Can I Book a Removal Company Before Exchange or Before My Completion Date Is Confirmed?

Scope: This guide relates primarily to residential property transactions in England and Wales, where Leaways operates. The legal process is different in Scotland and Northern Ireland. GOV.UK currently confirms that, in England and Wales, an accepted offer is not legally binding until contracts are exchanged.

The answer: get your removal quote early, but treat the date carefully before exchange

Yes, you can contact a removal company, obtain a quote and even reserve a move before exchange of contracts — but until exchange, your proposed completion date should be treated as provisional.

For most buyers and sellers in England and Wales, the sensible approach is to get removal quotes early, choose your preferred company and understand its cancellation or postponement terms before making a firm commitment. Once contracts are exchanged, the transaction becomes legally binding and the completion date is normally agreed as part of that process.

That distinction matters. There is a big difference between planning your removal before exchange and financially committing yourself to an inflexible booking before exchange.

Some conveyancing guidance recommends waiting until exchange before finally booking removals because, before that point, either side may still withdraw or the proposed date may change. At the same time, waiting until exchange to start looking for a removal company can leave very little time, particularly when exchange and completion are close together. HomeOwners Alliance therefore recommends obtaining removal quotes around four to six weeks before moving and notes that Fridays and school holidays can be busier.

At Leaways, we think the practical answer is:

Plan early. Quote early. Understand the terms. Then decide how much date risk you are comfortable accepting before you book.

What do exchange and completion actually mean?

These two dates are often discussed together, but they are not the same thing.

Exchange of contracts is the point at which the property transaction normally becomes legally binding in England and Wales. Before exchange, an accepted offer does not itself legally commit the buyer and seller to complete the transaction. GOV.UK and MoneyHelper both confirm this position.

Completion is the point at which the purchase money is transferred through the conveyancers, ownership changes hands and the buyer can normally collect the keys and move into the property.

The completion date is generally agreed before contracts are exchanged. Government guidance says that at exchange you will normally confirm a completion date; exchange and completion can sometimes take place on the same day, although a gap between the two is common.

MoneyHelper currently describes the typical exchange-to-completion period as 7 to 28 days, although the actual timing is decided between the parties and can be affected by others in a property chain.

This creates the removals dilemma. Waiting for exchange gives you much greater certainty, but you may then have only a short period in which to secure the crew, vehicle, packing service and moving date you want. Starting the removals process earlier gives you more choice, but you must accept that the proposed date could still move.

An important 2026 update

There has been considerable discussion about changing the home-buying system, so it is important not to confuse proposed reforms with the law currently in force.

In June 2026, the Government published its Home Buying and Selling Reform Roadmap, which includes plans for earlier binding conditional contracts and more upfront property information. However, the roadmap states that legislation requiring binding conditional contracts is intended for the future, when parliamentary time allows and after sales-pack reforms have been embedded. As at September 2026, GOV.UK continues to state that an offer in England and Wales is not legally binding until contracts are exchanged.

So for someone moving now, exchange of contracts remains the crucial point of certainty to understand when planning removals.

When should I start contacting removal companies?

Earlier than many people think.

You do not need to wait until exchange before finding out what your move will cost.

A professional removal company can normally assess the job using the information already available: collection and delivery addresses, property type, floor levels, lift access, inventory, parking, dismantling requirements, packing services and approximate moving date. Leaways’ own quote process uses those factors to calculate a personalised fixed price.

Leaways currently recommends booking around two to four weeks ahead where possible, while also accommodating short-notice moves when the schedule allows.

Other UK consumer guidance suggests beginning the removals search even earlier. HomeOwners Alliance advises obtaining quotations approximately four to six weeks before a move, particularly if you are moving at a busier time.

Those recommendations are not contradictory. You can get quotes and choose your mover several weeks ahead without pretending that an unexchanged completion date is guaranteed.

