On this page you will find reviews on the company Pickfords from real customers. We have filtered custom reviews so that you can really evaluate whether it is worth contacting this company or it is better to contact other movers.
Company average rating Pickfords – 2.8 (calculated based on 220 reviews).
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NEVER use Pickfords.
With disappointment I write this review. NEVER use Pickfords as a moving company - unless you want your items stolen.
I recently moved from London to Singapore. The shipment took just over 3 months as I purchased part of a container (a full container was too large).
When my shipment arrived to my new house in Singapore, to my disappointment and frustration two electronic items were stolen and I don't know what else may have been taken.
I want to make myself clear, it's not the monetary value which I am most frustrated by, it's the fact that I fully trusted Pickfords and they have stolen from me. What gives them the right to take something that is not theirs?
A customer would expect non damage or loss to their goods incurred by Pickfords personnel - this was not the case and hence I urge nobody to use Pickfords as a moving service, save yourself the money and hassle.
What I ask Pickfords is:
- How can you employ staff that are untrustworthy and willing to steal from your customers?
- How can you then not make it right out of goodwill by compensating those customers for their loss?
- What steps are you taking to minimise damage and loss by your own staff?
Whatever the case, I fully agree with the other poor reviews on this site - DO NOT USE PICKFORDS UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES.
The company is dishonest, does not hire trustworthy employees and furthermore does not take responsibility to compensate for the loss of its customers. There is no duty of care or goodwill.
Expect Pickfords to take your money for the move, damage or steal y our goods, and then wash their hands of any complaints.
You're better off moving your goods on your own using a zip van or a friend's car, or in my case paying the airline for extra baggage.
Beyond Disgusting.
Pickfords were contracted by the firm of Caroline Coats & Co (also never use) to clear family home when my mother went into care. Rolled up to deliver items to me with no notification and as I wasn't in then stuck them in storage without my knowledge or permission, refused to release them to my agent and charged me well over market rates for storage (although never sent me a bill despite having my address). Claimed I had not paid the bills they refused to send me. Refused to answer any correspondence whatsoever despite their MD acknowledging in court that the property was mine and being well aware that Coats did not represent me and had no authorisation to enter into a contract with them (i.e. contract between Pickfords and Coats was fraudulent and illegal). Refused to co-operate with the police when they became involved over missing valuables. DO NOT ever consider using this firm for anything.
Worse service provided.
Horrible service. The director, managers and staff provided the worst service. No one knew where my boxes were. The tracking number did not even work. They did not know airlines. They did not follow up or get back to me unless I made numerous long distance calls. One staff member told me to seek compensation and now the company is going back on their word and not providing any compensation. Boxes were 8 days late. Paying so much for service you expect it to be done right and with help from the provider. This service is not worth even 10 pounds.
Beating pickfords.
So never use this company. If you do as I did then it will doubtless be a disaster so here are some tips to deal with them. I successfully got stuff repaired under insurance and then got compensation even thought they said they didn't provide it and played hard to get. So do the following:
1. Insure all your goods
2. When they get packed make sure you photograph all items (the before photos you are bound to need)
3. When the belongings are delivered have your camera available again and photo all packing and photo when they boxes are opened. Digital pics are cheap to take and you will need them
4. If anything is damaged do not sign the delivery note. Write that you refuse to sign and the items are damaged and that you want the items repaired through the insurance and also compensation - the point here is it is then on their official paperwork
5. Immediately contact pickfords and send before and after photos showing the damage and if necessary scanning their paperwork where you have not signed
6. Then follow up time and time again
7. Then argue on compensation. They have clear standards they are required to meet as being a member of BAR so hold them to it
8. Keep a record of every email and use this against them. Again and again. Mention legal action and they will have to refer to their legal advisors so you get their attention
9. Then when they pay they will not notify you so regularly check your bank account. Their payments are under the acronym PMM so look out for that
10. They have now finally paid both insurance and also compensation and amusingly they refuse to tell me they have paid
So the moral of this story. If you want to avoid all these steps. Don't use them. I've dealt with politicians for most of my life so hopefully this may help those that have used pickfords and are in a mess. It is possible to beat them but you have to make it a major exercise! Good luck.
Don't touch this company with a barge poll.
