Hi

For those of you that have been lucky enough to get a visa and are in the process of packing up....

I moved from Kent to Sydney last September. It was pretty difficult to choose between the removals companies based on the sales docs they provided. I picked Doree Bonner on the basis that the guy that came round to do our estimate seemed the most professional, making sure that everything got included. Shame the removals team weren't so good - they tracked mud into our house and by the time our sofas arrived in Sydney, the wooden backs were scuffed up where they'd been rubbing against the side of the container.

Good luck with your move....

Mrs Bat

On Sat, 08 Apr 2006 13:02:55 +0000, bat
<member37171@british_expats.com> wrote:

    >Hi
    >For those of you that have been lucky enough to get a visa and are in
    >the process of packing up....
    >I moved from Kent to Sydney last September. It was pretty difficult to
    >choose between the removals companies based on the sales docs they
    >provided. I picked Doree Bonner on the basis that the guy that came
    >round to do our estimate seemed the most professional, making sure that
    >everything got included. Shame the removals team weren't so good - they
    >tracked mud into our house and by the time our sofas arrived in Sydney,
    >the wooden backs were scuffed up where they'd been rubbing against the
    >side of the container.
    >Good luck with your move....
    >Mrs Bat

What do you think you paid for a comprehensive insurance policy for?

You did have one didn't you?

If that was all the damage your goods had, then you were *real* lucky.

Cath

In my opinion the comprehensive insurance policy isnt really the point. I would imagine the point is more about
professionalism,
quality of service,
condition goods arrived in.

None of these can be determined from meeting the representative, so it is disappointing. After all, we ship these items as they are valuable to us whether in monetary terms or not.

Sorry to hear about it Mrs Bat, hope it all gets sorted for you ASAP

Lisa.xx

Thankyou for that.

There seem to be loads of posts on here about WHO people are using regarding shipping, but very few about how the shipping panned out. Thankyou for taking the time to let us know your experiences.

Sofa's ain't exactly cheap are they? I know I would rather have intact belongings than have to face the hassle of an insurance claim when I was trying to embark on a new life!!

Good luck with everything else in your edventure!

xRachx

We used John Mason. The pickup went smoothly with no dramas and we received our stuff on this side without too many delays.

However, there were a few breakages; 2 lamps, an arm on the sofabed, a picture frame.

Normally I would have been upset by a removals breakage but this time it really didnt matter. We claimed on the insurance, got way more than the items were worth (TIP: value your gear at more than it would actually cost you to replace it; clearly, dont take the p*ss) and we have now got everything repaired/replaced.

As far as I could tell, the breakages in our consignment were unavoidable, when you think what the stuff actually has to go through. The wrapping and packing done by JM was immaculate, but no amount of packing can protect against a container drop or a bash during transit.

Thanks for the reply Welshie.

I appreciate it - -we have had Overs and PSS in so far for a quote - -they both quoted the same but i liked the guy from Overs better.

xRachx

Hi

For my two penneth worth - we used Allied Pickfords after deliberating for some weeks over which company to choose.

There are good and bad reviews on here for all the major players - you really have to do it by gut feel - pricing is, I believe, much of a muchness.

Whatever, the whole process went smoothly enough and our 20 foot container arrived at Port Botany with no problems. As we were putting our goods into storage (with Pickfords Sydney) for some weeks they transferred everything from the container into their store.

When we asked why they were doing this transfer we were informed that the removal companies only hire the containers for the actual move from your home to the destination port.

If there is a weak link in the chain then that could be it as your belongings are then "double handed" even allowing for Customs to crawl all over it.

We eventually had our belongings delivered in a Pickfords removal lorry.

There were a few small breakages - which looked like the sort of items that Customs would take an interest in - hollow ornaments etc. They had certainly been unwrapped and investigated and not well wrapped again afterwards.

All was claimable on the marine insurance with no hassles although we were asked to send photo evidence with our claim form - so DO NOT THROW ANY DAMAGED ITEMS UNTIL YOUR CLAIM HAS BEEN SETTLED.

