When planning a move, one of the most common questions people have is whether they can tentatively reserve a date with a removals company. This practice, known as “pencilling in a date,” is something many customers find useful as they try to coordinate various aspects of their move. Here, we explore how this works with Move On Removals and Storage and what to consider when working with other companies.
Pencilling in a date is especially important when you are selling your property and purchasing a new property, all on the same day. The reason pencilling in a date is useful is because in many cases people have a chain of sellers and buyers who are all trying to agree on the date for completion of the sale (move day) at the same time. This is done via multiple solicitors and people who are all trying to see if their chosen removals company has availability. Pencilling in can be used when you think you know which date you want, but are waiting for confirmation from the rest of the chain before you get fully booked in.
Pencilling in a date means that a removals company temporarily holds a specific moving date for you without requiring an immediate commitment or payment.
At Move On Removals, we know that the date can be one of the most stressful elements of planning your move. For this reason, we pencil in people’s move date and always commit to offering the customer first refusal, should another customer be ready to book that date. This means we always make sure we speak to you when you have a date pencilled in with us, to see if you are ready to book the date before we go ahead and say yes to another customer.
Communication is key when pencilling in a date, from both the company and from the customer in terms of updating them about your move date status. At Move On we will do everything within our power to work with you once you have had a quote from us and we will communicate impeccably with you about the date.
Firstly, if you are 99% sure that your move will go ahead on the date you want, you can go ahead and get booked in. This involves paying 50% of your removal costs to secure the date.
If you are really not sure whether the move will go ahead on that date and are not ready to commit to that date, there are two options. Firstly, you can go back to the sales chain and inform the chain that the date needs to change as their removal company is no longer available. This is the option most of our customers go for. This option is used a lot and in most cases, the chain is happy to change the date.
Secondly, you can always reach out to other companies to see if they have availability.
We get many people calling us, asking if we have availability because they have been let down by a company at the last minute. People thought they had a company confirmed, then called about booking, only to find out that their company was no longer available. Whichever company you choose to work with, you should always make sure you are absolutely clear on whether the date is being held for you, how long they will hold the date for you and also whether they will inform you should the date no longer be available either before or after it becomes unavailable. This saves a lot of time, stress and misunderstanding and the potential for being left without a company for your move.
Once you have your date and are ready to book your move. We ask you to formally accept our final quote and we then invoice you for 50% of your move cost to reserve your date and formally book your move. At this point, your date is fully confirmed and secure.
In summary, communication is key when pencilling in a move date. At Move On we will always give you first refusal on the date you have pencilled in so that you have the opportunity to book if you are ready. However, it is important to understand that not all companies have the same policy so you should be absolutely clear on what your chosen company’s policy is asking:
Is the date being held for you?
How long will they hold the date for you?
Will they inform you should the date no longer be available?
Will they inform you before or after the date becomes unavailable?
With all of this clear, there should be no misunderstanding when pencilling in and booking your move.
Our team is always happy to answer any questions you may have, even if you are not planning to move just yet. Be sure to give us a ring at 0117 259 1010.
