I am new to the site & looking for some advice. I want to send a balikbayan box to my new wife in philippines with things for the house there & personal items too. Is there a monetary máximum value you can send? Are the contents insured? are there any ítems prohibited from sending? I have found a company called" Forex Cargo UK"..... Has anyone had dealings with them before? Can anyone recommend a company in the midlands/north of england área? Thanx.
Hi Dasmaboy. I cant help you with balikbayan boxes as I have never sent one. But welcome. Presumably your wife is from Dasmarinas, Cavite?
We've used B & N Lilley twice in the past, had no problems at all. http://bnlilley.com/index.php?thisscreen=S71&thislanguage=L01
Hi there dasmaboy, welcome to the forum. In principle there is no limit to the values of individual items. However, you'd be well advised to seek advice from your chosen shipper on this. It really comes down to common sense. Maybe there are some items that would be better served being sent via a courier service. Yes, but only up to specific declared values. As mentioned above, you'd better discuss with the shipper. More often than not additional insurance is available (subject to T's & C's) at a premium such as 3% - 5% of declared value. Yes, there are many prohibited items. Mostly it's pretty much common sense, others might need input from the individual shippers. To be fair, most of the stuff that folks ship by Balikbayan Box is perfectly OK Here's a reasonably typical list of prohibited items:- - Illegal Drugs - Money - Money Order/Postal Order - Credit Card/SIM Card/Prepaid Cards - Firearms and its parts/explosives/Toy Guns - Firecrackers - Jewelry/Ivory - Products made of animal skin - Antiques - Pornographic materials (CDs/DVDs/VCDs/Magazines/Pictures) - Fake/counterfeit goods (fake Gucci, Louis Vuitton etc) - Plants/plant products / seeds etc - Drugs/medicines etc - Pirated CDs/ACDs - Meat products - Gases / Flammable liquid / Flammable solids / Toxic/Poisonous materials - Corrosives - Poisonous materials - Radioactive materials Forex Cargo are a long time BB provider. They are reputable and reliable. The only issues for me being that I'm on the edges of their service area and found their customer service in terms of pick-up time to be totally unacceptable. Also the 'door-to-door' time from pick-up to delievery often took far to long IMO Due to this we recently switched to LBC who offer a significant improvement in terms of a known 'door-to-door' delivery time. Whichever organisation you choose please be sure to use a known reliable reputable company. If the area where you live has very limited choice do some research and seek feedback. You'll understand it's a very popular and easy business to set-up and has an advantage of in-built lengthy periods where excuses for non-deliver are accepted by the sender(s). Perfect for those who want to put your money and and your goods in their pockets. Here are some of the more popular Balikbayon Box providers to help your research along the way http://www.lbcexpress.com/UK/Home http://www.forexcargouk.com/about.html http://www.belwooduk.co.uk/balikbayan-boxes/our-prices http://www.balikbayan-box.co.uk/index.html http://www.tagalogbalikbayan.com/ http://www.pfilondon.com/ Be sure you compare like with like. Double check prices by volumes not by generic names (Jumbo Box, Mega Box, Large Box etc) Check charges for the delivery of boxes and also for pick-up Find out how best to pack these boxes and how to tape up. Be sure all documentation will be provided and be certain to fill-out correctly. Secure packing is absolutely key. Oh, and just be sure the packed boxes can actually be moved through the doorways/hallways etc in your house Happy packing
Welcome aboard dasmaboy Just to ask from that list Micawber.. Do leather shoes count as made from Animal skin, or is this really for endangered animal or fur coats that could hide microbes?
Your guess is as good as mine, but I doubt it includes 'regular' leather shoes. BB boxes don't usually get opened. (thank goodness!!!!!)
I am also looking for reliable company for shipping cargo to the Phils, I found the LBC jumbo box to be very small, so I am trying to find a bigger box. Any ideas anyone?
