I'm trying to guesstimate what it's going to cost to move our stuff (hardly any furniture, just "things") from the UK to the US. I've only had one quote back so far, in the region of £1900 - does this sound about right? (It wasn't clear whether this included packing or not, but it should have been for door-to-door.)
Has anyone got a rough idea of the costs?
Shipping & removal companies tend to price the transportation of items being sent overseas by weight (no I don't know why!).
First of all there will be a difference in price depending on whether or not you are going to the East Coast or West Coast.
You need to definitely make sure that any quotes you get verify whether or not packing and packing materials are included. Insurance is essential - is this included? What about clearance through customs - and any costs incurred whilst awaiting customs clearance? (We had to list the value of each item we shipped here....which was a pain in the neck). Costs can be reduced if you can share a container with another person who is moving to the US - the container is blocked off seperately & securely - shipping companies like to maximize all space and don't want to transport a container half full of air; ask the removal company about this.
You haven't provided much info but 1900 GBP isn't really that high....get at least three quotes and get everything in writing. Also take photos or video anything you are shipping; it saves disputes if you need to make an insurance claim later.
You can get info and tips on packing for international moves here
http//www.crownworldwide.com (yes they do ship from the UK).
If you truly do have a small amount of goods to ship, try finding out how much excess baggage is when you fly over.
Also have you heard of the DHL jumbo boxes? You pay a flat rate for boxes which they provide (I think the max weight in each box is 88lbs but you pay a flat fee for the first 55lb and then they charge extra for each pound over that)...go to http//www.dhl.com and do a search for "Jumbo boxes".
I've no idea personally (our move cost over £20,000!), but I'm sure someone here will be able to help you.
It's important to know whether it includes packing or not, as this is one of the major costs. The packing standards for international are higher than domestic, as you can imagine.
Is it going by air or sea?
How far does it have to travel in the UK (I can see that it would be 400 mi if you are using London terminal), and how far in the US (assuming it will arrive in Baltimore or New York)?
£1900 doesn't sound too bad for a full-service move, but I'm sure you could work out a way of bringing the cost down if you really needed to.
We've just moved our stuff - in fact, its due to arrive next week, but was packed off beginning of June.
Sent from Liverpool to San Jose, CA - so about as far as you can get.
It was shipped in a container into LA and will be trucked up here, unpacked and all materials taken away.
We also had the company pack in Liverpool as it was better for insurance purposes.
Item were mainly boxes of bits & pieces - about 15 in total. Plus a bed, a dining table and 6 chairs, a large sideboard and some wall pictures/mirrors.
This shipper went by square footage not weight and it came to 1400 gbp including insurance. (they only operate out of Liverpool)
It cost us 3,000 pounds. that was nearly 4 years ago. We didn't have furniture to move either. But we did have a computer and bikes.
The reason why it goes on weight is to do with the taxes for imports and exports.
the best advice I could give is like Dawn said and get at least 3 quotes. One of them being from Allied Pickfords, part of Pickfords UK. They are very competitive when it comes to international moves so this would give you a good basis to go on. they are also very thorough. they gave us some great tips that other companies never mentioned.
Get them to do the packing for you. It gives you less problems at this end with customs. Apparently customs are more likely to open the container with your stuff in it if you have packed it yourself. It also gives you more guarantees with insurance etc.
With you not having a full container, it can take longer for your stuff to get here, because the company will wait until the container is full before shipping it. If it isn't a big company that could take a while.
Another thing to consider, as Dawn touched on, is your baggage allowance. when moving abroad, some airlines provide you with extra bagging allowance at no extra cost.
Is your company paying for your move, or giving you any allowances for your move? If so, it could be worth getting rid of stuff you don't really want to keep and buy new over here.
I left some of our stuff back in the UK and every time relatives came to visit, they put some of it in their suitcases and brought it over with them. Now we have everything here.
Cost us about 600 quid I think.
Again, no furniture, and we packed ourselves.
We were charged by volume though, not weight.
It took about two weeks to get hear, then we had to go and pick it up from the docks.
Obviously, if you're not a cheapskate, and want someone to deliver it door to door, its going to cost you grin
On 2002-08-13 15:50, Ben wrote:
Another thing to consider, as Dawn touched on, is your baggage allowance. when moving abroad, some airlines provide you with extra bagging allowance at no extra cost.
Cautionary note
The increase in free baggage may be true, but a one way ticket is usually more expensive than a round trip ticket (sometimes in excess of twice the round trip). Often in the fine print there is a clause that you cannot buy a round trip ticket for a one way flight. Indicating that you are emigrating on a round trip ticket may void that ticket and you will be charged the full one way ticket price which would probably exceed the excess baggage charges
Thanks for all the replies so far!
The sort of things we're shipping are
clothes
linens (sheets, towels, etc.)
books (am being ruthless!)
CDs
DVDs
misc kitchen equipment
china & crystal (not huge amounts)
king size mattress
computer desk
computer chair
I'm aware that air shipments are charged by weight and sea shipments charged by volume.
We're hardly taking any furniture - most of it's not worth taking. We'll be making full use of the 64kg pp baggage allowance any way - hopefully we can get most of the clothes and immediate essentials through that way.
Hope you don't mind me asking, but why are you bringing over a kingsize mattress? Apart from the obvious to sleep on! lol
Because it's almost new, very good quality and very expensive. It'll last years.
The base, however, is not worth bringing (old).
On 2002-08-14 14:01, licon wrote:
Because it's almost new, very good quality and very expensive. It'll last years.
The base, however, is not worth bringing (old).
I would check that you can get a base to fit before you pay to bring the mattress over, unless you are good at carpentry -beds are generally different sizes here, in my experience.
On 2002-08-15 22:51, monster wrote:
On 2002-08-14 14:01, licon wrote:
Because it's almost new, very good quality and very expensive. It'll last years.
The base, however, is not worth bringing (old).
I would check that you can get a base to fit before you pay to bring the mattress over, unless you are good at carpentry -beds are generally different sizes here, in my experience.
I was just going to say the same thing myself. You may find a queen size base to fit. If you got a base from IKEA, you may be able to adapt it to fit the mattress. Just a thought.
Good Luck, anyway. :smile:
Something else that just occurred to me, when they have bases (box spring) for sale here, you can often get the mattress to go with it for just $1. smile
I would check that you can get a base to fit before you pay to bring the mattress over, unless you are good at carpentry -beds are generally different sizes here, in my experience.
We had to replace my son's mattress, and found that it didn't fit the frame of his bed (it's about an inch too big). Of course, he still sleeping, at a slight angle, in it two years later.
how true
I brought a 4 poster frame made and carved out of really good oak ..
we measured to fit around are Queen size bed ..dam well 3/4 incehes to small ..i'll have to do major carpertry ..
pity
perhaps they will go metric soon and make a real pigs ear of it all