The big day arrived and Friday we made our way to Le Havre to collect my shipment from the US.
It could have been filmed as a French farce! Everything was uncertain, could have been a disaster, but in the end turned out fine, for reasons I will never fully understand.
We drove a 20 cubic meter truck from Reims. Could have chosen something smaller, but it turned out to have been worth the extra size.
Arrived in Le Havre around 11:00 and eventually found Cargo Lines. It is not a warehouse, only an office, along with 5 or 6 other businesses in a large building. Greeted in the office with indifference, and then finally a request to wait. 10 minutes of waiting and it our turn. (no other customers in the office, but all 6 people fully occupied with their computers). The woman I had dealt with on the phone and via email was sick. She was the only responsive person at Cargo Lines. Finally we are acknowledged and present our paperwork, pay the docking fee (about 120 euro per pallet), and receive the forms to present to the Douane. The woman helping us had hurt her right hand, so everything is performed one handed, so everything is in slow motion.
We to present the papers to the Douane office. Not the one two blocks away, but the one in the city 15 minutes away. The directions are not bad and we find it (all in French). The front entrance is no longer in operation, and after some failed attempts we finally find the office in the back corner of the block, opposite the main entrance. Someone was smiling on us, as we found the one open parking spot and it was large enough to park the truck.
We presented the documents to the folks at the Douane. Inventory, a declaration (obtained from the Douane via email) that the goods would not be sold and they are my possessions, a copy of the Livret de Famille, a copy of a gas bill with my wife's name, a statement by her that I am living with her, a copy of my passport and a copy of the long term visa. All was in order. There were some comical moments, like the Douane official signing in the block where I am to sign, by mistake. Scratch out the signature with a pen and a stamp after I sign and all is well. All in all, quite informal. Americans are ok at the moment, so they paid no attention to my inventory. I take it from the comments that other nationalities may not have it so easy. Never a question of what was in the shipment.
The woman at Cargo Lines mentioned the shipment would be at the warehouse which was "next door". Maybe she lives in the country where the next house is several miles away. Turns out next door was about 2 km from the office. The warehouse is Buffard (we found it was port 3161, much later). No address given on the documentation. We called directory assistance, and then after the GPS battery failed, called the office and received directions. Port number is very important. Street signs with port numbers are very good. Street signs with street names are not.
By now, we have taken the scenic tour of Le Havre, had a very pleasant lunch at a restaurant not far from Cargo Lines, and have finally found the warehouse. We present the documents to the agent, and oops, the Douane has given us the paperwork for some other shipment. We have visions of returning to Reims empty handed, as there is not time to return to the Douane and then to the warehouse before they close. No problem, just a photo copy of something, not sure what, and problem solved. Oh, and your signature please to acknowledge the receipt of damaged boxes (omg!).
Here is were the box truck came in handy. There was room for the forklift driver to place the pallet into the truck so unloading was easy. The driver helped me unload the pallet. Very easy. Then when the next pallet came out on the lift truck and the shrink wrap failed and boxes spilled onto the wet driveway, we suddenly had two extra helpers. Unloaded 5 pallets in a few minutes!
The rest was easy.
So final thoughts on ICGlobal and dealing with folks in Le Havre.
All in all, there were some seriously damaged boxes. Several boxes arrived with more tape than cardboard. Seems like they put everything back before taping, but I will probably never know. Had many boxes of hats. Several boxes partially opened, hats crushed, and I think a couple are missing (packed 10 to a box, but one box with only 8 but won't know till I have time to inventory). A few broken dishes.
There was some confusion in S.F. The information fro ICGlobal was the boxes would be palletized and shrink wrapped at the shipper in SF. The shipper said no, the palletizing would occur in L.A. This took place on New Years eve, so I was stuck. Had I the option, I would have cleared this up and insisted the boxes were palletized in SF. If you use this shipping method, make sure you watch your items palletized. I found heavy boxes on top of fragile boxes (broken of course).
While it might be possible to complete the process in English, my feeling is that it would be very difficult. Leave lots and lots of time! If everything works, and you are fortunate enough to find the right people, no problem. If not, it could be very difficult.
So the saga ends. Overall quite the interesting experience. Fortunately there are some good people out there.
Ron