A sensible sequence is therefore:

Stage of the property transaction	What to do about removals
Offer accepted	Start researching companies and estimating the move
Conveyancing progressing	Obtain proper quotations and provide your inventory and access details
Likely completion date discussed	Check availability and ask exactly what happens if the date changes
Before exchange	Book only if you understand and accept the postponement/cancellation terms
Contracts exchanged	Confirm the removal date immediately
Before moving day	Reconfirm access, parking, inventory, packing and arrival arrangements

This approach also reflects current government guidance for sellers, which specifically includes informing the removal company of the move date between exchange and completion. The same rhythm applies whether you are moving in Luton, Hatfield, Bedford or Milton Keynes.

Should I actually book removals before exchange?

There is no single answer that is right for every move.

The question is really: what is the greater risk in your particular situation — booking a date that may change, or waiting and finding that your preferred mover is unavailable?

If exchange is expected several weeks before completion, waiting for exchange before making the final booking may be perfectly sensible.

But consider a different situation. Your solicitor expects exchange very close to completion, you need a full packing service the day before moving, you are moving from a flat with difficult access, and your likely date is a Friday.

That is a much more complicated job to organise at very short notice.

Industry and consumer guidance reflects this tension. Reallymoving advises that quotes can be obtained before exchange but recommends waiting until exchange before finally booking where possible, primarily to reduce exposure to cancellation charges. HomeOwners Alliance similarly recommends doing the quotation work in advance and confirming the mover once the completion date is secure.

The British Association of Removers also advises consumers to consider cancellation and postponement arrangements when choosing a mover; some removal companies offer specific cancellation or postponement protection because property dates can change.

So our advice is not simply “never book before exchange” or “always book early.”

Instead, ask the removal company four things before committing:

1. Is my date being treated as provisional or confirmed?
2. What will I lose if it changes?
3. How much notice do you need to move my booking?
4. Is the replacement date subject to availability?

Those four answers tell you far more than a simple yes-or-no rule about booking before exchange.

What happens if I book Leaways and my completion date changes?

This is where the company’s actual terms matter.

Under Leaways’ current Terms and Conditions, last updated in July 2026, the booking deposit is 25% of the move fee. If you cancel at least 48 hours before the move, the deposit is refunded in full. Leaways also states that no charge applies for changing the move date when at least 48 hours’ notice is given.

Where a booking is cancelled or postponed with less than 48 hours’ notice, the full deposit may be non-refundable. The terms explain that this reflects factors including crew allocation, vehicle reservation, administration and reasonable operational losses.

That 48-hour rule gives customers a degree of flexibility, but there is an important distinction:

A free date change does not mean that every alternative date is automatically available.

Removal crews and vehicles are scheduled against existing bookings. If your completion moves from one Friday to the next, for example, the new Friday may already be fully booked. Leaways’ own website therefore recommends advance booking where possible and makes clear that short-notice work depends on schedule availability.

The safest thing to do when your solicitor tells you that a date might move is therefore to contact the removal company immediately rather than waiting until the change becomes certain.

There is also a wider consumer-law point worth knowing. Government guidance says businesses cannot rely on a cancellation charge merely because it appears in a contract; cancellation terms must be fair, and amounts retained should reasonably relate to losses resulting from the cancellation.

That is one reason a professional removal quotation should be accompanied by clear written cancellation and postponement terms rather than vague statements about a “non-refundable deposit”.

If the change means you must leave one home before the next is ready, read What should I do if my completion date changes at the last minute? for the practical sequence, and How much does a chain-break move with storage cost? if you need to budget collection, storage and redelivery.

What if my solicitor says completion is “likely”, “proposed” or “expected”?

Those words do not mean the same thing as contracts exchanged with an agreed completion date.

Before exchange, MoneyHelper notes that both buyer and seller can still change their minds and withdraw, with potential costs already incurred but without the legal commitment that comes with exchange.

So when a conveyancer, estate agent or someone elsewhere in the chain gives you a date such as “We’re aiming for the 18th,” treat the 18th as a working date, not a guaranteed moving date, until your conveyancer confirms the legal position.

