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How do I Make Sure my Movers Won’t Steal?

Although it doesn’t happen often, movers can steal. Use our tips for packing and interacting with moving company professionals to prevent possible theft.
How do I Make Sure my Movers Won't Steal?

In this article

It’s a valid concern, but with the right precautions and careful planning, you can significantly reduce the risk of theft or damage during your move.

In this guide, we’ll provide you with a comprehensive list of steps and tips to ensure that your movers won’t steal from you, allowing you to enjoy a smooth and secure moving experience.

Ensuring the Safety of Your Belongings and Trusting Your Movers

Using different colors of packing tape, marking boxes with priority numbers, packing cheap belongings on top of more expensive belongings, and making an index of your belongings if you have time will all prevent movers from stealing in one way or another.

Another way that you can make sure your movers do not steal is to treat them very well. Even though you are already paying them, you should still value this relationship that you have developed with them.

Treating your professional movers better than they expect to be treated will give them an incentive to not steal from you. They will be less inclined to steal if they see you as a friend more than another boss that they need to answer to.

Additionally, you do not need to entrust every single thing to your movers – if you have made the decision to hire a professional moving company. You can easily decide to move any belongings or documents that you think are too valuable by yourself.

These are all options that you need to consider when hiring a trusted moving company. In a perfect world, you’d be able to trust anyone with your belongings. However, this clearly isn’t realistic and to be safe, it’s wise to take precautions.

Do Your Part to Protect Your Belongings

There are several actions that you can take to protect your belongings. While you may need to take some time and do your due diligence to take some of these actions, most of them will require very little effort on your part.

Let’s go through each of these, starting with what would take the least amount of effort.

1. Mark boxes with priority numbers

Doing this is as easy as writing a number on your boxes, sending a direct message to your movers as to what is important and what is not important.

When you combine this with the much longer task of creating an index of all your belongings, this will show your movers that you are monitoring everything that they get their hands on. Ergo, the local or long-distance movers you hired will know that they will not be able to get away with stealing.

2. Use different colors of packing tape

This task requires a little more effort than marking boxes with priority numbers as you are physically sealing boxes yourself instead of letting your movers do it, but it is a relatively effortless way of letting your movers know what belongings are more important than others.

Combined with marking boxes with priority numbers and making an index of your belongings, this is just one more step that you can take when it comes to protecting your belongings.

3. Pack cheaper more replaceable belongings on top

Doing this will actually require a little bit of effort on your part to sort things through before packing, but might pay off. If a potential thief does open the box, they’re likely to think that the whole box contains items of lesser value.

4. Create a full index of your belongings

Creating a full index style checklist of your belongings that you keep for yourself is almost guaranteed to prevent movers from stealing, as it represents a well-documented list of everything that they load into their moving truck.

After the move takes place, check off the belongings of this list. Whatever goes missing gets sent to the moving company. After that, you can take further action from there.

Think of this as a variation of a move-in inspection whenever you move to a different home or apartment. It holds movers liable just like a move-in inspection would hold your property owner or landlord liable for anything they were responsible for.

Treat Your Movers Well

Even though you are already going out of your way to pay your movers to solve the problem of loading (potentially packing) and transporting your belongings for you, do you really think it is a good idea to treat them poorly? No, and treating professional movers poorly is a good way to entice them to steal.

Those who steal usually do so for three reasons; first, they do it out of spite. They feel like they are being taken mistreated, so they respond in kind. If this isn’t the case, they’ll steal just for the sake of it and to see what they can get away with. The final group steals out of desperation. They wouldn’t steal if they had something to lose.

Movers belong almost exclusively to the first group. If they do steal, they do it because they feel like they are mistreated and they know that they might be able to get away with it because they are taking everything you own to a place that is very far away from where they are.

Wouldn’t it make sense that they wouldn’t be so inclined to steal if you treated them well?

This doesn’t mean you need to make significant sacrifices or anything. But doing something small like offering them something to eat or drink while they are moving can and will go a long way when it comes to preventing them from stealing.

Pack Your Most Important Belongings Yourself

Very few moving contracts entail you entrusting every last belonging to your moving team. In nearly all situations, you get to choose what you want to entrust to your movers. Therefore, it makes sense that you should pack all your most important belongings yourself, if you can.

This is a no-brainer when it comes to objects that don’t require big boxes, such as important documents, money, or even certain electronics, such as computers or tablets. Those items might be good to take with you.

Other valuable items might take more thought, though. For example, you can pack silver table settings at the bottom of a box with table linens on the top, but valuable antiques or artwork isn’t so easy. For large, high-value items consider special crating services.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I choose a reputable moving company?

To select a reputable moving company, start by researching online reviews and asking for recommendations from friends or family. Ensure they are licensed and insured, request written estimates, and compare multiple quotes. Verify their experience and check for any complaints with regulatory agencies.

Should I purchase moving insurance?

Yes, it’s advisable to purchase moving insurance. Standard coverage may not fully protect your belongings. Moving insurance provides peace of mind in case of damage or loss during the move, offering financial compensation for your items.

What should I do if I suspect my movers are stealing?

If you suspect theft during the move, try to document any discrepancies or missing items immediately. Inform the moving company and file a complaint with the appropriate authorities or regulatory agencies if necessary.

Are there any red flags to watch out for when hiring movers?

Be cautious if a moving company demands a large upfront deposit, lacks proper licensing and insurance, provides vague or unclear contracts, or has a history of customer complaints. These are red flags that may indicate an unreliable mover.

What items should I move myself to ensure their safety?

Consider moving valuable, sentimental, or irreplaceable items like jewelry, important documents, and personal electronics yourself to ensure their safety.

How can I inventory my belongings before and after the move?

Create a detailed inventory list with descriptions and photographs of your belongings before the move. Use this list to cross-check your items after the move to identify any damages or losses.

What are my rights and responsibilities when working with professional movers?

Your rights and responsibilities may vary depending on your location and the type of move. However, you generally have the right to receive a written estimate of moving cost, have your items handled with care, and seek compensation for damages as per the moving contract. Always read and understand your contract.

How can I ensure a smooth and stress-free moving day?

Plan your move well in advance, pack items securely, label boxes clearly, communicate effectively with your movers, and have a backup plan in case of unexpected issues. Staying organized and prepared can help make your moving day stress-free.

The Final Word: Professional Movers Only Steal if You Let Them

It is very true that professional long distance movers very rarely steal, but why leave that to chance when there are precautionary steps to take?

While letting your movers know what is important and what is important by marking your boxes or using different tape on your boxes sounds counterproductive, it will show movers that you know what they might steal. This will reduce their incentive to steal.

A movers’ incentive to steal will practically vanish if you have taken the time to create a full index of every last thing that they have come across.

Treating your movers well and refusing the temptation to constantly complain and act like their boss by trying to micromanage every move and not respecting their knowledge and skills, will not only create a better relationship between yourself and your movers but it will also greatly reduce their incentive to steal.

And finally, you do not need to entrust all of your belongings to your movers. Moving your most important belongings yourself can eliminate a lot of stress for both parties.

After taking these precautions, making sure your movers won’t steal is really only a matter of whether you have let them steal or not.

Dani James

Dani James

Dani James is a copywriter and blogger with more than eight years of experience writing for movers, real estate, and anything to do with getting from point A to point B. When he’s not finding new ways to save on moving costs, he can be found at home with his cat, binge-watching Marvel movies, and looking for new apartments he can’t afford.
Green Group

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