Sorry if I'm missing part of the story, but you're either going to pay their charges and pickup your vehicle or you're going to forfeit your cargo. There's no in-between.
how not to import a cruiser
- Thread starter Matt1260
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Sorry if I'm missing part of the story, but you're either going to pay their charges and pickup your vehicle or you're going to forfeit your cargo. There's no in-between.
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- #22
I’ve already picked it up. The funny thing is they asked me when I would pick it up and i arranged the day, went up and the warehouse gave it to me. but now they said i got it without their knowledge. The communication has been absolutely horrible.
They’re threatening me with collections and small claims court. I’m fighting with their corporate big wigs now. I’ll have to sell the truck to pay either them or a lawyer unless something else happens. Like money growing on the tree out front.
I suppose they can withhold cargo until you pay? I’m not educated on this, and obviously they gave it to me so I guess...oops.
We export from Costa Rica monthly and our main port is in Long Beach where we use the same broker for all our imports. Sorry to hear you had these issues. Our exports from the time we reserve the container (20' or 40' for 2 cars), legal document to unregister vehicle, drop off, load container ourselves and to destination port is anywhere from 3-4 weeks. That's not to say customs controls whether they want to hold the car up for inspection on the US side but all in all we have great success with managing the time and keeping cost low as possible.
Being originally from Texas and have many customers there shipping to the Port of Houston would be great but they don't allow import of personal vehicles anymore. So it's an added cost for my fellow Texans but those on the west coast enjoy going with our broker and collecting at the port. One thing i can't stress enough is having all the paperwork in proper order (INCLUDING ISF) and a broker in the US that knows the system and does the job in a timely manner.
Being originally from Texas and have many customers there shipping to the Port of Houston would be great but they don't allow import of personal vehicles anymore. So it's an added cost for my fellow Texans but those on the west coast enjoy going with our broker and collecting at the port. One thing i can't stress enough is having all the paperwork in proper order (INCLUDING ISF) and a broker in the US that knows the system and does the job in a timely manner.
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- #24
Wow.
It took us a total of 3 months.
That’s very unfortunate. But if it’s not held up by customs and all the paperwork is in order, bill of lading, ISF, bill of sale and a good customs broker it should have never taken that long.
I just got a quote from ABCS, an import broker, and they explicitly list that all of the problems you’ve had are a possibility, and that of course it is my problem and mine alone. I’m looking at around $500 plus whatever the port and customs throws at me. Sorry you had a s***ty experience.
Shawn
Shawn
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That is very expensive, my last container was $10,500 all up once the trucks got shipped inland from California to Idaho where I am based.
I had a bit of a different experience than you though. Customs here in the USA was very helpful and polite. It was the shipping company that screwed me. They were the ones who were very difficult and douche bags about it all.
The thing people do not realize and is stated multiple times in this thread is; customs doesn’t charge a dime for their services. They only charge tax. The inspections and all that are free, so is storage. It is your shipper that is charging you, not customs.
Cheers
We use multiple ports of entry for our customers depending on their requirements and the vehicle. For our restored or rare cars we always use a container and the same Broker so we know what his fees are. If the car is ideal for RORO we ship this method and is fast and inexpensive. The fees for storage can be a huge cost and when I have questions about shipping a car not through us I always advise to get their broker to email the cost so you have a paper trail and make sure he gives ALL fees. Duties/Taxes and shipping rates will not be the issue.
For the shipping alone...no. I would have to pull up my last quote from there, but shipping to Baltimore is around $2600. Fees can add up on that end due to taxes and red tape, but in general, i think its around 5k for us INCLUDING sourcing, multiple vehicle inspections, engine compression tests, etc.
RORO is a great option depending on the country. For Costa Rica and Brazil we always do container, but Japan is almost always RORO and a heck of a lot cheaper.
Depends on car. We have no issues doing RORO for non restored cars that is not a garage find or is in need of some TLC. If we can save our customers money and get the car to them without damages all is good. We ship out and import 8-10 cars a month and never any issues but we have our logistics chain set up in CR and USA so no hidden fees or unwanted outcomes. Of course nature and human error not part of our process can always play a factor.
I agree.
Logistics chain is huge and something a lot of people dont understand the importance of, or the cost. Very important to be upfront on fees throughout the process.
What a thread. If anyone can recommend a company to work with in Tacoma, I’d appreciate it. I’m not clear on what goes into RoRo shipping
just stateside stuff? I use Sound Brokerage. They're right by the port and they're pretty friendly to deal with.
for other country stuff there's a bunch of different options. I can give you contact info of my exporter in Japan if that's where you're looking to buy from. been working with her for about 6 years. She does all of the export stuff so you dont have to worry about it.
