|
Our shipping experience and photos Middlesex to Melbourne
This is the full report and photos of our shipping experience from Ruislip, Middlesex, UK to Mordialloc, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
We had quotes from several companies – PSS, Anglo Pacific, John Mason, Crown, and Robinson’s. We had heard good and bad experiences about all of these companies and had come to the conclusion that every company makes mistakes sometimes and every company delivers outstanding service sometimes. We eventually chose John Mason because they were competitive and because they gave the impression they actually wanted the business. They quoted us £3215 including £15 container cleaning insurance, which insures you against being charged to clean the container. This was for a 3 bedroom semi-detached house with a very full loft and garage! We were warned by the estimator that we were on the borderline for a 20 foot container and we needed to prioritise in case some things didn’t fit in. We did, however specify that we wanted Norman and his team as we had heard good reports about him from another forum member. We did however find out part way through the process that the packing teams are not employees of John Mason’s, they are subcontractors. The eventual arrangements were that the packing and container loading were going to take 2 days. Norman and two other chaps arrived the first day. Their first action was to ensure that our house was protected from people tramping in and out. Click here to see a photo of John Mason’s carpet protection Click here to see a photo of John Mason’s stair protection They then brought a lot of packing materials of all shapes and sizes in from their van and started to pack. I had requested that a custom crate be made for an irreplaceable antique dolls house made by my Great-Uncle for my Mother, and now belonging to our daughters. On the first day the dolls house would be measured, and the crate made that afternoon for the team to bring on the second day. The cost of the crate was £50. Click here to see a photo of starting to pack Each item is labelled and also has the packer’s initials written on it. This means that if there are problems on delivery, each box can be tracked back to the original packer. A shipping label is also affixed (not shown here) Click here to see a photo of labelling example Soon the house was filling up with boxes and the guys left at the end of the first day. Click here to see a photo of the house full of boxes The second day the team arrived early again and continued packing. Norman was confident about getting everything in the container; I encouraged the guys to use all available space by packing pillows inside drawers etc. You do need to watch this, they need reminding! The container was due at noon. We lived on a main-ish road. During the morning, as each car space outside was vacated, I placed a John Mason’s box in its spot to reserve the space. Click here to see a photo of reserving road space. Eventually one very elderly car remained. We did need it moved to make space for the container truck. Miraculously, it moved by itself, without any human intervention at all (your honour!). The container arrived, and for those who would like to know what the inside of an empty 20 foot container looks like – click here The team started to load the container. Click here to see a photo of part-loaded container After about three hours with some pauses for torrential rain, it was full. Note that the packers won’t load in torrential rain, they wait for it to ease to avoid damage. Click here to see a photo of full container The container was sealed, and I was asked to witness the seals being applied. No-one could now open it until Melbourne quarantine. We tracked the container on the internet, it took about 8 weeks all up. In the end the timing worked fine as we moved into our rental 3 days before the container arrived, and only spent 3 nights on airbeds with borrowed things (thank you Max and Sue!) The container arrived on a Monday morning, delivered by John Mason’s agents Kent. Of course it wasn’t the same container I had seen off in Ruislip, I presume the switch had happened at customs in Melbourne. Note the ramp leading off the container truck to assist unloading which I thought was a great idea. Click here to see a photo of container arriving in Mordialloc The container was unloaded gradually - Click here to see a photo of unloading the container And our garage started to fill with boxes and packing. Click here to see a photo of the garage filling with boxes The guys unwrapped everything they were asked to – we did want to keep some wrapping and boxes as we knew we would be moving again inside a year to a house we buy. The entire experience was very satisfactory. There were only two breakages that I have found. The first was a large mirror which was broken during the packing process by accident. I didn’t have to claim on insurance, John Mason’s subcontractors paid for that as it hadn’t even got into the container when it was broken. The other breakage was an elderly tree-pruning tool, which my Father-in-law has mended, so that’s all OK. Several boxes were inspected by quarantine. Kent requested about AU$350 from us before delivering the container for inspection fees, however no charge was made for cleaning. I hope this report is of help to someone, please fire away if you have any questions. Buzzy |
Re: Our shipping experience and photos Middlesex to Melbourne
Buzzy - Thank you for a great post. Amanda. :)
|
Re: Our shipping experience and photos Middlesex to Melbourne
Fantastic info and pics Buzzy:thumbup: Glad to hear 99,9% arrived safely. Our container coming in 2 weeks so its really useful to see how it works!
