Packing Services and Secure Storage, Priced With the Move
Full Pack, Part Pack, or Just the Breakables
Packing is quoted as part of the move rather than bolted on afterwards, so one figure covers the crew, the materials, the labour and the storage if a date slips. A surveyor counts what is actually in the property first, because rooms hold far more than anyone remembers.
What Customers Say About Being Packed For
Six Packing Decisions That Decide How the Day Goes
| The usual approach | What we do instead | The difference on the day |
|---|---|---|
| Starting the weekend before | Materials delivered two to three weeks ahead | Evenings absorb the work rather than one lost weekend |
| Buying boxes by guesswork | Quantities counted at the survey | Neither a shortfall on the last night nor a pile left over |
| Labelling by contents | Labelling by destination room | Crates land where they are needed, not in a hallway stack |
| Wrapping breakables in newspaper | Purpose-made cell dividers and layered wrap | Glassware survives the corners |
| Packing the loft last | Loft and garage cleared first | The hardest access is done while everyone is fresh |
| Discovering storage is needed late | Storage priced into the original quotation | No emergency booking at a premium rate |
Storage Is There If a Date Slips
Completion dates move, and a packing job booked around one that slips should not become a problem. Tell us as soon as you know and we will look at rearranging it. Changes to a confirmed date are covered by our published Terms and Conditions.
Storage is what makes a slipped date easy. Anything already packed goes into the same crates it will come back out of, stays with us for as long as the gap lasts, and is delivered on when the keys finally arrive. Pricing that at the survey rather than at the point of crisis is the difference between a minor adjustment and an expensive week.
If you think a gap is even possible, mention it early and we will include a figure for it. Knowing the number in advance costs nothing and removes the worry.
What Sets the Price of a Packing Service
A Full Pack Takes Less Time Than Almost Anyone Expects
Volume is counted at the survey, room by room, and it is almost always higher than the estimate given over the phone. A three bedroom house tends to hold between sixty and eighty crates once the loft, the garage and the kitchen cupboards are counted properly, and the gap between a guess and a count is where quotes go wrong.
Fragility changes the labour rather than the volume. Glassware, ceramics, framed pictures, mirrors and anything with a screen need cell dividers, corner protection and layered wrapping, and they take several times as long per item as folded clothing does. A house with a display cabinet and a wall of framed prints is a different job from one with the same volume in wardrobes.
A full pack takes less time than almost anyone expects
A trained pair working a standard three bedroom house will normally clear it in a single day. Householders doing the same job across their own evenings routinely spend three to four weeks on it and still finish at midnight before the move. The labour cost of a full pack buys back those evenings, which is why it is worth pricing even if the assumption was to do it yourself.
The middle option is the one most people land on. A part pack covers the kitchen, the fragile items and the loft, which is the slow, awkward two thirds of the work, and leaves the wardrobes and the bookshelves to you. It costs considerably less than a full pack and removes most of the pain.
Who does what, and when it happens
| Service | What it covers | Timing | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full pack | Every room, including loft, garage and kitchen | Usually the day before the move | Supplied and collected |
| Part pack | Kitchen, breakables and awkward storage only | One to two days before | Supplied and collected |
| Fragile only | Glass, ceramics, art, mirrors, screens | Same day or day before | Supplied and collected |
| Self pack | You pack, we supply the kit | Delivered two to three weeks ahead | Supplied and collected |
| Storage | Held in the crates it was packed in | Booked at survey, open ended | Included while stored |
| Unpacking | Crates emptied to your room plan | On arrival or a later date | Collected afterwards |
Every one of these is priced at the survey and written into the same job sheet as the move itself. Nothing on this list is charged as a discovery on the day.
Why the Crate Beats the Box for Everything Except the Loft
Materials Delivered Ahead, Collected Once You Are Straight
Crates lock shut without tape, stack level and take the weight of a full load of books without complaint, which is what separates them from a cardboard box halfway up a staircase. They also arrive clean and leave with us, so there is no flat-pack mountain to break down and no trip to a recycling centre a fortnight later. Wardrobe rails travel hanging clothes on their hangers, which removes both the folding and the ironing at the far end. Cell dividers, corner protection, mattress covers and layered wrap come with the kit rather than being sold separately.
Household Moves
Office Moving
Commercial Moving
Household Moves
Office Moving
Commercial Moving
Household Moves
Office Moving
Commercial Moving
Choosing Between a Full Pack, a Part Pack and Storage
Four ways to approach it, priced side by side at the survey so the comparison is a real one rather than a guess. Most households take the middle route once they see the numbers next to each other, and a surprising number add storage after finding out it costs less than a fortnight of stress.
