{"id":120426,"date":"2026-09-25T16:02:04","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T15:02:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shipit.co.uk\/blog\/?p=120426"},"modified":"2026-09-25T16:04:48","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T15:04:48","slug":"advance-payment-guarantee","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shipit.co.uk\/blog\/advance-payment-guarantee","title":{"rendered":"International Removals Payment Protection: Is Your Money Protected?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Moving overseas usually means making payments to your removal company before your belongings reach their destination. The BAR Advance Payment Guarantee (APG)<\/strong> provides financial protection for customers using participating British Association of Removers members. 1st Move International holds a BAR APG certificate providing Worldwide Moves cover<\/strong>, giving customers added financial protection when arranging an international removal from the UK.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Is the BAR Advance Payment Guarantee?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The British Association of Removers operates the Advance Payment Guarantee Scheme<\/strong> to provide financial protection if a participating BAR removal company suffers financial failure and is unable to fulfil a contracted move.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Scheme provides an additional layer of consumer protection for payments made to your removal company, subject to the BAR APG terms and conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Does BAR Payment Protection Cover International Removals?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Yes, where the removal company holds the appropriate level of APG cover.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

BAR APG certificates identify the level of protection held by the individual removal company. This may be limited to UK moves or extended to include international removals by land, sea or air that originate or terminate in the UK.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For an international move, it is therefore worth checking the removal company’s current APG certificate rather than relying simply on confirmation that it is a BAR member.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1st Move International Has Worldwide APG Cover<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

1st Move International is a member of the British Association of Removers and holds a BAR APG certificate providing cover for Worldwide Moves<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For international removals covered by our certificate, BAR APG payment protection is provided automatically. There is no separate payment protection product for customers to buy and no additional charge for the APG protection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

View our BAR APG Worldwide Certificate<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Does \u201cWorldwide Moves\u201d Cover Mean?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For BAR APG purposes, Worldwide Moves cover extends to international removals originating or terminating in the United Kingdom<\/strong>, subject to the conditions of the Scheme.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This can include moves such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • UK to Australia<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • UK to Canada<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • UK to USA<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • UK to New Zealand<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • UK to Dubai<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • UK to South Africa<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Australia to UK<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    A move between two countries where neither the origin nor destination is in the UK is treated differently under the Scheme.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Is BAR Payment Protection Automatic?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    For moves covered by 1st Move International’s BAR APG Worldwide certificate, payment protection is provided automatically<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Customers do not need to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    • purchase a separate APG policy;<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • select payment protection as an optional extra; or<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • pay an additional fee for BAR APG protection.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      The protection forms part of the financial safeguards associated with the qualifying removal service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      What Happens if a BAR Removal Company Fails?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

      The BAR Advance Payment Guarantee is designed to provide protection where a participating BAR member suffers financial failure and cannot complete the contracted removal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Depending on the circumstances and the terms of the Scheme, BAR may endeavour to arrange completion of the contracted removal through another member or provide recompense for eligible payments where completion is not possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      The APG operates subject to its full terms, eligibility requirements and claims process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      How Do I Check My Mover’s Payment Protection?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

      Before booking an international removal, ask your removal company to show you its current BAR APG certificate<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      For an international move, check that the certificate provides the appropriate international or Worldwide Moves level of cover.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      You can also check:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \n
      • that the removal company is a current BAR member;<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • that the company named on your quotation matches the BAR member;<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • that the APG certificate is current; and<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • that the certificate provides cover for the type of move you are booking.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

        1st Move International publishes its current Worldwide Moves certificate online so customers can check the protection themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Payment Protection Is Not the Same as Shipment Protection<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

        BAR APG payment protection and Shipment Protection cover two different risks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        The BAR Advance Payment Guarantee<\/strong> provides financial protection relating to payments made to the removal company if the conditions of the APG Scheme arise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Shipment Protection<\/strong> is a separate paid insurance product covering your belongings against insured risks such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          \n
        • loss;<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • theft; and<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • accidental damage.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

          For moves covered by 1st Move International’s Worldwide APG certificate, payment protection is automatic. Shipment Protection is an optional insurance product purchased separately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          Payment Protection protects payments made to your mover. Shipment Protection protects the belongings you ship.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

          Why Payment Protection Matters When Moving Overseas<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

          International removals can involve significant payments before the move is completed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          Checking that your removal company has the appropriate BAR APG protection gives you an independently verifiable financial safeguard rather than relying solely on the company’s own assurances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          The simplest way to check is to ask to see the company’s current APG certificate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          Frequently Asked Questions About BAR Payment Protection<\/h2>\n\n\n
          \n
          \n
          \n

          Does BAR membership automatically cover international moves?<\/h3>\n
          \n\n

          The level of APG protection is shown on the individual removal company’s certificate. For an international move, check that the certificate provides international or Worldwide Moves cover.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

          \n

          Does 1st Move International charge for BAR APG protection?<\/h3>\n
          \n\n

          No. For moves covered by our Worldwide APG certificate, payment protection is provided automatically without a separate APG charge.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

          \n

          Does BAR APG cover damaged or missing belongings?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
          \n\n

          No. BAR APG relates to payments made to the removal company for services such as packing, shipping and associated moving costs<\/strong>. It is not an insurance policy covering your personal belongings.<\/p>\n

          Loss, theft or accidental damage to your belongings is covered separately through Shipment Protection<\/strong>, subject to the insurance policy terms. Shipment Protection is charged separately<\/strong>, with the cost depending on the value of your goods and the level of cover required.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

          \n

          How can I check 1st Move International’s APG cover?<\/h3>\n
          \n\n

          Our current BAR APG Worldwide Certificate is published online and can be viewed before you book.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

          <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          Moving overseas usually means making payments to your removal company before your belongings reach their destination. The BAR Advance Payment Guarantee (APG) provides financial protection…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":120427,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_cloudinary_featured_overwrite":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21,20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-120426","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-guides","category-other-articles"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shipit.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120426","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shipit.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shipit.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shipit.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shipit.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=120426"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.shipit.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120426\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":120428,"href":"https:\/\/www.shipit.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120426\/revisions\/120428"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shipit.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/120427"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shipit.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=120426"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shipit.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=120426"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shipit.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=120426"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}