That does not mean you should do nothing.

You can still have your removal quotation completed, inventory finalised, packing materials ordered, parking investigated, furniture dismantling identified and access details confirmed. Leaways’ pricing itself depends on factors including inventory, mileage, floor level, lift access, parking and dismantling, so resolving those details early remains useful even if the date subsequently changes — use the quote calculator while conveyancing is progressing.

This is particularly important for flats. A move involving a building loading bay, lift booking, concierge restrictions or limited parking may require coordination beyond simply finding an available removal van. Leaways specialises in flats and smaller homes and specifically identifies access, parking, lifts, stairwells and timed building arrangements as important logistical considerations.

The date may be provisional. The planning does not have to be.

What about chains, same-day exchange and completion, and new-build homes?

Some moves deserve more caution because the ordinary “exchange, then book the mover” sequence does not fit neatly.

A property chain creates dependencies. MoneyHelper notes that completion can be affected by other parties in the chain, and current government research says around one in three property transactions fall through, one of the reasons the Government is proposing reforms to the buying and selling process.

If you are in a long chain — common across Hertfordshire corridors involving St Albans, Watford or Stevenage as well as Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire — ask your conveyancer how confident they are that the suggested date will be agreed throughout the chain before treating it as firm.

Same-day exchange and completion can also happen. GOV.UK confirms that exchange and completion can occur simultaneously. In that situation, waiting until legal exchange before making any removals arrangements is obviously impractical: you would potentially be trying to find a removal company on the same day you need to move.

That is a good example of why the correct strategy is early planning with controlled booking risk, rather than blindly following a rule that says no removals contact should happen before exchange.

New-build properties can be different again. Where a property is still under construction, the precise move-in date may depend on when the home is finished. Government guidance for certain new-build schemes recognises arrangements where contracts are exchanged first and the developer later gives a period of notice for legal completion.

For a new-build move, tell the removal company explicitly that completion may be “on notice” rather than giving an ordinary fixed date. Your conveyancer should explain the particular contract because the terms of the development matter.

And if there is a genuine possibility that you will have to leave one property before the next is available, discuss a storage contingency before moving day rather than after the chain has already broken. Storage at Leaways is offered alongside removals or packing — not as standalone self-storage — which suits staged house moves.

The safest way to book your removal company

The best strategy is to separate choosing your removal company from confirming your moving date.

Do not wait until exchange to start researching companies, gathering quotes or planning the physical move. By that stage you may have only days or a couple of weeks before completion. MoneyHelper says the exchange-to-completion period is commonly 7–28 days, while government guidance also recognises that the two events can happen on the same day.

Instead, get the quotation organised while conveyancing is progressing.

Make sure the removal company knows that your date is still subject to exchange.

• Check the deposit.
• Check the cancellation deadline.
• Check whether postponement carries a charge.
• Check whether a changed date is guaranteed or merely subject to availability.

Then decide whether reserving early is worth the risk for your particular move.

For Leaways customers, the position as at September 2026 is straightforward: a date can currently be changed without charge with at least 48 hours’ notice, and the 25% deposit is refundable when cancellation takes place at least 48 hours before the scheduled move. Changes closer than 48 hours can result in the deposit being retained under the Terms and Conditions.

That means you do not need to leave all of your removals planning until the moment contracts exchange.

But you should never mistake a likely completion date for a legally confirmed one.

The practical rule is simple: quote early, plan early, understand the booking terms, and confirm the date with your conveyancer.

Planning a move in Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire or Milton Keynes?

Leaways Removals & Storage specialises in properly planned moves for flats, bungalows and 1–2 bedroom homes, with an expanded fleet supporting carefully planned 3–4 bedroom moves. Enter your collection and delivery details, inventory, access requirements and optional services into the Leaways Quote Calculator to receive a personalised fixed price before deciding when to book.

Get the quote organised now — even if your completion date is still being finalised.

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Related reading: What should I do if my completion date changes at the last minute? · How much does a chain-break move with storage cost?