Shaun Su

Hi everyone,

I spent one morning calling several shipping companies in the UK for rates
to ship 3 boxes to the U.S. and had a very wide range of responses.

1) Is it true that it actually costs less to ship by air when you have few
things (3 boxes about 50x50x50 cm) because the port charges at sea ports are
outrageous?
Also, on the receiving end, there is an option to have it delivered door to
door versus door to port. With the door to port option is cheaper, but you
have to take care of the customs clearance and pay the gov't fees.

2) Can some one recommend a shipper they have used and which method (air or
sea)?

3) So far, the cheapest shipper we found is Seven Seas from the UK to US to
ship.

-shaun

Vicky88

Have you priced what it would cost to send them via the Post Office?

shaggy

I used Britannia. They were excellent and even sent professional packers to make sure my belongings were packed securely. They provided a full door-to-door service (London to Connecticut) and it cost us about $1,200 for 200 cubic feet. I also got a quote of $400 for 50 cubic. Everything arrived here safely and in full about three weeks later. They also took care of customs clearance. From bitter experience, I recommend that you only go with a reputable, bonded shipping company if you want your stuff to arrive safely and intact. My advice would be to contact Britannia and get a free quote from them, and see how that compares to the Post Office.

Hope this helps.

hyatt

Hi Shaun,

We shipped 15 boxes using Fox Movers, We were very pleased, they shipped door to door, and there were no gov fees due when they arrived. it took about 12 weeks, but, if you plan it right your things will be almost there by the time you are. shipping by air we found to be quite expensive. we shipped from Aby, in Lincolnshire to Houston Texas and it cost us IRO 550.00 pounds.

Fox has a 0800 listing in yellow pages, sorry i don't have it in front of me at the moment.

Hope that helps

Regards

Keith and Debbie Hyatt

Isa M.

Shaun,
It is true that in most cases shipping small quantities by ship more
expensive than flying them. There are different weight to dimension
ratios used when calculating how much space you use, especially when
your stuff ends up with other's in a container. If you have only a few
small and ideally heavy pieces you are better of to use the (faster) air
service.

Also I would always have everything shipped in door/door service and
fill in the US customs forms from where you ship to prevent any problems
like that at destination of your stuff. Unless you are going to live
right next to the air port or don't mind driving there and know how to
fill in all the paper work yourself and pick your boxes up yourself. If
you did that I would advise you to do this asap, as there will be
warehouse charges if it takes you too long to get there. A good
experienced company will be able to provide you with a "power of
attorney" that enables them to clear US customs on your behalf as soon
as the shipment is released. There are normally no fees to pay when you
send your used stuff. I would type up a content list that includes the
number of pieces/boxes and their dimensions, approximate weight and then
of course what is in those boxes. You should do this no matter what kind
of shipping you do.

You should also make a copy of your visa and your passport and give it
to the shipping company, as it will help whoever will be clearing the
goods through US customs. If you use door/door services you won't have
anything to do with US customs service ( unless they decide to open your
boxes and find something they don't like ... I had a customer once who
had to appear in person because he was stupid enough to enclose Cuban
cigars for one of his clients in his personal effects ... but who would
do something like that especially after 9-11???) I have done customs
clearance on other occasions before I got to know my husband and I would
prefer not to have the trouble if I can keep form it.

If you need more info let me know. I can name the company I used and
actually worked for before I came to the US. They did a great job and it
took only 5 days from shipping till receiving and was cheap too.

Isa

loveabrit

Hello. I just saw your post Isa and I was wondering if you could email me that name and number for my fiance' in England?
I really appreciate it!
Thanks-T.

Shaun Su

Isa,

Could you please post the contact info for this company?

-shaun

"ISA M." wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

    > If you need more info let me know. I can name the company I used and
    > actually worked for before I came to the US. They did a great job and it
    > took only 5 days from shipping till receiving and was cheap too.
    > Isa

Isa M.

Hey,
Just go to www.baxglobal.com
pick your country
click go and locate your closest airport. You will find the contact info
on the bottom of the page if you live in the UK. Other countries have
their info on their country specific webpage.
Hope this helps,
Isa

jcapulet

I had a similar question...when my fiance moves here on the K-1 visa (he's a Canadian cit.), how does he move his personal belongings without being subject to U.S. Customs duties? I thought if one was immigrating into the US, everything was supposed to be duty-free...is that just done by providing a copy of the K-1 as you described, or are there other processes?

Thanks

Juliet

Jo Brayne

how long did the companies take to come around with an estimate? were they usually pretty quick, did they usually come in a day or two?

Do you check for estimates about how many weeks before your stuff was due to be sent, 3 or 4?

Just trying to get the best I can with the timing, did you leave for the US *after* the stuff was collected from your UK residence? If so how long did you wait and what did you 'live off' of in the meantime?

NC Penguin

When moving from the UK to the US, my husband's employer provided us and paid for the shipping of all our personal effects (by air!).

An estimator came over about four weeks before the date of the date we planned to fly to the US. We informed the shipping company of the date we wished to move at least two months before we intended to move so we could ensure we would get movers on the date of our preference.

The movers came, packed and removed all our personal effects (73 boxes for a one bedroom flat. They said this was a record) three days before we flew out of the UK to the US.

As mentioned previously, the shipment was sent by air. It was a door to door shipment with the shipping company handling all the paperwork and customs. My husband provided the shipping company with a copy of his passport to assist in the smooth processing of the shipment.

Fortunately, we found a flat on the first working day after we arrived in the US. The shipment was delivered to the new flat ten days after we arrived in the US.

The shipment did in fact arrive early and was kept in storage for one day. For those interested, the shipment travelled this route:
London Heathrow- New York- Raleigh- storage- delivery to the flat.

On arriving in the US, we had already made a booking to stay in a nearby hotel. I would recommend a Residence Inn kind of place where you have a kitchenette. This can cut down on costs of eating out all the time (plus it gives your palate a break).


NC Penguin

Vicky88

Sarah, I bet you are glad that you weren't paying for that move as it would have cost an arm and a leg to airfreight that amount. We sent our 63 boxes via sea and it was 1750 pounds plus insurance.

NC Penguin

-----------------------------
You don't have to tell me :-) ! All that didn't even include any furniture except for a utltily type desk for the computer.


NC Penguin