Are you coming off of active military duty and want your car home with you? Are you selling a very rare or high-end car to an overseas collector? Whatever your reason, deciding if it is worthwhile to have your car shipped depends on several favors.  There are many points to carefully think about, weigh and consider.

It is critical to know what you need to do and what is involved before deciding whether or not to ship your car overseas.

Trying to ship your car overseas by yourself is hard and can lead to disaster.

Do you know a trustworthy overseas shipper?

Hiring a trustworthy company to make sure your car gets through the myriad of country-specific rules and regulations is critical.

Make sure whomever you choose is experienced and has lots of favorable user reviews. Do your homework! Careful research will ensure you choose the right company that gets your car to its destination safe and sound.

How long can you wait?

Overseas car shipping can take weeks or longer – ships may be traveling to several different points and getting an exact pickup and drop off time is not always an exact science.

If your dates are not set in stone and you don’t mind being a bit flexible – you will find it easier to ship your car overseas.

Which shipment method words best for you?

Does RORO (Roll-on/Roll-off), Exclusive Container, or Consolidated Car Transport (include hyperlink to this section) method work best for you?  Each option has its own pros and cons around the cost of shipping, car security, the estimated arrival date, and the ability to pack extras into your car.

Carefully weigh your options, keeping in mind what is most important to you when making your decision.  Only you can answer how much you can spend, how flexible your arrival date is, and how important it is to you to bring along extra items.

1. The size of your car
2. Distance to and from Destination
3. Shipment method
4. Insurance
5. Taxes & Fees

SIZE OF YOUR CAR

Smaller cars cost less to ship than larger ones.  For instance, expect to pay no less than $750 to ship a compact car from the U.S. to Europ, while a full-size SUV may cost around $2000.

DISTANCE TO AND FROM DESTINATION / WHERE CAN I SHIP MY CAR FROM?

It is cheaper to ship a car located closer to a shipping terminal than it does a car located far away from a terminal.

You can ship your car from most major East and West coast U.S. port cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Jacksonville, FL, Norfolk, VA, Charleston, SC, and Baltimore, MD.

If you don’t live near a terminal, you must pay your overseas shipper or a local auto mover to transport your car to the nearest shipping terminal.  The farther the travel, the greater the cost.

Estimated land transport rates range from $100 for a few miles to 1000 if you must get your car halfway across the country.

SHIPMENT METHOD

The cost of shipping your car overseas will depend greatly on the method you choose.  Options include RORO (Roll-on/Roll-off), Exclusive Container, and Consolidated Car Transport (include hyperlink to this section).

Each method has its pros and cons – with RORO being the least expensive and Exclusive Container the priciest.

INSURANCE RATES

Don’t forget the insurance! Required shipping insurance ranges from 1.5% – 2.5% of your car’s estimated value.  While some car insurance policies cover this cost, others don’t.  The more valuable the car the more you will pay for insurance.

TAXES & FEES

Be sure to save money for taxes and miscellaneous fees.

Your overseas shipper will calculate the cost of port of entry taxes as well as any fees for mandatory paperwork processing.