Moving Inventory and Labelling in Jeddah
An inventory is the difference between a handover that is counted and one that rests on trust. We write a numbered manifest of everything that leaves your home, give you a copy, and count it out with you on delivery.
Most complaints are about missing items, not broken ones
And the reason is always the same.
The commonest complaint in removals is not that something broke. It is that something is missing and nobody can say when. The cause is that nothing was counted at the start, so there is no reference point to measure against.
Without a written manifest the dispute becomes one person word against another. The customer is certain the box was there. The crew is certain everything came off the vehicle. Neither has evidence, and that argument does not end fairly for anyone.
A numbered manifest turns the question from memory into paper. If the written count is forty-three pieces and forty-three came off, the matter is closed in front of you in two minutes. If one is missing, we know which piece, from which room, and we look for it immediately rather than two days later.
A label has two readers, and they need different things
This is why the format matters more than the fact of labelling.
The carrier needs exactly one thing: which room this goes to, and whether anything may be stacked on it. The householder needs something different: what is inside, and whether this box is opened first or can wait.
So both go on one label. Code and number at the top in large type for the carrier, a short description of the contents underneath for you. And the description is written in the words you would actually search for: "everyday cups and plates", not "kitchen 3".
Labels go on the side of the box, not only on the lid, because boxes are stacked and the lid disappears. A label on the lid alone means restacking the whole column to read what is underneath.
Items that must not be stacked on carry a clear mark on every side, not one, because a box can be picked up facing any direction.
The three-field numbering system
One number on each piece carrying three pieces of information.
| Field | Example | What it does at delivery |
|---|---|---|
| Room code | BR1 for first bedroom, KIT, LIV | Sends the item to its room without anyone being asked |
| Item number | 07 | Distinguishes otherwise identical boxes |
| Room total | of 19 | Reveals a shortfall the moment the last item of a room lands |
| Fragile mark | A coloured band on sensitive items | Shows what needs two hands and what must not be stacked on |
| Priority mark | A tag on the first-day box | Identifies what is opened first at the new address |
The system is written on the label itself and needs no explanation from anyone. That is deliberate.
The third field is the one that earns its keep. When the crew reaches the last item from a room and the number does not match the room total, we know about the shortfall before leaving the old address, not after arriving at the new one.
The written manifest you keep
One copy for you, one for us, signed at loading.
The manifest is a sheet or several listing every item by room: a short description, its number, and a condition note where there is one. What goes in the condition column matters as much as what goes in the description.
A condition note records what already exists before anything is touched: a scratch on a table corner, a crack in picture glass, a drawer that does not close properly. It protects both sides, preventing an old flaw being blamed on the move and preventing a new one being denied.
You get your copy before the vehicle moves, not after it arrives. That copy is what you count against at delivery, and we do not ask for it back.
What gets numbered and what does not
Numbering absolutely everything wastes the day.
Not everything needs a number. An item that resembles nothing else and cannot go astray, a fridge or a bed, needs no more than a line on the manifest. The problem is identical things, not unique ones.
- Numbered: every box, every bag, every dismantled part and its fittings
- Numbered: matching chairs, shelves, majlis sections, chandelier parts
- Listed without detailed numbering: large appliances and unique items
- Not numbered: anything not loaded at all, such as medicines and documents staying with you
- Numbered as priority: the first-day box and all fragile-item boxes
Assembly fittings are what goes missing more than anything else. A bag of bolts with no number inside a general box means a bed that cannot be rebuilt. So the fittings bag is taped to the item itself rather than placed beside it.
Photographs as part of the inventory
A picture records what a description cannot.
Before loading we photograph the general condition of each room, any existing flaw noted on the manifest, and the assembled state of complex items before they come apart: chandeliers, shelving systems and appliance connections.
Assembly photographs are not documentation; they are the reference for rebuilding. A connection behind a television, or the arrangement of a bookcase, is not reproduced from memory at the end of a long day.
These photographs are yours. We send them to you, we do not hold them as leverage and we do not charge for them. They remain useful even if you reassemble things yourself later or use someone else.
Counting out at delivery
Ten minutes that close the file.
At delivery we count the items with you against your copy of the manifest, room by room rather than all at once. The count happens before the crew leaves, not after, and we do not relax that even when the day has run late.
What surfaces at that moment can be fixed: a piece still on the vehicle, a box put in the wrong room, a mark on a surface. What surfaces a week later cannot fairly be linked to the move, and we say so beforehand rather than after a dispute has started.
We sign with you at the end of the count. That signature is not a waiver of your rights. It records that the count was correct at that moment.
Inventory when things go into storage
Storage without an inventory is a problem deferred.