|
Re: Our shipping experience and photos Middlesex to Melbourne
Originally Posted by JoolsB
(Post 5205173)
Fantastic info and pics Buzzy:thumbup: Glad to hear 99,9% arrived safely. Our container coming in 2 weeks so its really useful to see how it works!
im gonna now contact john masons for a quote. :) |
Re: Our shipping experience and photos Middlesex to Melbourne
I had pictures like yours :D After the laptop was stolen last year all my photos from the previous 18 months went with it. A few months ago I found details of a photo box account and the only photos in there were our container ones:rofl:
Agreed about JM. Don't know if we had Norman though but the two we did have were brilliant. |
Re: Our shipping experience and photos Middlesex to Melbourne
Thanks for the great post. We've had John Mason in for a quote and will probably be going with them. Like you say people have good and bad experiences with all the shippers - S*** happens as they say!
Cheers, Janet |
Re: Our shipping experience and photos Middlesex to Melbourne
Brill post thanks.
Am in a bit of dilemma, had John Masons out was impressed and quoted £3425 for 20ft contaimer, then had Crown out who quoted £4895 for shared container , also impressed with them. When I told crown we had a quote from J.M he said there is no way that it would fit in 20ft, we then went through our stuff and after omitting our double bed, 2 wardrobes and 2 shelving units he said that would be ok and would be £3900 for a 20ft. Not sure who to believe now, any ideas? |
Re: Our shipping experience and photos Middlesex to Melbourne
Originally Posted by Buzzy--Bee
(Post 5205070)
This is the full report and photos of our shipping experience from Ruislip, Middlesex, UK to Mordialloc, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
We had quotes from several companies – PSS, Anglo Pacific, John Mason, Crown, and Robinson’s. We had heard good and bad experiences about all of these companies and had come to the conclusion that every company makes mistakes sometimes and every company delivers outstanding service sometimes. We eventually chose John Mason because they were competitive and because they gave the impression they actually wanted the business. They quoted us £3215 including £15 container cleaning insurance, which insures you against being charged to clean the container. This was for a 3 bedroom semi-detached house with a very full loft and garage! We were warned by the estimator that we were on the borderline for a 20 foot container and we needed to prioritise in case some things didn’t fit in. We did, however specify that we wanted Norman and his team as we had heard good reports about him from another forum member. We did however find out part way through the process that the packing teams are not employees of John Mason’s, they are subcontractors. The eventual arrangements were that the packing and container loading were going to take 2 days. Norman and two other chaps arrived the first day. Their first action was to ensure that our house was protected from people tramping in and out. Click here to see a photo of John Mason’s carpet protection Click here to see a photo of John Mason’s stair protection They then brought a lot of packing materials of all shapes and sizes in from their van and started to pack. I had requested that a custom crate be made for an irreplaceable antique dolls house made by my Great-Uncle for my Mother, and now belonging to our daughters. On the first day the dolls house would be measured, and the crate made that afternoon for the team to bring on the second day. The cost of the crate was £50. Click here to see a photo of starting to pack Each item is labelled and also has the packer’s initials written on it. This means that if there are problems on delivery, each box can be tracked back to the original packer. A shipping label is also affixed (not shown here) Click here to see a photo of labelling example Soon the house was filling up with boxes and the guys left at the end of the first day. Click here to see a photo of the house full of boxes The second day the team arrived early again and continued packing. Norman was confident about getting everything in the container; I encouraged the guys to use all available space by packing pillows inside drawers etc. You do need to watch this, they need reminding! The container was due at