Hiring local Bay Area professionals will make your whole moving experience significantly more manageable, so it’s good to show appreciation for everything these people do. Fortunately, you can easily do this by taking some time to learn how to tip movers. After all, they will take care of most of your relocation needs, covering everything from packing to heavy lifting, so the least you can do is reward them for a job well done.
Is It Necessary to Reward Professional Movers?
Although working as a mover is one of the most demanding service jobs a person can have, most Bay Area moving companies don’t require you to leave tips for their employees. Despite not being mandatory, rewarding professionals is highly recommended, as it often encourages them to work better and provide a higher quality service.
Interestingly, a recent Apartment Guide survey proved that the tipping etiquette in the Bay is mostly up to standards. The data showed that 71% of people who hired professionals chose to reward them, indicating that most of us living and relocating within the Bay Area know how to appreciate a good mover’s work. After all, the majority of things to do before relocating would be challenging without their help, so you’ll want to thank them properly for everything they did. If you want to learn why it is important to reward professional service providers, check out the video below.
How Much Do You Tip Local Movers in Bay Area?
If you’re not sure how much money to give away to each mover, it’s best to reward the team based on their performance and efficiency. A crew that helped you finish most of the tasks on your to-do list should always receive better compensation than someone who couldn’t even finish packing books for storage. Additionally, the size of the reward also depends on the tipping method you choose to use, the complexity of the move, and the total relocation expenses.
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Free QuoteMost People Moving in the Bay Area Leave Percentage-Based Bonuses
According to statistics, percentage-based bonuses are the most common tipping method in the Bay Area. Out of everyone who decides to reward professionals, 39% give away one-tenth of their total relocation costs. That’s not all, as 22% of customers leave a sizable tip that makes up 20 percent of the total costs. For example, if your relocation ended up costing about $600, the total bonus would be anywhere between $60 and $120, which should be split evenly among every member of the team. However, be aware that this is not the most cost-effective method, mainly if you invested in some additional services like storage locker or even labor relocation. This is pretty obvious, as the larger your final bill is, the higher the reward.
Flat Fee Tips Are the Most Affordable and Reliable Way of Rewarding Professionals
If calculating the bonuses gives you relocation stress, flat fee tips might be the best option for you. There’s a good reason why 23% of people choose this method. You won’t have to worry about doing hard math, as each professional will be rewarded a flat amount. For example, if you’re staying in the same city and the work is finished in half a day or so, $20 tips are more than enough. However, if your new home is in a different Bay Area town, the entire move will likely last a whole day, meaning you should treat every worker with about $40 to $60.
Tipping Movers by the Hour Is Also a Solid Option
Last but not least, about 17% of people who tipped their professionals chose the hourly rate bonus method. A higher chance of relocation scams is the likely reason why this is the least common tipping option in the Bay Area. Except in some extreme cases, there’s simply no good way to determine whether the crew was phoning it in or relocating efficiently. If you end up choosing this method, each mover should be tipped $5 per hour or up to $10 for a complicated relocation.
When and How to Tip Movers for a Job Well Done
Giving out bonuses is nothing too complicated, as it’s only one more expense on your checklist. Considering the moving industry is technically in the service sector, each worker can be tipped just like a waiter. If you’re not sure how to reward the professionals for their services, you can:
- Pay them with a credit card – If you want to be extra safe and keep track of all your transactions, paying the tip with a credit or a debit card is likely your best option. You only have to ask the foreman to add the expense to your final bill before paying.
- Write them a check – People who like to organize important documents and bills neatly usually prefer this option. Just remember to check if the company’s policies allow this form of payment.
- Give away some cash – This is probably the best way to reward the workers for the effort, as they won’t have to wait for the money to be forwarded by their employer.
Split the Money Between the Workers Right Away
If you decide to give out cash bonuses, ensure you have enough change, as this will allow you to distribute the money evenly between the team members. Giving the whole sum to a single person is not a good idea, as you can never know if they would split the money with their colleagues. You can’t even count on the foreman to do it, so just have a few 10 dollar bills ready for when you arrive at your new home.
Do You Tip Movers When They Load or Unload the Truck or Wait Until the Job Is Done?
