How to choose your Removal Company

Too often we are asked why are we more expensive than another company that has quoted on a house removal?  I explain that removal companies are like supermarkets – they all sell food but each offer’s a different shopping experience and level of quality.  In a nutshell – we’re Waitrose!

Look at the value of the new home you are purchasing, the value of your household and contents insurance and consider that a good pack and move will cost you less than 1% of this amount.

The removal company is often the last organisation in the chain of people wanting your money when moving house – after the surveyors, hip’s, stamp duty, estate agents and solicitors comes the removal firm.  So by the time it comes to choosing and paying for a removal the poor home mover shuts his wallet and screams “no more!”.  The guy who offers to do the whole move for £400 seems like a dream come true – a chance to save money and the only person willing to negotiate costs.  In our experience the government and solicitors are never inclined to negotiate.

On our website, we have some Wise Words about spending too little.  The gist of the message is…The common law of business prohibits you from paying a little and receiving a lot – it can’t be done.

In return we deliver on our promise of a stress free, expert move with no hidden costs or extras.  The number of people who move home with us regularly and recommend us to their friends and family are testament to this.  We’re certainly not the cheapest but we do a great house move.

We’re fully insured, all our staff are employed by us and are uniformed, smart and presentable.  All our removal vehicles are clean, new and proudly sport the Amber Moves logo.  The office is manned throughout the working day and your call is always dealt with swiftly – no getting diverted to someone’s mobile while they’re actually carrying out a removal.  All these are signs that you are dealing with a bona fide removals company and not the cowboys!

Staff shortages buck the Credit Crunch

At Amber Moves we find ourselves in the position where we are currently short staffed.  As unemployment rises, we wonder why this is so?

The success of our business rides on the quality of the removal men we employ.  Personally I only ever employ guys I would feel happy to have in my own home.  We are well aware that our client base is nice families in nice areas and as such they need to have piece of mind that their possessions are in good hands.

Removals work is very physically demanding, requiring enormous stamina as well as patience.  The men need to be adaptable, flexible, handy with a tool kit and above all personable so they can reassure the home mover and make the move as stress free as possible.  Moving home is never straightforward and all the best laid plans can go awry on moving day.  Having staff that can make decisions on the spot makes the difference between a bad moving experience and a good one.

We do not believe in paying the minimum wage – we want our staff to be rewarded for the work they do and feel valued for the skills they bring to each and very moving job.

Finding good people that want to join a company and progress within, want to work hard and are available to work all hours is just not easy.  We do not use agency staff as we pride ourselves on hand picking and vetting each and every employee.  In return we treat our staff as family members, providing them with all the training and support we can offer.

Moving forward with Amber Moves

Like any other removal company, we have been affected by the static housing market and the credit crunch.  Fortunately we can still rely on all our regular clients, repeat business and recommendations and have had a busy June and July – long may it continue and thank you to all our removal customers.

Taking into account the seasonality of house moves we are now focussing our marketing efforts at the corporate sector.  We have carried out many successful office moves and relocations along with providing regular support with internal office moves, crate hire and storage.

The first stage has been to join BIFM, the British Institute of Facilities Managers, as corporate members.  This way we can offer our services to the professionals of the industry.  On the most recent office move we did in London, our client said she had worked with many removal companies in the past but we exceeded all her expectations.  The men provided expert advice, IT support, and of course their exceptional removal skills.  Being a relatively small company enables us to offer a more flexible approach to office moves, especially when out of hours work is required.  The friendliness and adaptability of the crew make it easy on the client and their efficiency means the job is often completed in less time than predicted.  Our charging structure is such that this is then reflected in the final invoice to the client – a more fair system all round.

The next stage is promoting the additional services we now offer, namely: archive storage, confidential shredding and a recycling service.  London office space is always at a premium so our cost effective storage options can provide clients more flexibility when it comes to planning and utilising office space.

We aim to grow and establish Amber Moves as a complete removals company servicing both the domestic and the thriving corporate removals markets.