noon. We lived on a main-ish road. During the morning, as each car space outside was vacated, I placed a John Mason’s box in its spot to reserve the space. Click here to see a photo of reserving road space. Eventually one very elderly car remained. We did need it moved to make space for the container truck. Miraculously, it moved by itself, without any human intervention at all (your honour!). The container arrived, and for those who would like to know what the inside of an empty 20 foot container looks like – click here The team started to load the container. Click here to see a photo of part-loaded container After about three hours with some pauses for torrential rain, it was full. Note that the packers won’t load in torrential rain, they wait for it to ease to avoid damage. Click here to see a photo of full container The container was sealed, and I was asked to witness the seals being applied. No-one could now open it until Melbourne quarantine. We tracked the container on the internet, it took about 8 weeks all up. In the end the timing worked fine as we moved into our rental 3 days before the container arrived, and only spent 3 nights on airbeds with borrowed things (thank you Max and Sue!) The container arrived on a Monday morning, delivered by John Mason’s agents Kent. Of course it wasn’t the same container I had seen off in Ruislip, I presume the switch had happened at customs in Melbourne. Note the ramp leading off the container truck to assist unloading which I thought was a great idea. Click here to see a photo of container arriving in Mordialloc The container was unloaded gradually - Click here to see a photo of unloading the container And our garage started to fill with boxes and packing. Click here to see a photo of the garage filling with boxes The guys unwrapped everything they were asked to – we did want to keep some wrapping and boxes as we knew we would be moving again inside a year to a house we buy. The entire experience was very satisfactory. There were only two breakages that I have found. The first was a large mirror which was broken during the packing process by accident. I didn’t have to claim on insurance, John Mason’s subcontractors paid for that as it hadn’t even got into the container when it was broken. The other breakage was an elderly tree-pruning tool, which my Father-in-law has mended, so that’s all OK. Several boxes were inspected by quarantine. Kent requested about AU$350 from us before delivering the container for inspection fees, however no charge was made for cleaning. I hope this report is of help to someone, please fire away if you have any questions. Buzzy I was wondering what you thought of Mordialloc? It is on my short list of places to live. |
Re: Our shipping experience and photos Middlesex to Melbourne
Originally Posted by ShozInOz
(Post 5206140)
Hi
I was wondering what you thought of Mordialloc? It is on my short list of places to live. What a great post, we think we will only be needing a 20ft container, could i be nosey and ask how much stuff you took and fitted into the 20ft container?:) |
Re: Our shipping experience and photos Middlesex to Melbourne
Originally Posted by Katsmajics other half !!!
(Post 5206236)
What a great post, we think we will only be needing a 20ft container, could i be nosey and ask how much stuff you took and fitted into the 20ft container?:)
The packing guys say that when the estimator says its borderline that it will all fit in a 20 footer they almost always manage to fit it in. The estimators are often just covering themselves. Buzzy |
Re: Our shipping experience and photos Middlesex to Melbourne
Originally Posted by jobo
(Post 5205902)
Brill post thanks.
Am in a bit of dilemma, had John Masons out was impressed and quoted £3425 for 20ft contaimer, then had Crown out who quoted £4895 for shared container , also impressed with them. When I told crown we had a quote from J.M he said there is no way that it would fit in 20ft, we then went through our stuff and after omitting our double bed, 2 wardrobes and 2 shelving units he said that would be ok and would be £3900 for a 20ft. Not sure who to believe now, any ideas? Buzzy |
Re: Our shipping experience and photos Middlesex to Melbourne
Originally Posted by Buzzy--Bee
(Post 5206922)
Bring the double bed, leave the wardrobes. Almost all houses have fitted wardrobes in every bedroom.
