Moving Into a Tower Block or New Build in London

Tower blocks and new-build developments make a move faster in one way and slower in another. A good lift beats any staircase. But the building has rules, a concierge desk, a loading bay that someone else may have booked, and fire doors that must stay shut. Most of those rules are set by the building, not by law, so they change from block to block.

GOV.UK defines a high-rise residential building as one at least 7 storeys or 18 metres high, with at least 2 homes. These buildings must be registered with the Building Safety Regulator before anyone lives in them. Each one has an "accountable person" responsible for repairing and maintaining the common parts, such as corridors, stairs and lifts.

Residents have duties too. GOV.UK says residents must not damage, remove or interfere with safety items, such as fire doors, signs, sprinklers, smoke alarms and extinguishers. Residents should tell the accountable person about planned work. A move is not building work, but the same rules apply to the common parts on moving day.

No official source sets lift rules for moving day. Each building decides. In many blocks you book a lift slot in advance, and the building may fit protective covers or switch a lift to service mode. Ask the managing agent or concierge:

• Is there a goods or service lift, and can it be booked?
• How long is a booking, and what if the move runs over?
• Are there set move hours, including weekends?
• Is there a deposit or fee for using the lift?
• What size is the lift car and door, and what is the weight limit?

Get the slot confirmed in writing at both addresses, and send it to us with your quote request. If the move runs past the booked slot, the crew may lose the lift. Allow a margin rather than booking the exact time you expect.

A working lift that takes the furniture means no stair charge. If the lift breaks down or is too small for a large item, the crew use the stairs, and stairs are charged at £10 per person, per flight, per hour, with 2 flights to a floor. Measure large items against the lift car first. Sofa won't fit up the stairs? covers measuring.

Purpose-built blocks often have a concierge or front desk. Rules can include advance notice of the move, a named contact, a loading bay slot, set hours, and proof that the removal company is insured. None of these is set by law, so get the rules in writing from your managing agent or the building's management company.

Tell the concierge the van's size and the crew's arrival time the day before. Some loading bays have height limits or are shared with deliveries. If the van cannot get into the bay, it needs a legal place to stop on the street.

Many buildings ask for the removal company's insurance certificate before the move. We send ours on request. Ask the building which cover it needs to see and by when, and tell us when you book. We do not publish cover amounts on the site, so the certificate is the document to send to the building.

The London Fire Brigade says communal corridors and staircases must be kept free from clutter, and fire doors must not be left propped open. It also warns landlords that belongings stored in communal areas can be a real risk.

On moving day, that means:

• Do not prop fire doors open with boxes, wedges or furniture
• Do not stack boxes in the corridor, stairwell or lobby to save time
• Move items straight from the flat to the lift or van
• Do not use riser cupboards or service rooms for storage, even for an hour
• Ask the building how large items should pass through fire doors

Our crew protect floors, doorways and common areas. The building may also ask for its own protection in the lift or lobby, so ask whether it fits covers or expects you to arrange them.

Many London new builds are "car-free". That usually means residents cannot get a resident street parking permit. Check before you move, especially if you own a car.

• Hackney says new homes and redevelopments in the borough are car-free, so no street permit
• Southwark says some new or converted homes are car-free
• Lambeth gives no permit where the address has a planning or S106 restriction
• Tower Hamlets gives car-free homes a resident permit only in limited cases, such as Blue Badge holders, and says permits cannot be transferred

Permits do not follow you from one borough to another. If you move between boroughs, apply again in the new one. Southwark cancels a permit if you move out of your zone.

A car-free development does not mean the van cannot stop there, but it often means there are few bays. If there is no loading bay and no legal space close by, a parking suspension may be needed. You apply and pay for it with the council.

As an example, Southwark lets you suspend a bay for a removal van with 7 days' notice. A yellow notice goes up 5 days before. On 3 November 2026 the charge was £93 admin plus £53.15 a day per car space. Hackney says visitor vouchers are not valid in suspended bays. Other boroughs differ: parking suspensions for moving day in London covers them.

If the crew are kept waiting for a lift, a key fob or the concierge, waiting time is £40 per crew member per hour. Confirming the day before avoids most of it.

