It’s time to talk about the most commonly asked question in the history of the moving industry – Are you supposed to tip movers? Right behind there is a question – How much to tip movers? Talking to many local movers in the area, I found out that people are truly confused about this. They usually want to tip the local movers, but they are not sure how much is too much? And how much is too little? As soon as you think that you found the answer, there will be a different local move behind the corner, and the rules will be different. Why so? I must say at the beginning – because there is no answer to this question. So, if you are here to find out how much to tip movers, you won’t find the answer. But, you will find guidance on how to decide what is the ideal amount to tip your professional movers. Reading this text might seem like a quaint physics to you, but it is not, these are just some of the recommendations. You have your free will, I don’t want to stop you from using it. However, let’s hop on and learn more about tipping the local movers.
Let’s start with the most common questions – Are you supposed to tip movers?
This is not a question that can be answered simply with yer or no. Every professional company has its local movers that are full-time employees, and they all have their salaries. To be honest, that salary is not huge, but that is something you can already guess. But the point is – you shouldn’t feel guilty if you decide not to tip the local movers. It is not mandatory. It is not in your agreement. And it is not your duty to tip professional movers because you are already paying for the service they are going to provide. On the other hand, we are all living in a society where we are used to tip for any service provided. Think about it, you are in the restaurant and you are not even going to think whether to tip the waiter or not. So why are we so obsessed with the question about tipping the local movers? Because it is not the regular service that we use daily. I can talk from my point of view, and say that I would always tip the local movers in case I am satisfied with the service.
When to tip the professional movers?
Some situation where you want to think about tipping your movers and show gratitude is when you have a huge house, and your local movers are doing their best to finish the move in a timely fashion. Hard work should be rewarded! Professional movers who move all of your belongings in one piece and place the furniture where it should be is another situation where I would tip the movers. This doesn’t exclude an amazing crew of local movers that are trying and going above and beyond to help you with your move but damage something by accident. Moving is a complex job, that requires physical work and effort, and the damages are possible. Professional movers will always be cautious and try to avoid them of course, but no matter how careful and focused you are – sometimes it is inevitable. In a situation like this, you should see how the professional movers will react. If they try to hide the damage and acting as nothing happened, that is immature. And not just that, they are not allowed to call themselves professional movers if they are hiding the damages they made. Once you confront them, it might get worse, so it might be best to call their office instead. On the contrary, if your local movers accept the responsibility and they are offering help on resolving this – the damage shouldn’t affect their tip. In most cases, professional movers are not even allowed to help you when something is damaged, because moving companies have their policies and protocols on how they resolve this kind of situation. But having local movers that are helpful and kind in a situation like this is helpful.
Also, take into consideration how you felt during the move. If you were not comfortable being in the presence of professional movers because you can feel the weird vibe, something is not as it should be. Local movers should be professionals who are coming into your home, so you want to feel safe along the way. Especially if you are a female person living alone, it is so important to have local movers who will help you feel safe. This is why you should pay attention when calling local movers. If their customer support is rude or not available to answer your questions, you might want to find another company that will be helpful.
To sum up, you should tip your professional movers any time when you feel comfortable and safe during the move, and when you see that your local movers are doing hard work to make you happy. Simple as that!
When NOT to tip the local movers?
Now, let’s talk about less pleasant experiences, and that is when not to tip local movers. Scenario number one is the one that we already mentioned – there were some damages or issues during the move, and your local movers are acting like nothing is happening. No matter how nice and polite their customer support is, these people are with you at the moment, and you won’t feel comfortable, that is for sure.
If your local movers are charging the hourly rates, and you see that they are trying to make the whole moving process longer – you should not only reduce the tip but call back the office to let them know about the matter. If your home is huge, it is normal that your local movers will need more time to wrap it up and they will need more breaks, but if you see they are doing it on purpose and having more breaks than working. That is not rewarding work. These situations are something that will show you the importance of finding experienced and top-notch local movers.
Having local movers over should make you feel comfortable and safe, if that is not the case, feel free to ask for help. If your local movers are rude, have mean comments, or anything of that sort, you should know that is not a professional attitude that professional movers usually have.
And remember this – only if one of your relocations was not a pleasant experience, it doesn’t mean that all local movers are this way. So don’t worry, you will find the company that is perfect for you.
How much to tip the movers?
It’s time to move on with question number two – how much to tip the movers. This depends on so many factors, even more than whether you should tip the local movers or not. Here, I will mention just the most obvious ones, and you can use your creativity to finish the list. Or you can always follow the restaurant rule where you leave a certain percentage of the total bill.
- Your moving budget
Probably the most important thing to think of is the moving budget. So, if your move is done and it is way more than you have planned, of course, you are not going to provide such a generous tip as you planned at the beginning. This doesn’t mean that you should leave them with nothing. It is very important to create a detailed budget plan that will include all the details and work according to that.
- The quality of the service
After we explained the part that depends on you, now your professional movers have to do their part. The amount of the tip should always depend on the quality of the moving service provided by local movers. If they just performed impeccable service that you are super satisfied with, you should tip them generously. On the other hand, if the service was not that perfect, but the moving crew was just amazing and they were working hard – you should tip them at least something.
- The time needed
This brings us back to the previous question – whether the move is taking too long because it requires a lot of time by its size or your local movers are trying to get more money from you thanks to the hourly price. Also, if your professional movers are supersonic, but they damage a lot of items – there is no such use of it, right? There should be always a balance between quality and time.
- How was the moving crew
The quality and the time are important of course, but the crew of local movers should also be polite, helpful, and you should feel comfortable throughout the way. Moving is stressful for anyone involved, but on the other hand, moving is a new start for you and your family. And you don’t deserve to have rude local movers who will make it even more stressful. Any professional movers should be exactly that – professionals. And professionals who are offering any type of service should do their best to make you feel comfortable and nice. Think of it, especially if you are living alone, you will have a crew of local movers inside of your old home and your new home. At the end of the day, they are strangers, so you want them to be nice and make you feel safe.
- How many local movers you have
There is a difference if the moving crew has two or seven people. The more the merrier, right? In this case, the more movers the higher the tip. For example, you tip your local movers for $50. This sounds like a fair share. Unless the moving crew has 7 members. You are left with two options here – to tip the whole crew with just a tip that you have planned. And don’t stress if that seems to be too low, again, you are not obligated to tip them after all. The other option is to tip each member of the crew with a certain amount. This also depends on your budget, so just keep it in mind when planning it. Your local movers will let you know the size of the moving crew and that will help you decide on the tip. You might have noticed that all of these tasks are connected, so I must say that when you need a bigger crew of local movers, you are probably moving from a big property. And when it comes to moving big properties, you are always prepared to spend a little bit more money on your move.
- The price for the move
Of course, you are not going to leave the tip $500 for the move that had cost around $300. It would be too much. On the other hand, you might offend your local movers by giving them a tip of $5 for the move that was $5000. The tip should be in correlation with the cost of the move. If you want to be on the safe side, you can tip your local movers with 10 or 20% of your total bill. This way no one will be offended that you are playing safe.
After reading all of this, and you seem to be even more confused, don’t worry – you can always call La Jolla Movers. Not only you will be able to get further answers, but you will be able to get the free moving quote. Our team is professional, experienced, and we will do our best to offer you a memorable moving experience. Getting a quote from us is simple and free, so there is no reason why wouldn’t you grab that phone and give us a call now! If you don’t have time to chat, you can request to get the quote over our website too. We are here and waiting for your call! Cheers!