Big Yellow Van Company

Would definitely use again — booked online which saves you money on the rate (£50 for two hours for one man, removal truck/​van, and including £5 each side for a stair charge). We had Daryll who was extremely friendly and easy to work with — he does this as a side job to fund a financial services company he’s trying to get off the ground. Our move of a 2 bed, 1 bath with many many boxes and suitcases, and a few small furniture bits (desk, coffee table, office chair) tooks just over two hours. Would definitely use them again. I had to call few times to adjust the timing and ensure the truck was big enough and the service was always very helpful.

Boom! Amazing! I can’t recommend them enough.
I had… less than stellar expectations for my movers. For, well, any move to be truthful, but specifically movers. So I was expecting the worst.
What I got was the best! I called the service and laid out exactly what I needed: No, I didn’t need help packing, not furniture, one man, one van, lots of boxes. I was told that it was about £19 an hour with no minimum amount of hours? What! Other rental companies I called were charging double that with a three hour minimum. I signed up at once.
(They send you a text conformation for the process, which I thought was a little strange over an email confirmation, but to each their own.)
On the day of the move, I was still prepared for them to be late or terrible. Neither was true. They were there exactly at 4pm ready to go. Turns out that they had just come from a two man job, so they actually had two guys with them, but we’re going to charge me anything extra. Loved it. I tipped them really well for that bit of extra service.
The van was actually White, not Yellow and I of course had to ask why. Turns out that the guys work for themselves and get jobs through BYV, so it’s in their best interest to work hard and fast and without complaints against them so they will keep getting jobs. Interesting.
But these guys were fast, thorough, friendly, and even let my dog ride in the back of the van (couldn’t go up front due to passengers who might be allergic, but she hopped right in with my stuff and I sat in the back with her. Easy.)
All in all, excellent. I’d use them again in a heartbeat.

After Andrew and Lisa’s reviews I might have had too-​high expectations for these guys. They *were* good… and I’ll probably use them again.
Why I deducted some stars:
* There was a bit of confusion when I called them on the morning we were due to move. They told me we would have two vans (as I had asked for two men) but in the end we had one van and two men.
* Our driver was about 20 mins late. He did call to let me know though.
* One of the blokes hardly spoke any English.
Why I’d use them again:
* The people at head office were all really friendly.
* They can fit sooo much into those vans!
* They were really speedy. Between the four of us (me, my other half and the two big yellow van men) we managed to move everything in less than 2 hours.
* I thought I had a cheap removal quote for £320-£400… but doing all the packing ourselves and using the big yellow van only cost £80 (including a £10 tip) Bargain!
* They were really friendly and helpful. You could tell the non-​English-​speaking bloke was a sweetie, even if he couldn’t chat to us.

These guys are brilliant! If (like me) you don’t drive (and let’s face it, in London who would need to?) and you need to move more than what would fit on a bike rack, you have pretty limited options. You can persuade a friend to rent a van a drive you around but the cost in both financial and social capital can be quite high. Or you can opt to really shell out for one of the many Man with a Van (MWAV) offers that invariably require you to use them to pack up your stuff and take ages. Or, you can play it smart and check out the Big Yellow Van company.
Now, I don’t know why it’s called the Big Yellow Van company as their vans, while big, are almost always white and never yellow. The company acts as the central dispatcher and head office with the actual drivers being self-​employed with their own van. They pay a portion of every booking to the company rather than being employees. This allows costs to be kept to a minimum and the good folks have decided to pass on the savings to their customers.
Just as a quick comparison, I needed to move my stuff to my parents place for a month while I waited for my flat purchase to go through. StreetVan was going to cost me around £50 and I’d need a driver. The several MWAV quotes I got ranged between £160-£420. And then there was Big Yellow Van which came in at £70 including the driver. £20 is definitely worth both a) not having to take up one of my mate’s whole evening driving me around and b) having to go all the way back to return the van from where we picked it up from.
I’ve had a number of different drivers, including the dad of the guy who founded and runs the company. All the drivers have been incredibly courteous, patient, and polite and expert movers with plenty of advice on the best way to move and pack. For a slight additional fee, they will help you move your items as well.
Overall, an absolutely winner in my book and my first stop for any van needs. You get a discount for booking in advance and online, but if you need one in a hurry they will be there within 15 minutes.
Note: This is a cash only business so make sure you have money ahead of time. You may be able to pay by card over the phone in advance but that’s bound to have a fee.

Need to move house? Need an urgent pick up at the Croydon Ikea in 15 minutes? Just need a big van and helpful drivers to drive you around town for a bit (at cheaper rates than a London cab)? Look no further than big yellow van. This is an incredibly affordable moving service, that has satisfied our moving needs every time.
We’ve now used them 4 – 5 times, and although they’ve never shown up in a yellow van, they’ve never disappointed us. I think they’ve arrived ahead of schedule every time, and each driver has been courteous, helpful in moving fridge/​furniture/​random thing we just had to pick up at Ikea/​trash to take to the dump/​etc., and extremely skilled at navigating narrow London streets. Compared to movers in NYC, these guys have been amazing!
Highly recommended!