Buzzy We are just in the process of getting quote and so will bear this in mind. Out of interest, the timing on the arrival of your container sounds perfect. I am sure a lot of people (including myself) have wondered how you managed this. Did you send your stuff off early, living in an empty house or live in furnished accomodation before your rental. Thanks John |
Re: Our shipping experience and photos Middlesex to Melbourne
Originally Posted by SafetyJohn
(Post 5210759)
Hi Buzzy
We are just in the process of getting quote and so will bear this in mind. Out of interest, the timing on the arrival of your container sounds perfect. I am sure a lot of people (including myself) have wondered how you managed this. Did you send your stuff off early, living in an empty house or live in furnished accomodation before your rental. Thanks John We spent 5 weeks getting to Oz via Mexico, where its quite cheap to "hole-up" and then stayed 4 weeks with friends in Oz before moving into our rental. Buzzy |
Re: Our shipping experience and photos Middlesex to Melbourne
Originally Posted by Buzzy--Bee
(Post 5205070)
This is the full report and photos of our shipping experience from Ruislip, Middlesex, UK to Mordialloc, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
We had quotes from several companies – PSS, Anglo Pacific, John Mason, Crown, and Robinson’s. We had heard good and bad experiences about all of these companies and had come to the conclusion that every company makes mistakes sometimes and every company delivers outstanding service sometimes. We eventually chose John Mason because they were competitive and because they gave the impression they actually wanted the business. They quoted us £3215 including £15 container cleaning insurance, which insures you against being charged to clean the container. This was for a 3 bedroom semi-detached house with a very full loft and garage! We were warned by the estimator that we were on the borderline for a 20 foot container and we needed to prioritise in case some things didn’t fit in. We did, however specify that we wanted Norman and his team as we had heard good reports about him from another forum member. We did however find out part way through the process that the packing teams are not employees of John Mason’s, they are subcontractors. The eventual arrangements were that the packing and container loading were going to take 2 days. Norman and two other chaps arrived the first day. Their first action was to ensure that our house was protected from people tramping in and out. Click here to see a photo of John Mason’s carpet protection Click here to see a photo of John Mason’s stair protection They then brought a lot of packing materials of all shapes and sizes in from their van and started to pack. I had requested that a custom crate be made for an irreplaceable antique dolls house made by my Great-Uncle for my Mother, and now belonging to our daughters. On the first day the dolls house would be measured, and the crate made that afternoon for the team to bring on the second day. The cost of the crate was £50. Click here to see a photo of starting to pack Each item is labelled and also has the packer’s initials written on it. This means that if there are problems on delivery, each box can be tracked back to the original packer. A shipping label is also affixed (not shown here) Click here to see a photo of labelling example Soon the house was filling up with boxes and the guys left at the end of the first day. Click here to see a photo of the house full of boxes The second day the team arrived early again and continued packing. Norman was confident about getting everything in the container; I encouraged the guys to use all available space by packing pillows inside drawers etc. You do need to watch this, they need reminding! The container was due at noon. We lived on a main-ish road. During the morning, as each car space outside was vacated, I placed a John Mason’s box in its spot to reserve the space. Click here to see a photo of reserving road space. Eventually one very elderly car remained. We did need it moved to make space for the container truck. Miraculously, it moved by itself, without any human intervention at all (your honour!). The container arrived, and for those who would like to know what the inside of an empty 20 foot container looks like – click here The team started to load the container. Click here to see a photo of part-loaded container After about three hours with some pauses for torrential rain, it was full. Note that the packers won’t load in torrential rain, they wait for it to ease to avoid damage. Click here to see a photo of full container The container was sealed, and I was asked to witness the seals being applied. No-one could now open it until Melbourne quarantine. We tracked the container on the internet, it took about 8 weeks all up. In the end the timing worked fine as we moved into our rental 3 days before the container arrived, and only spent 3 nights on airbeds with borrowed things (thank you Max and Sue!) The container arrived on a Monday morning, delivered by John Mason’s agents Kent. Of course it wasn’t the same container I had seen off in Ruislip, I presume the switch had happened at customs in Melbourne. Note the ramp leading off the container truck to assist unloading which I thought was a great idea. Click here to see a photo of container arriving in Mordialloc The container was unloaded gradually - Click here to see a photo of unloading the container And our garage started to fill with boxes and packing. Click here to see a photo of the garage filling with boxes The guys unwrapped everything they were asked to – we did want to keep some wrapping and boxes as we knew we would be moving again inside a year to a house we buy. The entire experience was very satisfactory. There were only two breakages that I have found. The first was a large mirror which was broken during the packing process by accident. I didn’t have to claim on insurance, John Mason’s subcontractors paid for that as it hadn’t even got into the container when it was broken. The other breakage was an elderly tree-pruning tool, which my Father-in-law has mended, so that’s all OK. Several boxes were inspected by quarantine. Kent requested about AU$350 from us before delivering the container for inspection fees, however no charge was made for cleaning. I hope this report is of help to someone, please fire away if you have any questions. Buzzy |
Re: Our shipping experience and photos Middlesex to Melbourne
What a great post. Thank you.
|
| All times are GMT. The time now is 1:16 pm. |
Powered by vBulletin: ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.