what with international moving company?
Question:
Been trying to figure out the international moving thing and it's a lot
worse than trying to figure out the Madrid subway system. SIT storage
for instance. What it seems to me to be is, "we'll ship it when we get a
spare spot". If this is true, then it should be a cheaper way to send
non-essentials. They want cubic feet (strange wanting it in feet) and
pounds (strange again). How do you weigh a house full of stuff, a great
quantity of which isn't going?
Of course, I'd like to know if anyone has any horror stories too.
On top of that, I was wondering if people in New Zealand manage to go
back to school occasionally. I have a dream of finishing my Masters
Degree someday (why, I don't know. I guess I'm a cronic student).
Answer:
_We were told, by one of the moving companies that we contacted, that
they would come in and look at what we wanted to take and then give us
a quote.
I think your best bet is to call around and compare prices,etc.
When are you going and where are you leaving from in the US? My
daughter and her family leave from Reno in 7 weeks time.....I can give
you some ideas around then, once we get in all the quotes for her
stuff.... YES!! I went back to Uni as an adult student and intend doing my law
degree as a mature student once I get back. My daughter will be
entering medical school as an adult student...she has a hubby and 3
kids, so it won't be easy. But on investigation, I think it will be a
lot easier for her in NZ than it would have been in the US. There's a
number of people in this group that have completed degrees or gained
masters, Doctorates, etc, as mature students. I think it's a lot
easier to do that in NZ, than it is here in the US
_Deal with a more reputable moving company! Moving companies know
roughly the weight of items so there shouldn't be too much of a
problem unless you have an oddball piece or two like I did - I emailed
the manufacturers to find out the weights [they gave me both weights
and cf].
If your out to save money, then yes, they will ship your housepack on
a Space A basis.
There are some websites for domestic US movers/quote online that allow
you to punch in what you have from a menu which will calculate the
approx total weight.
You do have to be very careful as I had several who just did a quick
look through the house as to what was going, then quote and assure me
that all would fit in a 20 ft container; one did a physical check then
told me "what fits into a 20 ft container goes, what doesn't gets left
behind".
If youy have a Flexsteel or similar brand sofa, be warned, it cannot
be shipped on it's end.
If the companies are half decent, they should give you an info sheet
containing info on prohibited items [both NZ Customs/MAF and in a
container] etc.
Do not be fooled by ISO 9002 standards/specs [I think that is the ISO
# off hand].
Ask what charges are not included ie: port fees, inspection fees etc.
Ask the companies if they use CONTAINER DRI and similar products.
The one company I eventually went with, the guy took the time to go
through everything - he measured items as required.
He assured me there was no way in hell what I had would fit inside a
20ft container - he was right as it nearly filled a 40ft can.
It depends on how much you want to spend and how professional job you
want....
I would highly recommend the company I used but they don't come cheap.
If you have some quotes and it looks like you can fill your own can, then seriously look at doing it on a DIY basis.
Storage in NZ - I had obtained a quote through the moving company for
storage 'just in case' which I thought rather high. I then had a
relative phone the same company asking them how much for a 40 ft
container load coming from overseas - the price she obtained was way
less so there is a chance you could be IMHO, ripped off.
If the quote includes unloading etc in NZ, ask about their security.
My container arrived on a Friday afternoon and was held over the
weekend on the back of a truck in an unsecured yard ie: no fencing no
nothing.
I had no damage on the way down however the dumb ass moving company I
used in NZ **** the pocket door hinges when they decided to unwrap it
before moving it into the house. Hinges weren't available in NZ so
had to wait for replacements.
After arrival in NZ, if you have your own container, unless you have
authorisation to open it and start unpacking, DON'T. If MAF arrive
to do their inspection and find it being unloaded, they will order the
entire contents to be reloaded back into the container and the
container removed. My son is a truckie and has had to go back and
pick up several housepacks that have been unloaded without permission.
Photograph!
At the time my container was sealed in San Diego, CA, I was asked to
witness the sealing and the seal number being documented. The seal
used would have required a pair of bolt cutters to remove it.
Upon arrival at my address in NZ, the first thing I noticed was the
seal had been changed - the seal was the type which was just a very
flimsy piece of metal. Everytime a seal is changed, the new
number is supposed to be recorded on the documentation but the
documentation did not show any.
It obviously arrived in NZ like this - it was way too rusty to have
been done at the Port of Auckland prior to it's shipment to the Port
of Lyttelton - all up 3 days from arr in AKL to arr in LYT.
I had photographed the container during it's loading and when the
bulkhead was installed in San Diego as well. I again photographed
the replaced seal before it was cut off. When we opened the doors,
the bulkhead had been cut open in two places. There were several
boxes strewn over the floor. Fortunately the boxes were empty ones
that were used as deadheading. If it ever happens - have the
company's management come out and sight it before going any futher and
photograph it.
There is no doubt in my mind, the container had been interferred with
at the Port Of Los Angeles whilst waiting for shipment to NZ [direct].
My return shipment went from Lyttelton to Yokohama, Japan, transfered
to another ship/shipped to the Port of Long Beach, then railed to
Houston and trucked to me.
The container arrived intact - except the driver forgot to bring a
pair of bolt cutters to remove the seal [after asking the trucking
company to ensure he had a pair with him].
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