Two packers clear a standard three bedroom house inside a day, loft and garage included. Everything is labelled by the room it is going to rather than by what is inside it, so unloading follows a plan instead of a pile. This is the option for anyone moving with a job, small children or a completion date that left no spare evenings.
The kitchen, the breakables and the awkward storage, which between them account for most of the hours and nearly all of the risk. Wardrobes, bookshelves and anything already in a box stay with you. It lands at a fraction of a full pack and removes the part of the job people most regret starting at ten at night.
Glass, ceramics, framed art, mirrors, screens and instruments, wrapped in layers with cell dividers and corner protection rather than newspaper. Anything genuinely valuable is listed separately at the survey so the cover level is agreed in advance rather than discussed after a corner has gone.
Goods stay sealed in the crates they were packed in and come out of the same ones, so nothing is handled twice. Booked at the survey it is priced as part of the job; booked in a panic on completion week it rarely is. Open ended, with the delivery leg arranged once the keys are confirmed.
What Packing Covers, and Where the Limits Sit
Being plain about the edges of the service matters more than listing what is obvious. These are the four areas where expectations and reality tend to part company.
The packers, the materials, the labelling, collection of the crates after unpacking, and protection for mattresses and upholstery. Materials arrive two to three weeks ahead on a self pack and are collected once you are finished, so there is nothing to buy and nothing to dispose of.
Unpacking to a room plan, dismantling and rebuilding furniture, storage beyond the agreed period, and specialist crating for art or instruments. All of it is available and all of it is priced on the job sheet rather than added to an invoice later.
Aerosols, paint, solvents, fuel and gas canisters cannot travel under any arrangement. Cash, passports, deeds, jewellery and medication are better kept with you. Anything perishable will not survive a day in a loaded vehicle, and plants seldom do either.
Standard cover is a contractual allocation of responsibility rather than an insurance policy, and it is capped per box and per item. That suits everyday contents and does not suit a television or a piece of art, so extended cover is raised at the survey rather than after a claim. Items packed by the householder rather than by us carry different terms, which is worth weighing when choosing between a self pack and a part pack.
Before You Book
Packing and Storage FAQs
How long does a full pack actually take?
A trained pair will normally clear a standard three bedroom house in one working day, usually the day before the move. Four bedrooms with a full loft and garage can run into a second day. The survey sets the crew size against the counted volume, so the timing is agreed rather than hoped for.
How many boxes will we need?
More than the estimate anyone gives over the phone. A three bedroom house typically runs to somewhere between sixty and eighty crates once the loft, garage and kitchen cupboards have been counted properly. That count happens at the survey, which is why the materials arrive in the right quantity rather than in two emergency deliveries.
Is a part pack worth it, or should we do the lot ourselves?
The kitchen and the fragile items are roughly two thirds of the hours and nearly all of the breakage risk, so a part pack removes the worst of the job for a fraction of a full pack. Both are quoted side by side at the survey so the comparison can be made on figures rather than instinct.
When do the materials turn up?
Two to three weeks before the date on a self pack, which is deliberate. Packing spread across a fortnight of evenings is a different experience from packing across one weekend, and the crates are collected once the unpacking is done.
Can you store our things if completion is delayed?
Yes, and it is far cheaper arranged at the survey than during completion week. Goods are held in the crates they were packed in and delivered on once the keys are confirmed. There is no second packing job at the far end because nothing was ever unpacked.
Do you unpack as well?
Unpacking is available and is quoted separately. Crates are emptied to an agreed room plan rather than left stacked, and taken away the same visit. Some households take it on the move day and others book it a week later once they have decided where things live.
What about a piano, a safe or a large aquarium?
All three are specialist items and all three are identified at the survey rather than on the morning. Some need additional crew, some need equipment, and a few need a specialist subcontractor. The point of raising them early is that the price and the method are settled before the date rather than renegotiated at the door.
Do you take the packing materials away afterwards?
Yes. Crates, rails and protective covers are collected once you have finished, which is the practical advantage of reusable kit over cardboard. Nothing is left to flatten, store or take to a recycling centre.
Tell Us What Is In the House
Get Packing and Storage Quoted Together
Room count, rough contents, and whether a storage gap is likely. That is enough for a survey slot and a written figure covering packing, materials, the move itself and storage if it turns out to be needed. Where a date has to move, the applicable terms depend on how much notice we have, which is why early warning matters.