Container Import from China

[Kit26]

I've spent quite a lot of time searching rather than posting but I'm not quite satisfied I have a full and reliable answer, so I would like to ask the community.

I've been bringing in items LCL for a new business this year, it's worked but I've had damage due to the amount of people handling the items (minor package damage) and seeing as I'm at the 12-15CBM range it seems all things are pointing to scaling up. I've therefore got a 26CBM order being manufactured right now which I intend to bring over in a 20ft container.

My understanding is that my freight forwarder (FF) will be responsible for organising the container and delivering it to my supplier, which they will arrange between themselves. Firstly, can this being clarified? Is this the 'normal' practice that FF's will expect me to be asking of them?

Second query, is that I don't think I can get quotes and book the transport until almost near the time of collection/sailing (makes sense as costs are not stagnant), yet I've read that I should be giving my FF plenty of notice i order to be able to arrange everything. Hopefully my query makes sense.

Any help and advice is very much appreciated.

 

[GraemeL]

If you are buying FOB (as you should) then all you need to do is to give your FF the contact details of your agents or factory and then they will sort it out between them.

You can ask for a quote from an FF now (From factory to your premises) and they will tell you for how long its valid. Prices do change a lot and Xmas is on the horizon.

Note that the delivered cost of a 20ft will not be much less than a 40ft.

 

[Mike Foulds]

Hi.

Happy to help and advise.

To answer your first question, yes. A FF would expect to be advised that there is cargo ready on X date, at location Y, and that you'd like it brought to the UK via Z method (Be that LCL, 20ft, air freight, etc). The only provisio is what terms you are purchasing the cargo on. If you are currently purchasing CPT or DAP, then your supplier may organise everything, and chose the method of shipping. If you are purchasing EXW, or FOB, then you have the choice on the method of shipping (I suggest googling Incoterms 2010 to see the various terms if I'm speaking gobbligook, there are various graphics which clearly show what all the 3 letter terms mean, I'd send you mine, but can't!).

For the 2nd question, again, dependant on what terms you are purchasing under, you should be able to get freight rates valid for either the current month, or quarter, those shouldn't change, however, there are various surcharges which change often, which the shipping lines use to cover fuel costs and to help control the busy Peak Season, these normally vary on a monthly basis.

I would suggest working on a budget figure, and getting the FF to finalise and confirm the final costs 1 to 2 weeks prior to the shipping of the goods.

Separately, the UK costs should be pretty static, maybe excluding the haulage fuel surcharge, which sometimes varies weekly.

For the final point, about giving the FF as much notice as possible, we would always suggest and recommend this (Especially at the moment, when there is a Peak Season Surcharge in place, and the vessels are sailing at bursting point), however, this does not necessarily mean you won't get the space required if you don't book early, but it may mean that the freight rates are higher than planned, as the lower freight rate services tend to book up first.

I hope this all helps and I haven't rambled too much, I would be happy to help and advise further, please feel free to ask.

 

[MOIC]

Further to the above 2 posts.

My advice would be to get written quotes from 3 UK forwarders that you have shortlisted and compare prices and services offered.

Each quote will vary in price and the exact service they offer.

Don't forget to ask for Insurance.

If you are buying on FOB terms, your supplier will cover all costs of the container getting to the departure port (using their own shipping agent) and may also offer a cheaper Ocean Freight price to UK. In this case best to ask a UK FF for quotes to clear the container at UK port and delivered to your door.

 

[Kit26]

Hi All

Thank you very much for taking the time to respond with your help, advice and knowledge. I've taken away quite a bit from all the above posts which will really help me.

I should also have mentioned that my trade terms are FOB.

 

[Maple Sourcing]

Usually at beginning of each month, FF will be able to quote you sea shipping cost and keep it valid for a whole month. Therefore, it's fine for you to book in advance, not until close to shipment.

Per my practices, it's good if you send booking to FF 7~10 days ahead of product ready date.

 

[Import Expert]

As above - A FF will liaise with the Supplier to arrange collection, etc. Shipping quotes will normally be valid for 30 days (unless a longer period is requested). Worth bearing in mind that it is currently 'Peak Season' so prices will be higher than some other times of the year.

