Moving house is more than just moving your belongings and relocating – there’s also a lot of paperwork and supplies to consider!
The first thing to do is contact all of your suppliers to let them know you are moving house, ideally a minimum of 48 hours before the big day (according to Citizens Advice). It’s a good idea to read your gas and electricity meters on the day you move so you have one final accurate reading. Make a note and take some photos. This way you can always dispute any bills with the new occupiers or suppliers. You should also do this as soon as you arrive at your new home as well!
Of course, you’ll want to get things set up quickly in your new home, but you also want to ensure you have a good-value energy supplier, especially with the huge increases in the cost of living. You can go online to check out your options, looking at places like ‘Which?’ that do a lot of the research for you. Utility Warehouse is popular as they cover pretty much everything under one company, such as energy, broadband, insurance and your mobile phone network. Which? says the best suppliers in the UK are names many of us may never heard of such as Octopus Energy, Ebico & Pure Planet.
If you are on a fixed tariff you may want to stay with the same supplier for ease and to avoid a penalty fee for leaving early. For things like Broadband internet, it might be worth joining some local social media groups for the location you are moving to and asking who people are with. There’s nothing worse that not being able to connect to the internet easily or losing connection, especially if you work from home, and it’s nice to be able to take a break and check out some streaming services before you have finished unpacking. If you have the time and are nearby, you could even knock on a few doors, introduce yourself to the neighbours and ask them! To find a list of providers check out speeds, prices and more, you could check out websites such as www.broadbandchoices.co.uk or www.broadband.co.uk.
Note: If you do work from home or you need internet as soon as you move in, it might be worth arranging to go to an alternative location for a bit as sometimes you will need an engineer to come out, which could take a few days.
How to ensure setting things up the other end isn’t a nightmare
Before you unplug your spaghetti of cables, take photos or videos of the set up so it’s easier to install the other end. You could also use some sticky labels and felt tips to colour coordinate cables and sockets to match up. Using a packing service could help you with this!
Checklist of things to move, set up or consider changing:
- Gas
- Electric
- Water – in and out
- Landline
- Mobile
- Home insurance
- Contents insurance
- TV licence
- Broadband
- Council tax
You will also need to contact the relevant companies and authorities to change your address for things like:
- Driver’s licence
- Passport
- Phone
- Vet and microchip information
- Schools
- Dr Surgery
- Bank
- Any insurances such as pet, car insurance, home insurance, etc
