Full container load and LCL groupage from London and Manchester to 426 destinations worldwide. Collected across the UK, received into our own warehouse, exported by our own team.
Excess Luggage Co. has been shipping from the UK since 1998. Alongside our personal effects work we handle commercial sea freight for UK businesses — full container loads and LCL groupage consolidations, out of London and Manchester, to ports and inland destinations across the world.
We are not a comparison site or a booking marketplace. When you ship commercially with us, you are dealing directly with the company responsible for your cargo. We collect it, receive it into our warehouse near Heathrow, prepare the documentation, palletise, wrap and label it where required, complete the UK export entry, and deliver it to the shipping line. Keeping that under one roof means fewer handovers and fewer places for a consignment to go wrong.
Commercial sea container shipping is a key service offered by Excess Luggage Co., giving businesses a secure, cost-effective way to move commercial cargo across global trade routes.
Our FCL solutions use durable 20ft and 40ft containers, supported by specialist equipment such as flat rack containers for oversized or awkward cargo, and reefer containers for temperature-controlled goods that require strict cold-chain protection.
For smaller consignments, our LCL (Less-than-Container Load) shipping provides a flexible, budget-friendly alternative. We consolidate multiple shipments into shared containers, allowing businesses to dispatch goods sooner, reduce storage overheads, and maintain smooth inventory flow.
With professional handling from collection to delivery, Excess Luggage Co. ensures your commercial freight — whether standard, oversized, or perishable — moves safely, efficiently, and on schedule worldwide.
With FCL your cargo travels in its own container. Nobody else's goods share the box, so there is no consolidation or deconsolidation, less handling, and generally a faster and more predictable transit than groupage on the same lane. Standard equipment is the 20ft container, the 40ft container and the 40ft high cube; which suits you depends on the weight and the cube of your cargo, not just one or the other.
FCL is usually the right choice once you have enough volume to fill, or nearly fill, a container — and often for cargo you would rather nobody else's freight travelled alongside.
LCL means your consignment shares a container with other shippers' cargo. It is consolidated at a container freight station before loading and deconsolidated at the far end, which is what makes it viable for smaller commercial shipments that could not justify a whole container.
LCL is charged on a weight or measure basis — W/M. The line compares the actual weight of your cargo against its volume and charges on whichever gives the greater figure. In practice that means accurate dimensions matter as much as accurate weights. A light, bulky consignment pays on its cube. Send us both and we will quote properly.
Our groupage network receives cargo at ten points across the UK, with loading out of London and Manchester:
Aberdeen · Belfast · Birmingham · Bradford · Bristol · Glasgow · London · London Heathrow · Manchester · Newcastle
We also collect direct from businesses, warehouses and trading estates throughout the UK for consignments moving on our own vehicles.
Our LCL groupage network reaches 426 destinations across 18 trade regions, including inland points as well as discharge ports. FCL runs on the same lanes. If your destination is not shown, ask — it does not mean we cannot reach it.
Canada — Calgary, AB, Edmonton, AB, Halifax, NS, Montreal, QU, Regina, SK, Saskatoon, SK, Toronto, ON, Vancouver, BC, Winnipeg, MB
United States — Albuquerque, NM, Atlanta, GA, Austin, TX, Baltimore, MD, Birmingham, AL, Boston, MA, Buffalo, NY, Charleston, SC, Charlotte, NC, Chattanooga, TN, Chicago, IL, Cincinnati, OH, Cleveland, OH, Columbus, OH, Dallas, TX, Dayton, OH, Denver, CO, Des Moines, IA, Detroit, MI, El Paso, TX, Grand Rapids, MI, Greensboro, NC, Greenville-Greer, Hidalgo, TX, Honolulu, HI, Houston, TX, Huntsville, AL, Indianapolis, IN, Jacksonville, FL, Kansas City, MO, Knoxville, TN, Laredo, TX, Las Vegas, NV, Little Rock, AR, Los Angeles, CA, Louisville, KY, Memphis, TN, Miami, FL, Milwaukee, WI, Minneapolis, MN, Mobile, AL, Nashville, TN, New Orleans, LA, New York, Norfolk, VA, Oakland, CA, Oklahoma City, OK, Omaha, NE, Orlando, FL, Philadelphia, PA, Phoenix, AZ, Pittsburgh, PA, Portland, OR, Raleigh, NC, Richmond, VA, Salt Lake City, UT, San Antonio, TX, San Diego, CA, San Francisco, CA, Savannah, GA, Seattle, WA, St. Louis, MO, Tampa, Tucson, AZ, Tulsa, OK, Washington DC, Wilmington, NC
