Shipping household goods prior to move
 

Hi there.

I'm on a K1 visa (fiancé) in the UK and am moving to the US mid-Jan. I've been in touch with a local removals company as I want to ship out my DVDs, books, etc (not much furniture or anything) although the person in question appears to want to collect it this Monday (12th December). Obviously this is extremely early from what I can see, but he mentioned it would go by boat and so I suppose that could take weeks and weeks.

However what I wanted to know is what happens if it arrives before I do? I know it's not supposed to but does anybody know what would then happen? Is it worth asking him to wait until the end of December before continuing? Any help appreciated as I've just never done this before (even in the UK!).

Re: Shipping household goods prior to move
 

Hi there

We shipped all our belongings to the US last week. It seems shipping is not an exact science, and most companies will provide you with a window rather than a date. There are a number of factors that affect the timings.

Our removals firm needed 72 hours notice to book transport to take our container to the port. The ship then did not sail for another 2 days. The shipping itself can take anywhere between 2-3 weeks depending on weather.

When it arrives in the US, I understand it can either breeze through customs, or attract some interest. If you are not here, you then have the option to store your belongings in the US. However, our removals firm quoted us a much higher price to store per week in the US compared to the UK (where the first month was free). Overall, we were given best and worst case scenarios by our removals firm which ranged from between 3-6 weeks. They may have been over-cautious to cover their backs.

In the end, we have ended up renting a furnished apartment over here by the day (not a cheap option), to give ourselves a few weeks to find a house and for our furniture to arrive.

Good luck!

Re: Shipping household goods prior to move
 

I was told by my shipping company that for customs reasons the person whose name was on the invoice (in our case, me the USC) had to be in the US when the shipment arrived. This was in 2009 so perhaps things have changed.

Our stuff was collected in London on 30 November. We FINALLY got a final quote on the cost on 9 December, the same day we were leaving the country. Paid that via credit card on the phone, if I recall correctly, but it still didn't ship till after Christmas, and got to Oregon (a port in California, really) in early to mid February.

Re: Shipping household goods prior to move
 

We were told the exact same thing when we moved from the UK to the US this past summer, i.e. August 2011, that our earthly goods were not allowed to arrive in the US *before* we arrived. Since we had already arranged to travel for a month after leaving the UK, this meant we had to tell the moving company to store the goods in the UK for that month.

Re: Shipping household goods prior to move
 

Well, apparently he's still coming on the 12th December to pack it here in the UK and is sending it via boat on the 16th, even though I don't arrive until the 14th of Jan. I don't know why he's not waiting until nearer the time as I'd rather be definitely there beforehand than cutting it close. I asked what happens if it gets there before I do and he said it'd be stored, but he made no mention of price and didn't seem to think I'd be charged, though he's calling the company on Monday. I also thought I'd need to mail the company copies of my I-94 and stamped (or written on, whatever) visa rather than just the pre-America one, but he doesn't seem to indicate so. I don't know, all seems a little odd to me.

Re: Shipping household goods prior to move
 

Sounds a bit of a dodgy removals company to me, at least for the international part. Have you researched the name of the agent at the US end?

Re: Shipping household goods prior to move
 

Should not you, as the customer, be stating what will happen? Who is paying who on this? :confused:

Re: Shipping household goods prior to move
 

When we shipped our stuff back here (a full 40ft container though) the removal company stored it until we told them when we needed it and they took it from there. It is cheaper to store in the UK as said previously. When we went to the UK our container arrived and the agents were not told and we got stuck for £600 demurrage fees. Someone dropped the ball but we were the ones that had to pay.
I would get more details about all the logistics if I were you. It all sounds a bit dodgy and the last thing you need is someone refusing to hand it all over until you pay more money. It happens.

Re: Shipping household goods prior to move
 

If the removals company doesn't have an answer or have any idea, that's probably a clue to avoid using them.

You'll get pounded with unknown charges at this rate as there will be service charges etc.

Anyway, if you're sending so little, why not parcel up the dvd/books and slow boat mail it in the post and the other stuff, pallet up and ship it with a parcel company.

Re: Shipping household goods prior to move
 

Hi,

I am also moving from the UK to the US next year on a K1 visa. Have you looked at Parcel Monkey? It is a cheaper way to send items. I'm going to use them I think as I have lot of books and a few paintings.

Good Luck with the move!

Ellen