Send us the floor, the lift details, the building's move rules and the parking at both addresses, with a room-by-room list. You will get a written quote within 24 hours. The team confirms the final price. See our flat removals in London and house removals in London pages. For stairs, lifts and parking in older blocks, read moving a flat in London. Renting? Moving out of a rented home in London covers notice and the deposit.

If the new flat is not ready on the day, we can arrange storage through a partner. See removals and storage in London, or start from house removals in London.

Since the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022, buildings with flats carry extra duties, and some of them meet your move head on.

• Fire doors are checked. In buildings over 11 metres, the responsible person must check the fire doors in the common parts, including their self-closers, every quarter, and try to check flat entrance doors every year. A chipped frame or a bent closer from a wardrobe going through will be found
• Residents are told about fire doors. New residents must be told why fire doors must stay shut, that doors and self-closers must not be tampered with, and that damage should be reported straight away
• High-rise buildings have more. In buildings at least 18 metres tall or with 7 or more storeys, there must be a secure information box for firefighters and wayfinding signs that stay visible in low light

In practice: do not wedge a fire door, do not remove a self-closer to make carrying easier, and report any knock to the building on the day. It is far easier to deal with a scuff reported at 3pm than one found at the next quarterly check with no record of how it happened.

Never leave boxes or furniture against a wayfinding sign, a dry riser outlet or the information box, even for a few minutes. Those are what firefighters rely on.

The responsible person for any block with two or more homes and common parts must give new residents fire safety instructions when they move in: how to report a fire, the building's evacuation strategy, and what to do after a fire. The instructions must be repeated at least once a year, and shown in a communal area such as the lobby.

Ask for them when you collect the keys. A block with a "stay put" strategy and one with a simultaneous evacuation strategy need very different responses, and it is better to know which one yours has before the first night than to work it out with an alarm going off.

From 6 April 2026, the Fire Safety (Residential Evacuation Plans) (England) Regulations 2025 apply to blocks that are at least 18 metres high or 7 storeys, and to blocks over 11 metres with a simultaneous evacuation strategy. The responsible person must use reasonable endeavours to identify residents whose ability to get out in a fire without help is affected by a physical or cognitive condition.

Those residents can ask for a person-centred fire risk assessment, and the responsible person must offer one. Taking part is voluntary. GOV.UK's factsheet says the decision lies with the resident, and information is only shared with the fire and rescue service with explicit consent.

If this applies to anyone in your household, tell the managing agent when you move in, rather than waiting to be found. It is a simple conversation to have in the first week.

A first move into a new build has its own quirks, because the building and the roads around it may still be settling in.

• The address may not be on maps yet. New postcodes can take time to appear on sat navs. Send us a map pin and the developer's directions to the right entrance
• Site traffic. If parts of the development are still being built, there may be site gates, banksmen and delivery slots. Ask the sales team or the site manager where a removal van should go and at what times
• Lifts and lobbies may still have protection. Ask whether lift covers are already in place, or whether you need to request them
• Snagging. Walk the flat before the furniture comes in. Photograph any marks on walls, floors and doors, so they are recorded before the move and not mistaken for move damage
• Meters and utilities. Find the meters, take readings on the day you get the keys, and ask the developer who supplies energy, water and broadband to the building

Plan furniture for the actual room sizes, not the brochure. New-build rooms can be compact, and a wardrobe that fitted the old bedroom may not fit beside a new radiator or window. Measure before the move, and use the lift size to decide whether large pieces need taking apart. What furniture needs dismantling before a move helps.

Most damage in a block happens in the shared parts: lift walls, corridor corners, the edges of fire doors and lobby floors. Our crews protect floors, doorways and common areas, and the building may add its own lift covers.

You can help by clearing the route the night before. Take down anything of yours stored outside the flat, check that the corridor door you will use is not blocked by deliveries, and keep children and pets away from the lift lobby while the crew are working. If the building sends an inspection before and after, be there for both if you can, and keep the photos.

Lift slots are usually the tightest part of a tower block move. Two slots on the same day, one at each address, need a gap that allows for loading, the drive and a margin. A morning slot at the old building and an afternoon slot at the new one is a common pattern. Ask both buildings what happens if the crew arrive early or run late, and whether the slot can be moved on the day.

If the slots do not line up, storage can bridge the gap, or the move can be split over two days. Booking a goods lift for moving day and working with the concierge cover both ends in more detail.