International Freight Forwarding Company UK

People work with people they like. Freight forwarding is a service industry and as such, the freight forwarder you chose should be pleasant to deal with, knowledgeable and a good communicator. Depending on the complexity of the regulations in the country you are trading, you will be relying on your international freight forwarding company for a lot of information. So choosing someone who is easy to speak to will make the experience a lot more pleasurable.

A good freight forwarder will have a carefully chosen network of similar minded freight forwarders they work with as a partner or on an agency basis. This allows your freight forwarder the expertise and the best local knowledge to help you through the maze of customs formalities in foreign countries. You or your overseas customer may be able to obtain relief from import duties if the correct forms are completed and submitted to the local customs office and a good freight forwarding company will know this.

When we say “value for money” we do not mean the cheapest. Like most things in life, with an international freight forwarding firm, you get what you pay for – the cheapest is not necessarily the best! With sea and air freight shipping, there are a lot of elements that make up the final quote. A good freight forwarder will advise you of ALL costs. You should question any quotation you might receive that is substantially cheaper as there may be limited availability or elements of the costs may have been omitted. With most shipments, the price normally indicates the speed of service, the quicker you require the goods the more expensive the freight cost will be.

There is not much point in a freight forwarder being friendly and having the potential to give good quotes if they take ages to reply or worse still do not reply. Often shipments are urgent or quick decisions are needed to avoid the waiting time and/or demurrage so the freight forwarder you chose should have a positive “can-do” attitude and an appreciation for urgency. Too much emphasis is put on email communication nowadays; unfortunately, emails can get lost, deleted and misinterpreted. A good freight forwarder will use the telephone as much as email and will be able to recognise their customers by the sound of their voice, as opposed to them being just a name on a screen.

The UK freight industry in the UK is unregulated which means that it is open to infiltration by “cowboy” freight forwarders. A good guide to the status of a shipping forwarder is whether they are a limited company (this can be checked at Companies House for free). There are other things that could give away rogue traders, such as operating from a PO Box address, having no website and operating from free email addresses such as Hotmail or Yahoo. A committed professional freight forwarder will be working from a business address and be happy to visit you or have you visit them at their offices.

You should not expect a freight forwarding company to use their own ships or aeroplanes and the majority of UK haulage will be sub-contracted. However, sometimes shipments can be sub-contracted 3-5 times before you would reach the person in control of the delivery or vehicle. Check that your freight forwarder is in direct control of your shipments, this avoids lengthy lines of communication if there is a problem or a query on a shipment.

There is no substitute for experience. A good freight forwarder will have at least five years of experience in the industry. This experience will help the customer avoid any potential pitfalls with regard to customs clearance and documentation. A good freight forwarder will have a general knowledge of all forms of transport and will be able to draw from personal experience as opposed to just relaying information.

A good freight forwarder will obviously have a portfolio of happy regular clients who would provide testimonials. Ask your freight forwarder to supply you with the names and telephone numbers of some customers who use their services, and give them a call. There is nothing more powerful than a positive recommendation.

As a general rule, small to medium-sized freight companies give good all-around service. They have lower overheads and therefore require lower profit margins. Smaller companies are also more flexible and do not suffer from big company politics. At larger companies, the staff can be less motivated, and you may have to talk to a multitude of people about one shipment.