Exciting, nerve wracking, stressful – there are a whole range of emotions you’ll be going through when moving home, with a million-and-one things to juggle as part of the process.
While the day of the move involves a lot of physical labour, your work doesn’t stop there. You might know your new address off-by-heart, but there are plenty of people you need to inform in order to stay on top of communications and essential services.
To help you stay on top of this task, we’ve collected the different institutions you need to inform of your change of address and how to going about telling them.
Redirecting your mail
Your old address might still be receiving mail in your name, so to avoid missing out on crucial letters you should set up a redirect with Royal Mail.
You can choose how long you have your mail redirected for, it all depends on how quickly you update your records with the other institutions in this article. 3 months, 6 months and 12 months are your options, costing a little more the longer you choose to redirect for.
DVLA and other vehicle changes
Whether you own a car, motorbike or a van, you must always inform the DVLA of your new address. If your license shows the wrong address you could end up in a fair bit of trouble, not to mention the fact you might miss vital notices, incurring higher penalties as a result.
Once you’ve told the DVLA (something you can do online in under 30 minutes), you’ll also want to inform a number of other vehicle related institutions.
- Insurers – To keep your insurance valid, you will need to inform whoever your policy is with, this may see you paying a little extra depending on who you’re with
- Breakdown Cover – Whoever your breakdown cover is with, inform them immediately, as it could impact on aspects of the service promised to you
- Car Registration – The address your vehicle is tied to needs to be updated in addition to your license
Voting
There are always important elections happening in different constituencies at different times – as well as the odd referendum! – so keeping your electoral registration details up to date is vital if you want to take part.
It only takes around 5 minutes, but by using the gov.uk website you can register to vote and update your address once you’ve moved. This will allow you to receive a polling card where you can find information on where to go on polling day.
Dentists & Doctors
If you’re moving within the borders of the same district, you might not need to rush quite as much to change your address with your dentist and GP. However, it’s still important to let them know for medical reasons, especially if you are someone who requires care visits or other local medical services.
If on the other hand you’re moving further afield, you will need to sign up with a new dentist and GP. You can sign up by popping in and quickly filling out a form (though much depends on how organised they are), from there you’ll be set should you need an appointment. If you fail to sign up, you could be turned away.
Employers & HMRC
Having the right address registered with your place of work is important for your documentation and your pay. Inform your HR department (or the relevant person) so that the change can be made straight away.
If you work for yourself or complete self-assessment forms for taxes, updating your address with HMRC is one of the first things you should do. This will help you avoid unnecessary hassle down the line.
Banking
Regardless of how many banks you’re signed up to with accounts and cards, ensure you tell them of your change of address. There are often options to do this online, but you can always pop into a branch if it’s preferable to you. The last thing you want is to miss any credit card statements or changes to the products you’ve signed up for and not know about it.
Utilities
You should probably have been getting on top of this task in the run up to your move, but informing your utility providers of your change of address will help clear up problems when it comes to billing and final readings. Even if you don’t need to provide final meter readings, and simply want to transfer services, a quick phone call can solve a lot of problems.
- Gas & Electric
- Broadband & Phone
- Television License
- Mobile Phone Contracts
It’s a good idea to set aside a day where you can go through all of these tips, ensuring you get your change of address fed through to the right people all in one go.
If you’ve got these admin tasks under control, but would like assistance for moving day – including packing, transportation and unpacking – look no further than Two Men And A Truck. We’ll be happy to discuss your requirements and provide more information on how we can help your moving day go as smoothly as possible.