How are removal costs calculated? By weight or cubic size?

actually, it depends on the shipping method chosen. Airfreight is volumetric - that is, they calculate the maximum weight an area can hold, and if you ask for that space to be dedicated to you, you pay the maximum charge based on the weight that space can carry.

So, if you have a 1 metre square pallet and you want a dedicated 1 metre square space, even if your goods are, for example, 100kg, if the space is calculated as being able to carry 800kg, you then pay the 800kg rate. But, if you break it down to boxes that cover a 1 metre square space, but specify non-dedicated - that is, the individual boxes can ship in various areas all over the plane - then you pay by their individual weights, and the cost is significantly lower. Most freight forwarders won't tell you this as they're looking for the most they can make.

With seafreight, it is meterage only, especially if you aren't taking up a whole container. A whole 20 foot container can cost anywhere between 6 and 10K, but, for example, if you are shipping 1 cubic metre of goods in a shared container, it can cost as little as $200 - you may just have to wait a little longer, as your freight forwarder will wait for a suitable container with the space required for your goods. this can be the best way to go though, as there are 7000 containers a week sent from NZ to Australia, odds are you won't be waiting too long.

Hey everyone. Just passing on some advice from my own experience... make sure you ask the shipping company if they have a minimum volume/weight that they ship.

We quoted a volume that was smaller than the minimum, but ended up paying the minimum amount (not knowing this). When it came to packing up our things, we didn't use the full amount that we quoted and so when I asked if we could be refunded for what we didn't use, we were only then told that it didn't matter, because we were still under 2 cubic metres (I think it was 2 or something around that!) and anything under this minimum amount is charged the same.

It was pretty disappointing because we had already given away a lot of our things thinking that it would be too expensive to ship them, when effectively we paid to ship them anyway!! Now we get the joy of buying everything again in Australia...

We used Crown, so it could be different for other companies. Just make sure you ask :)

from what I've been able to find out, if done by a moving company, it seems to be by volume, but it may actually be based on whichever is the greater of the two - volume or weight as sometimes small things can weigh a lot and there would be weight restrictions on cargo vessels. Airlines seem to do it all by weight.

My understanding is that it depends if it's local or long distance. Local moving is generally done by an hourly rate, but for longer distance, it's usually by weight. As for the cost, it can vary depending on the distance, gas prices, etc. Best way to find out is to call a company and get a quote.