Groupage shipments from 1m3 in shared containers
Groupage transport is a cost-effective way of sending goods to and from foreign countries. How? By sharing space in a sea container with the same destination. You can take advantage of this option for shipments, as small as 1 m3!
Moving goods by sea is an increasingly popular way to move your household goods abroad. However, a sea container is very large and not everyone has enough belongings to fill it. For this reason, moving via groupage transport has emerged. A joint container that allows you to share the costs with others!
Groupage destinations abroad
Transpack is active with groupage containers in 10 countries. The United States, Curaçao, Australia and Canada are popular destinations for our sea containers. The countries to which Transpack sends combined groupage transport are the following:
- United States (states in the middle of the country are also accessible)
- Canada
- Curaçao
- Aruba
- Congo
- Thailand
- Singapore
- Australia
- New Zealand
- South Africa
In addition, it is also possible to return to the Netherlands via groupage from these countries. The partners that Transpack uses for groupage transport from the Netherlands also offer the same service the other way around. Therefore, after a good experience on the outward journey, it is also a very good option for the return journey.
The groupage container will board the ship as soon as it is full. This means that the total transport time can take longer than shipping your goods in their own container. Transpack will keep you informed about the status and give an estimate of the expected departure time.
What does groupage cost?
Because the prices for groupage transport fluctuate and depend on several factors including the destination, the volume, the selected services and the month of the year. If you are curious about the costs for moving your belongings with groupage transport, please request a moving quote without any obligation.
Groupage transport can be offered in several ways, namely ”full service” or only ”transport service”. The difference between these two options is the amount of assistance with packing and unpacking of the goods. Below is a short summary of the possibilities:
- Goods are packed and unpacked for you on site
- Packing and unpacking of goods yourself, only home collection and delivery
- Packed goods delivered to our warehouse, delivered to your home
- Delivering and collecting goods at the warehouses
- Variations and combinations of these services are, of course, also available.
Please note that destinations such as the United States are so big that groupage does not cover every town. Please ask a Transpack representative about the possibilities.
Safely sharing container space
We understand how important it is to know that your belongings are safe and secure. That’s why we take several precautions to protect your belongings and keep them clearly separated from the other shipments in the shared container, namely:
- Partitioning the goods by means of wood and/or plastic
- Drawing up packing lists and numbering the individual boxes
- Colour coding the boxes, if required
- Creating loading plans for our partners so they know where certain goods are located
How does Groupage work?
- Send a request: Via our quotation form you can indicate the volume you wish to send and the destination. We will then send you the current availability of container space and an overview of price categories.
- Preparation: We will confirm your booking and inform you about the necessary documents for customs formalities in the country of origin and destination.
- Store your belongings temporarily: Your belongings will be stored free of charge in our warehouse in The Hague until the first possible sailing, unless you need extra storage time on your own request.
- Shipping your goods: We will notify you when we have enough shipments to fill a shipping container and will inform you of the sailing schedule. You can follow your shipment via track & trace.
- Collection of goods: Once the container has arrived at its destination, it is unloaded in our partner’s warehouse.
Tips for moving by sea freight
- Make sure that the necessary documents for customs formalities are in order and on time;
- Insure your belongings: if you let us professionally pack your belongings, you can make use of a complete and advantageous all-risk coverage. If you choose to pack your belongings yourself, then you can insure your belongings for a limited cover;
- Follow these packing tips if you are going to pack your own items to ensure that your belongings arrive at your destination safely and intact.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.
Interested to learn the difference between groupage and if it fits it ships? Find out here.