What do we mean by the truth?

The skip hire industry can often be a confusing market to understand. We’ve decided to write this blog in a desperate attempt to help some customers who have been in touch recently to advise that they have unknowingly ordered skip hire through a broker or middle man.

We are the only skip hire company that actually has a physical presence in Livingston, with our yard, waste transfer station and vehicles all operating from Deans Industrial Estate. 

How does this happen?

Sadly, Google hasn’t been the most effective at accurately representing businesses, resulting in several marketing companies setting up generic websites claiming to be based in every local town or city. Despite being the only skip hire company based in Livingston, when you google “Skip Hire Livingston” you get suggestions for two other companies claiming to be from here when in fact, they’re not. 

Their websites have been specially optimised so that when a customer for example searches for “Skip Hire Livingston” their misleading websites are shown on google maps as follows:

Skip hire is a particularly strange industry to pretend to have a local presence in as ultimately, these brokers who claim to be based nearby, when in fact are actually based hundreds of miles away, and then simply place your order with a local company like ourselves. 

What does this mean for me?

The end result is, the customer often ends up paying a significant amount more than if they had simply contacted the actual company that supplies the skips themselves. For example, we recently had a phone call from an elderly pensioner asking how our 4yd skip had cost her £250. We explained that our 4yd skips are only around half that cost, however in fact our customer was a national broker who had created a local online presence and charged the householder a mark-up of over £100 for the privilege. 

How can I ensure I’m not impacted?

“81% OF SHOPPERS RESEARCH THEIR PRODUCT ONLINE BEFORE PURCHASING”

Our advice to customers, who are searching for a local skip hire company, is to do a couple of quick checks before ordering online. Firstly, click on the companies google maps – if they have a nearby yard, office building, skips in storage etc. then there is strong chance they actually exist in that location. If however, you get a google map of a parking space in a cul-de-sac, then its considerably less likely that a large skip hire company operating from between the parking spaces.

Another tip is to read their website – if it is full of generic phrases such as “Best value in the region” or “Skip Hire Near Me in the UK” then it’s worth maybe looking into it further. Finally, it may seem like common sense, but get more than one quote. Most local companies have an online shop like ours where you can easily compare the prices. An online broker however has to add their mark-up to the prices of the local suppliers, often making it uncompetitive. 

As these broker websites will be sending your request for a skip to a local company anyway, we would strongly advise you get in touch direct – you will receive the same level of service from the same company that would have supplied your skip anyway, but most likely at a cheaper price by ordering direct.