Customs blamed for damages

[itsbutch]

I am really at a loss. I hope one of you readers has experienced what I am going thru now.

Also, steer clear of Trans Global Moving and Global Ocean Freight – both in Florida.

Way back in May 2006, I hired Trans Global Moving to bring 221 cu. ft of boxed goods and a few pieces of furniture from California to Costa Rica.

To make a long story short. T.G.M. sent my stuff to Long Beach in error – it sat there for 3 months. Then it was located and they decided to send it overland from California to Florida. At this point it was in Global Ocean Freights hands.

It took 5 months to get the goods delivered to Customs, San Jose. I paid $3787.00 fright/wrapping/dock fees – then I paid customer $1200 -that nearly $5000.

When I received the boxes and furniture, I had so much damage. I was also missing 6 boxes. I was told to photograph the damages, and forward them to Global, which I did. I was then told to send a description of what was in each box – which I did. I had pictures of every item I shipped, so I sent Global Ocean Frt, the “before” and “after” pictures. I had picture boxes with expensive prints inside, bubble wrapped, cardboard covered and boxed and when they arrived here there were foot prints on the boxes – the glass was shattered and the prints were completely distroyed. I had 23 boxes of broken dishes, glass, collectables and art work. It seems like every box that had a sticker that read ‘GLASS’ – ‘HANDLE WITH CARE’ – or ‘FRAGILE’ looked like they had been tossed across the room. The boxes had dented corners, holes in the sides and obvious signes of mistreating them. I also had furniture pieces shipped. Global hired “Isaac’s” from South San Francisco to pick up and wrap the items. All the items that they “professionally” wrapped were badly damaged, even to a leg of a banquet table being snapped off, two mirrors on the inside of a Curio being shattered, a new frig having 4 dents on the sides, a large CD case (700 spaces) completely distroyed. I had the delivering carrier (ABC Trucking) of San Jose, unwrap the furniture because we heard broken glass in the Curio. All three of the men that delivered the goods said “the wrapping was incorrect – a waste of money”. All Isaac’s did when they wrapped the stuff was to put a layer of cardboard around the piece and then a layer of shrink wrap. I questioned them and said this isn’t going to stop damage and they said it was going to be strapped onto pallets. What could I do – they were the experts. Also, I shipped 4 9×12 carpets. They ran out of wrapping material and said they’d wrap them at their warehouse. The rugs were to be “wrapped air tight” – because of the mildew problem, the dock smells and the moisture. I received the rugs unwrapped, mildew and smelly.
The problem of all the damages and missing boxes has been placed on “Customs” which to me is an easy way out. I was also told that I cannot file any claims with customs and that the insuraces do not cover damages and stolen goods while in Customs facility.
I think this is a sad case of blame the other guy…………
Does anyone have any suggestions? I have an estimated $8000 in damaged and missing goods.
Thanks for reading and reply………it’s reallllly apreciated

[*Lotus]

I think you are out of luck. My friend had a similar situation with movers here in the U.S. and after all the back and forth, calls, threats etc…there insurance company paid pennies on the dollar for the damages. I am in the real estate business here in NYC and I know the kind of rep we have along with lawyers, but I would put movers at the top of the scum list! I am often solicited by them to refer clients and on many occasions they have bluntly told me that whatever price they quote it will be much higher in the end. If you can find an honest mover pay the price, never just pick one out of the yellow pages!

[guru]

Butch, We have discussed the mover problem off line but you have more details now. Although it sounds like the “customs” clause can be used to avoid ANY recourse by anyone it sounds like a lot of the damage could have occured prior to reaching customs.

Cardboard boxes are not suitable for international shipping unless they are engineered containers (molded foam padding) and are shrink wrapped onto a pallet. Crating should be wood and built with fork lift cleats. Goods should be stabilized in the crate properly to avoid damage. In a move like this by others every box, crate or pallet is handled numerous times moved from truck to truck, container to container, container to warehouse. In your case it had some extra steps but not excessively so.

In customs they often inspect items while still inside the container by crawling over the items in the container (possibly where the foot prints came from) and open crates and boxes for inspection. Tops are ripped off wooden crates but if properly constructed the goods will still be protected. In other cases they move everything from the container into a stack in the warehouse, inspect it (opening boxes and crates) then release it to be put back into another truck or container. It IS known that there is a lot of theft in the CR port system.

The fact is that in international shipping, if it cannot pass the “gorilla” test (air line luggage handlers) or worse (dropped from the tailgate of a truck onto concrete several times) then it is not packed well enough.

Part of the problem is that there will probably be fine print that says you are responsible for packing and crating. Yes, you used the sub contractor recommended by the shipper but the responsibiliy still falls on you. If they did the job wrong then you were the final say. Yes, the shipper should have given you very specific crating instructions but that does not make him responsible.

“I questioned them and said, ‘This isn’t going to stop damage, and they said, It was going to be strapped onto pallets. What could I do. . ?”

