Every time we (had) moved, we started from scratch

Question

I'm not sure whether I use double past simple or past perfect + past simple in this sentence:

Every time we had moved, we started from scratch.

vs

Every time we moved, we started from scratch.

Thank you!

Answer 1

Every time we moved, we started from scratch.

According to My GrammarLab intermediate by M.Foley and D.Hall, we usually use the Past Simple, not the Past Perfect

• if the order of actions is clear (we started from scratch after we moved)
• if the order of actions is the same as the order of the verbs in the sentence (every time we moved, we started from scratch (first, we moved, then we started from scratch)

Note that usually doesn't mean always. Of course, we can say "we started from scratch after we had moved" to emphasize the fact that we started later. But as for your example with "every time", it's necessary to use the Past Simple because the order of actions is clear and it is the same as the order of the verbs in the sentence. I think both rules apply.