Auto transporting guide — Things you need to know about international car shipping

International car shipping has become viable these days primarily because it is now affordable. You can now keep your car even if you want to move to another country because auto transporting is now affordable. This is really a good thing because it’s just hard to let go of your car especially if there are a lot of sentimental values involved in it. You just want to use it and take it with you wherever life will take you until it will no longer run, justifying the prospect of buying a new one.

If you want to move to another country and you want to take your car with you, there are things that you need to know regarding international auto transporting. It is more expensive than local car shipping for one thing, but there are still other things that you need to consider so read on.

1. Type
The most common method of international auto shipping is the RO-RO (roll on-roll off), wherein you just drive your car into the cargo deck of the ship. It is the cheapest type of shipping that you can get because your car is exposed to the natural elements.

2. Options
If you want more protection, you can ask for a car shipping quote with a special container. Usually a container is shared by four different car owners so that it becomes cheaper. But if you are shipping an expensive and rare vintage, you can go for a solo container at a much higher price.

3. Protection
Before you hand over your car to the auto transporting company, make sure that you are amply protected. Most car shipping company will give you a $500 dollar insurance policy to cover generic cosmetic damage to your car. If you want full protection, you can get a Marine Shipping Insurance.

4. Restriction
When you need to cross international boundaries, it is important to remember that different countries have different levies with regard to importation of vehicles. You must then wade your way through the stack of paperwork. You should also need to consider things like custom fees, taxes, and other tariffs that are applicable and since custom fees can be 30% of the Blue Book price of your car in certain countries, now is the time to consider whether it is still feasible to ship it.

5. Reminders
Remember that your car must be picked by you personally or by your authorized representative in the country of destination. If you authorize another person, make sure that his or her name must appear in the bill of lading that you signed before the car shipping begun. Other restrictions like reducing your fuel to about a quarter of a tank and removing of personal stuff do apply here as well.

International auto transporting has become popular these days because there is surge in the movement of people from country to country and it is now affordable. The shipping process has become so reliable with the help of technologies like GPS systems and of course the Internet and that’s why people are confident to ship their cars. If you need to ship your car across international boundaries, you can ask for a free <a href="http://www.a1autotransport.com/quote/quote.php"target="_blank">car shipping</a>
quote from this website: <a href="http://www.a1autotransport.com"target="_blank">http://www.a1autotransport.com</a>.

tango - 2/5/2011 9:00:37 PM

+4 Boost

My advice: Sell the damn thing and buy another car at your destination. There are simply too many things that unsuspecting shippers will face. Corruption at the port of entry as well as high import duties and taxes are but a few. Other things such as the age of the vehicle and compliance with steering wheel position. Some countries do not allow left-hand drive vehicles to be imported or may have special requirements for them. The list is exhaustive. And a word on import duties....they can be misleading, recondite, and abstruse in their wording and can end up perhaps costing you your precious car. In Jamaica, for example, importing a car with an engine larger than 3000cc will cost you almost 300% of its value to import and since cars older than 3 years old cannot be imported, that works out to a LOT of money. Motorcycles with engines larger than 700cc cannot be easily imported and must get a special permit from the Ministry of National Security and once imported must either be destroyed or exported if the owner no longer wants it. It cannot be resold. It doesn't matter anyway because most insurance companies won't insure a bike with anything larger than a 600. Like I said...sell the damn thing and get a vehicle at your destination.

Lamborghini_vs_Ferrari_Racer - 2/6/2011 4:22:25 AM

+1 Boost

You are very right Tango, having lived in a couple of Carib countries for a short while due to work, I am aware of the corruption situation. The countries are still very beautiful and relaxing nevertheless.

Now, this should work in cases like moving to European countries from North America for example. Would anyone know about the customs in Germany as I would like to take my M5 from NY to Stuttgart where I am expected to do my internship with Daimler. Yes, an M5 in Germany is very expensive and I probably would like to take it from America as it is cheaper...

lillianrae - 5/21/2014 5:05:34 AM

+1 Boost

I am planning to import a car from UK. I want to know what amount I will have to pay and duration of this shipment?
National Auto Shipping – http://www.k2autoshipping.com