[clarkydicko]

Hi!

well, after much deliberation & lots of phone calls we have decided to entrust our worldy goods to John Mason's International Movers! can't believe how many companies we have contacted & not even had the courtesy of a return phone call!

was a bit concerned after reading other members experiences at the NZ end with NZ VanLines...however, the rep assured us that they now only use The Moving Company or Allied Pickfords. (Avalon: think all your hard work has paid off - the rep mentioned this site & previous customer experiences with NZ VanLines as the reason they are no longer using them :clap )

they have been very friendly & professional so far but if any of you have any experience of using John Mason's we would greatly appreciate your comments!

can't believe we will be setting off on our new adventure in about 4 weeks, we fly out on the 21st Feb...scary & exciting all at once! we are initially staying in Taupo with friends.

we are on countdown now & can't believe how busy we are seeing friends and family before we leave! we have organised a leaving party for the saturday before we fly, not sure if that was a good idea as i reckon i'll be an emotional wreck by then :wah but it will be great to see everyone for the final time.

let you all know how we get on!
best wishes

Chantell & Simon :)

[Smiler]

Great news guys, the next few weeks will fly by. :nice1

My addled brain is working overtime but I thought TMC were the same as NZVL? I've seen both vans going in and out the site. I did search on all the usual but can't find anything that links the 2. Do you have an address for TMC?

Deborah

[kiwidollie]

Good luck Chantel and Simon. We've also decided to use John Masons as they seemed to offer the best service at the best price (we'll cross our fingers and see eh?). If all goes to plan we will be leaving on 24th February so we're on about the same time scale as yourselves - exciting and scary at the same time isn't it?

Just for info - we also got quotes from GB Liners, Britannia and Whites.

GB Liners would have been 2nd choice then Britannia and then Whites although the guy from Whites was really not very interested at all, getting answers from him was a bit like pulling teeth! And their quote was by far the dearest!

We've heard good things about JM's and Harvey, the guy who we've been dealing with has been excellent.

[Miggy]

Good luck Chantel and Simon and to you to Kiwidollie. We have also pretty much decided on John Masons for shipping but you guys will be NZ before us so would be interested in your feedback!

[clarkydicko]

oh no deborah, don't say that! hee hee! haven't got any details for TMC yet but will post once we know...i had a look see on the t'internet too but couldn't see anything.

good luck kiwidollie, we will be starting our new lives about the same time! it is pretty scary & exciting...i've never had such a mixed bag of emotions! where will you be settling once in NZ?

miggy...will definately let you know how it all goes & good luck to you guys too!

update...we've just had the written quote back from JM's & it's another £400 on top of what they originally quoted...the estimator told us that we had a lot less than they budgeted for so we are not sure why the price increase!? we will have to wait until monday to discuss it with them. let you know how we get on!

think we will contact (again) a couple of the other companies and see if we can get a better response this time...as you suggested kiwidollie think we'll start with GB Liners & then Britannia!

thank you for all your kind wishes guys & look forward to hearing about things are going for you all.

Chantell

[Smiler]

Chantell

Haggle with them, they expect it and they will always offer to reduce the insurance rate as that will be with a third party.

We used a separate insurance co, Letton Percival (as recommended by Alijax) 1.57% and so far they have been very good. http://www.lettonpercival.co.uk/contact.html

Hope this helps

Deborah

[clarkydicko]

Hi :)

thanks for the top tip deborah...rang Letton Percival today. they where really friendly & helpful and are sending us all the paperwork out. great price too, all the other companies we contacted quoted approx. 3%.

update on John Masons...called them today to query the price increase & apparantly it was a typing error, so we are probably still going to use them, although in the meantime we have arranged GB Liners to call later this week so think we will let them give us a quote too.

will keep updating
thanks

Chantell

[Smiler]

No worries, glad to be of assistance. ;) Shall I start Smiler's Top Tips :laugh

Here's me first one....

Take loads of polaroid and digi pics of anything valuable, particularly things that you itemise on the insurance form. Label, date and sign the polaroids on the back and send them off attached to your forms to Letton Percival..

and my second......

When unpacking and finding breakages, mashed cars and bikes etc, take loads more pics with the packing insitu, preferably witnessed by the movers/unpackers saying cheese.


Deborah

[clarkydicko]

sounds catchy 'Smilers Top Tips'

yep, definately think you should start your own column! :clap

thanks for the photo suggestions...would never have thought of doing that!

let you know how we get on in the shipping web & thanks again for your help

:nice1

Chantell

[Smiler]

No worries, glad to be of help.

Third tip. Bring all shipping and insurance paperwork with you. Don't pack it in the container. :laugh:laugh

D x

[clarkydicko]

you may well laugh but i probably would pack the paperwork! :uhoh

my brain feels like scrambled egg at the mo! :wah

C x

[Smiler]

easy done, Gary did!:mad: He packed all the vehicles docs.

I made lists and stuck them on the kitchen door and referred to them constantly. I also made a pile of things that had to come with us and laid it out in the spare room, rather than leaving stuff lying around and losing it to the moving guys.

I then stuck a big no entry sign on the spare room door and made sure that the OH knew that included him. :laugh:laugh

You'll be fine. It is worth it but just feels messy for you at the mo. I felt like I was stuck in the searchlight but making lists really helped me and my bad memory!

D x

[clarkydicko]

:laugh that would definately be my trick too!

started to make lists this week...got four on the go & another one imminent!

it is quite messy for us...we sold our house about 5 months ago & have been living with my dad since (it's great moving home at the grand old age of 35, my dad still asks what time i'll be in & i got a telling off for leaving a light on! bless! :roll ) so we've got stuff all over the place!

thanks for the reassuring words, really need them at the mo!

where abouts in NZ are you?

