Direct answer
If a booked man-and-van or clearance provider hasn't arrived, start by checking exactly what was agreed - the date, the time window, and the address - since a mismatch here is a more common cause than an actual no-show. If the agreed window has genuinely passed, contact the provider directly by phone and in writing, and keep a note of what they say and when. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, a trader providing a service to a consumer must carry it out with reasonable care and skill and, where no fixed time was agreed, within a reasonable time - missing a confirmed slot without good reason can be a breach of that standard, but you're not automatically entitled to an instant refund. The usual first step is to give the provider a reasonable chance to put things right, for example by rebooking, before moving to a price reduction, a refund, or a card dispute if repeat performance isn't realistic against your deadline.
Contents
- Step 1: Confirm the agreed window
- Step 2: Contact the booked operator
- Step 3: Record every communication
- Your consumer rights if the provider is at fault
- If you paid by card: chargeback and Section 75
- Assessing replacement transport against your deadline
- Options at a glance
- Frequently asked questions
Step 1: Confirm the agreed window
The most common "no-show" turns out to be a mismatched booking, not a missed appointment.
Before anything else, go back to the original booking confirmation - whether that's an email, a text, an online booking page, or notes from a phone call - and check exactly what was agreed: the date, the time window (not just a single time, since most van and clearance bookings are given as a window rather than an exact minute), and the address, including which entrance or postcode was given if the property has more than one access point. It's worth checking this carefully even if you're fairly sure you're right, because a surprising number of "didn't show up" situations turn out to be a provider working to a slightly different window than the customer remembers, or arriving and being unable to find the right access point or get a response at the door.
If the booking confirmation itself is vague - for example it only gives a date with no window, or the window was changed in a follow-up message you didn't see - that's worth noting too, because it affects what "on time" actually meant for this booking. Once you've confirmed the window genuinely has passed with no contact and no van, you're dealing with an actual no-show rather than a timing mix-up, and it's reasonable to move to the next step.
Step 2: Contact the booked operator
Give them a genuine chance to explain or fix it before you escalate.
Call the number you booked with first, since a phone call is more likely to get a quick answer than a message, and follow up in writing - by text or email - so there's a timestamped record even if the call doesn't get answered. Ask directly: are they still coming, and if so when; if not, why not, and what are they proposing to put it right. There are legitimate reasons a provider can be delayed or has to cancel at short notice, such as a vehicle breakdown or a genuine family emergency, and hearing their explanation before assuming the worst is both fair to them and useful to you, since it affects what a reasonable next step looks like.
If you get no answer at all within a reasonable period - for example, no response to a call and a follow-up message within an hour or two of the missed window, adjusted for how urgent your situation is - that's useful information in itself. Set yourself a clear deadline for a response (many consumer-advice services suggest something like a same-day or next-working-day deadline for a booking-day issue) and treat silence past that point as confirmation you need to move on to the options in the sections below, rather than waiting indefinitely on a moving day that's already under pressure.
Step 3: Record every communication
Whatever happens next, a clear written record makes every option easier.
From the point you realise there's a problem, keep a simple written log: what the original booking said, what time you actually contacted the provider and what they said back, and any costs the delay causes you - for example a replacement booking, a missed access slot at the new property, or a parking suspension you'd arranged and now can't use. Screenshots of texts, saved emails, and a note of call times and who you spoke to are all useful. None of this is about building a case for its own sake; it's the same information you'd need whether you end up rebooking informally, requesting a refund, disputing a card payment, or - in a small minority of cases - making a small claim, so it's worth capturing as you go rather than trying to reconstruct it later.
Your consumer rights if the provider is at fault
What the Consumer Rights Act 2015 actually says about a missed, paid-for booking.
If you're a consumer (not a business) who booked a service - including a man-and-van or house clearance job - from a trader in the UK, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 implies a term into that contract that the trader must perform the service with reasonable care and skill. Where no fixed date or time was agreed in the contract, the Act also implies a reasonable-time term. Failing to show up for a slot that was actually confirmed, without a legitimate reason, will usually fall short of that standard - but it's a "can be," not an automatic finding, because a genuine emergency on the trader's side can be a valid explanation rather than a breach.
Importantly, the Act doesn't entitle you to an automatic refund the moment something goes wrong. The normal first remedy is repeat performance - in practice, giving the trader a fair opportunity to rebook and finish the job - before you move to a price reduction or a full refund. You can usually go straight to a price reduction or refund only where repeat performance is impossible, would take an unreasonable amount of time, or would cause you significant inconvenience - for example, if the delay means you're losing a moving-day deadline, a tenancy handover, or a completion date that can't simply be pushed back. That's the detail that matters most for anyone assuming a no-show automatically means money back: it usually doesn't, until you've given the trader a genuine chance to put it right or shown that doing so isn't realistic for your situation.
If you paid by card: chargeback and Section 75
Two different routes, depending on how you paid.
If you paid a deposit or the full amount by debit card, you can ask your card issuer for a chargeback - essentially a dispute raised with your bank against a specific transaction. It isn't a legal right in the same way the Consumer Rights Act is, but card schemes operate it as a standard process, and your bank can usually tell you how to start one. Keep in mind the trader can challenge a chargeback, even after you've had the money back provisionally, so it's worth holding onto your records until the dispute is fully closed.
