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Almost every delivery that goes wrong went wrong before the vehicle moved. The address was incomplete, nobody warned the seller a collection was coming, the item was heavier than described, or there was nowhere to park and nobody had mentioned it.
Couriers are not asking for details to be difficult. Each question exists because its absence has caused a problem before. Here is what to have ready when you book, and why each item matters.
Full addresses, with postcodes
Start with the obvious, because it causes more failures than anything else. A courier needs the complete address at both ends, including the postcode, the building name or number, the unit or flat number, and the floor.
The details people leave out
- Unit numbers on business parks. “Unit 12” on an estate with four blocks is not an address.
- Which entrance to use. Many businesses receive deliveries at a different door from the main reception.
- Flat numbers and buzzer codes. A postcode gets a courier to the building, not to the flat.
- Company names. Useful when the building is shared or the signage differs from the trading name.
If an address is hard to find, say so, and say why. That sentence is worth more than any tracking notification.
Contact details for both ends
A courier needs a mobile number for the person handing the item over and the person receiving it. Not a switchboard, not a shared inbox — a number somebody will answer while standing near the item.
This matters because problems are solved in seconds by a phone call and in days by a missed delivery. A barrier is closed, a name is not recognised at reception, a road is shut: one call fixes each of those.
If you are arranging the delivery for someone else, tell both parties that a courier is coming and give the courier both numbers. Collections fail far more often than deliveries do, and almost always because the sender did not know to expect anyone.
An honest description of the item
A quote is a prediction of how much time, space and handling a job will take. That prediction is only as good as the description.
What to include
- What it is — “a flat-packed wardrobe” tells a courier more than “furniture”.
- Approximate dimensions — rough measurements are fine; guessing badly is not.
- Approximate weight — particularly whether one person can lift it.
- How many items — three boxes is a different job from one.
- Fragility — glass, screens, ceramics, artwork.
- Whether it is packed — and if not, whether it needs to be.
- Value — because it affects what cover is appropriate.
Under-describing an item to get a lower quote is a false economy. The item still has to fit in the vehicle when the driver arrives.
Access details at both ends
Access is the most common cause of a quote changing on the day. It costs nothing to describe in advance.
- Which floor the item is on, and whether there is a working lift.
- Stairs: how many flights, and whether they are narrow or turn tightly.
- Parking: a loading bay, a permit zone, a red route, a narrow lane, a height barrier.
- Gates, barriers, security procedures and the hours they operate.
- Whether anyone can help lift, if the item is heavy.
- Whether the delivery point is a distance from where the vehicle can stop.
If a courier arrives expecting a ground-floor collection and finds a third-floor flat with no lift, the job is different from the one that was priced.
Dates, deadlines and windows
Say the date, and say the real deadline. “Thursday” and “Thursday before two o’clock, because the office closes” are different jobs with potentially different prices.
It also helps to say what is flexible. If the collection could happen any time on Wednesday or Thursday, a courier can often fit it into an existing route and price it accordingly. If you present a narrow window that is not actually necessary, you pay for precision you did not need.
Tell the courier the latest useful arrival time too. There is no point delivering at five to a site that closed at four.
What should happen if something goes wrong
Decide this before the journey, not during it.
- If nobody is in: leave with a neighbour, leave in a specified safe place, or return. Each has a different cost and a different risk, and the sender should choose.
- If the item is not ready at collection: wait for a short period, or return later as a separate job.
- If the item does not fit: what the fallback is.
- If access is blocked: who to call and what authority they have to decide.
Written confirmation of the price, the date, both addresses and these arrangements takes one message and removes almost every argument that deliveries generate.
The booking checklist
- Full collection address with postcode, unit or flat number and floor
- Full delivery address with the same detail
- Mobile numbers for both ends
- What the item is, how many, roughly how big and how heavy
- Whether it is packed and ready
- Fragility, value and any handling notes
- Access details at both ends: stairs, lifts, parking, barriers
- The date, the real deadline and what is flexible
- What should happen if nobody is in
- Written confirmation of price, date and addresses
Have those ten things ready and a courier can quote accurately in minutes. You can send them straight through our quote form, or read more about collection and delivery and parcel delivery first.
Frequently asked questions
Both postcodes, a description of the item with rough size and weight, and the date. Everything else refines the quote and makes the collection go smoothly.
No, but the estimate should be honest. A courier plans vehicle space and handling around what you describe.
Ask the recipient before you book, or tell the courier it is unknown so it can be planned for rather than discovered.
Not necessarily, but somebody must be available to hand the item over. Give the courier that person's name and mobile number.
Need a courier around Winnersh or Wokingham? Send us the collection postcode, the delivery postcode and a description of the item, and we will come back with a price and a collection window. Get a free quote, call +44 7875 608270 or message us on WhatsApp.