Best Furniture Removalists

What do furniture removalists do?

Furniture removalists remove and move household and office furniture to different locations - this can be anywhere from between two places in the same suburb to between two places in the same state, territory, or country, and sometimes even internationally.

They generally come to the pick-up address, remove furniture and other goods, and load them into the removal vehicle (usually a van or truck) before transporting them to the move-in site and unloading them there.

However there’s more to furniture removal than the name suggests.

Furniture removalist services sometimes also offer the following:

• Inspection of the pick-up premises to determine what needs to be moved.
• Packing and labelling items when required.
• Unpacking boxes.
• Hiring boxes, cartons, and other moving containers.
• Cleaning services.
• Moving pets and/or plants.
• Storage for furniture or other items at their own or a third-party storage facility.
• Clearing out unwanted items and moving them to a donation facility or the tip.

Is it worth hiring a furniture removalist?

That depends on what resources you have available to you at the time of your move. If you have plenty of time to spare, the right vehicle, and don’t mind doing the heavy lifting yourself, then you may find that outsourcing this work isn’t worth the cost.

What to look for in a furniture removal company

Customer service

A good place to start when trying to figure out the reputability of a mover is by asking around - word of mouth will be as good as gold in your search.

Read the latest reviews to find out more about a company’s level of customer service, whether the movers arrived on time for the job, and how well they performed a job.

Having the weight of positive reviews about a removalist’s great service behind them can help you rest a little easier during the moving day stress.

Some companies also offer socially distanced furniture removal services to keep in accordance with any relevant COVID-19 restrictions.

Accreditation

Furniture removalists don’t require a specific certification in order to do their job, but for some people, knowing that their mover is subject to certain checks can give them peace of mind when entrusting them with their belongings.

The Australian Furniture Removers Association (AFRA) audits its members and has a code of conduct that outlines removal training, practices and standards that accredited movers must undertake and abide by. You can consult their website to find a removalist that complies with the organisation’s regulations.

Insurance

While all reputable furniture movers will do everything they can to ensure your belongings are safely moved from A to B, the reality is is that not everything is in our control and accidents can and do happen.

An insured removalist is more likely to be a safe removalist. Considering you want your items to be delivered intact, you should only book an insured mover.

Consider the following questions when shopping around for a furniture removalist - bonus points for movers who have their level of insurance listed clearly on their website.

• Do they have public liability insurance?
• Are the transported goods insured? What happens if goods are damaged or lost? Movers should be able to confidently provide you with a ‘replace or reimburse’ guarantee.
• Is their vehicle insured?

How much does it cost for furniture removals?

Before shopping around for a home or office removalist, you should take note of your contents so you can give a mover an idea of what needs to be transported to get a more accurate removalist quote and see if they can feasibly do the job.

Different home removalists will charge differently, but most will either charge by the hour or quote you for the entire job, often from how long it takes to leave their base for the job until the time it takes them to return to the base after the job’s completion.

Removalist prices will vary depending on a few factors:

• Type of move. Are you after a single item removal, moving a few pieces of furniture, the contents of a room, or a whole home? The more you have to move, the more you will need to pay, particularly if you need a truck removalist rather than a van or the removalist company needs to send out multiple people to do the move.
• Type of property you’re moving from and into. If you’re moving from or into an upper floor apartment - particularly one without an elevator - then you’ll likely need to fork out more than if you’re moving from or into a single story house.
• Distance between pick-up and move-in addresses. The longer the mover will be on the road travelling from one location to the other, the more you’ll have to pay.
• Date of move. Keep in mind that you may be charged a surcharge for moving on a weekend or public holiday.
• Time of move. Take the timing of your move into consideration and try to book a removalist when road traffic will be lightest to help you keep your costs down and ensure a (relatively) speedy move.

Many removalist websites will offer online estimates to help you determine a rough cost, and then can provide you with a more detailed quote once you send them more information about your specific move.

You should try and get at least 3 different quotes from different local removalists to see how much you should expect to pay to move your things as well as to ensure you’re getting a good deal. This however doesn’t necessarily mean you should go with the cheapest quote, as you should look for value and level of service above all else.

Backloading

If you’re doing a long-distance move, consider looking into backloading services to reduce costs - it’s often the cheapest way to move furniture interstate.

Backloading refers to when your belongings are loaded onto a vehicle that is returning empty back to the city it originally came from - it’s simply taking advantage of a truck that’s in the right place at the right time.

It usually means you’ll only really have to pay for a one-way rather than a return trip, or you may even only need to pay for the space that your belongings occupy on the moving vehicle.

This is usually a more viable option for those who can be more flexible with their move date, as they’ll have to wait for when the vehicle is passing through their area.

Preparing for your removalist

Removalists can usually only do a good job if you’re also pulling your weight in the lead up to and on the moving day. Here are a few tips to help you organise yourself and your things so that the movers can be efficient.

• Have your things packed in secure, clearly labelled boxes. Highlight any fragile items or items that are special to you to ensure that they’re handled with extra care.
• Disassemble furniture if required, and empty and defrost your fridge ahead of time.
• Ensure you also have someone at the move-in address to let the movers into the property and provide direction with unloading.
• Make sure that there’s adequate parking for the removalist vehicle at both addresses. If you have your own vehicle, you could park it in a large space the night before to ‘reserve’ the spot for your mover, or even get permission from a neighbour to use their driveway. Doing this can prevent you racking up a fine or angering your new neighbours if the removalist has to double park.
• Label any packed boxes with the room they should be moved into to save time and help you locate items easily.

Wrapping up

Packing up your life and moving can be a significant milestone for many people, and having professionals there to help you can help make the process as smooth as possible. However, everyone's moves are different, so deciding whether a mover is the right option for you is ultimately up to you.