When it comes time to move to a brand new location, it’s important to make sure you’re working with a resourceful, versatile removal company, ideally one with both commercial and residential experience. But when taking into account the seemingly infinite number of inexperienced movers and poorly-equipped service providers operating within the industry, the onus is on you to distinguish the trustworthy, dependable firms from the rookies and novices.
So if you happen to be in the midst of investigating the local removal companies in Berkshire, for instance, feel free to use this brief exposé as a checklist of sorts to help bolster your research efforts.
Accreditations
First and foremost, you’ll want to take the time to ensure that every single company on your shortlist is qualified, certified, and endorsed by the proper regulatory agencies. In this regard, pay close attention to the recognitions and acknowledgements shown below:
- ISO 9001 – Quality Management
- ISO 14001 – Environmental Management
- OHSAS 18001 – Occupational Health and Safety Management
- British Association of Removers (BAR)
- TSI Approved Code Trading Standards
- Quality Assured Service Standards – Commercial Moving
The Suite of Services
Provided the nuanced and laborious nature of facilitating removals nowadays (commercial shifts in particular), it’s vital to ensure that each firm on your shortlist is able to provide a comprehensive, far-reaching suite of services. Simply stated, your removal partner should be able to offer an inclusive one-stop-shop for all of your moving, shifting, and storage needs, which can include the following:
- Document Storage: The company should offer a dedicated accommodation for all of your files, archives, and records, an imperative service for data-rich companies in the midst of an arduous move.
- Full-Scale IT Solutions: If your organisation features in-house servers, data banks, computers, laptops, and other expensive devices, you’ll need to hire a removal firm that can handle these sensitive pieces of equipment.
- Crate Hire: If you’d prefer to maintain control over your items as opposed to storing them during the intermittent period, you’ll want to have access to a dedicated crate hire service replete with seal tags, security provisions, and a delivery/collection option as well.
- Wide Range of Specialities: From factories and warehouses to depositories, workshops, manufacturing plants, medical buildings, retail stores, libraries, municipal government facilities, and even machinery enterprises, the company you end up hiring should feature a long-standing history of performing adaptable as well as efficacious removals.
- Fitouts and Office Design: Believe it or not, some of the best-rated removal firms can actually facilitate a comprehensive design, supply, and outfit service for your new office, so be on the lookout for companies with this particular in-house specialisation.
Some Other Salient Details
During the final stage of research, you’ll want to whittle down your shortlist even further by comparing and contrasting each company’s online infrastructure. Although this will largely revolve around your internal gut feeling, there are a few specific features that tend to stand out:
- Dynamic, easy-to-navigate webpage
- Informative breakdown of commercial versus residential services
- Wide selection of moving and storage products available for purchase such as bubble wrap, boxing materials, and the like
- Fee-free, hassle-free, no-obligation quotations and consultations
- Easily accessible online enquiry platform
- On-demand company hotline
- Registered company number (usually in the bottom right-hand corner of the homepage)
