Falkirk occupies an interesting geographical and logistical predicament. It's close enough to both Edinburgh and Glasgow that locals and outsiders alike overlook the fact it's an independent town in its own right with its own hauling headaches. Whether you're moving house, lugging goods to a market stall, or shifting a piece of furniture across the Forth – sooner or later, you'll need a van you don't necessarily own, www.centralscotlandvehiclehire.co.uk/.
This is something nobody warns you about until it's too late: price on van hire in Falkirk and the surrounding area can vary wildly from day to day. Hiring a van at the weekend will obviously be harder to get, but when, during the middle of the week demand is considerably less, taking off a Tuesday is more likely to get you a far better deal on the exact same vehicle at a local hire firm near Callendar Park and environs.
Size turns out to be a much bigger problem than people expect. A short-wheelbase van always seems okay until the 32-piece pine wardrobe isn't quite fitting through the back of it, and you find yourself doing half a dozen attempts at various angles, in the summer, becoming rather flushed. Measure your load properly and then measure it again. Check it a third time and add some extra room – nobody's boxes ever stack as you'd imagine.
It's fairly obvious that, on average, local companies know the roads that better than one of the larger national firms. The Falkirk town centre one-ways will almost always catch out somebody who isn't familiar with the area – just ask any local hire operator and they'll have a story about someone accidentally winding up in Bonnybridge or even all the way up to Bo'ness.
Insurance is undoubtedly the thing to pay a bit extra for and be glad you sorted properly. An "excess" will eventually be paid to a large extent because of a bumped wing mirror from a tight squeeze in an IKEA or other car park – a few quid here will more than cover this.
The fuel policy should also be flagged, since it varies a lot. Check before you set off and return it at the required usage: whether that means refilling it yourself or paying a flat fee for them to do it.
For many in Scotland, weather also plays a big part in hire decisions – Scottish rain won't wait to check whether the van is hired on or around a planned moving day – especially not what condition the internal finish might end up in in terms of any moisture retained, especially not something as basic as road grip or clear windows and mirrors in bad weather.