If you paid by credit card, Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 may give you a stronger route: for a single item or service costing between £100 and £30,000, you can potentially claim directly against your credit card provider, not just the trader, if the service wasn't provided as promised. This generally only applies if you paid the trader directly rather than through a third-party booking platform, so it's worth checking exactly who you paid before assuming Section 75 applies. For both chargeback and Section 75, contact your card provider in writing, explain what was agreed and what happened, and be ready to supply the evidence described in the previous section. If a dispute doesn't get resolved through the card provider, it can usually be escalated to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Assessing replacement transport against your deadline
Rebooking and disputing a payment aren't mutually exclusive - and timing matters more than either.
Once you've contacted the original provider and have at least a preliminary answer - or confirmed silence past your deadline - the practical question becomes whether you still have time to wait for them to rebook, or whether you need to arrange replacement transport in parallel. If you're working against a hard handover deadline, such as a tenancy end date, a sale completion, or a connecting booking at the other end, it's usually more sensible to start arranging a replacement straight away rather than losing further hours waiting on one provider, while still pursuing a refund or price reduction for the original booking separately. These aren't alternatives you have to choose between - the consumer-rights process for the original booking and arranging a working replacement can run at the same time.
If your move has been knocked off its original timeline by this delay, our guide to planning a downsizing or house move covers how to rebuild a realistic schedule around a clearance or removal, rather than trying to compress everything into what's left of the original day. If the job itself now needs re-planning from scratch - for example because you're not confident the same provider can deliver a second time - our house clearance checklist covers what to confirm before you book again, including access details and who has the authority to instruct the crew on the day.
Options at a glance
What each route actually involves, and what to confirm before you commit to it.
| Option or job scenario | What it includes | Main restriction | What to confirm before booking |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wait for the original provider to rebook | Provider offers a new date/time to complete the original job | Only realistic if your deadline can genuinely absorb the delay | A specific new time window in writing, not just "soon" or "tomorrow" |
| Dispute the payment (chargeback or Section 75) | Bank or card provider investigates and may return funds for a service not provided | Chargeback can be challenged by the trader; Section 75 needs £100–£30,000 paid directly to the trader | How you paid, how much, and whether you paid the trader directly or via a platform |
| Post a new job for vetted carriers | Independent licensed carriers on a quote-matching platform quote on finishing the job | A new provider won't have context on the original booking or any dispute with it | Your current deadline, access details, and what still needs collecting |
| Small claims (Money Claim Online / Civil Money Claims) | Court process for recovering money such as a lost deposit or costs caused by the no-show | Covers claims under £10,000 (excluding interest and court fees) in England and Wales; a last step, not a first one | Whether you've already given the trader a reasonable chance to resolve it, and your written evidence |
| Doing nothing / accepting the loss | No further action taken on the original booking | You keep none of the above remedies open once too much time has passed to realistically pursue them | Whether the amount involved is worth the time a dispute or claim would take |
Frequently asked questions
The questions that come up most often after a booked provider fails to show.
Is a provider not showing up automatically a breach of contract?
In most cases, yes - under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, a trader supplying a service to a consumer must perform it with reasonable care and skill and, where no fixed date was agreed, within a reasonable time. Missing an agreed, confirmed slot without a valid reason will usually fall short of that standard, though a genuine emergency on the provider's side can be a legitimate explanation rather than a breach - which is why it's worth hearing their account before assuming the worst.
Am I entitled to an automatic refund if the van doesn't turn up?
Not automatically. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, the normal first step is to give the trader a reasonable opportunity to put things right - usually by rebooking the job - before you're entitled to a price reduction or refund. You can usually go straight to a refund only if repeat performance is impossible, would take too long, or would cause significant inconvenience, for example if you're being made homeless or losing a completion deadline because of the delay.
Can I get my money back through my bank if I paid by card?
It depends how you paid. If you paid by debit card, you may be able to ask your card issuer for a chargeback. If you paid by credit card for between £100 and £30,000 for the job, you may be protected under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974, which lets you claim directly against the card provider rather than only the trader. Section 75 generally doesn't apply if you paid through a third-party platform rather than directly to the provider, and the trader can challenge a chargeback even after you've had the money back, so keep records of what was agreed.
What counts as useful evidence if the dispute doesn't get resolved?
Keep the original booking confirmation showing the agreed date and time window, any texts, emails or call logs where the provider confirmed or changed the slot, a note of what you were told on the day and when, photos of your readiness (packed items, cleared access) if relevant, and a record of any costs you had to cover because of the delay, such as a replacement booking or a missed moving-day fee. This is the kind of evidence a small claim or a card dispute will ask for.
When should I consider the small claims court instead of just rebooking?
Small claims is usually a last step, after you've given the trader a chance to respond and tried a card dispute if you paid by card. In England and Wales, the Civil Money Claims / Money Claim Online service handles claims under £10,000, excluding interest and court fees, and is generally the proportionate route for recovering a deposit or costs caused by a no-show, rather than for forcing a provider to actually complete the job.
Did houseclearance.co arrange my original booking?
Not necessarily. houseclearance.co is a quote-matching platform that connects people with independent, vetted carriers - we don't operate the vans ourselves. If your original man-and-van was booked directly with a provider you found elsewhere, we can't see that booking or intervene in it. What we can do is let you post the job again so vetted carriers on our platform can quote on finishing it.
Need the job finished by a vetted carrier?
If your original booking fell through, post the job again and compare quotes from independent, vetted carriers rather than starting the search from scratch.
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