Keep your stress levels down and your organisation levels high with these essential moving tips.
- Declutter before you move. If you know you’re moving to a new house in advance, give your home a once over with a good decluttering. Throw out, sell, or donate anything you don’t need or use anymore. This includes clothing, toys, equipment, old furniture, and even pantry items. This will make your moving process a whole lot easier!
- Boxes, boxes, boxes. You can never have enough when it comes to move day! Get ready with enough boxes, tape, scissors, thick markers to write with, packing paper and bubble wrap to make your move a whole lot smoother.
- Choose who will move you. You can choose to have a company come in and do the whole process for you, from packing, to lifting, to driving the truck, right down to the unpacking part. Or you can choose to hire a truck and get a few of your friends and family to help. Make sure to choose an option which suits your budget, skills, and stress levels you’re willing to accept.
- Get ready with a mail redirection service. Update the address on your bills and get a mail redirect service for any letters and bills you may have forgotten about for a period of time after you move.
- Do you need a storage facility? Depending on where you’re moving to, you may need a storage facility between when you move out to when you move in.
- On moving day, pack a box of essentials such as snacks, bathroom supplies and toilet paper which will needed immediately on moving in. You’ll thank yourself later when you don’t have to look through 20 boxes to find your favourite pillow for bed time!
- Pack your valuables close to you. If you have especially valuable items such as jewellery or important paperwork, it’s a good idea to keep these close to you on move day to ensure they don’t get lost or damaged in transit.
Moving and your insurance
When moving there are some insurance essentials you will need to consider.
- Check whether your moving company has insurance in place
- Contact your insurer to find out whether you’re insured for your goods in transit and check any limits
- If you have hired a storage facility ensure you’re insured to cover this
- Transfer your insurance policy from your old address to your new address
- Update your home and contents insurance policy with new contents value
Your home and contents insurance policy will need review whenever you move to a new house. Your new home will be valued differently from your old one, with different features, fixtures, and rebuild costs. It’s vital to update this so that you are not left underinsured or paying more than you need to for your policy.
Your contents insurance may also need to be adjusted. You will have no doubt decluttered some items from your home, and perhaps even purchased new items to suit the new home too. Updating your home contents policy will ensure that you aren’t left out of pocket should something happen at your new home.
Taking some time to plan and prepare for your move will give you peace of mind in the long run. If you’re unsure of what insurance you might need for your house move, contact CGU on 13 24 81. You can visit our Home & Contents page.
