At Mark Ratcliffe Moving we offer a complete moving and storage service. We have worked in the industry for more than 30 years, you can place your trust in our team to look after your move.
Making the decision on which removal company to choose for your move is extremely important. You need to know you have secured good value for money, but also be confident that the team arriving on the morning will understand your requirements and have both the training and equipment to ensure a successful and straightforward move.
At Mark Ratcliffe Moving we offer a complete moving service. Whether you have a 3 piece suite to move across Guildford, or need assistance with packing, storage or house clearance, we have the necessary equipment, staff and skill to move you with ease. Our team of professionals are also well placed to help and advise on all of your moving needs.
Mark Ratcliffe founded Mark Ratcliffe Moving and has been working in the UK commercial and domestic removals and storage market for over 30 years. Working with businesses and residents across Guildford and throughout Surrey, quality is, and has always been, at the core of everything we do. Our removal firm are one of just a handful with a dedicated staff training centre and all of our staff are trained to the highest industry standards. Staff are trained and experienced in packing fragile and non-fragile personal effects, moving and wrapping household furniture for home and overseas moving, as well as vehicle loading and customer services. With our moving firm you can expect competitive prices, the highest standards and a real commitment from everyone involved in your move.
At the start of your moving journey with us, Mark Ratcliffe will visit your home at a convenient time to carry out an onsite survey and discuss aspects of your forthcoming move. Packing requirements, insurance cover for your possessions and house clearance can be discussed and a fixed quotation can be provided for moving, packing and storage if required. On the day of your move, a fully trained and uniformed crew will arrive and lay down floor covers to protect carpets, cover exposed banisters and doors etc. If required, they will pack and move your belongings with care and transport them safely to your new home.
We offer a full packing service or we can arrange packing of fragile items only. Should you decide to carry out your own packing prior to your move day, we provide flat pack moving boxes, plain paper, bubble wrap, tape etc...all at a minimal cost.
Mark Ratcliffe Moving also offer secure self storage rooms to rent for customers and businesses who prefer to deposit and remove their own goods to and from store. There is a variety of sized rooms available with our most popular size being 77 sqft which equates to 850 cubic feet / 24 cubic metres. This size room is rented at £30 plus vat per week and with our storage rooms being much higher than our competitors and our charges being over 50% less than the rest - they are extremely good value for money. Your valuable possessions will be stored in a secure, damp free and clean environment and you will be the only key holder with great access for loading / unloading.
Whether you are moving within Guildford or further afield in the UK, or even abroad, Mark Ratcliffe Moving is ready to help. We can meet all of your wider moving needs including secure storage, export packing and house clearance. We would be delighted to give you a quote for removals in Guildford without any obligation. Please contact our team today to talk through your moving requirements. Our opening hours are Mon - Sat 08.30 - 17.00 or by appointment for any other time including Sundays. A 24/7 Service for our Self Store Customers.
Guildford sits in the Surrey commuter belt and our work here covers the full property range. Victorian and Edwardian terraces close to the centre, 1930s and post-war semis on the inter-war estates, substantial detached homes on the larger plots, and a growing minority of new-build properties on the recent developments — the new-builds tend to have bigger inventories because the rooms are larger and people fill them.
For any move bigger than a one-bedroom flat we recommend a free in-home or video survey rather than a phone quote. It takes 30 to 45 minutes, walks every room, and produces a written, itemised quote inside two working days. The single biggest reason phone quotes mislead is the loft — almost every customer underestimates what’s in theirs by roughly double. The walk-through finds it before move day, not after.
Our daily routes out of the Lower Dicker depot put Guildford within standard half-day or full-day reach, depending on inventory size and the destination address. A typical Guildford pickup with a Sussex or Surrey delivery completes in a single day, including pad-wrapping at the load and unwrapping at the unload. The lorry leaves Lower Dicker in time to be on your driveway ten minutes before the stated load time — we don’t make customers wait around at 6am for a 7am scheduled start.
For chain-day moves out of Guildford the timings matter and we plan the schedule from the keys-release time backwards. For longer-distance UK moves — to the Midlands, the West Country, the north — we generally split the day across two crews if the inventory exceeds a single lorry. Anything heading overseas from Guildford routes through our customs-controlled holding bay at the depot, where the container is loaded after a final inventory check.
The Guildford quote process runs in five practical steps. First, a phone or web enquiry — tell us the address and the rough move date and we’ll suggest a survey slot. Second, the survey itself: either in-home (30 to 45 minutes) or over a video call. Both produce the same paperwork. Third, the written quote, emailed within 48 hours, itemised by line — pad-wrap, transport, packing materials, insurance, any specialist handling — so you can see what every cost line covers.
Fourth, the deposit and date hold: typically 20-25% on confirmation, fully protected under the British Association of Removers’ Advance Payment Guarantee. Fifth, the move itself — uniformed crew, our own lorry, no agency labour, blankets washed between jobs, and a written inventory at handover. None of this is unusual but it’s worth saying because a meaningful minority of removal firms across Surrey cut corners on at least one of those steps.
Most Guildford moves use one of three packing options. Full pack — our crews pack everything in the house the day before move day, using removal-grade cartons and tissue. Fragile-only pack — we handle the kitchen, the display cabinets, the framed art, the mirrors, the lamps, and the customer packs the easy stuff (books, clothing, linen, garage). Self-pack with materials supplied — we drop off cartons, tape, bubble and tissue, and you do it yourself with our written room-by-room guide.
Where the dates don’t line up (the sale completes a fortnight before the purchase, the chain slips, or the new property isn’t ready), we hold the load at our A22 depot in steel strong-rooms with 24-hour CCTV. Short-term storage between contracts is charged by the week; longer-term storage is invoiced monthly. For Guildford customers needing self-access self-storage, the ground floor of the depot is fitted for that — individual digital-entry doors and 24/7 access via a key fob.
After the move, we come back to collect empty cartons free of charge if you’re within standard delivery range. We also offer an unpack service for customers who prefer the new home set up by us — particularly common for older customers and white-glove relocations.
For end-of-month dates in the May–September peak, six to ten weeks ahead. Mid-week, mid-month dates can sometimes be booked two to three weeks ahead. The earlier you book, the more choice of slot and crew you’ll have.
Yes — typically 20–25% of the quoted price on booking, with the balance payable on the day of completion. All deposits are protected under the British Association of Removers’ Advance Payment Guarantee.
Crew time, our own lorry, fuel, pad-wrap (industry-grade blankets washed between jobs), basic transit insurance and labour. Packing materials, fragile-only or full packing service, and any specialist handling (piano, antiques, art, marble) are quoted separately so you see the price of each.
Yes — full British Association of Removers members and audited annually, including the BS 8564 international removal standard. Our membership number and current audit dates are on the BAR site.
Sometimes — depends on the date and the inventory size. Smaller jobs can often be slotted in within a week. Larger 3- and 4-bed moves usually need at least two weeks’ notice so we can crew correctly.
Yes — FIDI-network shipments to over 200 countries. International moves route through our customs-controlled holding bay at the A22 depot, where the container is loaded after a final inventory check. We don’t sub-contract international work to third-party brokers.