailed knowledge and experience in conducting removals to the tiniest Greek and Italian villages, the most remote locations and the most difficult-to-access islands in these countries. If you need to lift a piano over a balcony into a fourth-floor apartment in Athens, we have the connections get the necessary equipment to make it possible. We know that the fastest route to Kefalonia is not via mainland Greece. We know that the village of Lindos, on the island of Rhodes, is pedestrian-only and that the town of Amelia in Italy is not accessible to long vehicles. On Crete we even have our own team of British expat removal professionals permanently on-site to handle work at short notice.
While many companies (particularly "virtual" removal companies) say that they specialise in removals to Greece or removals to Italy, in fact they are not specialists at all. Many of these companies have a number of other web pages where they claim to be "specialists" in almost every country in Europe! Each of their web sites will have that country's name in the web site address and their trading name, resulting in high rankings on Google and making them really look like specialists. Don't be fooled. Make sure your removal company is ready for the challenges involved in a removal to your new country.
6. Fully Equipped to Do the Job
In both Greece and Italy it is very common that large removal vehicles will not be able to get right to your door. Make sure your removal company has a plan to be able to access your property if this is the case. Nomad International is the only operator in Europe equipped with purpose-built on-board porter vehicles for the movement of household goods & personal effects. These fantastic vehicles ensure that we can access even the most difficult-to-reach destinations. Indeed, in many locations we have our own small vehicles permanently available on site to assist with delivery.
7. Secure Storage
Your removal company should have their own secure warehouse in the UK, and preferably should also have accounts with professionally-operated commercial storage facilities in Greece should you require storage there.
8. Export Packing to BAR Standards
The BAR does not recommend blanket-wrapping as a techinque for overseas removals. This technique is only suitable for local removals within the UK.
Blankets can be used to provide additional protection around particularly fragile surfaces, but they are not adequate on their own. This is not because the items are likely to be loaded incorrectly or dropped - it is to do with the vibration that occurs inside the vehicle and the resultant minute rubbing of items against one another. Over a few hundred kilometres this is not significant, but over distances of thousands of kilometres blankets can become loose and scuffing of items can occur if they are not export-wrapped in other protective materials. Your professional removal company must be qualified in export packing and wrapping furniture and fragile items using the appropriate packaging materials (furniguard, tissue paper etc). They should also be able to have wooden crates built for particularly fragile goods such as grandfather clocks and fine art. If you would like to reduce the cost of this part of the removal process by packing yourself then your professional removal company should be able to give you detailed advice on how this should be done.
9. Frequent Coverage of Greece and Italy
If your removal company is really a specialist in removals to Greece or removals to Italy then they will have frequent departures to and from those destinations. This gives you more flexibility in planning the timing of your removal.
Also be very wary of any companies that promise delivery to a distant location on a specific date, unless they have a detailed plan for arriving several days in advance and storing your goods there first. It is simply not possible to guarantee a specific arrival date at a very distant location, particularly if the date is a long time in advance (unless local storage facilities are used). A professional company will be honest about this and will give you a window of time instead, only narrowing this to a specific date when they know that date for sure.
10. Recommended by Others
Perhaps the best test of a removal company is that they are recommended by others. Ask them for testimonials from other customers who have undertaken similar removals to yours. A good company will have at least a few. A very good company will have a lot.
Remember that these are the MINIMUM criteria that you should look for. In addition to the above, Nomad International prides itself on offering excellent customer service and a friendly, highly-recommended team. If you would like to know more, feel free to give us a call or send us an email. We would be happy to help.
Advice on Packing for your Removal
This section of our web site is under construction. If you would like advice on packing please contact us directly and we would be happy to advise you.
Nomad International
Celta Distribution Centre
Morley Way
Peterborough
PE2 7BW
Tel: 0800 0939713
Tel.Int: 00 44 1733 311561
E-mail: enquiries@nomad.eu.com