Most people are aware that to get a really good deal on packing and moving services when you are shifting houses, you cannot go with the first service provider who offers a good price. The only way to get the best deal possible is to get multiple quotes, browse different options and then pick the service provider that offers the highest quality of service in the lowest asking price. This way, you know you have a good deal in hand and you haven’t been lazy and simply jumped at the first offer. But do we really understand the science behind the quotes that we get from different service providers? Sure we know that it is their asking price for providing us the service of packing up our belongings and transporting them to the new address on the basis of a number of factors, but what are those factors? How are they calculated? What is the consideration on the basis of which each factor is evaluated? Is there anything we can do to lower the costs? Size/ Scale Of The Job This is perhaps the most ambiguous yet most significant determinant on the basis of which removal company quotes are decided. The size of the job refers to a composite of all the other determinants and basically denotes whether the removal company thinks yours is a ‘big project’ or a ‘small one’. The bigger projects require more time, more effort, more materials and tools, and more labour, that is, more men. The small projects need the same investments, but in fewer quantities. Qualitatively speaking, each job is the same, or should be the same for professionals, but when it comes to fixing a price; this quantitative analysis is the biggest influencer. The removal team will arrive at an estimate on the basis of the size of the task, and that’s determined by the following factors. Time The more time a team has to spend in your home packing up all your belongings, then carrying them out to the loading vehicle and then driving them to the new address, the less time they have for other projects in that day. It really is as simple as that, and so, if your job is going to take up a lot of their time, the team will have to cover their earnings targets by making more money from you, to cover what they could have earned elsewhere. More time doing physical labour and on the road also means more effort, so the moving company will calculate billable hours on the basis of an hourly rate or they’ll provide you with a flat fee quote which will cover the worked hours as well as accounting for some extra time and any unforeseen circumstances. Number Of People Required The more work your move requires, the more time and effort it will take. Since a single person cannot affect the move alone (or you’d be doing it on your too instead of hiring professionals!) the moving company will usually send two-three people as well as fourth member to drive the moving vehicle. If your house is smaller or bigger than average, the size of the team may vary. The number of people required for the task influences the quote because it determines how much the moving company will have to pay their own staff. Most moving companies pay more than the minimum wage to ensure quality service and loyalty, which means the expenses they incur on their moving staff have to incorporated into your removals quote. Transport Since most customers are not likely to want their luggage transported in poorly maintained vehicles, moving companies spend a lot of money in the upkeep and maintenance of their transport vehicles. Running costs as well as fuel, maintenance and repairs are very expensive. When you hire a transport vehicle, depending on the size and type of the vehicle as well as how much it will be travelling (thus determining the fuel consumption) your removals quote will also include the charges for the use of the transport vehicle.