How moving house is affected by lockdown - and tips to stay safe from a removals expert

If you’re planning to move house in the near future, the announcement of a new national lockdown is likely to be concerning news, writes Catherine Byrom, business development director at Andrew Porter Ltd, one of the UK’s leading independent removals firms.

During the first lockdown last year, movers had to put their plans on hold which caused the property market to grind to a halt.

However, this time, the government has announced that house moves can continue, despite the tighter restrictions.

Home removals firms can still visit properties to give quotations and help with the moving process, but there may be some changes to the way they do things.

When you are choosing a removals company, it is a good idea to ask them what measures they are taking to protect their staff and customers during the Covid-19 pandemic.

For example, at Andrew Porter Ltd, we have introduced a number of precautions to keep everyone safe while moving house. When our staff visit a property to give an estimate, they will wear a face mask and we ask our clients to use a face covering as well.

Removals crews must also follow social distancing, ideally remaining at least two metres from another person. When this is not possible, they must maintain a distance of at least 1m and wear a face covering.

Before we visit a household, we contact all our customers in advance, to check whether anyone is experiencing any coronavirus symptoms or self-isolating. If they are, any work must be delayed until after the self-isolation has ended.

One other measure we have introduced is a buddy system which means the same crew members work together as a team when moving bulky items and sharing a vehicle. This reduces the amount of contact different people have with each other.

Minimising the risk

If you have booked a removal firm to help with your move, here are some things you can do to minimise the risk for both yourself and the crew:

1. Discuss any safety procedures in advance – check with the removals company what p