An opinion survey covering 1,202 respondents on house removal service operators showed that referral by friends/relatives was the main source of locating a company, and the level of charges was also an important consideration for consumers when choosing a company.
In a survey conducted by the Consumer Council, more than half of the respondents (53.1%) commissioned removal companies referred by friends or family members. 61.3% of the respondents cited reasonable charges as the major factor when choosing removal companies.
Highlights of the survey are:
Payment method
- Over 60% of respondents said payment was made after the moving was completed.
- About 35% of respondents put a down payment of 1% to 90% of the total fee, and settled the rest after completion.
- 64.3% of respondents said the moving companies had conducted on-site estimation before the moving.
Tipping
- More than 80% of respondents tipped the workers, amounted from HK$10 to HK$3,000, mainly to round up the service fee.
- Some respondents encountered workers complaining that the removal fee was too low and therefore had to tip the workers.
Receipt
- 36.4% of the respondents did not ask for receipts from the removal companies. Some of them regarded written quotations as sufficient as receipts.
Comparing 5 moving companies
- 5 removal companies with sufficient number of respondents were compared. Respondents rated if their service fees and tipping policy were reasonable, carefulness, efficiency and manner of the movers. Ratings of all 5 movers from respondents were above average.
In 2011, the Consumer Council received 30 consumer complaints regarding house removal service. The number of cases recorded in 2010 was 43. Most of the complaints involved fee disputes or quality of service.
In one of the cases highlighted in the February issue of CHOICE, the complainant was dissatisfied with the service of the moving company. To start with the movers were late for 3 hours. They then kept on complaining about the low service fee to drop a hint for tipping from the complainant. The complainant also needed to pay a parking fee of HK$750 when waiting for another lorry from the removal company to transport her belongings. After arriving at her new home, the complainant found that a leg of her sofa was missing. Although the removal company agreed to follow-up with the damage, the complainant did not hear from them at all. She therefore approached the Council for assistance.
The moving company replied to the Council that they had already ordered a spare part for the sofa. The company also agreed to split the over-time parking fee upon Council's reconciliation.
The Council advises consumers to take note of the following when using house removal service:
- Always ask for a receipt after the completion of the service. A written quotation is not a proof of payment.
- Acquire quotes from different removal companies for comparison. Invite the suitable company to conduct on-site inspection and ask for a written quotation.
- Be alert for exceptional low service fee quoted by moving companies. Their workers may tend to demand more tips.
Regarding tipping the workers, the Council considers that the service fee should include all the remuneration for the workers. Removal companies should not assume tipping as part of their workers' income.
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