Relocation companies from Melbourne to Singapore

[marcel]

I will be relocating from Melbourne to Singapore shortly.

Can anyone recommend any good relocation companies that I can use? Feel free to also post any relocation companies you would not use, that would be very helpful as well.

We do not have any furniture or any big items to move. It will be pretty much a number of boxes. Shipping by sea will be the preferable way to do it, as the items will not be needed urgently.

Cheers!

[amiee40]

Hi there

I am in Melbourne also trying to relocate to Singapore. I used Grace International Removers and its the worse mistake ever. I asked for a short transit timeframe, got a quote for it. After our effects have been uplift , didn't hear from them. After my intended deliverable date, still no effects only to found out our things are still in Melbourne waiting for the container to be filled.

I asked for a specific timeframe and now they are saying, pay more if you want it and now denying that i ever gave them the initial timeframe. Hello?? where did you get my uplift date , address and inventory, if you never got the first initial quote request!!

I have lodged my complaint with the Australian Furniture Removers Association. Now Grace is ignoring me.. maybe i should do what my friend did when a rogue removalist misplaced her effects and that is to contact 'A Current Affairs'.

Just venting out my anger and frustration...

[marcel]

Hi Amie

Really sorry to hear about your issues with Grace International Removers. I bet it must be really frustrating resolve this kind of problems. But you sure crossed them off my list! Will make sure not to use them.

At the time you were looking for removers, did you have others in mind?

Best of luck getting your things settled.

[AussieSkater]

Whikle researching my future move to Singapore I found out about the different certifications that removalist companies can have. It turns out that their is an international moving accreditation called FIDI, it is like ISO accreditation except done by an external body every 2 years. If you do a google search you can find out about it.

Well not all removalist companies have this certification, did a check of Grace and it doesn't have it. Also curious that they said it was going to take up to 6 weeks for the furniture to get to Singapore considering it only takes 12 days for the boat to sail there.

I've actually settled on a company that only does international removals that is FIDI accredited.

Hope you can work out your woes.

[sierra2469alpha]

Highly recommend Move Management Australia! Absolutely no dramas with them at all moving us from SYD to SIN earlier this year. Details are:

Move Management Australia Pty Ltd
Suite G13 " Macarthur Point"
25 Solent Circuit
Baulkham Hills NSW 2153
61-2-9659 5500 Fax: 61-2-9659 5099

Ask for Colin Parker. Also, check your PM as I've given you our names as a recommendation.

HTH, P

[marcel]

I've actually settled on a company that only does international removals that is FIDI accredited.

What removalist did you settle on?

Will you be moving soon? Would appreciate some feedback on your experience relocating.

[amiee40]

Hi Marcel

Grace is trying to get me to meet them half way and offered to pay half of the additional $1250 for faster transit time which is still 4 weeks from now.

Are they going to offer to pay for our out of pocket expense for take away meals and additional clothing because they couldn't delivery on time??

My complaint is their lack of customer service, they have made a lot of errors but they don't want to admit it. Why should i have to prove their mistakes, i am not an IT expert to know whether there was a glitch in their quoting website.

I asked them to meet me at a point where i don't have to suffer financially. Hope to hear a response from them today.

[AussieSkater]

[/quote]

What removalist did you settle on?

Will you be moving soon? Would appreciate some feedback on your experience relocating.[/quote]

We have settled on OSS Worldwide, www.ossworldwidemovers.com, you can do an online quote and then they came out and noted everything that we were thinking about taking, and gave us a firm quote. They take responsibility for the whole process even when it arrives in Singapore, so if there is a problem you go back to them.

They were very good and professional, had a handout that they gave us about what you can and can't import into Singapore, duties payable, paperwork required. They even picked up on my wedding bouquet dried flower arrangement that I was going to take with me and pointed out that I most likely wouldn't be able to bring it back unless I paid for fumegation.

Hope this helps

[Leone and John]

We used Wridgways from Melbourne to Sing, just on two years ago and never would use them again!!

