We’re back with Round 2!
Last month we looked at 4 misconceptions people have about shipping their deeply beloved cars to Europe with the help of Volker Risse, the CEO of International Car Bridge (ICB) Dubai. Now, we’re going to dive in and outline 7 great tips you absolutely need to remember when moving your car to Europe from the UAE.
Just to recap a little bit, Volker has over 20 years of experience in the car sales and transport business in Germany and has been running ICB in Dubai since 2003. The tips highlighted below are broken into the three stages of moving – (1) deciding if you want to move, (2) obtaining quotes from car shipping companies, and (3) finally having your belongings shipped. Also, did you know that with ICB you can actually move some of your household belongings with your car with no extra fee? Keep reading and you’ll find out more, and once you’re ready to get quotes from car shippers, we can help!
Before deciding to move your car, consider these tips:
- Move your Japanese, Korean or American made cars to Europe – it’s much more profitable. “Taking your car back to Europe as a relocation good is always profitable,” stated Volker. He further emphasized that it is financially worthwhile to move your Lexus, Toyota, Hyundai, or Ford cars instead of European made cars such as Volkswagen, Audi and BMW due to customs.
- If you have a Diesel powered car, forget about it. If you’re going to buy a brand new car in the UAE, and then plan on moving it to Europe, make sure you’re buying petrol engine cars and not Diesel run cars! “Diesel cars have poorer exhaust emission levels and are much more difficult – sometimes even impossible – to get registered in Europe,” explains Volker. However, the only exception is a Land Cruiser HZJ. When getting quotes from car shipping companies, consider these tips:
- Beware of car shipping companies with extremely low prices. We’re all tempted by the low price tag, but when it comes to shipping and moving, there are a lot of charges that you will not encounter right away. Volker highlighted that people looking to move need to find a company that informs their customers about everything, specifically the destination harbour handling charges and customs declaration fees which can be really high. In Germany and other EU countries, customs declaration harbour handling fees are about 700 Euros! So when comparing quotations, be sure to always compare the inclusions and exclusions of a quote before you make your decision.
- Get insurance for transportation too! Juggling quotes from multiple companies can be a handful, but you can’t forget to ask them to give you a quote for transportation insurance. It may sound minor, but be sure to have that on your list. You never know what can happen!
- Ask your shipping company in Dubai to provide pictures. This tip, we have to admit, we really didn’t know about but Volker explained that as customers we should ask for “dozens of pictures during the loading process.” Get pictures from all angles before it’s loaded and once the car has been loaded to keep as proof in case any damages occur.
- Don’t forget to get all your original documents! Ask for a Bill of Lading draft and the original Bill of Lading! Also, don’t forget to claim your Export Certificate back from the car shipping company. You’ll need it to get your car registered in Europe, and there is no way of doing this without the certificate.
- At EU customs, get your No Objection Certificate! Everything may go smoothly at customs, but you can’t forget to obtain one very important piece of paper, the No Objection Certificate. This is issued by the EU customs and you need it to get your car registered in Europe – again, without it you can’t have it registered.
