Short answer
A removalist — and before anything else, establish what happens if something is damaged. Removalists in Australia are not licensed, and the cover they carry is usually not what a customer assumes: many offer transit insurance as an optional extra and accept limited liability for damage in the ordinary course, particularly for items they did not pack.
When it is someone else
Calling the wrong trade costs an attendance fee to be told so. These are the cases where this problem belongs to someone other than a Removalist.
your building manager or strata, at both ends
an apartment is involved. Lift bookings and loading dock access are routinely required and frequently forgotten until the day.
you are leaving a rental. Booking the bond clean for after the truck leaves is the only sequence that works.
What to do before anyone arrives
- Get quotes based on an actual inventory — an in-person or video survey — rather than a phone estimate. The single biggest cause of a moving day going wrong is a truck that is too small.
- Ask what their liability is for damage and what the optional transit cover actually covers, including whether items you packed yourself are excluded. They usually are.
- Photograph anything valuable before it goes on the truck.
- Book lifts and parking at both ends, and check whether a permit is needed for the truck.
- Separate out what you will carry yourself: documents, keys, medication, jewellery, devices.
What to ask when you book
- Is this an hourly rate or a fixed price, and what is included — travel time to and from the depot, stairs, heavy items?
- What is your liability for damage, and what does your transit cover include and exclude?
- Are you using your own staff or subcontractors?
- How many people and what size truck, and what happens if it does not all fit?
- What is the deposit and the cancellation policy?
What changes the price
No dollar figures here: this directory holds no price data and an invented range is worse than none. What follows is what makes one of these jobs cost more than the same job next door, which is the part you can actually use when comparing quotes.
- Volume, distance and access at both ends — stairs and long carries are the usual surprises.
- Hourly versus fixed price.
- Packing services and materials.
- Heavy or awkward items: pianos, safes, pool tables, large fridges.
- Time of month. The end of the month and the end of a quarter are the busiest and most expensive times to move.
What you can do yourself
Is this licensed work?
Removals is not a licensed industry in Australia. Membership of an industry association, a real physical business address, and documented insurance are what distinguish operators. Heavy vehicle operation is separately regulated.
There is no national register. Search the licence number with the regulator for the state the work is happening in.
- NSWNSW Fair Tradingbuilders, electricians, plumbers and specialist trades
- VICBuilding and Plumbing Commission, and Energy Safe Victoria for electricalbuilding practitioners and plumbers; electricians are Energy Safe Victoria
- QLDQueensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC)building and most trade contractor licences
- WABuilding and Energybuilders, electricians, plumbers and gas fitters
- SAConsumer and Business Servicesbuilding work contractors and supervisors
- TASConsumer, Building and Occupational Services (CBOS)building and occupational licences
- ACTAccess Canberraconstruction occupations licensing
- NTNT Government building practitioner registrationbuilding practitioners and electrical workers
Licensing thresholds and certificate requirements differ by state and change with amending regulation, so this page describes the mechanism rather than quoting a figure. The regulator’s own page is the current answer.
Common questions
- Who should I hire for moving house
- A removalist — and before anything else, establish what happens if something is damaged. Removalists in Australia are not licensed, and the cover they carry is usually not what a customer assumes: many offer transit insurance as an optional extra and accept limited liability for damage in the ordinary course, particularly for items they did not pack.
- Are removalists insured for my belongings?
- Not in the way most people assume. Public liability insurance covers injury and third-party property damage, not your furniture. Cover for your goods in transit is usually an optional product with its own exclusions — commonly excluding items packed by the customer, and often excluding damage that is not accompanied by damage to the carton. Ask for the policy wording, not a reassurance.
- Hourly rate or fixed price?
- A fixed price given after a proper survey is the lower-risk option because it puts the timing risk on the removalist. An hourly rate is often cheaper for a straightforward move and can run badly when access turns out to be worse than expected. What matters more than the structure is whether anyone actually looked at what is being moved.
Find a Removalist near you
1,234 removalists in this directory, ranked on published evidence rather than on advertising.
Who to hire for
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General information about who does what, not advice about your specific job. Licensing, consumer law and council rules differ by state and change; the regulator for your state is the current source. More guides to hiring a tradesperson.