Flat removals, stairs and all.
A one-bed is a one-bed wherever it is. What differs is the route out — and whose permission you needed before you could use it.
Flat moves rarely go wrong on volume. They go wrong on the stretch between the flat door and the vehicle: the half-landing with a turn, the fire door that will not stay open, the lift that takes three boxes at a time, and the loading bay somebody forgot to book.
Two very different kinds of flat
Converted houses
A Victorian or Edwardian house split into two, three or four. One original staircase serving everybody, narrow treads, at least one tight turn, and bannisters that mark if you look at them. The route out is shared, which is why we cover it before we start.
The pieces that cause trouble here are predictable: three-seater sofas, sprung mattresses, tall wardrobes and full-height bookcases. If you are unsure whether something will make the turn, send us a photo of the staircase. It takes a second and saves a difficult conversation on a landing.
Purpose-built and managed blocks
Easier physically, slower administratively. There is usually a goods lift and somewhere for a vehicle — but the building decides when you may use them. Lift bookings, permitted move windows, insurance lodged with the managing agent, and occasionally a rule against weekend moves entirely.
We will tell you exactly what to ask your building for. What we cannot do is obtain it at short notice on your behalf, and being turned away at the door on moving day is the most avoidable problem in this trade.
What we need to know
The floor at each end. Whether there is a lift and roughly its internal size. Whether the staircase turns. Where the vehicle can legally stand, and how far the carry is from there to the door. With those five answers a flat move is predictable; without them it is a guess, and guesses are the quotes that change.
End of tenancy
A lot of flat moves are tenancy-driven, which means short notice, month-end pressure and an inspection afterwards. The state of the communal areas matters to your deposit, which is exactly why protection is not optional for us.
A whole house instead? House removals. Just a room or a few items? Man and van.
Flat move questions
We are on the fourth floor with no lift. Is that awful?
It is more people and more trips, and it is entirely normal. What makes it hard is not the height but the turns — a staircase that bends twice is slower than one that runs straight for twice the distance. Tell us about the turns and we will crew it properly rather than send a standard team and let them struggle.
Do we need permission from the building?
In a managed block, usually — a booked goods lift, a loading bay, sometimes proof of our insurance for the managing agent. Ask them the day you have a date. It is the single most common reason a flat move gets postponed, and it is nothing to do with the removals firm.
What if the lift is broken that morning?
We plan for it. Wherever there is a lift we still ask about the stair route and crew for the possibility, so a lift out of service becomes an inconvenience rather than a cancelled move and a lost deposit.
We are worried about the communal hallway.
So are we, and rightly — it is where deposit deductions and freeholder letters come from. Floors boarded, bannisters padded, lift interiors covered, before the first item moves. The other residents did not ask to be part of your move and we try to keep it that way.
Can you move only part of a furnished flat?
Yes. Part-furnished tenancies mean some things go and some stay, and it is much better agreed at survey and inventoried than worked out on the morning with an agent waiting for the keys.
Moving a flat?
Both addresses, roughly what is going, and when you are hoping to move. We will take it from there, and there is no pressure at the end of it.