How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Shipping Container?

If you’re moving abroad from the UK and the entire contents of your home are coming along with you, you might need to find a shipping container for hire and transport. Hiring a shipping container is the best, and truly the only, way to move a large number of household items abroad. It’s also convenient for those transporting as the size of a container is standardised, since everything is now designed around these sizes, including trucks, ships, and trains. If this is your first international move, we’re happy to guide you through the world of shipping container hire. Buckle up!

Where to Hire a Shipping Container?

The first thing you’ll want to do is identify where you can find a shipping container for hire. Luckily, you’ll likely have plenty of options –there are more than a few of firms out there from which you can hire a shipping container. When you’re moving abroad, there are two sizes of containers that you will want to choose between, a 20ft and 40ft container. As the most common sizes of containers, they are abundant and adapted to international shipping. This means that securing one of these sizes for your move will result in fewer problems.

Finding the shipping container that best suits your removal is unfortunately only one part of the equation. You need to remember that you’ll still have to have the containers transported to the final destination, and then return them. In order to save you some hassle, and even some money, you should consider hiring one company that will take care of both the shipping container hire and the transport of your belongings. Dealing with fewer companies is a great way to reduce stress! But, before you do so, it might be smart to read up about container shipping hire prices to get a better idea of what you can expect.

A Look at Shipping Container Hire Prices

Now, it’s time to consider how much all of this will cost you. First, let’s look at the actual container. Normally, you’ll find that a shipping container to hire is charged on a weekly basis. For a 20ft container, you can expect to pay between £20-30 per week. While a 40ft container will usually be rented for between £40-50 a week. This sounds like a pretty reasonable rate, but do keep in mind that this is weekly, and your belongings won’t be in a container for just one week. If you’re shipping by sea, it could be up to 6-8 weeks, and maybe even longer. On top of that, if you can’t return it in your destination country, you’ll need to ship it back. And none of this actually includes the container shipping rates. We know it seems never-ending, but these costs will be worth it when you’re sitting in your cosy new home!

The cost to ship a container abroad will of course vary depending on where you’re shipping to. Just so you’re somewhat prepared for what to expect, here are some estimations for the most popular countries to opt for a shipping container removal from the UK:

• USA £1,500 – £2,500
• Canada £1,700 – £2,700
• Australia £1,300 – £2,300
• New Zealand £1,500 – £2,500

The Overlooked Costs

An often forgotten aspect of any removal is the cost of packing material for a shipping container removal. While the container offers protection, your belongings will need protection from the container and each other. If you don’t pack well enough, your goods will sustain damage from collisions with the walls of your container —remember steel is strong than wood! And as we mentioned, it’s not just the steel walls, but your goods can and will cause scratches and dents if not secured or well padded. So, make sure to not skimp on the packing material and ensure everything has a decent buffer.

Depending on what comes with the container you’ve decided to opt for, you may need to buy pallets, bubble wrap, boxes, straps, packing paper and more. There really are numerous things you’ll need, and they can cost anywhere between £200-500, all things considered. The costliest will be the pallets, so see if you can have those included within the shipping container hire prices. It’ll save you a bit.

Customs

Just before you go, there’s one other thing to consider with shipping container removals, and that’s custom borders. If you happen to be moving internationally, you’ll need to declare the items that you’re bringing into your new country of residence, an estimated value, have your items inspected, and sometimes even pay custom duty on these items. It’s an additional expense that you may need to factor in.

In some cases, you’ll find that there’ll be no charge, particularly for furniture, or items that you’ve held for more than six months. But the regulations differ with each country. For example, you can read about importing households to the USA and Australia. Be sure to investigate your destination country before you move!

One last thing

If you’re looking to move, then a shipping container hire will be imperative to your move, especially when planning to move the entire contents of your house. So, think carefully about what we’ve mentioned and be sure to pick the best option for you.

Finally, when you’re moving abroad, there are some additional things that you’ll need to consider, such as tax, voting, and pensions. It can be easy to forget, hence why we decided to mention it before closing this article off. Thus before you move, it would be wise to visit the government’s page on moving abroad.