Hope this has given you some insight into the processes.

Regards

Jim

Of you do a search on the forum using the names of the various shipping companies there are a lot of post-shipping reports from people, both negative and positive.

You got off lucky. I have a hand made reproduction Chippendale chair that
had the arms ripped off it by Bekins Worldwide Movers in Canada. It was so
painfully obvious to anyone with an IQ higher than a blade of grass that it
was no ordinary chair even in it's wrappings. But I guess the movers thought
they knew better and decided it would pack better if the broke the arms off.
I also have an antique singer sewing machine that also is painfully obvious
what it was. But again the movers know better and they decided it would
pack better if it were upside down. All the small irreplaceable parts were
lost. Guess Bekins didn't feel it was worth keeping all the "junk" that
spilled out (could have included a bag full of the parts with a note) after
they turned it upside down but instead threw them away. About 75% of the
boxes showed signs that they had been loaded upside down in the container.
They packed so much weight on one dresser that they snapped the top in half.
Absolute fools. Did I say who they were BEKINS WORLDWIDE MOVERS. Yes I had
insurance but it still doesn't matter stupid people are very frustrating and
their movers are about as stupid as I have ever had the misfortune of having
to do business with.




"bat" <member37171@british_expats.com> wrote in message
news:[email protected] m...
    > Hi
    > For those of you that have been lucky enough to get a visa and are in
    > the process of packing up....
    > I moved from Kent to Sydney last September. It was pretty difficult to
    > choose between the removals companies based on the sales docs they
    > provided. I picked Doree Bonner on the basis that the guy that came
    > round to do our estimate seemed the most professional, making sure that
    > everything got included. Shame the removals team weren't so good - they
    > tracked mud into our house and by the time our sofas arrived in Sydney,
    > the wooden backs were scuffed up where they'd been rubbing against the
    > side of the container.
    > Good luck with your move....
    > Mrs Bat
    > --
    > Posted via http://britishexpats.com

That is a very good tip - thanks

Thanks Lisa - I did have a comprehensive insurance policy but it's a hassle to have to make a claim.

Talking of professionalism (or lack of), I forgot to mention that I told the Doree Bonner guys to help themselves to tea/coffee whilst they were working and they packed the mugs that they had been using without rinsing them - nice! They also packed the jar of coffee - lucky AQIS didn't find that...

Mrs Bat

I would add to also keep an eye on them if they are unpacking anything for you.

We used Bishop's Move in the UK - excellent, very professional, packed to a high standard. We only had one breakage from poor packing and that was a crystal glass that had a damaged stem in the first place. They'd even wrapped some of our daughter's earliest pictures in bubble wrap to keep them safe.

The Oz end we used Kent International, and although our stuff was handled well and arrived from storage in good condition, we had problems with the unpacking. They unpacked my reflexology chair using a stanley knife and in the process slashed right through the upholstery of the chair's cushion, leaving a knife cut of about two inches. We didn't notice the damage until after they'd gone either. Having said that, Kent's covered the $700 cost of importing a new cushion from the UK, less the $100 excess, and settled the claim by return of post. Sent the claim in on a Monday, cheque arrived on the Wednesday - so can't complain about that.

We never did find out what happened to the missing items - the brand-new, unused electronic nit comb, nor the remote control for one of our daughter's toys....but that's another thread.

What do you think you paid for a comprehensive insurance policy for?

You did have one didn't you?

If that was all the damage your goods had, then you were *real* lucky.

Cath[/QUOTE]

money is not everything especially where your Personal possessions are concerned

We used Crown Relocations. The packing was extrememly professional and we were really happy with them. When stuff arrived we had a couple of broken things...but that was to be expected. Couldn't claim on the insurance as we had a 100 pound excess...
My friend has just moved to Adalaide and she used Crown Relocations as well. Her stuff was supposed to land in Melbourne and go via train to Adalaide. Except they forgot to unload it and it is now on its way to NZ !!!! It's going to be another month before she gets it now so has had to go out and buy stuff they desperately need.

Coffe is not a problem if it is processed.................... mm