BATS666

we have been quoted £3,800 Bristol-Perth, but this EXCLUDES insurance @ 3%. Are you sure yours includes it? Will have to get back to them if you have a cheaper quote !! :curse:

BATS666

Your container WILL be checked by AQIS. This is not a customs check, AQIS is the quarantine service and they are looking for untreated wood, fur, feathers, seeds etc etc. There is little to no chance of you avoiding this unless they are certain that your 20 fter doesn't contain this stuff. It will mean a full unpack of the 20fter, hence the charge. You will also be charged for disposal of any unacceptable stuff. So don't stick it in if you're not sure, on the basis that if they won't let it in, "we will just bin it". If your container was professionally packed in the UK they are much more likely to accept box contents as stated by the removal company. If you did it yourself, they are likely to go thru the lot, just to make sure. This will add to your DIY costs.

I'm currently checking on taking feather duvets and pillows. As stated above, John Mason say that you can't, but UNLESS it is goose down. Goose down is apparently larger than duck feather and down and so very unlikely to leak from the cotton cover. Any signs of leakage and they won't let it in. Bonner, on the other hand, say that all UK duvets and pillows are heat treated in manufacture, so are not a risk. If in doubt, I would suggest that you contact AQIS by email (I intend to on this, and one other, issue) and ask them and keep a printed copy of the reply.
Mason's gave me some outrageously inaccurate info re shipping a car. If I had followed their advice, (as someone is currently doing) it could have cost me an extra £40,000 in duty and GST.

AQIS and Customs will take 7-14 days to reply to email enquiries.

Burkins

We have had a quote of £1600 for a 20ft container but we have to load ourselves and sort insurance out which is approx 3% of value of container and pay to get it out at the other end we have been quoted approx $400 dollars.

A question for anyone who has done this already did you label boxes individually or just provide one big list?

Dolphin Freight in Sheffield.

BATS666

You have to do both. Each box has to be individually labelled with box no. & contents and then a full customs declaration listing all boxes.
you should be able to get insurance for less than 3% but that may be if the container is professionally packed. 1.6% is about right. Try Basil Fry or Letton Percival (LP = cheaper).

Burkins

Thanks I will give them a call for a quote.

Forgive me if a silly question but on the itemised list do I have to say 4 x short sleeved t-shirts or 1 short sleeved t-shirt from Debenhams, 1 x short sleeved T-shirt from Next etc.

Thanks

di90

I had a quote today for 430 cubic square from allied pickford and they charged £2600 for everything including aqis. Thats less than half a container and only just over £1000 less than a full container - how come??

Burkins

When we received our quotes for shipping it looked like it is better to take 20 - 30 boxes and no large items or get a 20ft crate and pack it full of as much stuff as you can find as the price difference wasn't worth it.

We have decided to take everything in a crate and use for rented and then as and when we buy a house we will sort out what we actually want - after shipping it across the world!

BATS666

I understand from speaking to various removals companies that all you need to put on each individual box is roughly what is inside, e.g. Box 1 - clothes, box 2 - books, box 3- magazines, crockery, cutlery etc etc. Same for the customs declaration (itemised list). AQIS will use this to pinpoint any suspect boxes e.g. "tools" could mean "garden tools" which is bound to attract their attention.

On a separate note. I checked the response I got from AQIS to specific question about quarantine procedures and all I got was an emailed link to their website. NOT very helpful and they didn't answer any questions.
Like I didn't think of looking at the website first !! Derr.....

Beccie

We've just had a quote from PSS Eastbourne to Brisbane £3500 for 20ft container including packing and unpacking, insurance is 2.8% of value on top. Thought this was very reasonable.

BATS666

I think that's about right. We are getting £3,400 - 3,600 Bristol to Perth, tho Crown quoted, off the cuff, £4,300.
I would look at doing insurance separately tho. Should get it down to 1.6%.
Try Letton Percival.

BATS666

If you don't have a container to youself it's called groupage and you are sharing it with other people. That adds to the cost per person as there's more paperwork, bureaucracy, man power etc. You can't simply divide the cost of a whole container by the amount you will be using.

RenShen

Hi, this might help: http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=493637

Also, I have just had an email from a friend saying that if you are a Westpac customer you can get a good deal from Anglo Pacific where they are offering £1000 of insurance for free.

iainandsam

I have had the following quotes for a 20ft container, going from Beds to phillip Is near melbourne so would be the 100 mile distance, door to door. Includes packing, unpacking etc no ins
PSS £3,948 no negotiation have asked!
Simpsons £4,000
Fletcher & Newhouse £3,650 Best so far
Crown £4,723!!!!!!!!
John Masons £3,898
Still waiting White & Co and a company called ATO shipping
Good luck

Beccie

Thanks for the info will into that

Geelong Gent

For what its worth now these were our main points on shipping:

Invest more in getting a decent packing team UK side

Watch out for insurance cost - this takes time to think about. ie Do we incur the cost of insurance or risk the loss? the cost can add up - we incurred £1500. So in comparison to people worrying about £3800 to £4200 ???

The guy coming out to quote is not the person packing. Think about it. (salesmen lie when they open their mouths).

Make sure they deal with Kents on the Melbourne side (makes life so much easier when you arrive)

Do not go down share container route if possible - its more expensive, takes far more time.

Ensure the carrier is going the fast route and not using a shipping company that transits through the panama canal- difference in time can equate to months not weeks in difference.

The actual time on the ship is only about 5 weeks but where they cannot be exact is not due to weather or tides etc. It is because of time slots at places like Singapore. You should however be safe with an estimate of 6 to 8 weeks. Stuff in Melbourne clears quite quickly - and they let you know with about a weeks notice - the cost of storage this side is cheap so dont stress if you have not found a place to move into, when you stuff has cleared customs.