andie

my hubby is a mechanic, with lots of tools, we are hoping to ship them over, when weve cleaned the grease off!!!!! has anyone had experience shipping stuff like this, they are very heavy, do they go buy weight?? will everything need to be unlocked ready for inspection?????

SteveBannister

All my tools are being sent as part of our household shipment. It all gets included as part of our container. I'll be 8 weeks without them, but it will take us that long to settle and find work anyway.

yafm

Do these tools of the trade have the same problems in customs and immigration as garden tools and furniture and cycles. Do we have to steam clan and disinfect everything before the packers do their stuff?:scared: :scared:

SteveBannister

It all depends. If you are are gardener, then yes. I'm an electrician, so my tools are clean. (Apprentice does all the work!) There is no point in taking general garden tools as gardens are much bigger and grass is coarser. It would be like trying to cut your own grass with nail clippers. Tools of the trde on the whole though normally have no problems. We've had four shipping companies round to give us quotes and all have said there will be no problems.

Steve.

yafm

Thanks steve as a plumber for 48 years my tools are old and well worn but of course!!! perfectly clean

leanda

My brother took all the kids bikes and garden toys etc over to Brisbane, spent days cleaning them and hired a steam cleaner and they were like brand new before they left uk. But when the dockers opened the container they claimed that for him to get them back they would all need to be cleaned again, for which he would be charged for (apparently a bonus scam for all dishonest dock workers allegedly) of course he declined their kind offer of handing over another 400 dollars and so lost all the outdoor garden toys and bikes, so we are not even going to bother, don't know if this is a common problem, but expats over there said ito him ts something that is known about and does happen.

jaz

Could you tell me how much we are looking at spending on shipping to Australia.

etlniwd

I migrated to Australia a couple of months ago and shipped one 20ft container with Pickfords. I had to pay $370 for Quarantine Inspection when it arrived - although nothing had to be treated.

The quarantine people will look at the packing list that the removal firm create when they pack your stuff i.e. the list of cardboard boxes and what each one contains. They will then open every box/package that falls into a certain category. Looking at the ticks on my list I can see that they opened :

• Xmas decorations
• Garden tools
• Garden furniture
• Plant pots
• Shoes
• Bikes
• Anything that could have been used near animals e.g. riding gear
• Any wooden furniture
• And finally but most important - ANYTHING that you packed yourself

They didn't open any of my (non-garden) tools packages and I had quite a lot of those.

Just make sure that you get the packers to pack them and label the boxes themselves. I don't think weight is an issue at all. Don't bother to clean the grease off - it will help protect against the sea air.

Rossi

most importantly you will need a comprehensive list for insurance purposes.
A friend of mine shipped all his work tools and a tool box complete with tools disappeared, the insurance company paid out around £20 (the value of the toolbox itself), so be warned !

mashiraz

etlniwd, where did the inspection take place, was it at point of docking or arrival for unpacking. Did they unpack and repack? Will the remove put all risk items nearest the doors (in last?)

I'd like to understand this more.
Thanks
Mash...

baldbutts

Apprentice ?-in this day n age? Are you trying to put us all out of work ?
My tools are still in the selophane from 1989-scared of getting em dirty!Besides all I do is look under the old dears mattresses then escort em to the cashpoint after quoting £600 quid for a c.u change.

BB-honest as the winters arctic day is long

etlniwd

Well, despite the removal firms telling you that they pack the container at your house, seal it in your presence, and then unseal it in your presence; this was not the case with me.

In England they packed everything into a lorry at my home. It was then taken to their local depot where they unloaded it and put it into storage. When the ship was ready to sail they reloaded it into a container and drove it down to the docks. When it arrived in Australia the container was driven to the local Brisbane depot (about 15 miles away from the port). It stayed there for three weeks until the quarantine inspectors turned up. It was then inspected and emptied. The boxes were then reloaded into a hire truck which was then driven to my new address in Brisbane. So, plenty of scope for damage and theft.

I ended up with a destroyed coffee table, garden pots, wine glasses, and mixing bowl. The metal cabinet that contained my nails and screws had also suffered minor water damage (rust). Luckily these items were of no significant value to me and the things I was really worried about (the PC, TV, and paintings) arrived unscathed.

Just make sure that you are clever with the insurance. The premium is anything between 1% and 3.5% of
your valuation. It's a good idea to overvalue things that are likely to get damaged and to undervalue the rest. That way your overall valuation will average out to be about right (to cover for total loss of the container).

I still maintain that the whole insurance thing is a complete rip off though. You need to do it because shippers are subject to some archaic international law that makes them immune from prosecution for damage. The whole thing stinks.

yafm

Ain't that the truth

marknclaire

we're just starting to think about this subject, is anyone willing to post a few do's/donts, any general hints not already mentioned here? thanks for anyone's help in advance. Also any bad/good experience with specific providers, costs etc?

mr mover

Your husbands tools will be ok, steel band the tool boxes ,so they dont come open , if Q decided there is somthing unusual they will call in customs and the sniffer dogs , they will cut the locks off, just read your AQIS PAPERS that you should get from ,oz house or your agent............... MM