Alexandra

Let's discuss 'warts and all' about shipping companies we are using, might be helpful for all of us. I'll start: when we were moving to Canada (no furniture, just books and household effects), we used Gulf International, wasn't that great. First, their boxes were too big to pack books and when it all arrived in Calgary (air freight), some boxes were damaged. Now we are using Allied International, so far so good. They advised on the best size boxes to use, packing, arrived dead on time to pick up the boxes, very helpful customer service (I am using Vancouver office). They were even willing to hold on to our stuff for longer if the house wouldn't be sold (no charge for storage).

JayJay

We used Forward Cargo, to ship our stuff to Former Soviet Union because they specialised in that Region. Their price was good and they gave good feedback.
However problems with Customs etc at the Russian end meant that it wasn't financially worthwhile to ship a Container back to UK.
The total cost would have been more than our stuff was worth, So we just took what we could carry in six suitcases.
Saved ourselves a huge amount of time, hassle and money and it was also quite liberating getting rid of all the junk we had accumulated over the Years

honeymommy

I have just had a couple of quotes to ship our stuff from California to UK. 40 foot container and everything packed for us, we don't have to lift a finger... It will cost $6000 and the only other expense will be customs in UK. We have been told that will probably only be about 300 pounds as it is home furnishings.

Considering our bed alone cost $2000 we definately will ship... Our 4 kids won't lose all their stuff this way either.

Anyone have any idea about UK customs fees?

Alexandra

don't know about UK customs fees yet, will post as soon as I'll find out. I forgot to mention the costs in my previous posting. To ship the same amount from UK on air freight cost us about 1000 pounds. From Calgary to UK (by sea) about 2000 dollars.

babsi

I live in a 2 bedroom flat here and we have the usual stuff here, could we fit everything in a 20ft container, and could someone give me an average price of the cost?

honeymommy

My friend said she had the usual stuff for a 3 bed house. I have a 3 bed house also but have about a quarter of what she has in hers. SO it depends on what your usual stuff is

Suggestion... measure one of your rooms to get an idea of the size of a container and then see if you could fitt all your stuff in that. You don't actually have to put it in there LOL:scared: but just measure out the big stuff then estimate the rest.

If you contact a shipping company, they will ask you to do a list of items and can then tell you what size you need, but be careful as some do overestimate for the extra cash.

bromleygirl

I just had a rep round yesterday from Allied - he is going to get back to me with a quote soon.

When I looked into moving a couple of years ago I was told it wasn't so much weight but space that is the issue with shipping. When I spoke to the Allied rep re my sectional couch with a queen sofa sleeper in it he stated that weight was an issue and that maybe I should not take it.

I'm confused I think I'm going to get another couple of companies in to compare.

Alexandra

Now why did you have to do that, honeymommy? Now we will miss exceptional account about how babsi moved all her furniture in one room and then had to move it all back. Could have been fun. Sorry, babsi, it's just moving and packing is so stressful, all you can do is laugh about it.

honeymommy

Tee Hee.... (devillish giggle)

OMG.... Can you imagine doing that.... Actually my kids would have loved trying it just for the chaos..... lol

Stress of moving...... Oh yeah I know it so well.... Moving from UK to USA we decided to sell or throw everything and arrived in USA with 14 suitcases 2 car seats 1 twin stroller and a travel cot. Worldly belongings of hubby, myself and 4 kids.....
The poor porter at the airport struggled like hell getting the huge trolley round the corners, and I was so stressed out and tired that I forgot to tip him.......
Not to mention that the medication the doctor gave me for the kids (6,4,2&2 at that time)to put them to sleep on the plane actually made them all hyper so they were awake for almost 28 hours!!!!!!!!

SO.....

If we do have to go back to the UK i have allready got the shipping quote of $6000 and they do EVERYTHING woohoo!!!

Should there be any problems and we do have to sell everything then open house it is. At least the kids are older and can help. Plus it is easier to sell stuff in US.... yard/garage sales etc.....

God I remember the car boot sales we did back in uk... poor hubby tring to fit as much as he could in our old 7 series BMW, then driving off with the bottom of the car almost dragging on the road.... lol

Nevi

As far as the actual shipping part (on the vessel) goes, weight is not an issue. I somehow doubt that your sofa could weight as much as a car, or a flat-rack of metal (of course if it does weigh a few tonnes, then there could be additional charges - due to slot allocation on the vessel). I can't think of any reason relating to the sea-transport part of the trip where weight should be a deciding factor.

dunroving

I *think* weight is an issue if you are not shipping a full container. If they are flat-packing/shrink-wrapping your shipment, rather than just shoving everything into your own container, the rules are a bit different (and the cost is greater, relatively speaking)

honeymommy

Did a search and found this if it helps anyone..

Less Than Container Load is Known as LCL

This is a method of shipping when you do not have enough cargo to utilize a complete container. Your cargo will be shipped in one (1) container with other people's shipments. It is a shared space. You must pay attention to the packaging of your goods for this method since it will be handled in the consolidation warehouse for packing of the container. The weight and dimensions of your shipment are necessary as ocean pricing is based on volume (per cubic meter/or cubic foot, not to exceed 45 pounds per square foot). Weight and classification is used to figure the trucking transportation to the port. The cargo is then taken to a consolidation warehouse to ready for departure.

Full Container Load is Known as FCL

This is a method of shipping when you have enough cargo to utilize the complete container. Even though you have a full container load, 45 pounds per square foot up to a maximum of 40,000 pounds is per container, must be followed. You cannot load a container at a port. You will incur an intermodal trucking charge to you to have a container brought to where you can load your cargo and the driver will wait until you have packed the container. Usually you have 2 to 3 hours to load your cargo and then it is returned to the port for shipping. There are other arrangements that can be made for packing and your Freight Agent at FreightForwarding.com can consult with you regarding this aspect.

The advantage of being able to use a full container load (FCL) is that the container is sealed after you finish loading and no one will touch your cargo until you reopen it at it's destination. Customs is the only one who might open the container to inspect for clearance. The originator of the cargo is responsible to know that the cargo can be legally accepted and taxes have to be paid at that appropriate destination.

General Information For Decision Making

The most common containers used in ocean freight are the 20 foot and 40 foot standard containers. They are used for shipping by road and by ocean. The standard container is used because they can be easily stacked. These containers offer the lowest cost to business and the consumer in shipping large quantities or high weight content cargo. The interior dimensions of each 20 foot or 40 foot container is:

20-ft standard container: 19'5" long x 7'8" wide x 7'9" high

40-ft standard container: 39'6" long x 7'8" wide x 7'9" high

"All services are affected by weather and the ability of the carrier to perform their duty."

Here's the link... http://www.freightforwarding.com/seaintro.html