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Moving all my belongings to France!!


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Hi

In the process of selling up in UK and buying in a lovely house in the Vienne dept.

My question, is it possible to hire or buy a 40ft container, load it myself and get it transported by lorry from Southampton to Vienne?

I've found a company that will sell a s/h container but cannot find transport to France.

Thanks in advance
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Have to say I don't understand how this can be a problem. There is a massive industry moving most of the world's freight by this means and you're in one of the UK's biggest ports. A quick Google search on container freight Uk to France threw up loads of sites.

Have you tried UKHaulier.co.uk and similar sites too ?

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There are indeed a number of haulage companies who can do this, but have you really thought this through?

Unless you have a £250k reach stacker in the UK and in France, the truck will need to be fitted with lifting equipment to lift the container on. Not so much problem for a 20ft but a little bit rarer for a 40ft. Just make sure you specify this when talking to the hauliers.

To lift the container the truck will need to set out its side stabilisers to lift the container onto the trailer from the side. This means the driver will need a clear 24ft or so to the side of the container to lift it on - so total free width including the container is 32ft. The same will be required at the French end. The ground for loading and unloading will need to be solid (we are looking at 40t total weight potentially) and will need to be flat.

You will be legally responsible for ensuring the truck is not overweight. Truck will probably tare at 17-18t. The container will be around 4.5t - so 22t empty leaving 18t payload - probably OK unless you have a lot of books or wine to ship.

Good luck
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Hindsight is a wonderful thing and if I were moving here again I would do it totally differently.

Basically I would sell as many of my belongings as possible probably through Ebay and buy new when I got here.

There are some things that I would bring with me like my Sky box, a decent kettle (you can't get a decent one in France, well in comparison to the UK), egg poacher for four eggs (had to buy one from the UK.). Personal things like books and clothes although you can get English books from Amazon or buy a cheap second hand tablet and download books for free. Beds, I would still bring a bed as the French mattresses are very expensive compared to good quality English ones. All the other stuff, furniture, pots and pans etc I would get rid of. You can then probably get it all in a hire van with space to spare.

There are loads of 'sheds' selling last years electrical goods and knock down prices so I wouldn't bring dishwashers, washing machines, fridges and freezers because they are difficult to get repaired. Of course the difference is only the mains plug but the French repair man will scratch his head and tell you to buy new and with most French house insurance you get 'new for old' with something like a €100 excess. We have two washing machines and basically get a new one every 18 months fro €100. Same with the dishwashers and drying machines. This year we got a new American fridge/ freezer, only paid the €100 excess on that as well, saved me around €800. We buy a lot of stuff from Mr Good Deal, have a look at the prices. http://www.mistergooddeal.com/

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Q seems the more logical thing to do.

OPs plan costs:

Purchase 40 ft container

Contract with transportation company - drivers wages, effecitvely vehicle hire, ferry charge, toll charges, fuel charges (and they do not do 40 miles to the gallon)

Either a specialist trailer on the lorry or crane to load and another crane to offload.

If the haulier cannot get a return load then a charge to return empty

Remember as well, drivers permitted hours per day so at least one overnight stop on the way down.

Qs plan:

Hire up to a 7.5 tonne van self drive (drive on a car licence)

It is surprising how much you can get in if loaded correctly but do take weights in to account

Ferry, fuel and toll costs

You might even get away with a Luton van which will be cheaper still
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Quillan said :

with most French house insurance you get 'new for old' with something

like a €100 excess. We have two washing machines and basically get a new

one every 18 months fro €100. Same with the dishwashers and drying

machines. This year we got a new American fridge/ freezer, only paid the

€100 excess on that as well, saved me around €800.

Apologies to the OP for going off-topic, but, Quillan, I'm confused - do you mean you claim on your house insurance every 18 months for a new appliance? Surely something has to be damaged/broken/flooded etc for the insurance to cover it? And don't all those claims push up your premiums?