China — Beijing, Changsha (Hunan), Chongqing (Sichuan), Dalian (Liaoning), Doumen (Guangdong), Fuzhou (Fujian), Gaoming (Guangdong), Guangzhou (Guangdong), Hefei (Anhui), Heshan (Guangdong), Huadu (Guangdong), Huangpu Old Port (Wuchongkou), Huangpu, Newport (Guangdong), Huzhou (Zhejiang), Jiangmen (Guangdong), Jiao Xin, Kaiping, Lian Hua Shan (Guangdong), Nanjing (Jiangsu), Nansha (Guangdong), Ningbo (Zhejiang), Qingdao, Rongqi (Guangdong), Sanshan (Guangdong), Shanghai, Shenzhen CFS (Guangdong), Suzhou (Jiangsu), Weihai, Wuhan (Hubei), Wuxi (Jiangsu), Xiamen (Fujian), Xiaolan (Guangdong), Xingang (Tianjin), Xinhui (Guangdong), Yangpu, Yantai (Shandong), Zhaoqing (Guangdong), Zhengzhou (Henan), Zhongshan (Guangdong), Zhuhai (Guangdong)
Hong Kong — Hong Kong
Japan — Hakata, Hiroshima, Kanazawa, Kobe, Kumamoto, Matsuyama, Mizushima, Moji, Nagoya, Niigata, Osaka, Sendai, Shimizu, Shimonoseki, Tokyo, Tomakomai, Toyama, Tsuruga, Yokohama
Macau — Macau
Mongolia — Ulaanbaatar
South Korea — Busan, Incheon
Taiwan — Kaohsiung, Keelung, Taichung
Anguilla — Anguilla
Antigua — St. Johns
Aruba — Oranjestad
Bahamas — Freeport, Nassau
Barbados — Bridgetown
Bermuda — Hamilton, BM
Bonaire — Kralendijk
British Virgin Islands — Tortola
Cayman Islands — Grand Cayman
Curacao — Willemstad
Dominica — Roseau
Dominican Republic — Caucedo, Rio Haina, Santo Domingo
Grenada — St. Georges
Guadeloupe — Pointe-A-Pitre
Haiti — Port Au Prince
Jamaica — Kingston, Montego Bay
Martinique — Fort de France
Montserrat — Little Bay
Puerto Rico — San Juan
Saint Barthélemy — St. Barthelemy
Saint Kitts & Nevis — Basseterre, Charlestown, Nevis
Saint Lucia — Castries
Saint Martin — Philipsburg
Saint Vincent — Kingstown
Trinidad & Tobago — Point Lisas, Port Of Spain
Turks & Caicos Islands — Providenciales
US Virgin Islands — St. Thomas, VI
Brunei — Muara
Cambodia — Kompong Som (Sihanoukville), Phnom Penh
Indonesia — Batam, Belawan, Jakarta, Semarang, Surabaya
Malaysia — Bintulu, Kota Kinabalu, Kuching, Labuan, Miri, Pasir Gudang, Penang, Port Kelang, Sibu
Myanmar — Yangon
Philippines — Cagayan, Cebu, Davao, Manila North Harbour, Manila South Harbour
Singapore — Singapore
Thailand — Bangkok, Laem Chabang, Lat Krabang
Vietnam — Danang, Haiphong, Ho Chi Minh, Ho Chi Minh Phuoc Long ICD
Belgium — Antwerp
Denmark — Aarhus, Copenhagen
Finland — Helsinki
France — Le Havre, Lyon, Marseille
Germany — Bremen, Hamburg
Iceland — Reykjavik
Ireland — Cork
Italy — Milan
Malta — La Valletta, Marsaxlokk
Netherlands — Rotterdam
Norway — Oslo
Portugal — Lisbon, Oporto
Sweden — Gothenburg, Helsingborg, Malmoe, Stockholm
Switzerland — Basel, Geneva, Zurich
Argentina — Buenos Aires, Cordoba (AR), Rafaela, Rosario
Brazil — Canoas, Itapoa, Manaus, Paranagua, Porto Alegre, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande, Salvador de Bahia, San Francisco, Santos, Suape, Vila Maria, Vitoria
French Guiana — Cayenne
Guyana — Georgetown, GY
Paraguay — Asuncion
Suriname — Paramaribo
Uruguay — Montevideo
Venezuela — La Guaira, Puerto Cabello
American Samoa — Pago Pago
Australia — Adelaide, Brisbane, Darwin, Fremantle, Melbourne, Sydney
Cook Islands — Rarotonga
Fiji — Lautoka, Suva
French Polynesia — Papeete
Guam — Guam
New Caledonia — Noumea
New Zealand — Auckland, Lyttelton
Northern Mariana Islands — Saipan
Papua New Guinea — Lae, Port Motukea
Samoa — Apia
Solomon Islands — Honiara
Tonga — Nuku Alofa
Vanuatu — Port-Vila
Bahrain — Bahrain
Cyprus — Larnaca, Limassol, Nicosia
Dubai — Jebel Ali
Israel — Ashdod, Haifa
Jordan — Amman, Aqaba, Zarka Free Zone
Kuwait — Shuwaikh
Lebanon — Beirut
Oman — Sohar
Qatar — Hamad
Saudi Arabia — Dammam, Jeddah, Riyadh
Turkey — Istanbul, Izmir
United Arab Emirates — Abu Dhabi
Bangladesh — Chattogram, Dhaka
India — Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta (Kolkata), Chennai (Madras), Cochin, Hyderabad, ICD Dadri, Ludhiana, New Delhi, NCT, Nhava Sheva, Patparganj, Tughlakabad, Tuticorin, Visakhapatnan
Maldives — Male
Pakistan — Karachi, Rawalpindi
