DANGEROUS GOODS
Please refer to the Airfreight Baggage Company section on Dangerous goods, for descriptions of things that cannot be sent by airfreight.
BATTERIES
Remove any batteries that are in mobile phones, laptop computers, toys and games. Not only are these items classified as dangerous goods, and forbidden in air freight shipments, but they may burst and leak and damage your belongings.
PACKING YOUR GOODS IN CARTONS
If you are using cardboard cartons make sure they are of good quality and strong. Your package has to travel a very long distance, so the stronger the package, the more likely it is to arrive safe and secure.
Packing Cartons are available from the Airfreight Baggage Company. Please call us to organize delivery to you.
Completely seal the bottom of your carton with tape, including the sides
Use 5 or 6 pieces of tape, not just 1 or 2, especially at the bottom of cartons. The more tape used the more your carton will stay intact
Remove any old labels or markings
Use a thick marking pen to write your name, address and phone number at the destination, in English, on the top of the carton. You may wish to write these details in another language, this should be done on another side of the package
Ensure that 「heavy」 items are packed so that they cannot move around inside the package. If it can move around it can damage your package.
Fragile items should be wrapped in bubble wrap or a soft towel or clothing and placed inside separate, smaller cartons to protect them from damage. Bubble wrap is also available from the Airfreight Baggage Company.
Do not try to squeeze too much into each carton or suitcase. This will place pressure on the package and may cause it to split. Remember you are paying for the weight of your shipment, not how many pieces you send. Plus you have to collect the shipment at the other end, if you cannot lift it safely now, you wont be able to at the destination either.
For the safe arrival of your shipment, try to keep each package under 30kg.
PACKING YOUR GOODS IN SUITCASES
You may use airline baggage tags for suitcases, but these can come off during normal handling. It may be better to use stickers to write your details on and stick these to a solid part of your suitcase.
Baggage tags are available for free from The Airfreight Baggage Company.
With soft suitcases it may be difficult to attach any labels to it. In this case it would be a good idea to write your name, address and phone number on a piece of paper and place it inside your suitcase. That way if the labels come off your bag, the airlines can still contact you from your details inside the bag.
If you are placing locks on your suitcases it is a good idea to send the keys attached to the international documents that the Airfreight Baggage Company prepare for you. This way if Customs or Quarantine do want to open and inspect your baggage, they do not have to break the locks and/or your baggage.
BICYCLES
At 30,000ft tyres expand. So it is adviseable to deflate your bike tyres by a minimum of 10% so that they don’t burst. To prevent damage to your bike it is worth packing it in a bike pack carton. These are also available from the Airfreight Baggage company. To save space it is also a good idea to take the front wheel off and pack it on the side of the bike, and to take the pedal’s off as they can stick out and become damaged.
Your packages may be re-opened by the Airfreight Baggage Company for security purposes only. The airlines do conduct x-ray and security checks of all airfreight shipments, and Customs and Quarantine officials in any country have the legal right to search your baggage at any time.
COMPLETE A PACKING LIST
Complete a packing list for each package. Also remember to number each package. At the country of destination, customs may wish to see a particular item. If your packages are numbered, customs can go directly to the package that they want, instead of going through all of your packages. This can save you time and money.