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[quote user="Lou"]
Apologies to the OP for going off-topic, but, Quillan, I'm confused - do you mean you claim on your house insurance every 18 months for a new appliance? Surely something has to be damaged/broken/flooded etc for the insurance to cover it? And don't all those claims push up your premiums?
[/quote]

Broken is the most common claim. Remember we are not the same as ordinary folk, we run a B&B and the equipment probably goes through more in a month than a normal person does in a year (or longer). We have two washing machines, one for sheets and the other for towels. In season these run four times a day each plus our own cloths. In winter the driers are used at least twice a day if not more. With the fridge freezers it is the doors that go. In the old days you could buy and fit a new seal but these days they are simply binned. Vacuum cleaners normally last about 18 months, we bought a Dyson and that lasted longer, around two years but the best by far has been the Sebo which is well into it's third year and still going strong (probably the best vacuum cleaner I have ever bought). As to my premium, well it has never changed.

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I'll say this for you Q, you are well integrated [:)]

What you are describing sounds like normal wear and tear from intensive use, normal in as much as modern stuff wont take it like older built Equipment.

Good luck to you if your insurer swallows it, could the friendly smiling broker be playing a part?

In any case that is why I refuse to subscribe to any insurance other then where I am legally obliged.

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[quote user="Chancer"]

I'll say this for you Q, you are well integrated [:)]

What you are describing sounds like normal wear and tear from intensive use, normal in as much as modern stuff wont take it like older built Equipment.

Good luck to you if your insurer swallows it, could the friendly smiling broker be playing a part?

In any case that is why I refuse to subscribe to any insurance other then where I am legally obliged.

[/quote]

Well we nearly fell out the first time when I took the cheque and bought online saving a few bob and was told "no it does not work quite that way".

First you visit the agent and then you go round to his brother who owns the local electrical shop and he gets a price for the replacement article and adds on €100 (your excess) and gives you a facture post dated by a couple of years for the old one. I then take this round to my 'friendly' insurance agency who in turn gives me a cheque made out to said brothers shop. He passes it on to his cousin who works at the wholesalers who delivers the replacement to his shop. Two days late my new equipment arrives, if not then they lend me a replacement to get by on. Apparently that’s how the system works round here and every one is a winner.

I forgot that of course the brother who owns the electrical shop produces a Devis first that naturally says the item is uneconomical to repair.

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[quote user="Chancer"]

I rest my case [:(]

What are the presumably creative insured events that allegedly caused these items to fail and be uneconomic to repair, flood?, impact damage?, electrical storms? plagues of locusts etc?[:D]

[/quote]

Absolutely nothing creative at my end at all, they all genuinely stop working. I know nothing about washing machines other than you have to take the shipping bolts out when it arrives and you need to plug it in, connect it to the water and shove the pipe into the waste and that’s about it.

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getting away again from the original question.

Why on earth would a buildings or contents insurance pay out for a domestic item that just "stopped working" unless it was as the result of an insured peril like a fixed plumbin water leak soaking the circuit board or a lightning strike?

You stike me as anything but daft Quillan and I can only assume that you prefer to be ignorant of what they are getting up to.

It reminds me of the people who everytime they buy a new RHD car their helpfull insurance broker gets his BIL garage owner to fit new headlights Under the insurance Policy and who think that nothing is amiss in doing this once a year.

Again not sour grapes, good luck to them but its why I would never have anything more than tiers auto insurance, my €98 premium is not going to buy even one headlight bust everyones premiums go towards replacing your white goods as does everyones mutuelle premiums go towards those who are determined to get much more out than they pay in at all costs.

P.S. I wasnt trying to suggest that you were being creative, no thats the domain of the insurance agents, you could work at it all your life and still not hold a candle to them but you must have seen what the claims were for n'est ce pas?

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I don't understand Q's claims either, but there you go.

