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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Quick please! Tiping etiquette?

85 replies

RandomName130 · 13/04/2022 13:03

Team of 3 house movers. Small company, guys have been great! Very cheap compared to some quotes we had - only £320 😳 moving a 2 bed house and it’s a 10 min journey.

What do I tip? Give them £400 cash for the job? Tip each one a certain amount? Should I be tipping more than that?

OP posts:
mummyh2016 · 13/04/2022 13:45

As someone who worked in the industry it isn't expected but is appreciated and does raise morale with the crew.

KaptainKaveman · 13/04/2022 13:48

Ours did a sterling job a few years back. They were a small company and charged £1k less than pickfords or another big company. We gave them £30 cash each, 4 guys.

Empressofthemundane · 13/04/2022 13:53

I have always tipped movers. I’d tip each one separately and directly. If it is a short day, I’d give each £10. If it is a long day, I might go to £20.

WTAFFF · 13/04/2022 13:54

£20 per person is about right I think!

IamtheDevilsAvocado · 13/04/2022 14:04

[quote girlmom21]@RandomName130 I'm moving in the next month or two and our quote is £1300 so I'm loathe to tip but if it's standard practice perhaps we should Confused

We're moving more and further as well so feels like the distance will inconvenience them more! [/quote]
We moved 8 years ago... Was 1800 cost, distance and took 2 long days... Packing and moving.

We still tipped...mainly as I felt guilty they were still moving stuff in at 9pm.!

Although regret it now as had loads of breakages (they packed) that they refused to compensate for... They also sent too few blokes for the job... I now realise than they had... Was up several staircases and difficult lorry access...

Planesmistakenforstars · 13/04/2022 14:13

I used to do removals, and I while I did get tipped sometimes I wouldn't think it at all rude or odd if someone didn't tip. It was a very small company - just 3 of us. The best "tip" I got was a customer who ordered pizzas for us at the end of the job, maybe do something like that.

Notadramallama · 13/04/2022 14:16

I didn't tip when I moved 18 months ago. They probably get paid more than I do.

Anonymous48 · 13/04/2022 18:20

@Notadramallama

I didn't tip when I moved 18 months ago. They probably get paid more than I do.
The fact that they might get paid more than you is irrelevant really, isn't it, and a terrible (and miserly) excuse not to tip.
ThreeLittleDots · 13/04/2022 18:27

I never tip as I earn minimum wage

AffIt · 13/04/2022 18:29

@RandomName130

I know how much he always appreciated when customers gave a tip so I’ve always just given one

But why? Apologies, I feel like I'm living in a parallel universe here, but if I've contracted somebody to do a job, why would I pay for that service twice (particularly if the person is a skilled professional and business owner)?

Tipping wait staff / apprentices at the hairdresser's: fine, but it would literally never enter my head to give a joiner or a plumber an extra £10 on top of the price I had been quoted for the work.

tttigress · 13/04/2022 18:40

I didn't realise tipping in this context was a thing either, or maybe it isn't for most people?

Tipping trades people definitely isn't a thing!

orangeisthenewpuce · 13/04/2022 18:44

@girlmom21

FFS are we supposed to tip moving companies now too?
Don't if you don't want to
Y7drama · 13/04/2022 18:44

I’d never have considered tipping movers or tradespeople. Never crossed my mind. I only ever tip in restaurants! Who else do people tip?

orangeisthenewpuce · 13/04/2022 18:46

I first arranged a removal firm to move me in 1985 and tipping was a thing then so it's not new.

OctopusSay · 13/04/2022 18:48

We bought ours fish and chips, as we were getting some (which I thought was a kind and generous gesture Grin) and they seemed thrilled. It never occurred to me to give them cash.

orangeisthenewpuce · 13/04/2022 18:48

@Y7drama

I’d never have considered tipping movers or tradespeople. Never crossed my mind. I only ever tip in restaurants! Who else do people tip?
Really? Hairdressers, beauticians, taxi drivers etc
OctopusSay · 13/04/2022 18:58

I don't tip anyone anymore. It costs me £53 to get my hair cut, that's enough. A table for 4 in an average chain restaurant will spend £100+. 10% of that, really, when I've only been at the table an hour or so?

Plus it's too hard working out who gets one and who doesn't. Why a waiter but not a shop assistant? Why taxi but not bus driver? Why window cleaner but not motor mechanic (or maybe you do?)

Original poster
RandomName130 · 13/04/2022 19:31

[quote AffIt]@RandomName130

I know how much he always appreciated when customers gave a tip so I’ve always just given one

But why? Apologies, I feel like I'm living in a parallel universe here, but if I've contracted somebody to do a job, why would I pay for that service twice (particularly if the person is a skilled professional and business owner)?

Tipping wait staff / apprentices at the hairdresser's: fine, but it would literally never enter my head to give a joiner or a plumber an extra £10 on top of the price I had been quoted for the work.[/quote]
@AffIt Someone being a “skilled professional and business owner” doesn’t mean that they’re rolling in cash though 🤷🏻‍♀️ I grew up with a self employed dad working every hour under the sun to provide for our family while my mum was a SAHM with young children because the cost of childcare was more than what she’d bring in by also working 🤷🏻‍♀️
Going by the responses on the thread, it’s a free for all with tipping/not tipping 😊 I don’t personally see it as paying twice for the work. I’m paying for the materials and the time etc for the job in the quote. If they were late, sub standard work, bad attitude etc then I wouldn’t tip. But in the case of these guys they arrived on time, went above and beyond to make things as convenient for us as possible, made a huge fuss over our toddler who was clearly feeling a bit unsettled by everything that was going on, and we’re very efficient 🤷🏻‍♀️ I think that deserves a small token of gratitude 😊

OP posts:
Original poster
RandomName130 · 13/04/2022 19:32

@OctopusSay

We bought ours fish and chips, as we were getting some (which I thought was a kind and generous gesture Grin) and they seemed thrilled. It never occurred to me to give them cash.
@OctopusSay I’m not sure how that would have gone down for an early morning move 🤣 but definitely a lovely gesture later on in the day 👍🏻😊
OP posts:
DuchessSilver · 13/04/2022 19:35

Another one confused by the tipping.
I'd buy my mates pizza/fish and chips/beer for helping me move house, but not people I'd paid to do it.

Blackandwhitehorse · 13/04/2022 19:37

Don’t understand why you’d tip removal companies as a rule. I think tipping is going out of fashion now we have minimum wage.

Svara · 13/04/2022 19:41

Wouldn't occur to me to tip for the job I was paying for already. Maybe if they went above and beyond what I expected for the money. That would be rare though and usually the cost of a service is already more than I can really afford. Why should I tip someone who earns the same or more than me? I give the barber an extra pound for cutting my female hair, that's it.

CailleachGranda · 13/04/2022 20:24

Moved house loads and have never even thought about tipping

How strange.

PlasticineMeg · 13/04/2022 20:27

I really wish there was some formal, state induced list of who to tip and who not to tip.

Why would we tip the movers but not, say, the mechanic carrying out our MOT? Or the estate agent? I don’t get it.

Empressofthemundane · 13/04/2022 21:10

Generally speaking it’s usually people who are on a low wage doing hard, personal work who are tipped. Tradespeople are entrepreneurs who have the choice to set their own rates just as the owner of a salon does are not tipped. The guys lugging your furniture around are not well paid and are generally on 0 hours. So they are the sort of people who get tipped.