What is a part load removal and how much does it save?
A part load shares vehicle space with other moves travelling the same way, so you pay for the space you use rather than the whole journey. It typically saves 30 to 40 per cent on a long-distance move where your dates can flex. Your consignment is kept separate and inventoried, with the same goods-in-transit cover as a dedicated move. Best suited to studio, one and two-bedroom homes.
Overview
Part Load Removals
If your belongings would fill only part of a lorry, there is no good reason to pay for the whole one. A part load — sometimes called a shared load — puts your consignment in a vehicle alongside other moves travelling in the same direction, so the cost of the journey is split rather than carried by you alone. It is the single most effective way to reduce the price of a long-distance move, and for a smaller household moving a few hundred miles the saving is often 30 to 40 per cent. The trade-off is time rather than care: your goods are secured and separated from other consignments exactly as they would be on a dedicated vehicle, but the collection and delivery fall within a window rather than on a date you choose.
What's Included
- Typically 30–40% cheaper than a dedicated vehicle for the same distance
- Your consignment kept separate and secured, never loose among others
- Regular routes between the North West and London, Scotland and the South West
- Full goods-in-transit insurance, exactly as a dedicated move
- Inventoried at collection and checked again at delivery
- Ideal for smaller households moving long distances
How Part Load Pricing Actually Works
On a long-distance move, the largest single cost is not the loading or the unloading — it is the journey. Fuel, tolls, driver hours, the vehicle itself and, beyond about sixty miles, overnight accommodation for the crew all attach to the distance travelled rather than to the volume carried. That is why a one-bedroom flat moving three hundred miles can cost more than a four-bedroom house moving five. A part load attacks exactly that cost. By carrying two, three or four consignments on the same journey, the travel element is divided between them, and each customer pays a share rather than the whole. The loading and unloading of your own goods still costs what it costs, which is why the saving is a proportion rather than the full difference. In practice this means part loads deliver their biggest advantage on long journeys with modest volumes, and very little advantage on short local moves where the journey is a small part of the price. We will say so if a part load is not going to help you.
Part Loads, Shared Loads and Backloads Explained
The terms are used loosely across the industry, often deliberately, so it is worth being precise. A part load is a planned consignment occupying part of a vehicle on a scheduled journey — priced in advance, with an agreed window. A shared load is the same thing described differently. A backload is space on a vehicle already returning from another job, which would otherwise travel empty; it is the cheapest option because the journey is being made regardless, but availability cannot be planned and depends on where our fleet happens to be. A groupage or consolidated consignment is the international equivalent, where several households share a shipping container rather than a lorry. What all of these have in common is that you buy space and accept flexibility in timing. What they should never mean is a reduction in the care taken with your belongings, the insurance covering them, or the accountability of the company carrying them. Be cautious of very cheap part load quotes from brokers who do not operate vehicles: they are reselling space they do not control, and if the promised journey does not materialise, your move does not happen.
Getting the Best Value From a Part Load
Flexibility is the currency. The wider your collection and delivery windows, the more journeys we can match your consignment to, and the better the price we can offer — a customer who can accept any week in a given month will always be quoted less than one who needs a specific Friday. Volume discipline is the second lever: because you are buying space, decluttering translates directly into a lower price in a way it does not always on a dedicated move. Packing your own boxes reduces the cost further, and for part loads it also helps us load efficiently, since uniform boxes stack into a tighter, safer block than an assortment of bags and loose items. Finally, consider direction. Our vehicles run in predictable patterns, and a consignment travelling against the prevailing flow — for instance, into the North West at a time when most of our work is heading out of it — is often significantly cheaper, because that space would otherwise be empty. Ask us which direction is currently cheap; we will tell you honestly.
When a Part Load Is the Wrong Choice
We would rather turn a part load enquiry into a dedicated quote than deliver a service that does not fit. If your completion date is fixed and you must be out and in on the same day, a part load is unsuitable: the window that makes it cheap is precisely what you cannot accommodate. If you are moving a full three, four or five-bedroom household, you will largely fill a vehicle regardless, so the sharing saving is small and a dedicated move gives you a fixed date for a similar figure. If your consignment includes items requiring specialist handling — a grand piano, fine art, a substantial antique collection — a dedicated vehicle with a specialist crew is the right approach. And if you are moving only a short distance, the journey is too small a part of the cost for sharing to make a meaningful difference. In each of these cases we will say so at the quoting stage rather than selling you a part load that will disappoint you.
Pricing Guide
Part Load Prices
Part load prices depend on the space your consignment occupies, the distance travelled and how flexible your dates are. The figures below compare an indicative part load price against a dedicated vehicle on the same route, so the saving is visible. All quotes are fixed in writing before collection.
North West to London (One-Bed)
Part load from approximately £550–£800, against roughly £900–£1,300 for a dedicated vehicle on the same route.
North West to London (Two-Bed)
Part load from approximately £750–£1,100, against roughly £1,200–£1,800 dedicated.
North West to Scotland (One to Two-Bed)
Part load from approximately £600–£950 depending on destination, against roughly £1,000–£1,600 dedicated.
North West to South West (Two-Bed)
Part load from approximately £800–£1,200, against roughly £1,300–£1,900 dedicated.
Directional Backload (Any Long Route)
From approximately £400 where a vehicle is already returning your way. Cheapest option available, but dates cannot be chosen — we tell you what is coming up.
Part Load With Storage
Move priced as above, plus containerised storage charged on the space used. Often reduces the total by allowing a cheaper routing.
All prices are indicative, exclude VAT, insurance, and insurance premium tax (IPT), and are subject to a free home survey. Final pricing is confirmed following survey and includes a full breakdown of all applicable charges.
How It Works
Our process, step by step.
Quote and Route Match
We price your consignment and identify which of our regular routes it fits. The more flexible your dates, the more journeys we can match you to and the lower the price.
Collection Window
We agree a collection window rather than a fixed hour. Your goods are inventoried as they are loaded so both sides have a clear record of what travelled.
Secured in Transit
Your consignment is loaded as a defined block, strapped and separated from other loads with bulkheads and boards — not stacked loosely alongside them.
Delivery Window
We confirm your delivery window as the vehicle nears your area, usually with a day or two's notice, and check the inventory again on arrival.
Why Choose Us
The Daley & Co difference.
Our Own Vehicles, Our Own Routes
Because we run our own HGV fleet on regular routes rather than brokering work out, we know where our vehicles are going and can match your consignment to a genuine journey. Brokers selling part loads are frequently reselling space they do not control.
Separated, Not Simply Shared
Sharing a vehicle should not mean sharing a heap. Every consignment we carry is loaded as a distinct block, strapped and physically separated, and inventoried at both ends so nothing is ambiguous.
Honest About the Trade-Off
A part load costs less because it fits our schedule rather than yours. We will tell you plainly what window to expect, and if your dates are genuinely immovable we will recommend a dedicated vehicle instead of overpromising.
Verified Customer Reviews
What our customers say.
“Glad I got the same guys as last time as they are really friendly & helpful. He kept in touch with me to let me know how far away he was too.”
“Very friendly, efficient, careful and excellent customer service. They have worked very hard for us.”
“Super Lads!”
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FAQs
Common questions answered.
Established 1948
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