Anyone use UPakWeShip within the last year or so?

I am presently considering using them.

From NYC to England.

If so, how did it go?

Any extra fees?

How long did they take?

Was your stuff OK?

THANK YOU!

I've just used them...am STILL using them, since my stuff is still sitting in Felixstowe, 'awaiting the next scheduled transport to my area.'  Apparently, this can take a while.  My stuff left Wisconsin on Feb. 4, and cleared HMRC inspection on April 21.  Now I'm just waiting, though I suppose some of the delay was down to the holidays.

So, since I haven't received anything yet, I can't speak to the condition of my items.  As for extra fees, the container my stuff was in was apparently selected for x-ray inspection, so I had an extra ~50 GBP charge for that.  Also, keep in mind that when they quote you a price, it doesn't include the insurance; that took me a bit by surprise.

Overall, it cost rather more than I was expecting, but given the relatively small amount of goods I was shipping (under 50 cu.ft.), it was still the most cost-effective method I found, and I did a fair bit of comparison shopping.  If you're moving more stuff (i.e. - an entire household, enough to fill your own container), then other shipping companies might be more competitive.

Also, you said you're moving to England, so this probably won't affect you, but they're not actually delivering to my door.  Because I'm in the Outer Hebrides, they're only delivering as far as Glasgow, and I have to arrange onward transport with a local company.  So, that's going to be an extra couple of hundred pounds.  Probably nothing you need to worry about, but anyone else who's moving to a remote area should keep it in mind, though I doubt any other shipping company would differ in that respect.

I used them after reading the good reports from this site. However, my experience was NOT what everyone else seemed to find.

Of the 10 boxes I'd shipped, only eight arrived -- and of those, four of them were badly damaged, with my clothes spilling out everywhere. They had said that my boxes would all be shrink-wrapped together. This obviously did not occur.

I still think that they had a garage sale with my things somewhere along the way.

To add insult to injury, my stuff, er, half of it which arrived, came much llater than I'd been told (about two weeks). There was another surprise charge (I think about $200, if memory serves me correctly) that I had to pay prior to having my delivery scheduled.

Meh. Knowing what I know now, I'd have used another method. But that's just my £0.02.

woadgrrl- They pulled that on me too and I'm in Dundee. To me, they claimed that they just don't get enough deliveries to Scotland. My stuff sat in storage in England for 6 weeks before I started picking up the phone and calling them every.single.day until it was delivered. Amazing how quick a truck was scheduled for Scotland after they realized I was going to call them every day.

LaraMascara- I would not use them for breakables as half of my Royal Doulton arrived in shards. Everything was wrapped in paper and bubble wrap with extra layers of foam and bubble wrap. Everything should have arrived in pristine condition but that wasn't the case. Also, they charged an additional fee and called it a customs inspection fee. Oddly enough, they charged it while the ship was still on the ocean. I questioned them about this and was told that customs randomly chooses which ships will be examined and they let them know while the ship is still out to sea. I had a hard time believing that. This was 10 months ago and they charged $160 (i think). You just have to plan accordingly knowing that you'll be charged extra. Hard to do when there is no telling how much they are going to tell you.

My stuff arrived 6 weeks later than they said it would because of their inability to ship to Scotland easily.

I used UPakWeShip and luckily for me I guess my experience with them was pretty fantastic - can't remember the exact timeline of my stuff but it left early July (1st I think)! and was available to be shipped to me in the UK by August/September!! Unfortunately, I wasn't ready to have my stuff shipped to me so I had them hold it for me in storage until November when I moved to a more permanent place.

I have only opened a few boxes so far, as my current flat (work flat) is tiny and it seems a waste to unpack everything when I don't have space and we're just going to move again soonish, but the few boxes I've unpacked that had breakables in were totally intact - except for one frame that was very long and flexible and the glass shattered. Mirrors, small frames, glassware and plates all seem to have made it over perfectly, although all my breakables haven't been opened up yet.

I also worried they wouldn't communicate well with me - but I never had any trouble getting in touch with them.

I did have to pay the "customs" fee but it was expected since I'd read this forum and had planned for it. Had to pay to keep my stuff in storage as well but it was not exorbitant in fact it was slightly cheaper than keeping it in a local storage facility!

