Thursday, March 15, 2018

Tips On Choosing Freight Forwarding Companies

By Michael Scott


For people that have been in the exportation business, they are aware that the process of getting the best freight firms is a decision that can be very tough. This is so because you want to be sure the transportation is being done by a reputable organization. The decision is even tougher for people that are seeking to use the services for the first time. Freight forwarding companies are many and the right choice will determine the kind of services you get.

One of the first things to look at is the experience of the firm. The years of experience means the firm should have handled different situations with different clients. Such situations include striking of dock workers and port shutdowns. They might also have to reroute cargo and sort issues to do with customs. These should be effectively handled by the service provider. With the right experience, you will avoid such things as customs, warehousing and rerouting issues.

You will need to know the network agents of the company as well as their business partners in that country that you are importing from or exporting to. This is the case for local handling of international shipments. The forwarder needs to have a strong network the world over. They need to have connection is countries of origin or destination of goods. This is important because a freight forwarder might be experienced but without knowledge of what happens in a given country.

It is important that a client looks at the services on offer. The company should be able to handle both air and ocean shipments. Besides that, they should be able to handle trucking options and rail shipments. Nevertheless, this will mostly depend on the services that a client needs. The company should be able to handle your service requirements. Insurance of cargo and tracking are a must have.

The company is supposed to have references of work that they have done in the past. This will involve checking clients that the company has worked with in the past. The most reputable firms have pages with their testimonials. You can also make calls to their previous clients to ask the level of service delivery they received.

Customer service is a critical consideration. They should be able to quickly get back to their clients as regards the rates of their services or with answers to questions they may have. When dealing with new customers, they should be able to take them through what they need to know and to ensure all goes well. It is customer service that will make a client have peace of mind knowing everything will be well.

The fees charged for the services will need careful consideration. The various firms will have different rates and it is thus important that you compare their rates before making a final choice. You will not need to choose the cheapest because their services are not necessarily the best. Actually, the best firms tend to have higher rates.

The freight forwarder should be in good financial position. This is the reason one should check for bonding. They are required to obtain freight broker bonds before they are certified to operate.




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