Freight Forwarders

If you have ever moved goods between countries, by land, sea or air then you have probably heard of freight forwarders. Freight Forwarders are there to assist with your shipping and should handle the whole process of the transportation and the delivery of your goods, including customs clearance. But do you really need a freight forwarder for your shipment or can you handle it yourself? If you're unsure whether a freight forwarder is necessary or what they actually do, then please read on. On this page we will dive into the detail of what a freight forwarder does, what you can expect to pay for their services and of course provide details of excellent freight forwarders that can assist you with the shipping of your goods.

What does a freight forwarder do?

As mentioned above, a freight forwarder will take control the transporting of your shipment from origin to your final point of delivery, be that home, office, warehouse or other. Broken down into detail, as a minimum it will include the following elements:

• Origin - Coordinating transport from origin, be that your supplier’s factory or warehouse to the destination for shipment, usually the port or airport for onward shipment to your warehouse
• Customs Clearance (export) - Preparing, managing and submitting all the required paperwork for the export of your shipment, in the country of origin
• Shipping - Locating, negotiating and securing capacity for your shipment, be that by air, sea, train or road
• Tracking - ensuring visibility of the shipment at all times, whilst maintaining relevant insurances for your product (often an added cost)
• Customs Clearance (Import) - Preparing, managing, and submitting all the required paperwork for the import of your shipment, in the destination country
• Delivery - Arranging haulage and delivery to your agreed final destination in your destination country

Are they really needed?

Whilst technically you could handle these elements yourself, a good freight forwarder has connections across the world and will ensure that the shipping process is handled smoothly, reducing the risk of loss or costly mistakes! It is unlikely that a freight forwarder will be handling many of these stages directly themselves, instead they use their vast network of connections to perform the duties, whilst they manage it all.

Of course, if the worst happens to your shipment and you need to submit an insurance claim, they will be able to help.

Are there any disadvantages to using a freight forwarder?

Of course, there are some negatives and risks with everything and below are some with engaging with freight forwarders:

• Cost - Using a freight forwarder can add cost to your shipment vs. negotiating individual stages of the process (although they can often realise benefits using economies of scale with shipping companies)
• Importance - If you use a large freight forwarder and you're moving small volumes, don't expect dedicated account management
• Control - You will have to relinquish control and put your product and your shipment into the trust of a 3rd party
• Coverage - Not all forwarders will cover all regions and all markets
• Credentials - not all markets are well regulated, and you should always verify your chosen supplier

So ultimately, are freight forwarders needed and are they a valuable investment? Yes, a freight forwarder will cost you in additional fees but the value a good forwarder can add is invaluable.

How much do freight forwarders cost?

When you use a freight forwarder, you will, in most cases, agree a quote for the end-to-end process of moving your shipment from its origin to your destination. However, the cost of the shipment will actually be made up of something like 15-20 different components!

When working with a freight forwarder, it is critical that you get an itemised quote ir order for you to understand what is (and crucially, what is not) included.  Whilst the core job of The core job of a freight forwarder is to arrange the transport of your product, however this also comes with the requirement to deal with a number of other elements, including customs clearance and various other pieces of paperwork.

When you receive your quote, there are a number of key elements to review, namely:

• Transport costs – covering all the transport requirements, be it air, sea, road or a combination, from origins to destination. Costs might be calculated using cargo weight or via volume – or both
• Product specific costs – Some items attract additional costs. Perhaps your product is very heavy or bulky and requires a crane for loading or is hazardous and therefore it will need specific licenses and will attract specific processes and procedures, which add cost
• Storage – if your product needs additional storage (beyond the normal allowance) either pre or post transportation
• Palletisation or specific packing - Depending on how you’re shipping your items, they may require additional packaging (e.g. air freight) or to be loaded onto pallets, ready for container transport
• Extra fees – this could be a number of miscellaneous items, including things such as specific delivery requirements (e.g. time specific delivery) or prescribed ports, which draw additional cost
• Documentation costs - customs paperwork including export and import
• Insurance and surcharges - to cover things like fluctuations in the price of fuel, or the currency exchange rates
• Administration or handling fees - often added by a freight forwarder, these are admi charges for handling all the elements (of course they realise margin in the other elements). These tend to be £50-£100 per shipment

How do I find the right freight forwarder for me? 
There are thousands of freight forwarders operating across the world, so how do you go about finding them and determining which is the right fit for you. Well, you have come to the right place! At Logisto we have compiled a directory of all logistics services, including freight forwarders. In the LOGISTO Directory will find a list of freight forwarders that are strong operators in the UK, from larger, well know names, through to specialists who may be able to offer more direct and dedicated support.
Of course, if you have any questions, please reach out to someone at Logisto team via the contact us form if you have any questions.

The LOGISTO Team