C x

[Smiler]

Oh I remember moving back in with Ma and Pa. They were brilliant but Dad had his routines (ruts) :laugh:laugh and funnily enough that involved the lights too!

Is it an OAP thing? God have I got it to look forward to?

We are in Wellington for 3.5 months now and loving every second. Missing family but loving it here.

D x

[clarkydicko]

definately must be an age thing! he's also obsessed with closing doors 'so not to let the heat out!' even closed the door on my foot the other day! :roll

hopefully we'll both avoid the OAP thing! :laugh

wellington is top of my visit list...simon lived in NZ for a year & pretty much toured round both islands. i've visited twice for six weeks each time but never managed to get to wellington...it looks fantastic! it's great that you sound so settled, i think missing family & friends will be something that will effect me too! :wah

will be pleased once we've sorted out the shipping, then i can start moaning about something else! ;)

C x

[Smiler]

My Mum also banned him from buying the newspaper as he used to sit there reading it out over breakfast, moaning about well, stuff I can't repeat.

Their blood pressure was going through the roof but when he stopped getting the paper, it dropped. :clap

Now he just rants at the tv. :confused: MY OH says it is in my genes too!!!!

Wellington is fab (although I wasn't keen on our first visit) now I'm living here I feel much better about it.

Don't worry about moaning, we've all been there done that, but brilliant places like this means you can share your experience good or bad and ask advice too.

D x

[clarkydicko]

are you sure we're not related? :laugh we go through this every day...we don't have to read a paper or watch the news as dad just about repeats everything out loud anyway then adds his moans, groans & suggestions! :roll
(i'm using the rolleyes alot in this thread!)

my OH has become very good at being deaf when dad around & has started to look for the family trait in me too, cheeky b!

simon said when he took off from & landed in wellington it scared the living daylights outta him, something about the wind!? hee hee! so apparantly we are driving when we visit again ;) think everyone must feel apprehensive when they first arrive in a new place, i wasn't very keen on Taupo when we first visited but it grew on me! (at least i hope it did!?!? :laugh )

i'm loving the forum it is a great place to get some fab advice & to realise we are not the only ones going through (or been through) this before!

thanks for listening D!

C x

[Smiler]

Hello Sis!!:laugh


So true, I think that why I get homesick I miss my own personal newsreader!

Cried this morning though, I spoke to my Dad via IM for the 1st time. Lots of very long waits for him to him the right buttons but thrilling. He says he is going to get a skype headset from Lidls where they are a fiver (OMG free calls too). :clap

We live near the airport and know when the wind is bad as they stop the planes. :eek: but it is fun watching the wobbles when they take off and land though. Well fun from the deck not if we were on it!

D x

[clarkydicko]

right back at ya sis! :laugh

you know i said my brain is like scrambled egg? well can i ask a dumb question?...what does IM stand for? :uhoh

skype...all my friends & family are sick of hearing me telling them that they have to get this installed, not used it yet but sounds great!

yet another 'top tip' will have to send everyone to lidl this week for headsets!

OH well put off by the internal flights in NZ...didn't like the one to wellington at all & nearly freaked out at the size of the plane flying us from auckland to taupo! :wah

C x

[Smiler]

Instant messaging. We 'do it' via MSN messenger but I also have skype chat for my dumb blonde sis who can press the on button at the front of the pc! and who doesn't have a headset.

Love skype, its rare to have a duff line but if I do I just wait a mo and call again. My only beef is that the art of letter writing is dying but since I got here I haven't had the time to write much anyway. We've all got it to easy now :laugh she says sounding like her Dad.

Understand about the flights fine for quickness but driving here is so spectacular, specially as I can be the passenger and rubber neck.

We weren't keen on Taupo town so may need some pointers to find the nice bits.

You can start Taupo's top tips. :p

D x

[Gran]

Well Clarkydicko et al, there is only one way to avoid being an OAP, and you may not like it!!!!!! Seriously though you can keep it together if you get involved in heaps of diff. things, mind you I have problems keeping the "auld fella" on the ball.

[clarkydicko]

Hi Gran...men ey? always hard to keep on the straight & narrow!
we'll have to take note & look out for the signs of OAPtastic! :laugh

instant messaging, d'oh! never used that either...gonna have to get on the ball with this modern technology! (i'm a systems librarian at the mo you'd think i'd know better!) defo gonna give skype a go! bet it was great IMing with your dad!? hope it didn't make you cry too much...i'll be the same tho, will probably only have to talk to my dad for a second & i'll be a blubbering wreck! oh the joys to look forward too! :wah

simon said the drive is beautiful, thought he was just saying that so we didn't fly! ;) but now i'm a believer! hee hee!

Taupo Top Tips...could be a goer! still think Smiler's Top Tips has a better ring to it! :p know what you mean about Taupo town, so my first mission will be to find the top spots & report back!

diny is organising a weekend in Taupo at the beginning of march so we'll hopefully get chance to meet some of the forum members, looking forward to it! have you been to any of the forum meets?

C x

[Smiler]

Yes we managed one of the southeast meets but then things happened rather quickly for us and that was it.

It was awesome to sit and talk with others who knew what you were going through, didn't roll their eyes with another mention of NZ :roll and had helpful suggestions instead of just saying 'why NZ'

D x

[clarkydicko]

that's what we are looking forward to, meeting people who know what we have been/going through!

hey, thanks for all your help smiler...have really enjoyed chatting with you! hopefully see you on another thread soon! :yes

C x