They were very careless with packing our valuable books and other items.... they even packed a 'clothes horse' WITH a valuable painting!!

On arrival here in Sing we had Santa Fe..... a great company with excellent staff. They arrived and started to unpack, then they called me to come and check the damage that had been done ..... here were our books just jammed in any which way, with books within books and all the pages damaged and torn.

I took photos of every opened box and sent it to them and rec'd no apology!

Santa Fe kept in touch with us over the first week to make sure everything was unpacked and in its correct place and did we need any further help!!!!

But I guess it all depends on the people employed by the removalist at the time too ........ some careless packers can work for any company.

But good luck with your move. Maybe we will meet one day after you arrive!!

[AussieSkater]

One of the things that we liked about OSS, was that all their packers are employed directly by the company, so they aren't subbies, who go from one company to the next. This appears to be when the problems come in.

[marcel]

Thanks for the reply guys.

We are pretty much packing all by ourselves; we don't have any furniture to bring so they are pretty much clothes, books, etc. I reckon we'll just need someone to pick up the boxes and ship them through.

[Leone and John]

Thanks for the reply guys.

We are pretty much packing all by ourselves; we don't have any furniture to bring so they are pretty much clothes, books, etc. I reckon we'll just need someone to pick up the boxes and ship them through.

Books are a great idea as you will find they can be very expensive here. As many as you can ... you can always swap with friends once here. Clothes also, if you have children a trip to Target wouldn't go amiss!!

Of course it is the ideal time for you to shop for clothing in Australia as all the summer gear would be available ........ but don't buy anything in the way of polyester / nylon fabric. It is a very casual lifestyle here, bring swimwear and you will certainly need lots of shorts, loose tops, sandals etc.

If you have a BBQ, bring it too. As the few that are available here are expensive. Having said that, most private condo's do have BBQ facilities..... but I am suggesting one of the smaller ones for the balcony.

If your company is paying for the container .... load it up!!!

But no furniture as most apartments are furnished, tho' of course not all. If you need to buy or rent furniture, there are many places in Singapore to do so. I brought furniture here and now wished I hadn't!

Good luck with the packing and the move.

[road.not.taken]

Just a few points to add:

Singapore may be very casual, but he social life here is much more rich and dynamic then it is in my home town in the US. Depending on how you like to spend your time, there are lots more opportunities to get dressed up here (black-tie Balls, wine dinners, theme parties, ethnic weddings, etc...) -- I wouldn't limit your wardrobe based on Singapore's casualness. Think about what you'd like to do on the weekends.

Also, apartments may come furnished, but I have never seen one where I would consider it a 'plus'. The furnishings are usually garish, out-dated and cheap.

Feel free to disagree, but this has been my experience here. Good luck with the move!

[Leone and John]

You are right "road.not.taken" with regards some of the furnishings in the apartments ...... have seen photos and a lot of them really are quite dreadful. One for rent in the same condo as we are, with a bright green velvet sofa.

We are very lucky as our LL did furnish ours quite reasonably. But then we are not in the 'up market expat bracket' either ..... so probably are happier with what we have than others might be!!

Your comment also regarding the clothing / dress, is probably also appropriate for a lot of expats. But as we do not go to black-tie balls, wine dinners and the like, didn't even consider that. The 'code of dress' when in Singapore would obviously depend on the lifestyle of the people themselves (ie: the 'expat') and where they live, their line of business, what their interests are too...... I brought a few upmarket dinner outfits with me two years ago and have never worn them. Just too OTT for here, so they have been packed back home to the charity bin.

A few friends are attending an ethnic wedding .... but as it will be a "one off" they bought their outfits at a great reduced price in Little India. Part of the joy of living here is also locating these items when needed !!!

But all good advice for people planning a move here, they will know what sort of lifestyle they are intending to have. This is what forums / mailing lists etc are all about, helpful advice from all corners of the country.