Never hire a removal firm purely on price: a lesson one customer learnt the hard way.

By Andy Niblock

Looking back, I should have realised everything had gone too smoothly. The house was sold, the new one would be ready in a couple of months and we had found somewhere to stay in the meantime. All that was left was to move our belongings out and into storage. What could possibly go wrong?

My suspicions were first aroused when the removal lorry turned up. I think it had been built in the same year as the Titanic, but the ship had worn considerably better over the last 100 years. When I questioned how the faded name on the side differed somewhat from the company we thought we had hired, I was told, “Oh the guvnor only bought it yesterday.”

Anyway, the guys did a great job and soon our worldly goods were on their way to ‘safe storage’. All was well until I phoned six weeks later to organise delivery to the new house.

“Er, might be a bit of a problem there squire,” came the reply. “See me and the guvnor, we’ve had a bit of a falling out and he’s hidden all the stuff.”

“But you both work for the same company!”

“Er no, I was just a sub-contractor, you’ll have to take it up with the guvnor.” At which point he put the phone down.

So I phoned the ‘guvnor’ who listened carefully and then said: “Nah mate, nothing to do with me, he just used to borrow the van.” Before I had chance to explain that we had the paperwork, he too put the phone down.

I explained this to my wife who was quite philosophical. She said we could claim on the insurance. I checked. We weren’t covered under the previous home contents insurance because everything was in storage so we were left with the removers’ insurance. Some hope there, since they denied all knowledge of ever being involved. Suddenly, my wife became a tad less philosophical.

Next stop the local police station.

“Ah yes sir, we are aware of the gentlemen in question. Dodgy lot, you don’t want to go doing business with them. A couple of them have done time you know.”

I pointed out that, while such advice was undoubtedly sound, it was perhaps just a touch late to be of any great practical help. After an hour of this, it became apparent we were pretty much on our own.

Having promised my wife that I wouldn’t under any circumstances confront them, I confronted them. Well, I’m not sure you could call three large blokes and an Alsatian on one side, and me shaking and holding a brief case on the other a confrontation, but you get the picture. Anyway, in the end I solved the problem with a combination of quick thinking, cunning and money (but mainly money). The ‘guvnor’ it seems, believed that we had already paid the ‘sub contractor’ who hadn’t passed the money on. When I explained that there was still £1,000 we owed, and that I would pay it as a finder’s fee for any assistance that he could provide in locating our missing container, he said he would see what he could do.

Two hours later the lorry arrived at our door with everything intact.

So what did I learn from this experience? Well, I’ll never hire a removal firm purely on price again and I’ll want to speak to previous customers. I’ll happily pay a bit extra for peace of mind because I never want to go through anything like that again. At the same time that we moved 15 miles up the road, my sister moved from London to Sydney with one of the major national removers. Everything ran perfectly and her things turned up before ours did. Oh, how we laughed at that one.

But the best bit? Dining out on the story of how I single-handedly took on a bunch of hardened criminals and scared them so much that they crumbled at my feet. Looks like I’ll be buying my own dinner, now the truth is out.

Andy Niblock is a member of the public but also a consultant solicitor with Keystone Law.  Guess the crooks picked the wrong man this time.