IMPORT RATE EXAMPLE: From BREMERHAVEN, Germany to TACOMA port, Washington State
for passenger cars under 400 cuft, approx. $ 1595.00 and vehicles from 401 cuft to 600 cuft, approx. $ 1845.00

Auto imports to the USA must already be US titled, or over 25-years old. Import duty may need to be paid, and a surety bond may be needed for an auto import. If interested in importing a non-conforming vehicle to the US, please contact the US Treasury Department at Tel: 787-724-3040 to locate a RI registered importer, to work out the details required for car conversion.

Ro Ro Fact Sheet

THE FOLLOWING POINTS ABOUT RORO SHIPPING FOR EXPORT IS INFORMATION PROVIDED TO HELP YOU GET A BETTER INSIGHT ABOUT INTERNATIONAL AUTO SHIPPING. WE HOPE YOU FIND THE INFO. HELPFUL AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING FROM YOU.

1. RORO means roll on roll off and it's a specific type of service offered by the SS Lines for autos only. These ships are like giant indoor floating parking lots that can hold from 400 cars up to 1,000 cars in one shot. Roro vessels have the capability to accommodate motorcycles, boats, trailers, RV'S, and heavy equipment. It should be pointed out that they don't carry containers and they certainly do not carry passengers. For pictures of these vessels please go to: www.sefco-export.com/roro1.htm and www.sefco-export.com/roro2.htm
   
   
2. LOGISTICS-roro vessels don't service every port in the world or for that matter every port in the US. The routes of the vessels tend to go in east-west/west-east and north-south/south-north grids and the routes are dictated by the supply and demand of a particular route and the facilities of the ports. Eg., this would be East Coast ports like NY, BALT, or JACKS to ports like Southampton, Antwerp, Bremerhaven - there is a very large demand so there is weekly service back and forth to these ports. In shipping lingo these major ports I mentioned are known as "base ports".
   
   
3. TRANS-SHIPPING: a frequently asked question is how do I ship a car to port that isn't one of these major base ports mentioned above and the answer is through trans-shipping. This is where your auto is shipped to a major base port and is unloaded from the vessel and put on another vessel which will be sailing in the direction of your port of destination. Eg., the port of Bremerhaven used as a trans-shipment point for ports like Drammen, Helsinki, or Gothenburg and the port of Antwerp used as a trans-shipment port for Mediterranean ports like Barcelona, Savona or Piraeus.
   
   
4. EXPRESS SHIPPING: in addition to trans-shipping to a port sometimes demand will be such that the SS Line will create an express service from a major port to a lesser known port in addition to offering the trans-shipping services. Eg., NY to Gothenburg every Tuesday or NY to Savona every Friday or NY to Ashdod every Wednesday. The cost for "P-premium" Express Service is higher, than "E-economy" trans-shipment service.
   
   
5. US CUSTOMS: to clear your auto through US Customs you will need the original title to the auto along with all lien release forms from all creditors where there are balances owed. Proper identification (eg., passport) is a must if you deliver the auto to the port yourself and expect the process to take a couple of hours of your time. If you decide to self clear the auto yourself please fax Sefco copies of all documents related to the shipment. If you want Sefco to clear the auto for you the average cost will be $175.00 and in this instance please send us the originals.
   
   
6. PORTS: the ports are open M-F 8am to 4pm closed on the weekends and on holidays. When you deliver your auto there should be less than a quarter tank of gas in the tank and your car should be in good shape and not leaking anything deemed hazardous. All autos leaking gas, motor oil, battery or radiator fluids will be deemed hazardous and will not be shipped. Extra gasoline cannisters, cases of motor oil, cleaning and polishing solvents are deemed hazardous and can't be shipped with the auto.
   
   
7. AUTO: a frequently asked question is what I can ship with my auto? The answer according to US Customs is one spare tire, one jack and one wrench. Boxes of personal effects inside your auto should be sent LCL via air or sea. When Customs fills out the inspection report on your auto they will not include the boxes of personal effects in this report. The the SS Line and the insurance industry take a hands off approach to personal effects in that if they are found to be missing at the port of destination the SS Line will not be held liable for the missing personal effects and the marine insurance you purchased for your auto will not cover your claim for missing personal effects.
   