I recently moved with Pickfords and despite the fact I moved from a bigger house into a smaller house and couldn't get to a lot of my boxes for well over a month, they told me I had no claim after seven days. They broke a lamp that cost well in excess of 100 pounds. Lost another one completely (same cost). Smashed a crock pot to pieces, and smashed my best casserole dish from my best dinner set and one I cannot get now! They also damaged a barometer worth in excess of 1000 pounds and I am livid about that. It wasn't packed in a separate box as requested mostly because the person who came to look at our stuff greatly underestimated the amount and they had no extra room for any extra boxes. So this precious barometer was packed along with other things with two flimsy sheets of paper separating it from other breakables! Several things are missing completely, things that were extremely precious to me, I.e.( mother or pearl American Indian jewellery) but when I contacted them (despite the fact I had witnesses who had opened the boxes (most of them unmarked and put into the wrong room) they wouldn't look at me and simply quoted their contract of seven days to make a claim. I wouldn't recommend anyone to use this firm to move their possessions since they do not give a damn. Many of the boxes were unmarked and almost two months since my move I am still left wondering where my things are. DO NOT TOUCH THIS COMPANY WITH A BARGE POLL. THEY ARE INCOMPETANT AND THEY SIMPLY DO NOT GIVE A DAMN ABOUT YOUR POSESSIONS WHEN THEY ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR BREAKING THEM AND LOSING THEM (OR STEALING THEM) DISGUSTED.
Made removing a pleasure.
I couldn't rate the service from Pickford's higher. From the initial survey through to the team who packed and moved me everyone was professional, friendly and helpful way beyond the call of duty.
I didn't use Pickford's insurance because my contents insurance covered items in transit, in consequence the cost was considerably lower than any other of the other five quotations I had.
Everything was immaculately packed with reams of paper protecting anything even remotely fragile or sharp.
It was not an easy job, with innumerable stairs at the pick up, a neighbour boxing the van in and refusing to move, double yellow lines at the other end and a two hour hold up while my seller was still moving out. But the crew remained amiable, got on with the job and made the day I had been dreading into a pleasurable experience.
Substandard.
The website cost guide bears no resemblance to the actual cost. Check it out.
They quote storage prices per week but neglect to inform you they charge per month. When queried, the answer was "it is in the small print of your contract" (very small!!)
We paid for the packing service but the delivery men refused to unpack, were unhelpful, and not pleasant.
One item was damaged and compensated for. One item was stained and the removal person argued with my wife that it could not be Pickfords fault.
They were demanding in the return of the wardrobe boxes, not giving us time to store the items.
The delivery process was rushed and took 2 hours where the pick up from Portsmouth took 6 hours to pack.
Whilst the removals manager agreed the service was not up to standard she just said the delivery fulfilled Pickfords contract with us. Any kind of compensation was flatly refused although they admitted there would be inhouse training for staff following our experience.
We have used this company several times before, but customer loyalty counts for nothing. We accepted the price was more than competitors in the past, but the service was better. NOT ANY MORE!
When you contact the office by phone or email it is like the person is reading off a script.
I would never recommend this company to anyone.
Do not use them.
Moving home.
Very poor.
Failed to book my move day in diary so when it came to moving they couldn't fit me in.
Showed no sympathy at all , they caused me great stress and upset.
Thank goodness I knew someone who knew a manager who worked in a different dept , she was amazed at the poor service and luckily found me a van and in the end the crew were awesome.
Pickfords are a global company and their Operation Dept needs a shake up.
Nicky Brotherstone you were awesome I thank you , you are Pickfords loss and someone else's gain.
I managed to get £200 compensation for my upset , this is after they tried to get me to accept £150!
Wilful damage and dishonesty by movers - avoid this company.
In the small print, Pickfords say that they will only pay compensation if damage is reported within seven days. We have discovered damage, but too late to recieve compensation. The most serious damage is the breaking of most of the fastenings of the slats of the double bed, which they deliberately concealed by laying them back on (but not fastening them, since they now can't be fastened) and putting the mattress on top, so that we would not discover the damage until we came to turn it some weeks later. I presume this was a calculated risk, given that they know people are unlikely to turn mattresses for weeks or even months after they've been shaken up in a move. As most of the slats are broken, they must have known that whatever tool they were using to take apart the bed was breaking the fastenings, but kept doing it anyway, thinking that they would get away with it - as they have. They have refused to pay compensation or to acknowledge the wilful damage inflicted by the movers and the dishonesty involved in concealing it.