And yes the Sebo is good, I'm still happy with mine, although these old eyes nearly messed it up a few weeks ago when I was putting the new filter in, or trying to late evening....... no wine or other alcoholic beverages involved.......... in case any one is wondering!

I think that I remember one poster years ago getting their stuff transported from France in a container, and they were moving far away, ie Australia or the US, but apart from that, I don't know of anyone who has done it. I'm sure that it isn't too hard to do, but could be expensive on the french end. Personally I wouldn't move this way. It couldn't be easier than using a removal company or DIY these days and no need to have french consular authorisation............. as we did in the olde days!

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Back to the original post [:)]

When we moved, I bought a 40 foot artic trailer, not a curtainsider !!, with a few months MOT remaining and had it delivered to my door where I then loaded it at my leisure.

I hired a tractor unit and driver to transport it to our new home, unloaded it at my leisure, then sold the trailer unit to a local farmer for a profit [:D]  No messing around with having to unload then reload a container onto a trailer.

Might be worth a thought?

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We used a well known removal company but we bought marine assurance separately for the goods. Normally you only get a few days in which to claim for breakages etc but the marine insurance gave us three months. It was the removal company that suggested it and put us in contact with a broker. They, the removal company, still managed to deliver the wrong container but thats another story.
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Thanks to those who replied, useful info and food for thought.

Probably the 7.5 T lorry looks favourite.

I also have a very not roadworthy sports car to transport. If I had a vehicle to tow with I'd hire a trailer but I don't.

Any suggestions?

Did get a little way laid there though!
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[quote user="chateaubriant"]Thanks to those who replied, useful info and food for thought.

Probably the 7.5 T lorry looks favourite.

I also have a very not roadworthy sports car to transport. If I had a vehicle to tow with I'd hire a trailer but I don't.

Any suggestions?

Did get a little way laid there though![/quote]

7.5 ton trucks can have a tow bar, plus if  you're going to hire one it's good idea to get one with a tail lift, saves a lot of crushed fingers and sore backs. Also when you return it to the UK (if that's where you intend hiring from) put the trailer in the back, saves ferry money.Simples

Good luck

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Quote

'I also have a very not roadworthy sports car to transport. If I had a vehicle to tow with I'd hire a trailer but I don't.

Any suggestions? '

Some hire companies hire single car transporters, such as:

choicevehicalrentals.com

or hire a vehicle with a tow bar and a trailer but might be more expensive.
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  • 2 weeks later...
It now appears the French towing law has changed outlawing a total towing chain of over 3500kg.

My understanding is a trailer carrying a car towed by car/van/truck would be illegal.

I'm now thinking of buying a cheapish lwb luton and loading my car (14ft long) in the back.
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  • 2 weeks later...
[quote user="chateaubriant"]It now appears the French towing law has changed outlawing a total towing chain of over 3500kg.

My understanding is a trailer carrying a car towed by car/van/truck would be illegal.

I'm now thinking of buying a cheapish lwb luton and loading my car (14ft long) in the back.[/quote]

Anyone think that French customs might not let the car in?

I only have a V5 in the previous owners name as the car was registered in NIreland.

I could not register in my name until I get an MOT.

Am I worried about nothing, will I get it in ok as another goods and chattel from the house move?

Should I contact French Customs and open a can of worms????
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I'd like to see proof of your statement about a trailer carrying a car

towed by a truck being illegal? Also I would advise you to weigh the car

before you stuff it into a Luton van. The majority of twin wheel Luton

vans are 35CWT capacity, single wheel a lot less. I would think that a

car in someone else's name could be tricky, have you got a bill of sale? Why not register it in your name and SORN it. .
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Nobody is going to be even vaguely interested about the car registration. French customs is pretty much non-existent and they will be more interested in people smuggling or drugs than anything else, if they are even present when you cross.

I also fail to see how towing a trailer with a truck could be illegal.

Whatever you do - dont worry about it. If its legal in the UK then it will be fine in France.

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