Overall - very positive experience.

I used them in end of 2009 so obviously over a year.  I got married in Nov and shipped my stuff beginning of Jan because I knew it would take 6-8 weeks or something and I was going over Jan 25thish.  I taped the hell out of my boxes to ensure they stayed together and literally needed a razor blade to get thru the tape.  I used vacuum sealed bags and wrapped breakables inside towels I brought and inside the bags (didnt vacuum them to tight or I would have broken things). 
I did buy insurance since I didnt want to pay to replace my stuff if anything happened and it was worth the piece of mind. You want STURDY boxes from Uhual or something and have tape/duct tape help hold them together and keep the shape.
Out of 10 boxes of stuff I had 1 picture frame chip (free hanging glass frames) and the glass break inside 1 frame (my fault they were packed as tight).
My stuff smelled horrid when it arrived from being on a smelly boat - everything has a gas smell so everything got washed.

They stayed in contact with me but they were 1 week late delivering my stuff but yes I emailed and called everyday and then it was arranged.  I never got popped with a customs fee.
When they did delivery they tried to drop it on the street as one big package and I said no this delivery to my door.  The guy unskrinkwrapped all of it and carried it to my door where I piled it up in our living room one by one.  The boxes were 50 lbs a piece and it was drizzling I wasn't about to do this myself - I paid for door service.

I think every service is a risk, the only time everything seems to go as planned is WHEN you do it yourself but thats isnt an option when moving across an ocean.

good luck!

I was 2008, so yeah, not all that recent (on a side note, OMG I've been here since 2008!  ).  UPakWeShip worked really well for me. I dropped it off at a warehouse in Los Angeles to make it a bit cheaper and watched as they shrink-wrapped everything onto a pallet. I had exactly 100 sqft--95% of which was boxes full of books. (True, I had about 35 boxes...32 of which were full of books).  Since most of it was books, and therefore unbreakable, I didn't have too much of an issue with stuff making it here in one piece, though I did lose one pyrex pan since it had been thrown on top of a bunch of other stuff and cracked. They delivered it 6 weeks after I shipped it to where my husband was living and carried everything up four flights of stairs. (And down the block, actually, as they couldn't fit their truck down our street). I *did* get hit with a customs fee, but it was about £50, so not that big a deal really.
I found it easy to stay in contact with them, and, when we queried the customs fee, we got a quick response and they were able to explain what it was and what was going on. I think when you rent out "part" of a container, you may be more likely to get the fee, as there is a mis-mash of things inside to interest customs.
I think a lot of the issue might be whomever is your local delivery person.

Thank you to everyone who responded!
I have no idea what to do, or who to use... Looking at Rainier too.

I need my stuff shipped on the 18th of THIS MONTH.
I do not have a house full of stuff to ship. No furniture at all.

But, of course, I want to get it all, in one piece, and in a reasonable amount of time, without insane extra fees!

I am a New Yorker, and I just do not respond well to Bullshit Scams.
The last thing I need to do is go off on a company that has all of my belongings hostage.

I am really trying to avoid that.

XOXOXOXOXOX,
L.

Well, I don't think UPakWeShip will hold your belongings hostage, though I'm not sure they will be as flexible with times as you would need as they need to wait for "room" in a container for your stuff when you're not really shipping that much, worth a try though!

OK. Thank you.

I am willing to pay more for a good, straightforward experience.

Well, so long as I am told the full amount UP FRONT.

OK. Thank you.

I am willing to pay more for a good, straightforward experience.

Well, so long as I am told the full amount UP FRONT.

Well, it will be important to be aware of that possible customs charge then, as it won't show up unless the container your stuff is in gets flagged for some reason. But it's not huge (I only paid £50), and they do warn you in advance it may occur. As with everything, your mileage may vary!

We have decided to pay a bit more and go with Rainier because they seem like a safer bet.

Thanx everyone!

I haven't yet booked with them, but I plan to use Smart Ship - their prices seemed similar to UPak, without the bad reviews.  They told me I only need to book about a week in advance.

Good luck!

Thank you! I will look into them too!

Lara,
Who did you end up going with? I was all set to use UPakWeship, until I read this thread.    I am moving from Philly to West Yorkshire.