After you’ve decided on a move to France, one of the major judgements you’ll need to make about your move is whether to choose a groupage or a dedicated removal service.
Many removal companies offer a choice of either service, where some will only offer one or the other. But what are main differences and how do you decide which option is right for you?
We spoke to Tim Aspey, managing director of removals company Andrew Porter Limited, to get the low-down on the pros and cons of a groupage or dedicated removal to France.
“This is one of the main aspects of a move to France that people want to know more about,” Tim explained.
“It’s not something that is really an issue when moving house within the UK, so it’s often a new concept that people may not have come across before. But it’s an important decision when planning a move to France as there are some very important differences.”
Groupage services are often preferred when the customer is not taking their entire collection of furniture, but are moving personal effects and maybe a few selected items.
“We would collect the customer’s items as normal, from wherever they are in the UK, and then take the belongings to our storage warehouse. Here they are kept securely until the customer is ready to move, or until the next available groupage consignment,” Tim said.
This is one of the main differences between the two services – the fact that groupage moves are indeed grouped together with belongings of other customers. They will then be allocated to the next available scheduled vehicle. While Andrew Porter Limited schedules weekly trips to France, depending on how busy the service is, the delivery could take between two and three weeks.
There’s no need to be concerned about your belongings getting mixed up with other people’s on board. All customers’ goods are separated and itemised in the vehicle, and are blanked wrapped and tied in for security.
With a groupage move, you also won’t be able to specify a delivery date to receive your belongings in France. Instead, you’ll be given a five-day window. This will depend on the routing of the vehicle and which other areas of France it needs to visit before delivering your items.
The main benefit of a groupage move is the price. Because you only pay for the space your items use within the vehicle, it can be a highly cost effective option.
When it comes to a dedicated service, the major plus point is that you can decide the precise date and time that your belongings are collected from the UK, and the same for when they are delivered to you in France. You can still choose to store them in between, if you don’t need to move right away.
“A dedicated service is ideal for a customer with a large amount of furniture to move, who may need it quickly or who has limited availability to be able to receive the items in France,” Tim said.
Because your items will be loaded on to their own vehicle (either a 7.5 tonne or 17 tonne wagon), this service is less cost effective as you will be paying for use of the entire vehicle, even if you don’t use all the space within it. But on the plus side, your belongings can be with you in France within a week.
“Some people assume that specialist removals services, such as transportation of pets, vehicles, or agricultural equipment, requires a dedicated service, but this is not always the case,” Tim continues.
“In most circumstances we can provide the same specialist packing, handling or care in a groupage service as well. It’s always work asking the question if you have more unusual removals requirements.”
Andrew Porter Limited has been established as a removals firm for more than 40 years, and has helped hundreds of families to start their new life in France. Feel free to contact us for more information on +44 (0)1257 482398.
