TMRE

We only applied in August so got a while to go yet, but just after some quick advice. Sold some furniture to my brother but still have quite a lot of stuff to ship out when we go. I am in the middle of sorting out the house for sale and just wondering if I should take down any "flat packed" furniture. I think we will probably end with a 40ft container as there is quite a bit of stuff to go, but if I can get away with leaving stuff together it would be a lot better!. Before anyone says is it cheap flat packed stuff, no it's not, well not cheap enough to dump and buy again
Also is it to early to get a quote from shippers. We know what it coming with us and as we are hoping that the house will sell soon, most of the stuff is out of cupboards and rooms are tidy. If we sell and move we will need to put stuff in storage which will make it harder to get a quote.
Thanks
Tam

JoolsB

Not sure about the flatpack question but re shippers-they usually like to quote about 2-3 months prior to your departure and then for you to instruct them minimum a month before.

Worth remembering is if your stuff is packed by you and put in storage it wont be covered by their insurance as it has to be packed by the shippers i.e. otherwise in their eyes they could be blamed for stuff that was already broken.

I would probably speak to shipping companies about storing with them. You could do what we've done & ship ahead & have your stuff stored in Aus (half the cost of UK)-however you would need your visa to be able to do this as they ask for a copy of it before shipping. Really your options depend on whether you complete on your sale before or after you have the visa..

My 20ft container cost £3200 which was the best quote I got (contents of 1 bed flat-3/4 full) so you will probably be looking IRO minimum £5K for a 40ft I guess.

Hope that helps a bit

mum01753

White & co can give you a months free storage this side.

I think your best bet is once you have a date to get out of the house get the shipping co round they will advise you and get them to pack and store every thing then you will be covered by insurance and it will save you a lot of work!

Clara W

Hi

I have had three quotes now and they all said different things but I gained knowledge from each visit! Quotes range from £2,999 to £4,300. Don't be afraid to get quotes the more you know the better.

Re the flat pack it depends on what it is. The last shipper said don't bother taking drawers / units apart but yes to bigger things that would leave much more space in the container (beds etc). It also depends on the height of some of my units for the container.

Good luck!

sals

Didn't take apart any of my flat pack stuff! They didn't even empty the drawers in the chests of bedroom drawers, just had to list what was in each drawer and they taped the drawers shut and wrapped them as they were. They even wrapped my cross trainer fully assembled even though it comes apart easily. It was hilarious seeing it all wrapped and packed it looked like a strange shaped horse! I used Crown by the way and as I mkoved out of my house end of June and don't go til Jan my stuff's been in storage. Negotiated 3 months free and then it's been just over £100 a month since. It's a damned sight cheaper than my mortgage lol but I'm lucky to be living rent free at me parents!

worzel

We flat packed beds and a couple of small things. Of the rest the shippers demolished 2 pieces, one in transit, one when they tried to put it back together this end (I still don't know why they were getting involved in that as they were desparate to dump our stuff and run).

TMRE

Thanks for the replies. Flat pack stuff is chest of drawers, bedside cabinets, tall 7ft bookcase's and cd towers etc. May have to give some a call as what we will be taking depends on costs ( may tell them we are hoping to go in a couple of months). Will will be moving from a 5 bed into a 3 bed rented with no garage so will have to store stuff or sell it now, otherwise will have to be repacked by shippers. Only taking washing machine and tumble dryer white goods. Metal frame double bed and superking size that flatpacks as well. May take kingsize divan if we can get it in. Trouble is we have 2x 3 seater and 2x 2 seater sofa's to take so will eat into the space a bit. Still cheaper to ship it all though as most stuff is less than 18 months old.

Buzzy--Bee

Moderately adequate thread on shipping with John Mason here -

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=474957

Buzzy

Wheeler-Jones

Hi there - I work for a shipping company - I won't name drop it so know its an unbiased opinion.

You will save on volume if you flat pack the furniture, however if you are planning on sending a full container it make not make a great deal of difference and be in vain if you have paid space left over. Also, most companies will not insure if you dismantle yourself. Some companies include basic dismantling, ie legs off tables, beds - they tend to avoid touching any IKEA type stuff as this is so flimsy it's almost always going to be damaged in some way.

I note someone else had the stuff shipping already in the furniture. Our company does not do this - it packs the goods in cartons. While this does increase the volume (and no doubt the profit) I personally feel this is better for customs purposes and tracking in the event of any claims. ie you ship 10 cartons, you expect 10 cartons, you ship one wardrobe full of stuff, how much stuff is in there?

Whether it gets reassemble at the other end does depend on the time allowed - often I hear that the crew didn't get to it so I wouldn't be surprised as often the delivering companies are not aware things need reassembing. Ask the consultant in the initial survey to request this if concerned (and if they are dismantling).

I would suggest no more than 6 months in advance, but you will generally need a revisit closer to the move date. Ideally 2-3 months is a good time frame, and at least 3 weeks.

Good luck