Hi,

Can anyone recommend any shipping companies.

When I first moved to Aus in 2001 I used to read this forum a lot and, although I didn't need shipping then, I heard lots of bad comments about certain companies that actually stick in my head.

So now I'm looking for some more up-to-date comments, mainly around reliability rather than how cheap they were (although that's a good comment too).

Can you help?

Cheers,
Nick

Hi,

Whatever recommendations you get, you should still try to get a handful of quotes from different companies (best if they swing by your place to do an estimate) before committing.

And then do check all offers to make sure they include the important bits, so that you are comparing like-for-like (shipping, local customs check, end delivery with no funny extra charges, etc.).

This industry thrives on people moving with their employer covering all charges. So for the most part they are not competitive, and when you tell them your corporation has given you a $10k budget the quote will miraculously come to $9,900. You must let them know straight away if this is a personal move that you will be paying for out of your own pocket. Also ask them on ways to lower the cost, etc. Make they feel that you are trying to make this as low cost as possible.

Are you looking for shippers Uk - Aus, Aus-UK, interstate, or some other combination?

D'oh, good point.

UK to Australia

:-)

This might help http://britishexpats.com/forum/overs...ompany-851592/

It covers some tips on how to find, compare and select a reputable international removal company. Hope it is useful!

Thanks for this. I finally have got round to reading it. Still no recommendations from anyone though! :-(

We used John Mason and they were good and reliable in 2010.

http://www.johnmason.com/moving-serv...s/toaustralia/

Most of the regulars moved a while go so our recommendations may be out of date. Not that I would recommend my shippers to anyone anyway

Hi Nick,

This is our experience-

Moved UK to Melbourne in May 2012 and used Pickfords (employer paid so I didn't see a bill but I know it was relatively expensive). They were fantastic though and very easy to deal with. Everything was smooth, they came and packed everything up and 3 weeks later it arrived in Melbourne having been air freighted. I was extremely satisfied.

Six weeks ago we left Melbourne for good and have used Across the Ocean Shipping to move our stuff back (recommended through a friend). We've had it shipped though and I just received a call this morning to say the boxes are in the UK and ready to be delivered to us. So we haven't finished the process and fingers crossed the boxes get delivered in one piece but so far so good with Across the Ocean!

I should add though that we had a fully furnished place in Melbourne so we didn't ship any big furniture pieces just a heap of clothes, shoes and general stuff (like boyfriend's playstation!)

Not sure if this helps but happy to answer any specific questions if I can!

Good luck

Sarah

Thanks everyone for your messages.

All lots of help.

Nick

Hi Nick,

Just to close out my post. Our shipping arrived yesterday morning first thing so it took about 2 months door to door. Our stuff arrived in good condition and I would definitely recommend the service from Across the Ocean. They've been extremely easy to deal with and have kept in constant communication.

Good luck with the move!