Questions to ask shipping companies

**dunkyboy** · 28-05-2010, 03:19 PM

hi all
I have 4 companies coming next week to give me quotes to ship my stuff to Perth,
Pickfords, Crown, PSS & Doree Boner, I was just wondering if someone could give me some advice on what sort of things I should be asking them, I have never done this before so am not sure what sort of things should be included in the price and what stuff you normally have to pay extra for, I beleive you are better to get your own insurance ? any recomendations for that ?

thanks in advance for any advice

PS. I thought i was going to have plenty of time to organise this but I just had an offer on my house which I have accepted, but I have to be out by July 2nd

panic stations !!!!!!!!!!

**soon2move** · 28-05-2010, 04:05 PM

We used crown - just ask them how long it takes to pack stuff up, how quickly they can get the packers in (as you are on a tight deadline), how long it takes to get there, if u want stuff in storage in the UK first, ask the max time it will take to get the stuff out of storage (once you are ready), get it on the next ship, how long its on the water and then quarantine/customs this end. They will estimate the amount of space u will need, and give you a quote based on that. If you are sharing a container as opposed to filling a whole one yourself, it can take longer to get it on a ship as they need to fill the container with someone elses stuff and then get it on the next sailing ship which can take time.

However, one thing to be aware of is they are quoting based on what they can see and is not entirely accurate so you may end up having more square footage than than they quoted therefore paying a bit extra after they have collected the goods which is what happened to us. We did negotiate the original quote with Crown and got the cost down a few hundred quid so you could try doing that...

As for insurance, crown were charging extortionate amounts, almost the same amount as the cost of our shipping which was ridiculous - we used Kay International they are marine insurance specialists. Its about 2% of your value of goods. We paid only a few hundred pounds and have also used them for our car insurance as we are shipping our car. They are efficient and good.

Hope that helps. Crown packing guys were great, they love biscuits too so have plenty in stock if you choose them.

**calNgary** · 28-05-2010, 11:27 PM

Like the above poster we used Crown and were happy with them But questions i would be asking are things like,,,,
- Do you use sub-contractors and if so who? (so you can look into them if they do)
- Are all charges included in your price? (including charges on arrival)
- Expected delivery date and how often is it accurate?

Hope this helps and dont forget to play them all off on price,lol.

Cal x

**terry & Melanie** · 29-05-2010, 12:05 AM

Hi, We have recently booked with John Mason. We negotiated a really good price for a full 20ft container( regardless of the square footage!) So if it fits it goes at no extra cost. Haggle hard, tell them you got cheaper. Defo do your own insuranec (we have yet to organise ours but checking out:Get a Quote for Home Moving and Removals Insurance | Insure Your Move.

Melanie x

**guest33730** · 29-05-2010, 05:07 AM

Originally Posted by terry & Melanie

Hi, We have recently booked with John Mason. We negotiated a really good price for a full 20ft container( regardless of the square footage!) So if it fits it goes at no extra cost. Haggle hard, tell them you got cheaper. Defo do your own insuranec (we have yet to organise ours but checking out:Get a Quote for Home Moving and Removals Insurance | Insure Your Move.

Melanie x

Our stuff left yesterday with Crown - they were outstanding, especially the way it was packed and all got in. Again we paid for a full 20ft container and got it agreed that we could basically take whatever went in it! The things that swung it for me choosing crown were the price - never accept the first one as Crown went down by £500 in total to get the business but also the fact that they don't sub-contract any of the work - they also have their own depot in Adelaide (and I believe other Aussie ports). Plus the reports I have had are that Crown have a lot of respect with customs meaning that their containers very really get inspected and therefore 99 times out of 100 your container will leave your house in the UK with a numbered seal which is then unopened until it gets to your new house in Aus! Obviously if you have things like 'wicker baskets', alcohol, earth samples, written on your inventory then you will attract interest from customs but if you are sensible you should be fine - we'll see in 8 weeks time when my container arrives.

Last week I got an email from Crown telling me which container ship it was booked on and the expected arrival date with a code and password to track it - this I found quite comforting.

I also used insure your move for insurance - much cheaper than anyone else and included mildew cover and mechanical derangement.

Daniel

**wow** · 30-05-2010, 12:59 PM

Originally Posted by Bring me Sunshine

Our stuff left yesterday with Crown - they were outstanding, especially the way it was packed and all got in. Again we paid for a full 20ft container and got it agreed that we could basically take whatever went in it! The things that swung it for me choosing crown were the price - never accept the first one as Crown went down by £500 in total to get the business but also the fact that they don't sub-contract any of the work - they also have their own depot in Adelaide (and I believe other Aussie ports). Plus the reports I have had are that Crown have a lot of respect with customs meaning that their containers very really get inspected and therefore 99 times out of 100 your container will leave your house in the UK with a numbered seal which is then unopened until it gets to your new house in Aus! Obviously if you have things like 'wicker baskets', alcohol, earth samples, written on your inventory then you will attract interest from customs but if you are sensible you should be fine - we'll see in 8 weeks time when my container arrives.

Last week I got an email from Crown telling me which container ship it was booked on and the expected arrival date with a code and password to track it - this I found quite comforting.

I also used insure your move for insurance - much cheaper than anyone else and included mildew cover and mechanical derangement.

Daniel

Can anyone tell me what the various companies quoted for their removals please so that i have some idea before i start ringing around?

Kind regards, June

**guest33730** · 30-05-2010, 05:24 PM

Originally Posted by wow

Can anyone tell me what the various companies quoted for their removals please so that i have some idea before i start ringing around?

Kind regards, June

Between £3,500 and £4,100 for a sole use 20ft container - Crown include the Aqis fees in their quote so make sure when you compare it's like for like.

Daniel

**wow** · 30-05-2010, 06:40 PM

Originally Posted by Bring me Sunshine

Between £3,500 and £4,100 for a sole use 20ft container - Crown include the Aqis fees in their quote so make sure when you compare it's like for like.

Daniel

Thanks very much for that. Is this the Crown company everyone is talking about as there seems to be a few with the same name.
International Moving Company, Relocation Services, International Movers - Crown Relocations