Getting a bought appliance delivered in Leeds: what to sort before the van arrives
If you have bought a washing machine, fridge freezer, cooker or dishwasher and the seller will not deliver it, a van courier collects it and brings it into your home for one fixed price. Three things decide whether the job goes smoothly. The appliance has to be disconnected, drained and emptied before we arrive. You need to know the size of it, so we send the right van. And if it is a gas appliance, a Gas Safe registered engineer has to disconnect it and connect it, because a courier is not allowed to. Get those three right and most single appliance deliveries across Leeds happen the same day.
The rest of this section covers when the shop's own delivery is the better deal, the checks worth doing before you pay for a second-hand machine, how to prepare each type of appliance, which van it needs and what happens to the old one.
Shop delivery or a courier: when the retailer is the better answer
We would rather tell you this now than after you have paid us. If you are buying a new appliance and the retailer offers delivery, especially with fitting and the old one taken away, the retailer is often the better choice. By law, a shop that sells you a new electrical item has to offer to take back your old one of the same type. It has to do that free in store, and it may charge only to cover transport if it collects from your home. That is a service a courier cannot match.
A courier is the better answer when the retailer cannot help, or cannot help soon enough.
| Your situation | Usually the better option | Why |
|---|
| New appliance, retailer offers delivery, fitting and old-appliance collection | The retailer | Retailers must offer like-for-like take-back of your old item, free in store, with a transport charge allowed for home collection |
| New appliance, retailer delivery slot is a week or more away | A courier | We collect from click and collect or the warehouse, the same day in most of Leeds |
| Second-hand appliance from Facebook Marketplace, eBay or Gumtree | A courier | Private sellers rarely deliver, and a washing machine or fridge freezer will not go in a car |
| Ex-display or outlet bargain, collection only | A courier | Collection only prices assume you bring your own transport |
| A landlord moving an appliance between two properties | A courier | No purchase, so no retailer to deliver it |
| Moving your whole home with appliances included | A removals team | One crew for everything is simpler, see appliance removals |
Source: GOV.UK, electrical waste: retailer and distributor responsibilities, checked 09/10/2026.
Buying second-hand: checks before you pay
Second-hand white goods can be a very good buy. Electrical Safety First found more than 40% of UK shoppers considering second-hand electricals as an alternative to new, and it urges buyers to spot check older items for damage, wear and safety recalls. Our driver moves the appliance. We do not test it, and we cannot tell you whether it works, so the checks are yours to do before money changes hands.
- See it running if the seller still has it connected. A washing machine should fill and spin, a fridge should be cold.
- Take the model number from the plate inside the door or on the back, and search it on the GOV.UK product safety recalls list. Some tumble dryers and fridge freezers have been the subject of recalls.
- Measure it, height, width and depth, so we can send the right van and you can check it will fit through your own doors.
- Agree with the seller who disconnects it and that it will be ready when the van arrives. Waiting while a seller works out how to undo a hose is the most common cause of a delayed collection.
The Electrical Safety First research is worth reading before a second-hand purchase. If the marketplace listing is the starting point, our Facebook Marketplace delivery and eBay collection and delivery pages explain how a marketplace pickup works from start to finish.
Preparing each appliance for the van
Washing machines and washer dryers. A machine that has been in use holds water in the pump, the filter and the hoses. The seller should switch it off, turn off the water supply, disconnect the hoses and drain it through the filter at the bottom front. If the original transit bolts are still around, ask for them to be fitted, because they stop the drum swinging on the journey. If they are lost we still move it, strapped upright, and you should let the drum settle before the first wash.
Fridges, freezers and fridge freezers. Empty it, switch it off and let it defrost the day before, then wipe it dry so water does not run out in the van. We carry fridges upright wherever the load allows. When it arrives, follow the manufacturer's manual on how long to leave it standing before you switch it on. Many manuals say a few hours, and longer if it travelled on its side.
Freezers full of food. Please empty it. Our vans are not temperature controlled, and a freezer full of food is both heavy and a food safety risk. If you need chilled or frozen goods moved, a refrigerated courier is the right firm and we will say so if you ask us.
Dishwashers and tumble dryers. Disconnect and drain the dishwasher the same way as a washing machine. A condenser or heat pump dryer holds water in its tank, so empty that too.
Gas cookers and plumbed-in machines: where delivery stops
We deliver and place the appliance in the room you choose. We do not disconnect or connect gas, plumbing or electrics, at either end.
For gas this is not our choice, it is the law. Under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, regulation 3, nobody may carry out work on a gas fitting unless they are competent, and a business doing that work must belong to the approved class of persons, which in practice means the Gas Safe Register. So a gas cooker needs a Gas Safe registered engineer to disconnect and cap it at the seller's address before we collect, and a Gas Safe engineer to fit it at yours. Book the engineer for after our delivery window and the two jobs line up neatly.
An electric cooker on its own cooker circuit, rather than a plug, also needs an electrician to disconnect and reconnect it. A plug-in electric cooker, a washing machine on standard hoses or a freestanding fridge is something you or a plumber can connect once it is in place.
Which van your appliance needs
You pay for the van the appliance needs and the loaded miles, from the same rate card shown higher up this page. The sizes below are the usual match. We confirm the van and the fixed price before we collect.
| What you are moving | Usual van | Minimum call-out | Per loaded mile |
|---|
| Microwave, small worktop appliance, under-counter fridge | Small van | £30 | £1.20 |
| One washing machine, tumble dryer, dishwasher, standard fridge freezer or cooker | SWB van | £35 | £1.40 |
| A tall or American style fridge freezer, or two appliances together | MWB / LWB van | £40 | £1.60 |
| A full kitchen appliance package, several units in one run | XLWB / Luton with tail lift | £50 | £1.80 |
Same-hour urgent collections add 20% to the rate. To quote, send us the pickup and delivery postcodes, the make and model or the dimensions, which floor it is on at each end and whether there is a lift, and the day you want. Heavy machines and anything going up stairs get two people.
What happens to the old appliance
If the new one is replacing an old one, you have three routes. If you bought the new item from a retailer, ask about their take-back service first, because they have to offer one. The council bulky waste service is the next cheapest route for many households. Or we can collect it, on the same visit or separately, through our junk team: see fridge freezer disposal in Leeds and appliance disposal for how that works and what it costs.
Bought appliance delivery questions
Can you collect a washing machine from a marketplace seller and bring it to me today?
Usually, yes, across Leeds. Send us both postcodes and a photo or the model number. The machine needs to be disconnected and drained by the seller before the driver arrives, or the collection will be delayed.
Will your driver disconnect the appliance at the seller's house?
No. We do not disconnect or connect water, electrics or gas. Gas appliances must be disconnected by a Gas Safe registered engineer. Everything else the seller or a plumber can do in a few minutes.
Can you deliver a kitchen appliance package to Leeds in one trip?
Yes. A package of several units usually goes on a Luton with a tail lift, collected from the retailer or warehouse and placed room by room. Tell us how many units and the delivery floor and we confirm the van before we set off.
Can you deliver a freezer with the food still in it?
No. Our vans are not refrigerated, so the freezer needs to be emptied and defrosted first. For chilled or frozen goods, use a temperature-controlled courier.
