Bringing a Sherpa to Australia as accompanied luggage: thanks and advice

[Vintagetourer]

I recently ordered a Thorn Sherpa from Robin Thorn by email and was fortunate enough (thanks to a very short work trip to the UK which took me to Bristol via Bridgwater) to be able to collect the boxed bike in person from SJSC. I brought the bike home to Australia as accompanied luggage which was a minor adventure with 3 flights and two taxi rides. I'd like to record my thanks to Robin Thorn and his colleagues at SJSC for making the purchase process very efficient and stress free. In particular, their correspondence by email and phone was exemplary from the beginning to the end. They were fast to reply, concise and helpful with their answers. If you are visiting or about to visit the UK & thinking of buying a Thorn bike and bringing it home to Australia as luggage (thus saving a hefty shipping fee & VAT) I'd be happy to share what I learned during my experience of this purchase from a long distance.

[blair]

Which airline did you use?
Did they hit you for excess baggage?

I've had good luck in the past (within Australia) taking bikes on planes, but the attitudes seems to have gotten harsher (and less consistent) in the last couple of years.

[Vintagetourer]

Qantas: from Heathrow terminal 4. There was no excess luggage fee as I was within the total weight allowance and the boxed bike was very close to the prescribed dimensions. These dimensions are on the Qantas website. The only slight hitch was a very time consuming security check for the boxed bike. Even though there was no queue at check-in when I arrived early, I had to wait over an hour at the check-in counter for a luggage handler to come from back-of-house to take the boxed bike. I then had to accompany the handler and the boxed bike to a secure luggage processing area some distance from the main check-in area. This included more rigmarole of supervisor clearance of the handler and a slow sign-off for the box to be opened. The box was eventually opened and given a thorough check-over.  When it came to repack time, it took an age for them to find tape.  More waiting to ensure that it was repacked properly. My experience would suggest you allow ample check-in time (4hrs+) at Heathrow....and take your own tape...if you bowl up with a boxed bike to bring back to Australia. The VAT refund process also takes some time at Heathrow before check-in. Took me about 20 mins, but could be longer if there is a queue.  SJSC provided the forms, receipt & envelope needed for this claim. You need to have all this handy at the airport. The VAT desk stamps/signs the form and posts it back to the retailer who then credits the VAT.  It'd be worth having a copy (I didn't) in case the form goes astray between HM Customs and the retailer. The refund took a few weeks to come through via a credit on my card after I got back to Australia.

[peter jenkins]

Hi Blair,

I'm a bit late responding as I've been away.

I have taken bikes to and from the UK on 3 occasions and the only time I've been charged XS baggage was on a Frequent Flyer award trip. All of these trips have been with QANTAS. (I have always been a little bit over the alloweance, but I think a KG or two doesn't phase them)

Twice I have brought new bikes home, the second time being just a few weeks ago. First time was in 2005 (Thorn Club Tour) and there was a queue at the VAT counter. (Go there before you check in) The VAT process took around 10 to 15 minutes.

This time I arrived about an hour early and there was no-one at the VAT counter. And.... I didn't even have to open the box. The attendant just asked me if the bike in the box was the same one that was on the invoice. Check in was easy enough but involved taking it to be weighed at the oversize luggage area as the scales at the check in have a bar across them that is too low for a bike box to fit under. I guess that's how they determine what is oversized?? Again, no one looked in the box even though I hadn't taped it up yet in anticipation of having to let someone have a look. While we were weighing it, the check in clerk made a point of asking if the pedals had been removed, the handlebars turned around (!) and the tyres deflated. Then we went back to the check in counter, she labelled it, I taped it up and took it back to the oversize luggage area and off it went. No drama, no additional charge. Points of possible interest: all of my flights have been to and from Heathrow terminal 4 and I'm a QANTAS Club member, which entitles me to an additional 10kg, which I've always exceeded when there's a bike involved. It's not just the bike is it? You take shoes, tools, then there is the actual weight of the box.......


Anyway, good luck and I hope you track down an XTC to bring back as a trophy.

Cheers,

pj

[Vintagetourer]

...I'd be interested in thoughts on being able to purchase Thorn bikes in or from Australia more easily and/or affordably. It seems that at least a couple of us thought it was worth carting a Thorn home by plane in cardboard box which says something about the suitability of Thorns as tourers here in Australia? I wonder how many other Australians have thought Thorns deserved a trip home as luggage.  (I did...as well as getting fantastic bike, it saved more than AUD$1200 in freight and VAT!) I'm now thinking about getting a 2nd Thorn...this one for my wife. The MK3 is a candidate but another trip to England is unlikely in the near future. A quote of $800 to airfreight a Thorn from the UK has me thinking hard about alternative ways to purchase. Has anyone - Australian anyone that is - done their sums for purchasing a frame-fork set from SJSC and then building a bike from components purchased in Australia?
Vintage Tourer
PS If Thorn bikes were available through a couple of select retail outlets in Australia, do you think they'd attract a good number of buyers?

[peter jenkins]

Hello again,

$800 sounds a bit over the odds. I repatriated my Club Tour following a UK trip in 2006 for about $450 including the Australian Customs inspection fee using:-
1st Contact Shipping
4 Hannah Close,
London, NW10 0UX

Tel: 020 8324 2020
Fax: 020 8324 2095
E-mail: shipping@1stcontact-shipping.com
I had left the bike in England in the care of my daughter and later decided I wanted it back in Australia.

I found 1st Contact Shipping via Google and arranged everything with them via email. They delivered a box to my daughter in Bicester (near Oxford) who boxed the bike and filled out the customs declaration. The carrier then collected it from her home and 2 weeks later I had a phone call from AQIS asking me to confirm what was in the box. 2 days later I picked it up from the carrier's Brisbane agent. Easy.