The same as when any employee doesn’t do the job right. Tell them to stop, do it right or get out and not get paid. You had a suspicion when the goods left your premises that they were improperly packed.

At this point you need to read all the fine print of the contracts and insurance OR have a lawyer do so. But I think the shipper and the insurance company are going to put the crating on you (one of the other guys). So they they may have two outs, both you and customs.

Sorry your move to CR is starting off so badly.

[itsbutch]

Guru

Thanks, I know I am in a bad spot here, and I have decided to just take this all as a lesson. Hopefully, I’ll never do another move, but I do hope that others will read this and learn from it, especially what you just wrote.
I made a trip today to the local dump site, got ride of all the damaged stuff, including 4 apple boxes full of broken glasses, crystal, dishes etc. I can live without this stuff, as well as the stuff that was “missing”.
This is the only problem I have had during my move to this wonderful place I now call home – Costa Rica. I have made wonderful, generous, and giving friends. The Tico’s have given me so much help and encouragement. I have a beautiful home in Atenas, I furnished it with furniture from Sarchi and other local places. I bought an auto, without problem, I have finally filed my residency papers (that was a little touchy – but I did it myself). I am not discouraged at all, but I feel better now that I have accepted the blame for the damages; being my packing, their packing or whatever. I don’t want to dwell on this any longer, there is much to much good here in Costa Rica for me to let a few broken dishes and some missing boxes detract me all this good that is here waiting for me.

I really wish there was a published article or something that one could go to when thinking of moving from one country to another. My suggestion is “Sell everything” and “Buy what you need in your new country”

Thanks Again –

[*Lotus]

Good for you Butch!

[guru]

The advise to sell everything and buy again is suggested in many places but perhaps not strongly enough.

It IS a difficult decision to leave behind “things” you love. I am a craftsman and have a very large collection of tools and machinery, much of which cannot be purchased anywhere, much less Costa Rica. I also have a small library and collection of personal and family art. I have recently made a short semi-move and the problem weighs on me greatly. I have been moving things a car load at a time and the magnatude of a wholesale move is stagering.

I HAD a plan. And if my finances had worked out I would have dove head first into that plan and found MANY major set backs. The big one is that any crating I had done over 2 years with common lumber would be rejected by the shipping company OR the ports. The second problem is that the US government has rules on tracking containers that prevent an individual from buying a container and just shipping it. There are registration numbers and tracking systems that must be adhered to. The planed destination and whereabouts of the container must be known and it cannot be in the hands of an individual (un-licensed shipper) any longer than it takes to load (about a week). If I had bought the containers as I had planned, modified several with heavy steel shelves and racks, and filled them at total cost of about $20,000, ALL would have been in vain. . . A VERY expensive learning experiance and many costs that would have duplicated to make the move. . .

So my two year plan has become a 5 or 10 year plan and I am still researching the move and still searching for the right property in CR. Even with all the help Scott and this site provides there is a LOT to study. Meanwhile my Spanish has not improved. . it is still muy poco.

But happily I will spend another two weeks in CR this February!

[itsbutch]

Guru

I can “STRONGLY” suggest that one sell and buy again, based on experience. I am not blaming anyone but myself – I didn’t do my homework. Had I dug deep into the idea of shipping – I probably would not have; based on what I have read, and heard from others.

I got rid of a house full of furniture and “stuff”. What I tried to bring were some English Dinnerware (old) and now broken, a Llaque chandelier (expensive) broken and now useless. Some of my family crystal – suprisingly most of it made it just fine. Art collection (etchings) – broken glass on a few – that can be replaced. Then, my mother died on May 2, 2006 at 95 years old and I had a lot of her “old crystal pieces” and other old pieces – dishes, serving pieces, silver coffee/tea set etc. Most of my mom’s stuff was delivered broken. The reason I put on the damages to mom’s stuff is because I carefully wrapped all glass in paper and then in bubble wrap, marked all the boxes fragile, glass or breakable. These boxes received the most damage and these boxes looked like they had been tossed across the warehouse a few times

Had I known this was a problem with others, and had I investigated the shipping company’s, I would have done this alot differently. I probably would have bitten the bullet – sold or given away everything. Donated the antiques of my mom’s to some charity in her name and left California with my three suit cases (first class treat on my final trip from California to Costa Rica on June 7 2006), my dog and said “Good-bye to the OLD and Hello to the NEW” I can tell you all that it would have been a perfect move for me had I not shipped those 211 cu. ft. of “The I Can’t Live Without Stuff” – by the way, I am living without most of it now anyway – it was either broken or was in one of the 6 boxes that I am missing.

Good Luck All – Costa Rica is a wonderful place. A suggestion too, when you move to Costa Rica, loose the attitudes that you may have built up in the US or whereever – you’ll find that the local Tico’s are wonderful, friendly giving people and “without attitudes”. Don’t exploit them, don’t misuse them ………….Show your love and friendship and you’ll get it back 10 fold.

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