Storage multiplies the value of an inventory, because the gap in time is longer. Anyone storing the contents of a flat for six months will not recall at collection what went in.
Storage is SAR 150 to 300 a month for one or two rooms, SAR 250 to 450 for an apartment and SAR 400 to 800 for a villa. The numbered manifest goes with the storage and is checked again on release.
There is a second benefit: a manifest lets part of the stored load come out without disturbing the rest. If you need one particular box two months in, its number tells us where it is instead of opening twenty.
Office moves need a fourth field
The same system with one additional requirement.
In an office move it is not enough for everything to arrive. It has to arrive at the right person. So a fourth field is added to the label, the staff name or desk number, rather than relying on a room code alone.
The second requirement is equipment and documents. Equipment is recorded with serial numbers on the manifest where the client has them, and boxes holding documents are recorded as their own category with a named recipient, because handing them to any available employee is unacceptable in most organisations.
We also give the person managing the move a summary manifest with box counts per department, alongside the detailed one. That is what closes the file administratively, and it is a different document from what each employee needs.
Prices in SAR
Basic inventory is part of the service, not an extra line.
| Move size | Estimated price (SAR) | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Pickup / single items | 80 – 250 | One or two pieces inside Jeddah, loading and unloading |
| Studio or single room | 350 – 600 | Dismantling, packing, loading, transport, reassembly |
| Two-bedroom flat | 500 – 900 | Full crew with a closed truck |
| Three-bedroom flat | 800 – 1,400 | Larger crew and extended packing |
| Four to five bedrooms | 1,200 – 1,900 | Sometimes two days depending on floors |
| Small villa | 1,500 – 2,500 | More than one truck and an extended crew |
| Large villa | 2,500 – 4,000 | Scheduled over two days with full packing |
Prices are estimates and are fixed after a free survey. The agreed figure is written down before work starts and does not change afterwards.
Numbering and the written manifest are how we work on full moves and are not charged separately. What may be priced on its own is a very detailed inventory at your request, such as listing the contents of every box item by item, which is sometimes needed for office moves or long-term storage.
Dismantling is unchanged: SAR 150 to 300 for a bedroom, SAR 100 to 250 for a sliding wardrobe, SAR 400 to 900 for a full apartment package. The survey is free.
What this looks like in a three-bedroom flat
A worked example so you can picture the scale.
An ordinary three-bedroom apartment usually produces dozens of items once boxes, dismantled furniture and bags are counted. The number itself is not alarming. Trying to track it from memory is impossible.
The practical approach is to start numbering the least-used rooms a day or two before the move, so you reach the morning with most boxes already numbered and recorded. That leaves only the large furniture, the kitchen and the bedroom for the day itself.
The manifest is then ready before the vehicle arrives rather than being written during loading. Taking an inventory while loading is the worst possible timing: it slows the crew, it is done in a hurry, and it is done wrong.
Related services
Pages that complete the picture.
For full home moves, start at home moving services in Jeddah. The inventory connects most directly to storage, and the rates and terms are in furniture storage in Jeddah.
The items that labelling protects most are dismantled and fragile ones; their handling is set out in chandelier, mirror and artwork moving and in bedroom dismantling and reassembly.
If the move includes a majlis or sectional with many similar pieces, numbering by wall is explained in majlis and large sofa moving. Where a stair carry is part of the day, the calculation is in moving without a lift.
All of it is booked on one number and arrives as a single written quote.
Frequently asked questions
Numbering and the written manifest are part of how we work on full moves and are not charged separately. Only a very detailed inventory by special request is priced on its own.
A short description of each item, its number and a condition note where there is one, ordered by room. You get your copy before the vehicle moves.
It prevents an old flaw being blamed on the move and prevents a new one being denied. It protects both sides, not one.
No. Identical items, boxes and dismantled parts are numbered. Unique items such as a fridge are listed on the manifest without detailed numbering.
In a bag taped to the item itself, not placed beside it. A lost fittings bag means a bed that cannot be rebuilt.
At delivery, room by room, before the crew leaves. What surfaces then can be fixed immediately.
Yes, they are yours. They cover room condition, any recorded flaw, and complex items assembled before dismantling.
Yes. After six months you will not recall what went in, and the manifest also lets one box come out without disturbing the rest.
A day or two before the move, beginning with the least-used rooms. Taking an inventory during loading is the worst possible timing.
We will help you look, but what surfaces days later cannot fairly be tied to the move. That is exactly why we insist on counting before the crew leaves. For the items excluded from the inventory altogether see items movers cannot transport.
Book a free survey today
Send photos on WhatsApp and get a written, itemised quote before you commit — the survey costs nothing.