 

[Mike Godwin]

If you work with a good FF, they will take care of everything. They just need basic details of yourself, your supplier in China, shipping terms and size/weight of shipment. They can give you a price at anytime, just remember that shipping line rates usually last for 30 days at a time and are subject to market trend supply & demand.

 

[Annette White]

Hi all,
I am new here, but have been importing since 2005, and I am still looking for a forwarder/agent that I can trust to deliver our goods on time and at the quoted rate.
The problem is in the that the forwarder is holding your goods in lien, that means if you don't pay whatever they ask for, they won't deliver your goods. And if you feel you have a case to argue, you will cause a further delay and it will become even more costly.
I would very much like to hear from others who had similar experiences.
Could anyone recommend a 100% trustworthy forwarder agent?

I would like to find a way to reduce the services provided by the forwarding agent and use the service for just sea freight and clearing.
In particular, does anyone know exactly about the logistics and can explain it to me? The vessel docks at Felixstowe or Southampton and then the goods/containers get taken to local ports by rail?
When booking a BoL to Manchester or Liverpool, would there be the possibility of collecting from Manchester or Liverpool?
Is the rail link to the local port arranged by the shipping line (like Mearsk or Evergreen) or by the forwarder agent?

Also our Chinese suppliers always quote FOB, does anyone have experience with booking FF, how reliable is this method for FCL and LCL?

many thanks in anticipation
Annette

 

[GraemeL]

The problem is in the that the forwarder is holding your goods in lien, that means if you don't pay whatever they ask for, they won't deliver your goods. And if you feel you have a case to argue, you will cause a further delay and it will become even more costly.

There must be some background to this. I have imported many many containers and NEVER has the FF charged anything other than their quote.

Your FF will deliver the container to your premises if that is what you are quoted for. It should not matter to you what port they use. In fact you are making everything more difficult than you need to.
FOB is by far the safest way to import bulk loads.

 

[Annette White]

There must be some background to this. I have imported many many containers and NEVER has the FF charged anything other than their quote.

Your FF will deliver the container to your premises if that is what you are quoted for. It should not matter to you what port they use. In fact you are making everything more difficult than you need to.
FOB is by far the safest way to import bulk loads.

Happened to me today, apparently my quote was based on the container being transported out of Southampton by rail, but now Evergreen has no spare capacity by rail and instead the FF now asked for an extra £210 (on to of the all inclusive to door delivery charge) to bring the container by road, all the way from Southampton to Lancashire, and it is taking 10 days!

 

[MOIC]

The quotation will always have small print including T&C's which will form part of the contract.

Freight Forwarders base their quotations on the shipping lines that ship the container and costs can fluctuate between each shipping line.

Has your forwarder given an explanation as to why the additional costs have been sent to you to pay, rather than them incurring the additional cost?

Stand your ground and see what you can negotiate, especially if you have used the same forwarder for a long period of time (as well as a delay in the container being delivered) and that you should be treated as a valued customer and not a one-off transaction.

If you are sending LCL, there are much better routes to take now than by sea and overall costs are much cheaper.

 

[Annette White]

Many thanks for your advise. I switched to a different FF than the usual one, and this is my first (and only) time with this one. I have never yet had one that didn't put extra charge on from the initial quotation. Also I switched this time because the usual one only used one shipping line with strict cut off dates one week before leaving, and my goods were already 3 weeks late.
The reason for the extra UK freight charge was because my quote was based on rail link from the dock to a more local centre, and apparently Evergreen has no spare capacity booked with the rail link - as if this is my problem! The agent probably forgot to book it in advance. I can't afford to "stand my ground" I need the goods urgently now.
I like to explore the better methods of LCL, can you expand on that. please? My goods come from Ningbo destination Manchester or Liverpool
kind regards
Annette

 

[MOIC]

Hi Annette

We look after the whole process of collecting from your supplier, shipping to UK, clearing UK customs and delivery to your door. One quoted price. No extras!

Feel free to email me directly for further discussion and quotations: [email protected]

Regards

Ron

 

[Kit26]

Hi again all

Just looking at getting quotes now for the container, as I now have a ready date from the supplier, a few weeks away.
Does anyone have any good FF contacts that they use and trust?

 

[Annette White]

When you find one, please let me know, too

 

[MOIC]

Get 3 - 6 quotes in writing and compare ALL costs delivered to your door.

