Stuck With Sea Freight Arriving at Felixstowe

[Martin Winlow]

Hi,

I have had several consignments of goods from the same Chinese supplier over the last few years to my base in Hertfordshire. I am about to move to Scotland (near Oban) and because of the timings, I asked for my last order (which shipped on the 17th) to be discharged at Glasgow (Greenock sea port) not Felixstowe for obvious reasons. However, it appears the shipment is going to be discharged at Felixstowe after all and I am now looking at a £250 fee to have it shipped up to Oban by the freight forwarder.

After some email exchanges, my supplier is saying *all* UK freight goes through Felixstowe. This sounds wrong and I wonder if anyone has some advice to prevent a recurrence (other than 'find another supplier!')?

MW
EVBitz.uk

 

[fisicx]

I suspect he means all HIS freight goes to Felixstowe. He has a deal with a shipping company and they bung your stuff in the Felixstowe containers. Shipping to another port would mean them getting a new contract with associated additional costs.

 

[Mr D]

When you set up your own shipping contract for the shipment of goods you can specify the port. Which may cost more than the shipping to the ports the company already does.
Perhaps start with companies having shipments into Oban already.

 

[Sam Drury]

You may find that certain freight companies only send to certain ports so if you have swapped ports of entry may be a good time to check if there is a better company for your needs.

 

[GraemeL]

Its not true that all containers from China go through Felixstowe. Mine have also come into Thamesport and Southampton.

The arrival port is on the quote for the shipment that you get from your FF, so I don't understand why it would be a surprise to you? Obviously you cannot change the destination port after the container is loaded.

I have no idea if container ships from China dock at Greenoch, but assuming they do, you might well find that the increase in the sea freight cost is much the same as the additional road transport cost that you will now need to pay.

 

[MOIC]

If you're shipping LCL (Less then a container load), your supplier is correct to say that (in 95% of cases, where a China supplier arranges the shipment) the discharge port will be Felixstowe, a few will go to Southampton, 1 or 2 elsewhere.

You can inform your supplier that you will be arranging the freight yourself and you can contact any UK forwarder that offers this facility. They will handle everything from start to finish, including collection from your supplier, through to UK Customs clearance and delivery to your door.

The UK forwarder will arrange for the shipment to be discharged (most likely at Felixstowe, as this will be the cheapest ocean rate available) and then forwarded on to your warehouse in Scotland.

They will also charge you for the delivery from Felixstowe to your warehouse and this cost can be determined when you make the booking.

In short, let your UK forwarder handle everything, but first get all-in costs to compare.

 

[Import Expert]

If LCL (part loads) then you will have not control over the port of entry as this will be decided by your forwarder. if FCL (full container load) then you could ask for discharge at another port, but only if a) the shipping line goes there and b) depending where your container is on the vessel, as all container movements are planned well in advance. For a different port, you will be charged usually for the additional freight, which you need to then weigh up against the potential additional haulage from the original port of discharge. £250 does not sound a lot to Scotland for a FCL so I'm assuming this is LCL?