agentred

Hey folks,

I vastly underestimated my shopping habit this year and now that I'm moving from the UK to NYC there's no way everything will fit into one or two checked suitcases.

I've searched some of the freight threads here but all the companies listed are quoting 200cubic ft/400cf/a huge pallet - I'm nowhere near that - or they're doing luggage forwarding which isn't that cheap. Is there a reliable service in the middle?

Basically, the airline gives me one free bag, charges 70EUR for one additional bag and 200EUR for each bag after that.

I checked Luggage Forward and they were charging $235 for each bag, so that isn't any cheaper. Is there a service that I can just give a few large cardboard boxes (maybe 3 boxes of 75cmx75cmtx75cm) to and have them send everything via boat?

EDIT: Okay I think Luggage Forward and similar services aren't right, but rather Groupage as listed on this BE article (http://britishexpats.com/articles/mo...hods-shipping/). I've lined up the following companies to call tomorrow to ask about this, with some comments, if anybody has any further suggestions or specific things to ask for that would be appreciated!

Pickfords: No idea about price, but they have a local office which is reassuring
Excess Baggage Company: Seems like the best bet so far, £177 for 40kg or £297 for 80kg, but I'll need to check if this is per box or in aggregate- any ideas?
Bournes: Specifically mention Groupage on their site but no idea about rates
All Freight Packing: Somebody on BE mentioned them but they seem like a fairly small operation, raising concerns in case anything goes wrong.


Many thanks,
AR

thommo7879

Hi AR.

Looks like we're in the same boat as you.
We're moving from the UK to Florida in aout 4 weeks time and have to ship approx 8 x suitcases.
Like you the Airline gives us one free case, then its something like £65 for the second, then £140 for the 3rd.
What a rip off.
We're thinking of getting family members to bring over some of the extra cases for us at the £65 rate, but would much prefer to have everything over at the same time.
Please let me know if you manage to get any decent quotes

Speedwell

Can either of you work something out with the company you work with to ship your boxes under their account at their commercial rate? I am fortunate enough to work with a multinational corporation and I have heard of them doing this on occasion, sometimes with an agreement to be reimbursed by the employee.

thommo7879

Can't do that unfortunately Speedwell as I'm giving up my job to go and live in the US.
I've just found a company called transglobalexpress who seem to use UPS for their shipping.
It looks like they even pick the items up from your door in the UK, and their prices for a standard 23kg case the same size that you would check in at the airport compares with the £65 2nd checked bag fee the airlines charge.
You would obviously save more money depending on how many cases you ship, however this seems like a lot less hassle to me, and i'm going to contact them on their live chat when it comes back online.
Seems easier to get them to collect and drop off the cases, rather than take them to the airport, unload, and then transport them to your destination?

elizabethsmum

Hi I am in the same situation we are moving in March hopefully from the UK to Upstate NY, I have photos albums a dvd case and another suitcase I have got a few quotes but I think that we are going to go with Excess Baggage they have been brilliant and seems so cheap! When we send 1 box to America by the Royal mail it costs close to what I have been quoted to send a whole tote!
I am just scared I will lose my pictures because they are not something I can replace.

Ozzidoc

http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Shipping_Via_Airfreight

based on

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=629133

thommo7879

Looks to me like parcelhero is the way to go for us.
They have 1742 reviews on the trustpilot website, and have an overall rating of 9.6/10.
http://www.trustpilot.co.uk/review/www.parcelhero.com
They use DHL, UPS, and FEDEX.

Pulaski

Most residential movers should be able to accommodate a small number of boxes. We used Allfreight International Removals Ltd, 52-54 Hamm Moor Lane, Addlestone, surrey, KT15 2SD, when we moved, and our household shipment took up about 90% of a 20ft container, with the balance being filled with about 8 other small shipments.