 

[OMGVape]

Denholm logistics, I been using them for over a decade. Excellent service, never had a problem with them,

 

[Maple Sourcing]

I have been working with WoodLand Global (UK) Ltd for 3 years, happy to recommend. By the way, I'm in China.

 

[Kit26]

Woodland Global have been in touch and are providing me with a quote, I;ve heard only good things about them through this forum.

It seems I've dropped the ball with my inexperience.

The terms of my recent purchase are FOB, therefore I understand it's my suppliers responsibility to get my goods pretty much on to the ship. Can someone please clarify who is responsible, under FOB, for the container? I felt like we'd covered this earlier but my conversations with my supplier have confused me.

 

[Mike Godwin]

Hi Kit26. Your supplier and yourself are both responsible for the cargo at different stages of the journey. With FOB terms your supplier is responsible for the cargo up to the 'ship's rail' so to speak. Once the cargo has landed on the ship it becomes your responsibility all the way through to your delivery point (presumably your factory etc). I can send you a chart detailing the different shipping terms and their meaning/responsibilities if you like. Also would recommend you get a price and help from maybe a smaller more personable FF who should be able to give you a more personal service.

 

[Kit26]

Hi Mike

Perhaps I wasn't very thorough with my explanation. I am aware of incoterms. My specific query was regarding who actually order/summons/delivers the actual container itself, so that it arrives with the supplier.

I'm fairly confident now that I needn't worry as it'll all get sorted. However I'd still like to understand the nuts and bolts of it.

 

[Mike Godwin]

Hi Kit. Apologies for the misunderstanding. Your FF will arrange everything you mention and will keep you informed of the shipment along the way. If your current provider isn't doing this then recommend you change.

 

[Ray272]

Hi all,
I am new here, but have been importing since 2005, and I am still looking for a forwarder/agent that I can trust to deliver our goods on time and at the quoted rate.
The problem is in the that the forwarder is holding your goods in lien, that means if you don't pay whatever they ask for, they won't deliver your goods. And if you feel you have a case to argue, you will cause a further delay and it will become even more costly.
I would very much like to hear from others who had similar experiences.
Could anyone recommend a 100% trustworthy forwarder agent?

I would like to find a way to reduce the services provided by the forwarding agent and use the service for just sea freight and clearing.
In particular, does anyone know exactly about the logistics and can explain it to me? The vessel docks at Felixstowe or Southampton and then the goods/containers get taken to local ports by rail?
When booking a BoL to Manchester or Liverpool, would there be the possibility of collecting from Manchester or Liverpool?
Is the rail link to the local port arranged by the shipping line (like Mearsk or Evergreen) or by the forwarder agent?

Also our Chinese suppliers always quote FOB, does anyone have experience with booking FF, how reliable is this method for FCL and LCL?

many thanks in anticipation
Annette

Hi Annette

I have never heard of this scenario and we have been importing for a number of years.

My experience is: providing the weight and dims are quoted to the shipping company correctly then there quote is the cost. In some cases we get charged $90 more from USA if the exporter is not known to US AES but besides that in maybe 250 imports we have always paid what we were quoted. There was an instance where we did pay a tad more due to a misquote of w/d from supplier but besides that every quote has always been honoured.

Some insight into our shipping costs should anyone be interested:

2 Pallets each with a weight of 350kg per pallet Exworks Enid, Oklahoma to Luton - £542 total - 18 days sailing + 6 days either side to get to and from ports.

3 Pallets FOB HK 31 days sailing if recall correctly, £495 total cost.

duties and taxes were of course charged at arrival into UK.

 

[Maple Sourcing]

I understand the specific meaning of Kit26. In fact, there are two options: 1) The forwarder will arrange the container and actually send the container to factory, and then charge the cost to your supplier; 2) Your supplier will get the container by itself. -------- In either way, you as the buyer, will pay nothing, as you do FOB terms.

Many of my suppliers choose option 2) as they believe the forwarder will slightly overcharge the cost of sending a container to factory. As the suppliers are experienced in every process, they can easily handle the operation by themselves and save some costs.

 

[Kit26]

Hi all

Thanks for all your helpful replies.
I'm all sorted now, and my container is on it's way. Your insights have been most useful. Hopefully in the future I will be able to give a little back to the community.

Thanks