Homemovers putting valuables at risk by failing to check removal companies' insurance

Nearly half of movers do not check to see if the company they use is properly accredited

(Alan Cleaver)

Around a third of people moving home never check to see if their removal company has an insurance policy in place, says a new report.

Homeowners are collectively putting an estimated £504 million worth of contents at risk by ignoring insurance, according to UK moving services comparison site Buzzmove whose survey of 2,000 people reveals that 42 per cent do not check to see if the company they use are accredited by the British Association of Removers or another industry body

The study also revealed that movers are unsure whether they are getting an accurate quotation for their move, based on the value of their home contents, and so are routinely underestimating the cost of the moving process.

Asked to estimate the average cost to move from a three bedroom house to another three bedroom house within a five mile radius, nearly a third incorrectly guessed it would cost £300 to £700, well below the average cost of £1,100. Only one in ten put the figure in the correct price bracket.

Overall, two thirds of those questioned said that the cost of moving home was either more or a lot more expensive than anticipated.

"In the current housing market, it’s clear that there is an increasing pressure to be moving home quickly," said Buzzmove’s founder and CEO Becky Downing. "But in the rush to move out, many people are not checking important details such as whether their mover of choice has sufficient insurance coverage. The temptation to accept cut-price deals from uninsured companies should be balanced with proper consideration of whether you’ll be adequately covered if something goes wrong.