The man who gave us the quote did a lot of talking about how Pickfords cared about its reputation and would want us to be satisfied enough to use them again and to recommend them to our friends. Clearly not so, since this is a large international company that could well afford appropriate compensation when it has been at fault, but prefers to lose customers and harm its reputation than behave decently or honestly.
I'm underwhelmed.
Pickfords removed my furniture and put held it in store for several months. So far so good.
When I knew the move date to my new property I called them and enquired about a specific date to move in, some three weeks away. I was assured that this would be OK. When I finally heard back from them they told me that these dates were not possible. As I had arranged everything else for that day I said I would have to find another removal firm.
So I found another company in Maidstone who prepared a quote for the job. It was only when I called Pickfords to tell them what time the good would be collected that they told me that everything was in Milton Keynes..
Had they thought to tell me this I would have chosen a removal firm there.
So far not a word of apology..
AVOID at all costs.
Pickfords could not be more helpful when costing for job, after furniture delivered from storage items damaged 1 beyond repair, £900 wardrobe ruined no payout as still usable. Move from temp accommodation in Yeovil to Taunton priced at £1,300 local firm cost £300. Stored items had pine needles in boxes, no explanation!. It took 3 months to sort out compensation for damaged items and another month to actually pay out. The co. policy seems to be to use delaying tactics until you either settle for their offer or give up. If this were last removals co. in world I would buy a wheelbarrow and move myself. Never ever contemplate using this co. avoid at all costs.
Unprofessional and unresponsive after payment is made.
I moved from Melbourne Australia to UK and Spain
communications were terrible, everything was super slow, I had to chase everything, and still have not received information I requested months ago.
Up until I paid for the move everything was different, they drove the communications, and were super helpful. After payment everything slowed down. I had to ask repeatedly for estimates of arrivals, I got different advice on the cubic feet measurements and still haven't worked that one out, I asked for dates of delivery (to two locations) and was told that I would be informed in time for me to organise to be at home and yet despite arranging a day with my Pickford's contact, the goods arrived a day early, one item was damaged and it took 4 months to sort that out even though I was completely covered by their own insurance. After I had made payment, I had to send several emails to get any information at all.
Really awful experience.
Avoid - Very Poor Service.
Please read and take notice of mine and other reviews. This company were dreadful. At least £5000 worth of damage to our furniture. Our job was a packing and removal, packing service didn't happen as they came without the proper tools, we ended up doing it ourselves. Furniture went into storage and when it was delivered two weeks later there were an unbelievable amount of damages. Sofa's, garden furniture, tv's, etc etc. Even the guys unloading couldn't believe the way it had been stacked and one was injured as all the furniture fell on him due to the poor stacking. Now over 3 months later and still fighting to claim on the insurance I took out with them, I cannot even get calls returned. Avoid this company, they should not be in business.
Damaged everything - Beware!!
Used Pickfords for our removal, moving contents of 2 bed flat 500 yards to another street.
They dropped or damaged every piece of furniture we own. Not one item - every item is either scratched, dented or worse.
They failed to wrap or strap the furniture. They even lost our sofa.
As yet no apology, only a wall of corporate evasion & legal small print.. Which they are actually v good at. Their attitude suggests that this is very normal & standard procedure.
Please save yourselves the aggravation & do not use this failing company.
Very poor service.
Used Pickfords because they were selected by my employers removal agents. Pickfords surveyor underestimated the load so things were left behind, particularly my very large potted shrub collection. They assured me these would be collected the next day and delivered to my new address. Didn't happen and after chasing I have had one phone call from their move admin saying she would get it sorted, but hasn't, and they are not responding to my attempts to communicate by phone or email. Also some breakages, crew took away to be repaired / replaced, no sign of that either. And they were supposed to arrive at my new address, only 60 miles, on the same day, never showed up till next day, I had no bed no clothes no toiletries, slept on the floor under my raincoat that night and they didn't even bother to contact me, apparently some manager had stopped the crew delivering till next day. Totally worthless company, do not trust them if you have a choice.