Does The Standard 15% Tip Apply To Mover Tips?
We are all familiar with the 15% tipping standard, which largely depends on the quality of the services we receive. Nonetheless, the mater of tipping a professional moving crew incurs a series of additional factors that should be considered. Since no two moves are the same, it also means that the tipping should be different. Is there a secret or right formula for calculating the ideal tip for a mover? Let’s find out together!
As professional movers, we have witnessed a great variety of different tipping scenarios over the years. We have had clients who left no tip at all and people who chose to tip us using food or beverages in the summer. While we strongly believe that leaving a tip is not something that any client of ours should be forced or pressured to do, we also think of it a nice way of showing your gratitude towards the hard work and efforts we have put into your move. This also means that the majority of moving technicians will not expect to automatically receive a tip from all clients. Nonetheless, this only means that their surprise will be even more pleasant provided they will receive one. The truth is lots of people consider they are already paying some exorbitant prices on the moving itself and all the packing supplies, so the last thing they want to do is come up with more money to tip the movers. Nonetheless, what you might not know is that the majority of people who work in the service industry use just as much elbow grease as movers.
If you would think as a tip as something that allows you to express your gratitude for the hard efforts they put in their work, you would most likely have a lot easier time tipping them. After all, they carry your heaviest and bulkiest items, pack and unpack them and make sure they will safely arrive to your new address – which is a lot more than the regular job of a waiter.
So now that you have gained a deeper understanding on why tipping movers is important, you may want to know how much to tip movers.
How Much to tip movers?
From our personal experience we believe the following to be decent mover tipping amounts:
- around $20 per mover for around four hours of packing and truck loading
- $40 per mover for eight hours of work
- around $50 per mover for 12 hours of truck and van loading
You can also think about using an hourly tip for each crew member if you are dealing with a complex move that requires a larger team. The hourly tips should also be directed toward each individual moving technician and it could go run around $5 per hour for each of the movers.
See That The Tip Reflects The Level Of Service
Your movers tips should also accurately reflect the type of service you have received and it’s quality. The complexity and difficulty of the move should also be taken into account when it comes to figuring out the best tip to pay your movers. The more complicated their work and the more time and energy they need to spend on it, the more you should consider adding to the final tip.
Things to consider when tipping: The amount of stuff being moved, the number of oversized pieces, and whether stairs are involved. Make sure you notice just how well and careful they handle your items during the packing and loading, especially when dealing with fragile or antique items.
If you live at a top floor and the movers need to carry your stuff down a few flights of stairs or use an elevator, pay attention to the way the movers handle these aspects as well. Find a mover who is fast and efficient, does not waste your time and runs that extra mile to make sure your prized possessions are accurately packed and padded to avoid any damage to them during transportation definitely deserves a good tip.
Nonetheless, if the tippers show up late, drop and break your fragile items, fail to follow any special instructions you may have or cause damage to your new house with the boxes or take lots of breaks, you can consider not tipping them.