How to protect yourself during the Credit Crunch
It seems that not a day goes by without another report of a company going bust, unemployment rising and general bad news on the economy.
Everyone booking a holiday must now be thinking – what if I book and the airline or holiday company goes out of business? The same should apply to your removal and storage company. If your removal company is struggling and charging you to store your goods at a trade warehouse – what will happen to your goods in storage if they stop paying their suppliers? What if they haven’t been paying their insurances – will you still be covered? What if they take a deposit from you in advance of your move but go out of business before your move?
Protect yourself from the outset by doing your research and keeping an eye on the small details:
- Is the company vat registered
- Are they members of a trade body such as BAR or the National Guild of Removers and Storers
- Are they part of an ombudsman scheme?
- How long have they been in business?
- How busy are they?
- Are they charging realistic prices – beware of the man offering you a cheap deal – it will be too good to be true.
- Where ever possible, try to book a company that has been recommended by a friend or colleague
- Get the name and address of the storage facility and ensure it is a bona fida storage warehouse
- Go with your instinct – this is a powerful too we all too often ignore