As the credit crunch has drastically affected the national moving industry, more and more local moving companies have branched out into the European moving market to keep their vehicles moving. While they may be experts at moving it locally; Do they have the necessary knowledge to comply with French road transport laws? As the French police are known for handing out heavy fines on the spot: any failure to pay on time by the removal company could result in a delay in receiving your furniture.

It is imperative to locate a trusted and reputable removals company, who have extensive experience in removals to France and removals from France to the UK. Before you proceed to book your move, you should be sure that they have been offering French removals services for a considerable period of time. Does the company operate solely in the Anglo-French relocation market? As Europe is too big to have local knowledge in all member states. You should also look for a removal company connected with local removal companies in France. This will allow for the provision of smaller vehicles for difficult to access moves and additional manpower if required.

For added peace of mind, get a company that is a member of a recognized trade association such as: The British Association of Removers. Members of this Association are regularly inspected and their trading terms and conditions have been approved by the Office of Fair Trading.

If you’re looking for a part load service, make sure the company is involved in a high volume of moves to France, making sure you don’t have to wait for loads to consolidate so you can receive your effects on time. Check the terms and conditions of your service, as some companies will require up to 30 days from the date of collection to deliver your effects in France.

Unless you are looking for a cheap service, the company should offer a full door-to-door/room-to-room service, including different packaging services to suit your needs. It is a legal requirement that the removal company complete a detailed (ideally numbered) inventory of your effects at the time of collection, as well as obtain a subsequent delivery address in France, in order to comply with French import regulations.

The following information is vital if you choose a partial load service, where there can be up to 9 items from other customers in the same vehicle.

The movers will ask you to sign the inventory as correct; Once all your effects have been collected, you should always insist on having your own copy of the inventory to use as a cross-reference when the movers deliver your effects. Delivery agents won’t be offended if you stand at the door and ask them to call out the item numbers as they take your effects to your new home. Yes, a good delivery team should be able to handle it on their own, but doing it yourself will not only allow the team to focus on getting your items in the right place and speed up delivery, but also give you a complete piece. . Please note that everything has arrived safely before the removal team leaves.

Another important factor when choosing a moving company is the goods-in-transit insurance offered. Check to see if it’s included in the quote, offered for free, or charged as an added extra. Also check the total value for which your effects are insured. Removals companies that offer the standard liability regime agree to compensate you for loss or damage to your effect, even if it is not due to your negligence. This is subject to you declaring the full value of your items when accepting your quote. A reputable moving company operating this scheme will highlight the importance of the client declaring the full value of their effects to be relocated; as failure to do so limits liability to £40.00 per item in most cases.

If placed in containerized storage: Check the total liability limit per container offered by the remover. You can be insured for a total of £25,000 but the mover might have a limit of £5,000 per container so if you were to put a £5,000 item in warehouse it would have to be placed in its own container to have the correct coverage.

Finally, always read the terms and conditions, so that you understand exactly where you stand in the contract between you and the mover regarding the service. Delays, compensation (if things go wrong), schemes offered by an independent ombudsman/arbitration and what items are not covered such as jewelry and chipboard furniture.