Here, have even more reasons to feel stressed about your house move…
A house move is so stressful it sits in the top ten list of what most people consider to be a stressful life event. Stress can impact us all negatively, and even increases our risk of certain diseases and medical conditions so the more we can avoid it, the better. Whilst moving house is unavoidable, it is possible to minimise the stress involved in the process. One way to do that is by preparing for all the potential things that can go wrong, and hopefully avoiding them.
To help you, let’s take a look at 7 common ways a house move can go wrong:
1. Your Moving Company Let You Down
Unfortunately moving companies can let you down on your moving day. It doesn’t happen very often, but it does happen. The way you can avoid this happening to you is by booking early, so you choose the right company for your needs, and so that you know that they are reliable enough not to leave you without any help on the big day. Most companies will give you enough notice to hire another company to do the job, or have the ability to send a replacement van if there is one available. At the very least they will have a clear procedure in place in the event that the original booking needs changing. When you enquire initially, ask them about this and if they don’t have a clear answer it could be worth moving on and speaking to other companies who are more prepared.
2. Your Stuff Gets Broken
It is inevitable at least one cup will get broken during the big move. However, with the right packing of items placed in your new home or your storing.com unit, they should be protected well enough to avoid this happening. It is also worth getting insurance on your items whilst they are in transit if anything is particularly valuable. The moving company will have some degree of insurance on items that are in their care, but if you are moving anything yourself, or hiring a van, you’ll need to get those items insured yourself.
3. You Lose The Keys To Your New Property
1 in 10 people surveyed in a bed company study forgot their new house keys before they even got to the front door. You can only imagine the kind of impact this delay would have on the whole moving process. Consider attaching a key finder and bright key ring to the keys as soon as they come into your possession to prevent this happening. It can also be worth going and getting a new set of keys cut straight away, so you immediately have a spare set on hand should the initial set get lost or damaged.
4. The Van/ Car Breaks Down
If you are moving yourself and the vehicle breaks down before you have moved your belongings out of the house, the first thing to do is contact the vehicle hire company, or your breakdown cover company, to see if the issue can be rectified quickly. This is the reason a lot of families choose to move everything into affordable self storage before exchange, because it means you only need a normal sized car to move on the day, which can easily be hired last minute, or borrowed from a friend. If you are meant to be moving your entire house in one day and the vehicle you are relying on breaks down and cannot be replaced, you have to call in all the favours around to get everything done. If all else fails, these things can happen and the solicitors, moving company and other people involved will be open to reorganising everything. There are ways around this kind of problem, it just makes everything a little more complicated. Moving your items into affordable self storage before the big day, though, can help to protect you against this particular problem so it is worth considering.
5. Stuff Isn’t Packed
It is surprising how many people get to the big day and haven’t packed all their things up, but it happens quite a lot. This can lead to a ton of stress and a real risk of items being damaged. Start packing and decluttering as soon as you know you’re moving so you can be sure everything is ready to go in time. Even better, start moving it into your affordable storage unit in London so that you know everything in there is ready to be transported into your new place when the time comes.
6. Somebody Is Ill On Moving Day
If your child is unwell on moving day it can be manageable to get them to grandparents for care, or to the new place and in a makeshift bed quickly. If you are unwell, though, it can be a real challenge, especially if the illness relates to your toilet habits. If this happens, try to lean on medication, your friends and family as much as you can.
7. Boxes Break
Boxes breaking can create lots of mess in your current and new home, which can be a real issue if you are limited on time and all your cleaning equipment is packed. Of course, there’s also the damage done to the items inside which can be costly. Packing correctly will help avoid this issue. Utilise strong boxes such as those sold by your local self storage facility, and use lots of packing tape.
“By failing to prepare you are preparing to fail.” – Benjamin Franklin
As stressful as it can be thinking of all the things that can go wrong on a moving day, by preparing for those eventualities you can minimise the risk of them happening. If they do happen, you are also more likely to know how to deal with them because of your preparation.
Soon enough you will be in your new home enjoying this new chapter, with all of this stress a distant memory.