Can't help with the size of boxes problem, but I'd certainly recommend LBC. Have shipped with them on many occasions, all trouble free. Our last box pitched up in Davao just this week (9 weeks door-2-door)
In principle anything can go into a BB box that'll fit. As long as the box can be moved to the pick-up vehicle there's no weight limit. Also 99% of BB boxes are not subjected to customs checks/interference. Not even X-Rayed The contents are limited only by imagination. Some folks DO indeed include 'high value' items. It's pretty subjective. John, just out of interest, how much in £££'s would you consider to be high value:- a) for a single item b) for the total contents We've shipped a number of boxes that would contain a total replacement value of between £600 - £1000 It's amazing just how much stuff can be squeezed into a box of say a cubic metre volume. You pay a shipped price only on volume. Not on value and not on weight. Wonderful idea they are.
Interesting reply. Thanks. We dont know exactly. But we were considering a mixture of items from a second hand iphone and iPad on the one hand to second hand baby clothes and toys on the other and some of my wifes clothes that she no longer wears. As you say, our imagination needs to be pushed back. This would be for immediate and extended family. In some ways it will be fun gathering the stuff, so I think we might enjoy putting a box of stuff together.
In truth, it is great fun. I always enjoy it. We also usually get some 'fun' stuff from the £ shop Just be sure to pack it properly. Try to avoid any movement if you can. We often use towels and clothes etc to pack out the 'air pockets'. We also use plenty of 'bubble wrap' We don't send glasses any more as we've had some breakages. Not sure yet just why.. Better to attempt to emulate the packaging used for 'Original Product' when sending used items. I'll bet you'll be surprised at how much stuff you'll need to fill that box. Also probably be surprised at the total cost when it's full. We're just getting prepared for the new Car Boot season in our area. Always a good bet for all sorts of stuff at cheap cheap prices. We often seek out kids toys and dolls. Last summer we bought Barbie dolls and accessories for just pence. Dora the Explorer is also popular out in the paradise islands. Have fun
I think the BB service is a wonderful thing!! I've had everything from Lawnmowers to jars of Branston pickle sent to me and just about everything not available here in between!! I still cant believe there is no weight limit and the 50 or so boxes sent to me in the past have NEVER been opened or tampered with. BB boxes..I love you!
Having begun to realsie that these are unique to the Philippines I looked them up on the net. "A balikbayan box (literally, "Repatriate box") is a ubiquitous, corrugated box containing any number of small items sent by an overseas Filipino known as a "balikbayan". Though often shipped by freight forwarders specializing in balikbayan boxes by sea, such boxes can be brought by Filipinos returning to the Philippines by air" "These boxes might contain nearly anything that can fit and that the sender thinks the recipient would like, regardless of whether those items can be bought cheaply in the Philippines, such as non-perishable food, toiletries, household items, electronics, toys, designer clothing, or items hard to find in the Philippines." "Part of the attraction of the balikbayan box is its economic value as it affords the sender cheaper bulk shipment of items versus sending each individually or in smaller boxes through postal services. The tradeoff though is longer transit time by container ship, which typically lasts several weeks, and the lack of a solid delivery date. Important is the balikbayan boxes' role in the practice of pasalubong, where returnees are culturally expected to bring home gifts to family, friends and colleagues in the Philippines." "The balikbayan box arose in the 1980s with the law[which?] enacted by former Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos causing a resurgence of Filipinos working overseas.[citation needed] The Philippine Bureau of Customs Circular allowed tax-free entry of personal goods in the country from Filipinos overseas. People then began sending items through friends and co-workers who were returning to the Philippines." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balikbayan_box
Yes, my wife said thet her nephew watched Dora the Explorer (I used to watch it here, with my son, when he was younger). Okay, I have a lot of experience of packing things very carefully for transit in the North Sea in all weathers so I know what you mean. And I understand where you are coming from with the car boot idea.
Hi again, A couple of further questions re. my Balikbayan box.. I am sending the box to my wife who is still in philippines, when filling out the paperwork for sending the box should I put my name or my wife's name as sender? ( this question is because I understand the boxes are only for the use of OFW's) also...what value do I write down for clothing / other used personal Ítems that are being included to save on weight next time I fly over to philippines?
