Guest Alice2 Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 Hi Alice When the company here rang us to arrange the delivery of our container it was them who advised the delivery crew would deliver unpack and re build furniture, yikes we paid enough for their service. Anyhow they literally dumped the stuff and left and when I rang the company to query why she'd said about the re-building and it hadn't happened she said it was because they were contracting for their company and she would repremand them, god knows if she did but she was full of apologies and said they'd send some more men round to assist lol but we'd already done it ourselves. I don't like being advised I'll receive a service then not. Everyone we know here had their furniture re-built this end IF the shippers dismantled it. Phew! Thanks for clarifying vdM. PSS back on the list. Haha :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dianaos Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 Hi everyone, Well I have been reading this and other threads on shipping costs and am now mighty peeved! I asked for a quote from John Masons with our furniture to be collected from 2 properties. (total furniture would still only be a 3 bed house worth) We are not taking fridges, freezers or wardrobes. The two properties are within a 20minute drive of each other so this should have little bearing on the quote they provided. I had asked for one combined quote but after the inspection they insisted on sending me 2 quotes, no doubt with 2 lots of administration charges etc! The quote that came in was over £5500 and were told it would all fit in a 20ft container. I went through the inventory and found furniture in it that we didn't own and no allowance for flat packing bed frames etc (they charged us for 2 beds with a double base, which they weren't). I also looked at reducing the number of boxes from each property (by not taking as much!) The revised inventory was sent back to them, and again I requested one combined quote and hey presto two quotes came back! The quote for one property went down by £1500 and the other went up by £1000, a sum total of £500 saving from the previous quote! How the quote could increase on one property I fail to understand. At no point in time have they ever told me the cubic feet allowed for in any of their quotes, only that it would fit into a 20ft container. It would be really helpful to know the cubic feet and be able to compare the two inventories and 4 quotes. Given that some members have received quotes for under £4000 from John Mason and that they would also fill a 20ft container I fail to see how the quotes I have received from John Mason are justified. I do wonder if any other members have had the same problems as I have, so would appreciate your thoughts. I have gone out to another half a dozen companies and will insist on calculation of cubic feet to compare but as yet have not had any back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Pom Queen Posted June 30, 2012 Share Posted June 30, 2012 Hi everyone, Well I have been reading this and other threads on shipping costs and am now mighty peeved! I asked for a quote from John Masons with our furniture to be collected from 2 properties. (total furniture would still only be a 3 bed house worth) We are not taking fridges, freezers or wardrobes. The two properties are within a 20minute drive of each other so this should have little bearing on the quote they provided. I had asked for one combined quote but after the inspection they insisted on sending me 2 quotes, no doubt with 2 lots of administration charges etc! The quote that came in was over £5500 and were told it would all fit in a 20ft container. I went through the inventory and found furniture in it that we didn't own and no allowance for flat packing bed frames etc (they charged us for 2 beds with a double base, which they weren't). I also looked at reducing the number of boxes from each property (by not taking as much!) The revised inventory was sent back to them, and again I requested one combined quote and hey presto two quotes came back! The quote for one property went down by £1500 and the other went up by £1000, a sum total of £500 saving from the previous quote! How the quote could increase on one property I fail to understand. At no point in time have they ever told me the cubic feet allowed for in any of their quotes, only that it would fit into a 20ft container. It would be really helpful to know the cubic feet and be able to compare the two inventories and 4 quotes. Given that some members have received quotes for under £4000 from John Mason and that they would also fill a 20ft container I fail to see how the quotes I have received from John Mason are justified. I do wonder if any other members have had the same problems as I have, so would appreciate your thoughts. I have gone out to another half a dozen companies and will insist on calculation of cubic feet to compare but as yet have not had any back. I can understand why it would be more expensive, they would have to secure and lock the container and then set up again at the new house. Also the two quotes makes sense so that you know what needs to come from each house. Have you thought of moving the stuff from two houses in to one yourself and see if it works out cheaper for you, plus this way you would only need the one quote. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karlom Posted June 30, 2012 Share Posted June 30, 2012 Hi Bennyboy Our things have just left and we went with crown. So far we have found them very professional and am very confident about our goods getting there on time. An important point that we only realised after, which can save thousands is the packing..... I had loads of our stuff (about 80%) already packed into IKEA boxes which i knew were 3 cubic feet, so it was easy to get a good accurate estimate of how much we were bringing and what it would cost, which was about 400 cu ft. When the guys finished packing they said that we had 600 cu feet, which i couldnt understand but it all came down to the packing. We let them re-pack our stuff, which they did in a really professionally and secure way but the problem that causes is that it greatly increases the volume...and the price. Crown were really good and accommodating and allowed me to go to the warehouse with them and one of their guys re-packed loads of it to get the volume down. For example we had bikes going, which went into big bike boxes, which take up huge amount of space, far bigger than the bike itself, so we stuffed the bike box with kids toys, linen etc to reduce the number of other boxes and to use the space better. so i guess in short, your goods can be packed really professionally which will take up loads of space or if you are happy to open a bike box in Oz and your duvets and towels to fall out it will be far more efficient. You will need to have that conversation with the packers when they arrive, not when the packing is finished (like us!) would recommend Crown hope this helps Karl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