While you might want to start tipping the professionals earlier in the day, it should actually be one of the first things to do after relocating. It’s best to do it once the last boxes have been unloaded from the truck or when your things have been placed in storage, and not a moment sooner. If you give out rewards earlier in the day, the service providers won’t have an incentive to keep the work flowing. This could cause unnecessary delays, which would only increase the price of the entire relocation.
Are There Any Other Ways to Reward the Crew Besides Spending Extra Cash?
Although giving each mover a flat bonus is the best way to reward them for their hard work, this is not the only way you can show your appreciation. If you’re not sure what to tip movers besides cash, try offering them some refreshments. They did help you pack furniture, so that’s the least you could do for them. Fortunately, that’s not one of the things people forget to do when relocating in the Bay. Nine out of ten people who hired professionals offered them some food or drinks, and almost as many were willing to assist them with some heavier tasks.
Don’t Let the Workers Drink on the Job
Giving the workers some refreshments will do a lot to keep them in a good mood but avoid serving any alcoholic beverages on the relocation day. Handing out beer might make you seem cool in front of the crew, but it will also cause their performance to dip, increasing the time it takes to prepare everything and raising the cost of your move. Additionally, you haven’t even made it to your new home, and everybody knows you’re not supposed to be drinking and driving. Finally, it could also get them in trouble with their employer, so if anyone asks you to serve them some alcohol, kindly refuse their request or simply say you don’t have any at home.
When Should You Not Tip Your Bay Area Movers?
While the best movers in San Francisco always earn their tips fair and square, there are some Bay Area service providers who are scammers looking to earn a few quick bucks. However, this is relatively rare, and more often than not, you’ll choose not to reward them simply because the quality of service wasn’t up to par. If that’s the case, let’s go over some good reasons why the workers shouldn’t be tipped once the relocation has finished:
- Your belongings suffered damage – How much do you tip a packing crew that failed to protect your fragile items? Nothing really, as what’s the point in paying someone when they can’t pack dishes or even pots and pans properly.
- Professionals arrived later than scheduled – While it’s not unheard of for a professional San Francisco moving company to reschedule a move, they always do it at least a few days in advance. If you weren’t notified on time about the change of schedule, don’t feel sorry for not leaving any tips at the end of the day.
- Time-wasting techniques inflated the bill – Most professionals relocation companies charge their services by the number of personnel times the hours they spent in the field, meaning that a less efficient team could significantly increase your final bill. If you feel like somebody was slacking on the job, they simply shouldn’t be tipped.
- The team was rude or disrespectful – There’s no reason to reward anyone for bad behavior, so if at any point one or more workers made solicit remarks towards you or were rude in general, don’t hesitate to report them to their supervisor. Words travel fast, and no professional relocation company wants its reputation to be tarnished by a few rude employees. In rare cases, reporting them might even refund some of your relocation costs.
- Not everything was packed – If some of your large items were left behind because the workers were packing to move in a hurry, they shouldn’t be tipped for forgetting your belongings. However, before denying the crew their tips, ensure that the things they left behind aren’t on the list of items movers won’t move. Remember that every Bay Area moving company has a list of non-allowables. If the professionals didn’t pack something, it was probably against the employer’s guidelines, and they were simply doing their job. That’s why you should learn more about which belongings aren’t allowed on the truck before hiring any moving company in the Bay Area.
Need Any Help With Your Relocation? Hire One of the Best Moving Companies in the Bay Area to Assist You
Anyone who ever moved without the assistance of the pros can tell you that preparing for relocation is rarely ever easy. While using moving hacks might make the process more manageable, you’ll quickly realize the value of hiring well-trained professionals once you start packing glasses. Hiring a mover will allow you to move efficiently like never before, so if they’ve provided high-quality moving and storage services, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t reward their hard work.
If you’re looking to hire experienced professional San Francisco movers and packers, you can’t go wrong with Golden Bay Relocation. We offer residential moves as well as commercial relocations, allowing you to move both your home or business to a new location anywhere in the Bay Area. To learn more about each of our excellent local moving services, feel free to contact us. After going through the details with one of our representatives, you’ll be provided with a free quote for your next relocation.