Before the first handling · P
Packed before anything moves
Nothing on this page counts as a handling, because nothing has been picked up yet. It still belongs at the top of the ledger, because the quality of the packing is what determines whether the handlings that follow cost you anything.
A well-packed carton survives four handlings. A badly packed one does not survive two.
What packing covers
Packing is specified against the count
This is the part almost nobody does. A carton that will be lifted twice by the same two people needs less from its packing than a carton that will be set down at a depot, stacked among strangers' belongings, reloaded, and opened weeks later.
So we ask what the move is before we quote the packing. On a dedicated same-day load, home-packed cartons are usually fine and we will say so. On a groupage consignment abroad, export-standard packing is not an upsell, it is the specification.
What goes wrong in a home-packed carton
Three things, consistently. It is too heavy, because it was filled with books to the top rather than half full. It has voids in it, so the contents move and the carton crushes. And it is not full to the lid, so the one above it collapses into it.
None of those matters much across a hallway. All of them matter on a load built four high in a trailer.
The things people forget to pack
The loft, consistently and at the last minute. The contents of a garage, which are heavy, dirty and slow. The shed. The under-stairs cupboard. And the things that are not allowed on a vehicle at all — fuel, gas, solvents, open paint, fireworks.
All of those are identified at the survey rather than found at eight in the morning, because they change both what we bring and how long the day takes.
Unpacking, which most people decline
And which is the single most underrated part of the service. The argument for it is not comfort — it is that unpacking with the crew still present means breakages are found and recorded while there is somebody to record them to.
Packed before anything moves
Questions about packed before anything moves
- 01
Can we pack our own things?
On a dedicated load, usually yes, and we will tell you if we think otherwise. On anything that will be transferred, we would rather pack it — the specification is genuinely different.
- 02
What is export-standard packing?
Packing built for a consignment that will be handled repeatedly by people who did not pack it: heavier board, fuller cartons, more internal protection, and labelling that survives a depot.
- 03
Will you pack the loft?
Yes, and it is worth saying at the enquiry, because a boarded loft holds far more than anybody estimates and it changes both the materials and the time.
- 04
What will you not pack?
Anything hazardous, perishable or alive. Fuel, gas cylinders, solvents, open paint and fireworks do not travel, and plants travel at your risk.
- 05
Do you take the empty cartons away?
Where you have asked us to unpack, yes. Otherwise ask and we will arrange a collection rather than leave you with a hallway full of flat cardboard.
- 06
Are home-packed cartons covered?
For loss or damage arising from our handling, yes. Not for damage attributable to the packing itself, which is the ordinary position across the trade and the reason we ask about the count first.
How many handlings should your move have?
Both addresses, roughly what is going, and how much the dates can move. Where there is more than one sensible option we will quote both, with the count written on each.