What is a courier shipment?

WHAT IS A COURIER SHIPMENT?

The main focus of a courier service or a courier shipment is to perform express and door-to-door delivery. By definition, couriers are responsible for the delivery of packages for institutions, businesses, government agencies, and individuals.

Consider courier shipping as an ordinary parcel delivery, similarly to it, courier shipping works best with small moves, usually under 1 cubic meters. Therefore, if you are planning a small move, a courier shipment is ideal saving you time and cost.

There are courier services that focus on delivering goods anywhere in the world within a certain time frame (such as 1-3 business days) and during particular hours of the day (e.g. 8-10 AM). DHL and TNT are examples of courier companies with these goals.

PROS: BENEFITS OF COURIER SHIPMENTS

Cost and Time effective – Best way to save money and time on your small move
As mentioned, courier shipping works best with small moves. Couriers are specialists in moving smaller volume that can be moved quickly and efficiently, accurately monitored, and delivered to specific addresses within a single logistical network. For example, if you are planning to move out of Thailand and you only have a few boxes to ship out, courier shipment is the best option for you and that provides you with the cheapest way to ship your goods.

Faster than sea freight.
Couriers have dedicated flights and trade lanes, allowing them to travel faster than maritime freight. When compared to sea shipping, courier shipping is always faster, albeit shipping times vary by market. The smallest time will be the next day in countries such as the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, and Singapore, and the longest will be five days in countries such as the United States.

Door to door service.
Couriers provide a “door-to-door” service; thus, they can help you with vital paperwork including export and import declarations for your shipment if required.

Safe and Reliable.
You can monitor where your cargo is at any moment with courier’s up-to-date tracking, and you can trust that your goods will be safe during transportation.

CONS: PROHIBITED, RESTRICTED AND DANGEROUS GOODS (Source: DHL and TNT)

Unfortunately, not all goods can be transported and shipped, some items, such as nail polish, hair sprays, and perfumes, are categorized as dangerous commodities and hence are not allowed to be shipped internationally. Below is a detailed list of prohibited, restricted, and dangerous goods, including but not limited to the items enumerated.

1. Prohibited Goods – Goods you are not allowed to send

Animals (including insects, hatching eggs)
Bullion
Counterfeit or pirated goods
Dangerous goods, hazardous or combustible materials
Drugs and narcotics (illegal)
Firearms, weapons, ammunition (including replicas)
Human remains (including ashes)
Irreplaceable items
Knives
Pornography
Any item(s), the carriage of which is prohibited by any law, regulation or state of any federal, state or local government to or through which the shipment may be carried.

2. Restricted Goods – Goods that can be sent but with restrictions

Biodegradable (Food, perishable items, organic and industrial waste, plants and seeds, animal products)
Collectibles and/or rare items (any items worth more than its original purchase or that is not commonly available)
Drugs and pharmaceutical products
Foreign lotteries (including circulars)
Fur(s)/ivory/endangered animal products
High value (Jewelry, precious metals, antiques, fine art, gemstones, currency)
Industrial diamonds/carbons
Medical samples
Publications (certain types may be restricted by law)
Tobacco and alcoholic beverages (e.g. beer, wine)

3. Dangerous Goods

Any aerosols (hair spray and deodorants)
Air bag inflators and modules or seat-belt pretensioners
Alcoholic beverages containing > 24% alcohol by volume
Batteries classified as dangerous (wet spillable/non spillable lead-acid/alkaline batteries)
Batteries/cells including: lithium-ion/polymer/metal – alone and in or with electronic devices
Carbon dioxide, solid (Dry Ice)
Corrosives (acids, corrosive paint and dyes, rust removers)
Environmental waste (used engine oil and used or damaged batteries)
Explosives or ammunition (fireworks, flares and sparklers)
Flammable liquids (acetone, lighter fluid, solvent based paints)
Flammable solids (magnesium and potassium)
Gases (flammable, non-flammable, compressed and toxic gases such as fire extinguishers and scuba tanks)
Infectious and/or biological substances expected to contain pathogens or other agents such as: bacteria, viruses, parasites, prions
Matches, lighters or lighter refills (cigarette lighters containing petrol and butane lighters)
Oxidizing materials or organic peroxides such as disinfectants and hair dyes
Pesticides, toxic herbicides and insecticides or poisons toxic substances

USP RELOCATIONS’ COURIER SERVICES AND HOW WE STAND OUT

The benefits and the drawbacks mentioned above still applies to our courier services at USP Relocations and certainly to all couriers around the world. However, besides being cheap and fast, we do not only provide you with these advantages.

If you book a move with couriers like DHL or TNT, you will certainly pay the same amount with us or even less. BUT WHY US INSTEAD?

At USP Relocations, we have been excelling in Door-To-Door services for over 20 years, which also means we provide a full Door-To-Door services to all our clients even for smaller moves.

Unlike other couriers, where you’d have to worry about other costs such as those for boxes, documentation, we save you money and time for the same price. We would survey your home if needed to estimate the volume to be shipped and then having our packing crew come over to pack your belongings. We also handle the labelling and packing lists as well as the transportation to the terminal and thereafter we make sure that your shipment arrives safety at destination. If required, we can also arrange important documentation regarding your shipment such as import or export declarations.

As our motto says, “Your Move, Our Care”.

Sources

OECD
Easyship
ParcelPort
Dragon Courier
Ice International Cargo Express
TNT
DHL