The same applies with container services, in that collection and delivery will be made with a very large truck, such as a 30ft to 40ft articulated vehicle, therefore access needs to be good with this removal option.

Shipping times can vary when shipping abroad by container. In general we have weekly services from the UK to all worldwide destinations, therefore, once loaded, the container will usually ship from the UK within a week. Once the container has shipped the transit times can vary greatly from country to country. To give you some idea the transit time to the Baltic States is around a week, the shipping time to Athens is around 10 days, Cyprus is around 13 days and you are looking for more like 25 days to Dubai and 45 to 50 days if you want shipping to Australia. We ship from all major ports, such as Liverpool, Immingham Southampton, Felixstowe and Tilbury, but also have some great shipping services out of the smaller ports such as Grangemouth and Cardiff.

EXPRESS REMOVALS –With the key points covered surrounding part load removals and container shipping, that leaves us with the dedicated van options. We have transit vans, luton vans and 7.5tonners delivering throughout Europe daily. Therefore, we are proud to say that we can collect from any European country with just a couple of days notice, offering designated, direct, express delivery, from and to your chosen destination.

Dedicated van services are charged per mile and if you work on around £1.30 per loaded mile, for European Transport, that will be about right. There is a minimum charge of around £595 for a dedicated van, as the ferries have to be taken in to account. This can vary slightly when additional ferries are required, when a van to the Greek Islands, for example is wanted, but the above rate includes driver wages, fuel, ferry from Dover to Calais and tolls! Sole use van options can be much cheaper when traveling shorter distances, such as London to Paris, or Brussels or Birmingham, for example, as these are charged per mile, rather than per cubic metre. The above rate is based on a van, with internal dimensions of around 18 cubic metres (Around 4.2 x 2.1 x 2.1metres high). When you start moving more extreme distances, then the part load option, where you get charged per cubic foot, can then be a cheaper option. It would probably cost you around £1300 plus vat to get 18 cubic metres from the UK to Paris, as a part load, however a dedicated luton van would only cost around £700 plus vat. Therefore, in this instance a dedicated van can be much the cheaper option. When you move to Southern Spain, such as Malaga, it would probably cost around £1450 for 18cbm, however the express van option would then cost more, at around 1800 plus vat! So you can see, the sole use van option can sometimes be the cheaper option, whilst offering lots of advantages.

The advantages of opting for a dedicated van for your move is that you get a van to yourself, so you can be sure that the only goods in the van are yours. The goods will travel from door to door and will not be handled on route. The express van service means you get the same driver and van from house to house, knowing that your goods are secure from door to door, with the driver staying with the vehicle at all times.

If you opt for a van for your delivery you can get a next day delivery on most destinations, within about 700 miles, 48 hour delivery on trips that are more than about 700 miles and a 3 day delivery may be required on runs to the likes of Northern Sweden, Southern Italy and Eastern Europe. The above estimated running times are about right for van deliveries. If you decide to go for a full house move, on a dedicated basis, the running time may be longer as larger wagons, such as 7.5 tonners and 18 tonners have restricted driving hours.

Whilst the above rates and running times are based on a man and van basis, with driver assist both ends, we can offer additional porters to do all loading and unloading, along with extra drivers to speed up the running time. We can still offer a full packing service, with the sole use van option, but that is just added tot he cost per mile.

Whether you are moving from Europe to England or England to any European destination, we can have the collection and delivery done within these time scales. Due to the fact that we are European specialists, we are confident in being able to collect from you anywhere in Europe, on any day that you want and at an agreed time.

You can see that the main advantages of a dedicated service is that you have far more control over collection days and the speed of delivery can also be a massive advantage, especially when you have your children’s toys are all tied up in the load, or your business equipment! However, the direct van option is also a very good choice for families who have bad access, at the collection and delivery points. We have done many collections from Swiss ski resorts, when a van with snow chains is the only way to gain access to the collection property. We have found ourselves delivering to steep mountain locations in the South of France, when only a small van could have any chance of getting to the house, but have also found that big cities, such as London and Madrid, have some very restricted streets, with access and or parking being impossible for anything larger than a transit van!

