The new system gives a price for relocating from England or Wales to popular locations including Australia, New Zealand, Canada and North America – ideal for those needing to quickly factor this cost into their moving budget.  

“Users can simply fill in the form online with information about their move and select the items they wish to transport,” said John Mason International’s Chief Operating Officer Noel Briscoe. “They simply tap the type of property they are packing up and then work their way through each room clicking on the possessions they plan to take with them.”    

“For more tailored removals - or if there are specific items to be accounted for - our movers can even send in photos or a video of their possessions via the same powerful portal,” said Noel. “This revolutionary digital survey is among the first of its kind anywhere in the world and gives us a much more accurate idea of the belongings our customers are moving.”  

Simon Hood, Head of Sales and Marketing for John Mason, commented, “Obviously the tool has been created to provide an estimate and we would still advise a survey is undertaken closer to the move, however we examined 5 years’ worth of data to work out the average volume of specific items.”  Asked how customers could estimate accurately the number of cartons required for an international move Simon explained that they advised customers to allow one carton for each shelf of glass or kitchenware and one wardrobe carton for every 12 inches of hanging clothes.    

John Mason is not alone. There is a trend in the industry towards the increasing use of online estimating and presumably, customers like it that way.  Many people continue to insist that an accurate survey can only be done by an experienced estimator visiting the premises.  That might be so but the moving industry has a reputation for not seeing the writing on the wall – reference self storage and relocation – maybe it would be a good idea not to miss out on this one. 

Photo: John Mason’s Instant Quote Estimator.