Part load or dedicated vehicle?
A part load shares a vehicle with other customers moving along the same corridor. You pay for the space you occupy, which is why it costs less. The trade-off is a delivery window rather than a named day, because the vehicle is being filled and routed around several consignments.
A dedicated vehicle is yours alone. It travels direct, on your date, and the price is flat regardless of whether you fill it. Above roughly 30 m³ (1,060 ft³) the two converge — at that point our quote engine prices both and recommends whichever is genuinely cheaper, and tells you when the dedicated option is worth the small premium.
How volume is measured
Everything is priced in cubic metres, and we show cubic feet alongside every figure — UK and European movers quote m³, while American firms and most shipping paperwork use ft³ — so a figure read in the wrong unit is out by a factor of 35. One cubic metre is just over 35 cubic feet.
A three-seater sofa is about 1.7 m³ (60 ft³), a double bed with mattress 1.7 m³ (60 ft³), a standard carton 0.11 m³ (4 ft³). A one-bedroom flat is usually 14–18 m³ (494–636 ft³) and a three-bedroom house 40–50 m³ (1,413–1,766 ft³).
Almost everyone underestimates. That is why our quote tool draws the actual vehicle and fills it as you add items — seeing the space left over is a far better prompt than a number, and it is the reason our surveyed prices rarely move.
| Vehicle | Capacity (m³) | Capacity (ft³) | Roughly |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sprinter van | 9 m³ | 318 ft³ | Studio flat, or a few rooms of boxes |
| 3.5 tonne Luton | 11 m³ | 388 ft³ | One-bedroom flat |
| 7.5 tonne | 31 m³ | 1,095 ft³ | Two to three-bedroom home |
| 26 tonne | 60 m³ | 2,119 ft³ | Four-bedroom house |
| road train | 90 m³ | 3,178 ft³ | Large five-bedroom house |
| articulated lorry | 110 m³ | 3,885 ft³ | Six-bedroom house, or two smaller moves together |
What else moves the price
Distance zone
Five bands from Benelux and northern France through to southern Italy and the islands. Ferry and tunnel costs are already inside the zone rate — you should not have to price a Dover crossing yourself.
Access at both ends
Stairs without a lift, long carries, narrow streets needing a shuttle, and parking suspensions. Stairs alone are £6 per m³ (£0.17 per ft³) per flight. We ask about these upfront so the price holds.
A furniture hoist
Where the stairs will not take a sofa or a wardrobe, an external lift brings it through a window. Priced where it stands — what a hire firm there charges, with our margin — so it runs from £324 to £689 for a half day with the operator, depending on the country. Confirmed at survey.
Packing level
Self-pack, fragile-only, or a full professional pack at £22 per m³ (£0.62 per ft³). Transit cover is 3% of declared value whoever packs, but unless we were negligent, our terms exclude boxes we did not both pack and unpack, so it is worth letting us pack the breakables.
Date flexibility
A ±10 day window saves 10% on a part load. A dedicated vehicle travels on the day you choose.
Customs
£180 for EU destinations, £320 for Switzerland, which sits outside the customs union and needs a clearing agent.
Why we survey before confirming a price
An online estimate is only as good as the inventory behind it. A free video survey — twenty minutes on a call, walking your rooms — turns the estimate into a price we have seen for ourselves, so it does not move because the load turns out bigger than the list. That is the entire point of asking the access questions early rather than discovering a fourth-floor walk-up on the morning.
Common questions
Should I choose a part load or a vehicle of my own?
A part load if price matters more than timing; a vehicle of your own if you need both dates fixed or you are moving a lot.
- Part load: you pay for the space you use, and delivery falls within a window rather than on a named day.
- Dedicated vehicle: only your goods are on board, it goes straight from door to door, and you choose both the collection and the delivery date. You pay a flat price for the vehicle, full or not.
For bigger moves the two prices come close, and a vehicle of your own can even work out cheaper. The quote prices both ways and tells you when it does.
Can the price change after I've been quoted?
Yes, it can. Your quote is based on what you tell us, and the survey checks it against what is really there. Our terms say when it can still change:
The price excludes customs duties and government fees, and can change if things differ from what we quoted on — such as access, extra goods or work outside normal hours (clause 1).
Clause 1.2 gives the main cases, such as a quote not accepted in writing in time, a move not done within the period it sets, or freight costs changing beyond our control. Telling us about stairs, parking and everything you are moving before the survey is the surest way to keep the price where it is.
How do I book my move?
Get your price online, then pay a deposit of 25% of it to secure your date.
- Add your belongings in the quote tool and choose a part load or a vehicle of your own.
- Book your survey. You can pay the deposit before it or after it.
- Pay online, from your quote or from the link we email you. You are asked to accept our Terms & Conditions when you pay.
- Your deposit secures the vehicle and the date; we confirm the collection details once everything is checked, and your move portal then holds your customs documents, inventory and dates.
Do I need a survey, and how does it work?
Usually, yes: your online price is an estimate from your own list, and a free survey lets us see the move for ourselves before you rely on it. Choose whichever suits you:
- a video call of about 30 minutes, walking us round on your phone, weekdays 12pm to 9:30pm UK time;
- a home visit, if you are within 15 miles of one of our depots and a surveyor is free to come;
- photos or a short video sent on WhatsApp, if you would rather not be surveyed at all.
Once you have your quote, pick a time in your move portal or ask your coordinator, and we confirm it by email. A survey costs nothing and commits you to nothing.
Still have a question?
Ask the team who plan the moves. Message us on WhatsApp, or call (Mon–Sun, 24/7 by arrangement).
See it for yourself
The inventory builder and the vehicle diagram are free to use. No details needed until you want the price.
Open the quote tool