Have You Been Cheated by Freight Forwarders When Shipping Air Freight to Middle East for Amazon?
Have you been cheated by freight forwarders when shipping air freight to middle east? If you sell on Amazon, you will inevitably work with freight forwarders often. So how do you tell if a freight forwarder is reliable and trustworthy?
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Listen carefully for some useful tips. The freight forwarding industry is mixed with good and bad players. Some forwarders make dirty profits by lying to you. For example, they tell you it’s air freight but actually ship by fast sea freight, or say it’s fast sea freight but send your goods by slow sea freight. It’s actually very easy to avoid such forwarders. Just ask them for the container number as soon as you book the shipment. No matter which shipping line you use, such as ZIM, Matson or others, there must be a container number.
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Once you get the number, you can check it on the official website of the shipping company. You can see clearly when the goods were dispatched, when they left the port, when they arrived at the destination port, and when they cleared customs. All information is fully recorded. If the forwarder makes excuses or refuses to give you this information, you must be extremely careful.
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Some freight forwarders also run their own Amazon business. They use sellers’ shipments to do product research — you just become their product research tool! It’s the most accurate way to pick products. These forwarders usually have their own operation teams. To identify them, just check their job postings. If a company does freight forwarding and also hires Amazon operators, watch out — you might become their free product source.
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Finding a reliable freight forwarder is not easy. The most important points are as follows. First, the forwarder must be professional. Some are just middlemen who know little about professional knowledge, which leads to very slow customs clearance. Also, some forwarders are very irresponsible. If a forwarder is willing to take liability for compensation — such as paying for delays or lost packages — you should cooperate with them even if their price is a little higher.
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I have rich experience in customs clearance for air freight to middle east. Take DL Logistics as an example. As one of the top five companies for air freight to middle east, we have hundreds of staff for customs clearance and delivery at the destination, as well as more than 50 trucks. Thanks to our large shipment volume, we have built a good relationship with customs over the years. We have a VIP channel. For urgent goods, we can start unloading and distribution right after the plane lands, and finish customs clearance within 2 hours. Most ordinary forwarders usually need 2 to 3 days for customs clearance and pickup.
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All the points above can be discussed and confirmed at the beginning of cooperation. Otherwise, once the goods are shipped, the forwarder will take full control. One important thing to remember: when choosing a forwarder for air freight to middle east, never just chase low prices. Don’t choose a forwarder only because its price is lower than others. Many forwarders attract customers with cheap prices but hide many risks.
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Your first cooperation may seem really cheap, but more troubles and traps often come later. They will set various obstacles for you. Another very important tip: don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Always compare and choose several forwarders as backups. Only in this way can you avoid and spread risks.