CUSTOMS CLEARANCE –The movement of personal effects around Europe is now quite simple, with all EU countries sharing free movement of goods, however we still do have to contend with customs clearance for countries such as Switzerland and Norway, along with principalities, such as Andorra and San Marino. Fortunately we have been going to and from these destinations long enough to know all the pitfalls. When moving to and from these destination we need to get T forms raised with an agent in Dover and we have experienced agents in all none EU countries, who we can rely on for speedy clearance of household goods.

If your goods are all used household effects, in the vast majority of cases you will not be subject to duty or taxes, in the country you are moving to. This will be subject to the length of time that you have owned and used the goods, however in some countries, such as Albania for example, you will be subject to taxation, even on used goods! Each non EU country has different rules, therefore it is wise to check with us on what will be applied on an individual basis. When importing effects in to the UK we have a form called a C3, which is for the “importation of personal effects, from outside of the EU”. This form enables us to import used goods, from outside of the EU, with you having to pay UK duty or taxes. This is subject to the goods being owned and used for more than 6 months.

Numerous documents can be requested when moving within Europe, especially to non EU countries. For example, when moving to Switzerland, we require copy passport, tenancy agreement, copy employment contract, a details packing list with values on and an original signed 18:44, Swiss import form. This is just one example, of one country, but rest assured, we will advise you on what is required for moving to any European destination.

Should you have any unanswered questions or queries of any description, or just want a chat or some advise, please do not hesitate to call or email for an immediate reply.

INSURANCE –European removal insurance is usually quoted as a percentage of the goods’ value or a percentage of the move cost. This can vary greatly, from company to company, so it is an area that you want to look in to. We charge 2% of the goods’ value for fully comprehensive removals insurance, covering all risks, however you also need to be aware that there is limited cover on owner packed goods. Whilst you will get insurance for owner packed goods, in the event of a total loss, you will not be covered for breakages. This is the norm throughout the removals industry, therefore do take this in to consideration when choosing your service requirements.

WAREHOUSING –Should you need your personal belongings to be collected and then take to store, whilst you find a new home, then we can accommodate you. We have warehousing throughout the UK and can collect your goods, take to store and then delivery at a later date. We can offer long term or short term storage in the UK, but if you prefer we can also offer storage throughout the UK. Sometimes you may need you personal effects to be stored locally to where you are finally moving to, so you can access your goods in the short term. For example, we have a client moving to the Estepona area that we have moved from the UK to our Malaga depot. 30% of the goods have been delivered to the clients’ rented property, for them to use in the short term, but when they have found there own home we will collect the goods from them and then deliver the full consignment. We have many ways of solving your storage problems, therefore let us know how you want the move to take place and we will tailor your service to your exact requirements.

BOOKING YOUR MOVE –Once we have established a volume of goods, the vehicle required to complete the move and the kind of service that you require, you will be sent a full written quotation. This will outline the move size, the cost of the move and how to book. We would require a small deposit to complete the booking and then we would come to an agreement on the collection date.

ABOUT EUROPE –Europe is the second smallest continent in the world, with 4 million square miles and a population of 700 million people.

Europeans are high in generosity and the ten most generous countries in terms of charities are all European.

Much of Europe has been shaped by World War’s 1 and 2. The First World War caused the complete alteration or dissolution of four empires the German, Ottoman, Russian and Austro-Hungarian. World War 2 meanwhile resulted in the death of 2.5 percent of the world’s population.

It is believed that Europe is named originally after ‘Europa’ who was a Phoenician Princess from Greek Mythology.

The smallest country in Europe is The Vatican – city actually only 110 acres in total and with a population of just more than 800. Whilst the largest country in Europe is Russia (though Russia is only partially European) with an area of 17,098,242km2. These are also the smallest and largest countries in the world. One of the most interesting facts about Europe then is that it includes the smallest and largest countries in the world.

More information about European locations and moving to Europe