Our branch network is the courier network. Wherever in the UK you are, a tracked box carries your laptop, memory card, NAS disks, RAID set, SSD or failed drive to the bench, where a free diagnosis inside 48 hours is followed by a written quote ahead of any work.
A recovery turns on the engineer and the equipment, not the miles. A next-day courier leaves every UK postcode one box away from both.
Insured and tracked, with a note inside — that is genuinely all it takes.
Oxford Data Recovery, John Eccles House, Oxford Science Park, Robert Robinson Avenue, Littlemore, Oxford OX2. Monday to Friday, 9am to 5:30pm, on 01865 593000.
Include a note with your name, a phone number, an email address and a sentence or two about what happened — when it failed, what it was doing, and whether anything has been tried since. That last detail matters more than people expect: a rebuild that was started and abandoned, or a scan that ran for six hours, changes the approach entirely and is far better disclosed than discovered.
Most transit damage is avoidable and comes down to the same few things.
A bag or foam sleeve. Bubble wrap alone against a bare board is not ideal, though it is far better than nothing.
A drive rattling inside a box is taking small impacts for the whole journey. Fill the space rather than leaving the drive room to travel.
Jiffy bags offer almost no protection against being dropped or stacked under something heavy.
Enclosure, and the original cable and power supply if you still have them. On many models the bridge board is part of how the disk is read.
For your own protection rather than ours. Note the tracking number before it goes.
Worth a phone call first, because in both the journey itself is a risk.
A drive that has been in a fire or flood. Corrosion continues for as long as contamination sits on the components, so these are genuinely time-critical — send it damp and sealed rather than dried, and call so we know it is coming. Days matter here in a way they do not with a mechanical fault.
Anything already opened. If a drive has been taken apart, the internal chamber is contaminated and further movement can drag debris across the platters. Reassemble it if you can, seal it, and tell us what was done. We would far rather know.
The same process whether it arrived by post or came through the door.
Devices are booked in on arrival and you are told they have landed. The free diagnostic then establishes what actually failed — mechanical, electronic, firmware or logical — and produces a fixed written quote, normally within 48 hours. Nothing is chargeable until you have agreed that figure, and if the answer is that nothing is recoverable, there is nothing to pay.
Recovered data comes back on fresh media with free return shipping, and your original device is returned too unless you would rather we disposed of it securely. Prices start at £250 +VAT for cards and USB sticks and £300 +VAT for a single drive.
Anti-static wrap, padded so it cannot move inside the box, in a rigid box rather than a padded envelope. A drive that can rattle is taking small impacts for the whole journey. Send it insured and tracked, with a note inside giving your details and what happened.
The drive alone where you can — cheaper to post and quicker to start work on. Any local computer shop will remove it in minutes. External units are the exception and should be sent complete with the enclosure.
Your name, phone number, email, and a short account of what happened — when it failed, what it was doing, and anything that has been tried since. That last part genuinely matters: an abandoned rebuild or a long scan changes the approach.
Fire and flood-damaged drives should be sent immediately and still damp rather than dried, with a call first — corrosion continues until it is removed. And if a drive has already been opened, seal it and tell us, because further movement can spread contamination.
No. Return shipping is free, and your original device comes back too unless you would prefer it securely disposed of.
It is booked in, you are told it has landed, and the free diagnostic establishes what failed — normally within 48 hours, producing a fixed written quote. Nothing is chargeable until you agree that figure.
Box it up today and a free written diagnostic reaches you inside 48 hours of arrival in Oxford — nothing to pay until you say go.