   
8. INSPECTION REPORT: it is the shippers responsibility to make Customs aware of certain high tech gadgets that came with the car eg. navigational equipment or audio equipment that they may not notice. In certain situations where the whole car has been outfitted with expensive audio equipment the equipment should be taken out and shipped separately or the car and equipment should be shipped in a container. Less expensive equipment that you have installed in your auto such as cell phones with their speaker phone attachments, loose CD players with their CD's and DVD players with their DVD's should all be taken out.
   
   
9. INSURANCE: our policies are provided by TGI (Travel Guard International) and are 2% of the value insured, that's $20.00 for every $1,000 of coverage. This policy will not cover minor damage such as dents, dings, scratches or chipped paint. It should be pointed out that extreme care is taken in the loading and unloading of your auto from the vessel. If your auto is severely damaged by fire, water, or terminal mishap your claim will be processed and paid in a reasonable period of time. To help with process of your claims it is advisable to take pictures of your auto at the port of embarkation before it is loaded on to the vessel.
   
   
10. FEES/IMPORT DUTIES: generally there will be a terminal handling charge for the unloading of the auto from the ship at the port of destination. These charges can range from any where from $40.00 to $190.00 depending on the port of destination. Regarding import duties it is the shippers responsibility to find if there are any, by contacting the Consulate of the country they are shipping to. Duties can vary from no duties eg. US citizens shipping to most European ports to paying a large duty in most South American countries. Citizens of the destination countries that you are shipping to will certainly pay a VAT tax on the auto and that can vary from the year, make and model of the auto you are bringing into the country. For further consulate info. please go to: www.embassy.org
    
    
11. DISCOUNTS: the only way for Sefco to give a discount is when a group of 10 or more shippers is shipping at the same time to the same port of destination eg. car clubs participating in a road rally or car show. Generally discounts aren't given to individual shippers and there are no discounts for round trips. Roro rates are quoted for one way only.
    
    
12. SERVICES: Sefco can provide the shipper with a number of additional services eg. pickup from US door to US port of embarkation or door delivery from port to a major terminal. We use professional licensed car carriers to do this and their rates can vary from the distance of the pickup to the amount of autos they are picking up at the same time. Regarding door delivery we can do provide this service in Europe were we can deliver the autos via T-1 transfer to a number of in-land terminals like Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Zurich or Geneva. Generally this type of service isn't offered in other parts of the world or isn't recommended due to costs.
    
    
13. CONTAINERS: when should a shipper use a container to ship their auto? The rule of thumb here is that if the auto is valued over $100,000.00 it should go into a container. Classic and rare antique autos that are in pristine condition should also be shipped via container. When these autos are professionally loaded and unloaded into containers through Sefco our insurance rate to provide these services is 2.8% and the policy is know as an All Risks Policy. This is an all inclusive policy covering everything while your auto is in transit. If something happens to your auto your claim will be processed and paid with in a reasonable amount of time. For further info see: www.sefco-export.com/insure.htm
    
    
14. AIR SHIPPING: autos are now being air shipped on a regular basis from our JFK facility to major airport terminals throughout the world. Most of these shipments take less than a week and are geared to the high end autos whose shippers can afford the high price tag, eg. JFK terminal to Milan terminal for a Ferrari at $7500.00.
    
    
15. NON-RUNNING AUTOS: can be shipped overseas using the roro service where available but they must have the following in order to be accepted by the SS Line: good brakes, proper steering and a windshield. Rates will be subject to additional charges added to the shipping rate for the tow-on tow-off services provided by the SS Line. These services on average will cost run you about $300.00 over the shipping rates that you may see our website.
    
    
16. TERMS AND CONDITIONS: all our rates are subject to confirmation by a Sefco sales representative. Shipper should be aware that these rates constantly change because they are affected by a wide variety of factors. Although we try our best to stay on top of these changes through constantly updating our web pages, there are times when we have to amend the rate that was sent to you. Although rare it can happen and we apologize for any such inconvenience. For more info. on our terms and conditions please go to:
    www.sefco-export.com/contract1.htm#terms