I've copied some of the corrspondence below for your interest.

These air prices include a GBP 35.00 handling charge.
>>>
>>>To Send 42Kgs (volumetric weight of the boxes) to Brisbane will cost
>>>as
>>>follows:
>>>City Service
>>>( Arrival Airport Uncleared)        GBP 171.50 + GBP 37.00 delivery and
>>>collection charges
>>>Door to Door Service:               GBP 255.50
>>>
>>>All prices are inclusive of VAT at the standard rate where chargeable.
>>>
>>>1st Contact Shipping offers a comprehensive worldwide relocation and
>>>removal service.
>>>- Door to Door or Door to Port
>>>- FREE delivery and collection (inside the M25)
>>>- FREE packing materials - cartons, boxes and bubble wrap
>>>- FREE Storage up to 4 weeks
>>>- Services by air, sea and road
>>>- Customs bonded warehousing
>>>- Comprehensive Standard Liability protection for your goods
>>>
>>>Please note we require 24 hours notice in order to arrange all
>deliveries
>>>and collections.
>>>
>>>Returning home, don't forget to claim your Tax.

Admittedly, I had someone in the UK to pack the bike etc., but this may give you something to go on. As a bonus you can ship up to 42KGs in the box for the same price.

Regards,

pj

[Vintagetourer]

thanks for this helpful tip Peter. The only freight quote I have received was via SJSC for the carrier they use. 400 GBP for a complete bike. 200 GBP for frame/fork. Show-stopper rates. Did you have to pay GST when you shipped your Thorn in via Brisbane? I declared mine at Sydney airport but was waved through without having to pay GST after a couple of questions from the Customs officer.

[blair]

I bought a Club Tour from Thorn back in 2003, and they sent it by Parcel Force for 85GBP!
Even allowing for inflation the latest freight costs sound prohibitive.

I had to pay GST (but no import duty). Meant filling in a few forms, (the people answering the phone at Customs were very helpful) and I picked the bike up at the international postal centre at Clyde, in Sydney. Auspost would have sent it on to Canberra for me, but I preferred to deliver the documentation in person in case there were any problems.

I wouldn't have any hesitation in privately importing another bike, if the freight charges were reasonable.
(wiggle quote 121 AUD delivery for a complete bike, 81 AUD for a frame.)

If you are thinking of buying the frame and building it up yourself, you will usually do much better buying the bits & pieces from European online shops. I've usually used Wiggle or ChainReaction because they offer free shipping on orders above a minimum value, but SJS have (in the past) had quite reasonable shipping charges and they do stock lots of unusual items that the mainline sites don't bother with.
You need to have a fairly well stocked workshop to build a bike from scratch, though. There are a large number of minor parts that are easy to forget about, and a nuisance to find when you are in the middle of a build.
My local bike shop has been happy to fit the trickier bits (e.g. Hollowtech II cranks) for a reasonable charge, and I think most shops realize that the Australian importers add a fairly large margin, so they don't grumble too much if you ask them to fit a part you supply.

Bear in mind that Customs usually don't charge GST on invoices less than 1000 AUD, so it's worth splitting your orders to achieve this.

[Vintagetourer]

Thanks Blair. I am now convinced that there's something awry with the freight quote I was given. Clearly more homework is needed. Or perhaps a sharper pencil for the freight quote provider! I wholeheartedly agree with your suggestion about the European online shops. When I bought a Thorn Sherpa  in June, to keep weight/volume down marginally on the trip home, I excluded accessories inc pedals, lights, racks, seat from the purchase. I've since bought these items plus a few bits & bobs inc panniers via Wiggle. As much as I'd like to support local retailers, which is what I had intended to do, the price differences in favour of the UK online source were just too significant to overlook.

[peter jenkins]

thanks for this helpful tip Peter. The only freight quote I have received was via SJSC for the carrier they use. 400 GBP for a complete bike. 200 GBP for frame/fork. Show-stopper rates. Did you have to pay GST when you shipped your Thorn in via Brisbane? I declared mine at Sydney airport but was waved through without having to pay GST after a couple of questions from the Customs officer.

Hi again Vintagetourer,

I can't help you with this because the bike wasn't new. I had taken it to te UK and left it there, but then changed my mind and decided I needed it back in OZ. I didn't pay any GST or import duty on the 2 new ones I've brought back as accompanied baggage. Re your later comment about the 400GBP being awry, I was quoted that figure  by SJSC in 2005. Whoever they use must be very special.

Cheers,

pj

[onmybike]

In mid 2008 my new Nomad shipped by air from Thorn to Adelaide was in the region of 500GBP+. GST and customs paperwork fees were then added to that - very nearly enough all up to pay the airfare to the UK and back to pick it up! And it took weeks longer than expected due to unexplained paperwork delays with the customs agents. Must admit I wondered why it couldn't have been shipped disassembled (including btc coupled frame) - surely a considerably cheaper option than the huge box it arrived in, fully assembled except for the handlebars. Although I suppose Thorn feel an assembled bike is a safer option for them and would probably result in fewer customer support calls.

[Vintagetourer]

There's a wide range in what you can pay to freight a bicycle from the UK to Oz. From $121 to $500+ depending on the shipping agent.  Even SJSC freight charges seem to have varied widely over time and Australian port of entry. It'd be interesting to hear from any other Australians who've made their own arrangements to ship or bring a Thorn home.

[onmybike]

Clarification on my previous post - GST was on top of the cost of the bike, not the shipping. Will admit that I didn't do any shopping around on freight and just went with Thorn's price.