halshaw Posted June 30, 2012 Share Posted June 30, 2012 Hi John Mason and Wridgways all the way. Very impressed 2.5 years ago and I see they are still going strong! Remember pay peanuts get monkeys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dianaos Posted June 30, 2012 Share Posted June 30, 2012 I can understand why it would be more expensive, they would have to secure and lock the container and then set up again at the new house. Also the two quotes makes sense so that you know what needs to come from each house. Have you thought of moving the stuff from two houses in to one yourself and see if it works out cheaper for you, plus this way you would only need the one quote. Thank you for your reply. Yes I can see what you mean re the 2 quotes etc but why when we decrease the amount we are taking with us from EACH property did the quote for one property go down and the quote for the other property go up? That does not seem to make any sense at all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Pom Queen Posted June 30, 2012 Share Posted June 30, 2012 Thank you for your reply. Yes I can see what you mean re the 2 quotes etc but why when we decrease the amount we are taking with us from EACH property did the quote for one property go down and the quote for the other property go up? That does not seem to make any sense at all! I agree and it may be worth checking as it sounds like an error. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loveshellybeach Posted July 4, 2012 Share Posted July 4, 2012 We also had these three to give quotes. The difference in price was ridiculous ranged from £4,000 - £9000 ???. If we were staying in the uk i would have been renewing the living and dining room furniture so i thought whats the point of paying out that just to renew at the other end. So we decided to go with a Sevenseas large move cube. We basically managed to get everthing else apart from said rooms in it including lge fridge freezer (which we filled with loads of clothes), mattresses, loads of boxes, suitcases, bikes, garden furniture, exercise equipment, tools, tv's, mirrors etc. Rest of the stuff we sold at a car boot last sunday.We did have to pack everything ourselves but we have only paid £990. Insurance through Letton Percival came too £120 and the only issue was how we had packed the bikes as apparently they have had a lot of issues with these. We shipped last Wednesday OH landed in Oz last Fri and has managed to get loads of the bigger items off freecycle so far to tide him and us over until movecube arrives. As for the smaller things he has been to Kmart which in his words "like Matalan with a range that Argos would be proud of". Iron for £6, microwave for £30, ironing board, toaster, pans etc for much cheapness. Ok might not be the best but will certainly do until our stuff arrives or we buy better. Do you have any additional costs with the Move cube when it arrives in oz? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dianaos Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 Well I have now had another 3 quotes in addition to the unbelievable John Mason's quote from Robinsons, White & Co and PSS. The quotes come in at (not including insurance or customs duties etc) John Mason - £6247.50 PSS - £5346.42 Robinsons - £4463.88 White & Co - £4231.16 This include 4 months storage for the items currently located at the second property and for collection from both properties. I gave all companies the same inventory. I worked it up on a spreadsheet, listing the furniture items and then the number of different size boxes. We had already had the original quote from John Masons so had an idea on the amount and we have already packed a lot of our "loose" items into plastic crates anyway. All companies said we would be able to fit all of our stuff into a 20ft container. Although not included in the quote insurance ranged from 2-3% of new value in Australia but I am also looking a Letton Percival who say 1.1%. It is amazing to to see the price difference between the top and the bottom - over £2000! Guess we won't be using John Masons! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Pom Queen Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 Well I have now had another 3 quotes in addition to the unbelievable John Mason's quote from Robinsons, White & Co and PSS. The quotes come in at (not including insurance or customs duties etc) John Mason - £6247.50 PSS - £5346.42 Robinsons - £4463.88 White & Co - £4231.16 This include 4 months storage for the items currently located at the second property and for collection from both properties. I gave all companies the same inventory. I worked it up on a spreadsheet, listing the furniture items and then the number of different size boxes. We had already had the original quote from John Masons so had an idea on the amount and we have already packed a lot of our "loose" items into plastic crates anyway. All companies said we would be able to fit all of our stuff into a 20ft container. Although not included in the quote insurance ranged from 2-3% of new value in Australia but I am also looking a Letton Percival who say 1.1%. It is amazing to to see the price difference between the top and the bottom - over £2000! Guess we won't be using John Masons! Can I ask did the other 3 companies come out to quote, as we found doing the online system and the actual quotes when they came out varied dramatically. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ali Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 We moved 5 years ago and used John Masons who were superb from start to finish. In Perth they use Wridgeways who again we couldn't fault and they were brilliant. We couldn't fault them then and I've heard continued good things since. As Kate says, with any company there may be one of two bad experiences - I'd be wary of any who have constant bad press. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Harry A Posted July 14, 2012 Share Posted July 14, 2012 Well I have now had another 3 quotes in addition to the unbelievable John Mason's quote from Robinsons, White & Co and PSS. The quotes come in at (not including insurance or customs duties etc) John Mason - £6247.50 PSS - £5346.42 Robinsons - £4463.88 White & Co - £4231.16 This include 4 months storage for the items currently located at the second property and for collection from both properties. I gave all companies the same inventory. I worked it up on a spreadsheet, listing the furniture items and then the number of different size boxes. We had already had the original quote from John Masons so had an idea on the amount and we have already packed a lot of our "loose" items into plastic crates anyway. All companies said we would be able to fit all of our stuff into a 20ft container. Although not included in the quote insurance ranged from 2-3% of new value in Australia but I am also looking a Letton Percival who say 1.1%. It is amazing to to see the price difference between the top and the bottom - over £2000! Guess we won't be using John Masons! We got john masons and white & co to come in and quote, i found them both helpful, in the end i went with white & co as they were a bit cheaper and john masons messed me aound with the dates i wanted (booked up for when i wanted to go) But you do need to haggle with price as they all want your business. I'm a bit nervous as i've not heard to much about white & co! Has anyone used white & co? They are coming to collect 23/24 july so watch this space over the next few weeks for feedback Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
russ&jackie Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 Hi, we used PSS and they gave us a brilliant service. Their quote was competitive ( also we were able to play one company against another on price ), their packers came to our house an were polite and very efficient. They stored our belongings in Brisbane ( and cleared customs etc ) while we looked for a rental property and finally delivered it all in A1 condition. Highly recommended. hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwolst77 Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 We also had these three to give quotes. The difference in price was ridiculous ranged from £4,000 - £9000 ???. If we were staying in the uk i would have been renewing the living and dining room furniture so i thought whats the point of paying out that just to renew at the other end. So we decided to go with a Sevenseas large move cube. We basically managed to get everthing else apart from said rooms in it including lge fridge freezer (which we filled with loads of clothes), mattresses, loads of boxes, suitcases, bikes, garden furniture, exercise equipment, tools, tv's, mirrors etc. Rest of the stuff we sold at a car boot last sunday.We did have to pack everything ourselves but we have only paid £990. Insurance through Letton Percival came too £120 and the only issue was how we had packed the bikes as apparently they have had a lot of issues with these. We shipped last Wednesday OH landed in Oz last Fri and has managed to get loads of the bigger items off freecycle so far to tide him and us over until movecube arrives. As for the smaller things he has been to Kmart which in his words "like Matalan with a range that Argos would be proud of". Iron for £6, microwave for £30, ironing board, toaster, pans etc for much cheapness. Ok might not be the best but will certainly do until our stuff arrives or we buy better. Hi fifi could you give me some details regarding how you found using Move Cube? I have started my own thread regarding this as I am trying to work out if I should use two move cubes (one being sent in August and the other in November) or to send everything via Groupage http://www.pomsinoz.com/forum/transport-shipping/156878-shipping-advice-please.html Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jin77 Posted July 23, 2012 Share Posted July 23, 2012 We got john masons and white & co to come in and quote, i found them both helpful, in the end i went with white & co as they were a bit cheaper and john masons messed me aound with the dates i wanted (booked up for when i wanted to go) But you do need to haggle with price as they all want your business. I'm a bit nervous as i've not heard to much about white & co! Has anyone used white & co? They are coming to collect 23/24 july so watch this space over the next few weeks for feedback Have you heard back from White &Co yet ? Fingers crossed for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Harry A Posted July 23, 2012 Share Posted July 23, 2012 Have you heard back from White &Co yet ? Fingers crossed for you. We've had white & co in today and their coming back tomorrow to take large items! The boys worked really hard and nothing phased them, especially the amount of tat in the boys bedroom, so far so good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Playghirl Posted July 24, 2012 Share Posted July 24, 2012 John Mason did a sterling job both ends for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Alice2 Posted August 15, 2012 Share Posted August 15, 2012 Just thought I will update this thread with our experience. We had these 3 companies out to quote. Quotes received for a 20ft container were: - Crown £4300 (i've excluded the £300 AQIS fees for similar comparison) - John Mason £4030 - PSS £ 4240 Crown and John Mason dropped their prices a little to £4200 and £3900 respectively. PSS said they will drop it by £150 to £4090 (if we did not take up their free air freight service and free protection of £2k) So, if you are going with PSS, make sure that you ask them to reduce their price if you do not want either of those services. We are going with John Mason as was quite put off by PSS who said they will reduce their quote by removing what they advertise as an included special offer "free" service. I quote from their documents: "Special Offer Be sure to take advantage of one of our current special offers: * £2000 of Standard Liability Cover Free of Charge * 1 x Free Airfreight shipment, door to port" hth someone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Vixie99 Posted August 16, 2012 Share Posted August 16, 2012 Also had quotes from those 3. Pss and John mason similar on pricing, crown more expensive. Also had a couple of others quote too, we're Hampshire based. Going for John mason. All 3 seemed to know their stuff, just watch out for that excess stuff chrage and use of another container. Mason was the only one who said we can get our house contents, car and bike into a 40ft. Crown said we wouldn't fit And would had an excess charge. Also read good reports on local agent John mason use. Where are you shipping to? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Alice2 Posted August 16, 2012 Share Posted August 16, 2012 We're shipping from east anglia to Melbourne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.