Sri Lanka — Colombo
Benin — Cotonou
Burkina Faso — Ouagadougou
Cape Verde — Mindelo, Praia
Gambia — Banjul
Ghana — Accra, Kumasi, Takoradi, Tema
Guinea — Conakry
Ivory Coast — Abidjan
Liberia — Monrovia
Mauritania — Nouakchott
Nigeria — Lagos, Onne
Senegal — Dakar
Sierra Leone — Freetown
Togo — Lome
Kenya — Mombasa, Nairobi
Madagascar — Antananarivo, Tamatave
Malawi — Blantyre, Lilongwe
Mauritius — Port Louis
Mozambique — Maputo
Reunion — Pointe des Galets
Rwanda — Kigali
Seychelles — Port Victoria
Tanzania — Dar Es Salaam
Uganda — Kampala
Zambia — Kitwe, Lusaka, Ndola
Zimbabwe — Bulawayo, Harare
Belize — Belize City
Costa Rica — Puerto Limon, San Jose
El Salvador — San Salvador
Guatemala — Guatemala City, Santo Tomas de Castilla
Honduras — San Pedro Sula, Tegucigalpa
Mexico — Altamira, Manzanillo (MX), Puerto Morelos, Veracruz
Nicaragua — Managua
Panama — Balboa, Colon Free Zone, Panama City
Manzanillo
Bolivia — La Paz
Chile — Antofagasta, Arica, Iquique, San Antonio, Santiago, Valparaiso
Colombia — Barranquilla, Bogota, Buenaventura, Cartagena, Medellin
Ecuador — Guayaquil
Peru — Callao
Algeria — Alger, Oran
Egypt — Alexandria, Cairo, Damietta, El Dekheila, Port Said
Libya — Tripoli, LY
Morocco — Casablanca
Tunisia — Sfax, Sousse, Tunis
Angola — Luanda
Cameroon — Douala
DR Congo — Kinshasa, Lubumbashi, Matadi
Equatorial Guinea — Malabo
Gabon — Libreville, Port Gentil
Republic of the Congo — Pointe Noire
Botswana — Gaborone
Eswatini — Matsapha
Lesotho — Maseru
Namibia — Walvisbay, Windhoek
South Africa — Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg, Port Elizabeth
Spain — Arrecife (Lanzarote), Barcelona, Bilbao, Las Palmas (Gran Canaria), Madrid, Puerto del Rosario, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Valencia
We will tell you exactly what your commodity and destination need before we collect, rather than discovering it at the port.
We handle your UK customs export entry. Import clearance, duties and taxes at the destination are the responsibility of the importer or consignee. That is the normal split for international freight, and it is worth being clear about it early: cargo that arrives before the receiver is ready to clear it will sit at the port and accrue charges that nobody budgeted for.
Sea freight typically runs around four to ten weeks door to door, against roughly four to ten working days by air. Sea carries far more for the money and handles weight and volume that air simply cannot take economically. Air wins on speed and on anything time-critical or high-value against its weight. Most businesses end up using both — air for what is needed now, sea for the volume behind it. If you want the air side, see our commercial air cargo from the UK page.
Excess Luggage Co. comply with the UK aviation and maritime security act and regulations, we ship all dangerous goods under IATA and IMDG rules, and all our staff are trained in aviation & maritime security for shipping.
Where international sanctions, conflict or legal restrictions prevent us from offering a safe and compliant service, we will not accept the shipment. We would rather tell you that at the quotation stage than after your cargo has been collected.
“I have worked in this industry for more than 40 years, and safety has always been my highest priority. Our responsibility is to protect not only the shipper’s belongings, but also airline staff, carriers, customs authorities, and fellow passengers travelling on the aircraft carrying the shipment.”
Lak Kharod — Director, Excess Luggage Co.
Yes. We handle commercial sea freight from the UK worldwide, both full container load (FCL) and LCL groupage. We are not a comparison site or a booking marketplace — you deal directly with the company handling your shipment, and your cargo is received into our own warehouse near Heathrow before export.
FCL means you take an entire container — nobody else's cargo travels in it. It suits larger or higher-volume consignments, and is usually the better option once you have enough goods to fill or nearly fill a box. LCL groupage means your cargo shares a container with other shippers' cargo, consolidated at a container freight station. It suits smaller commercial consignments that do not justify a full container. LCL cargo is consolidated and deconsolidated, so it involves more handling than FCL.
LCL is charged on a weight or measure basis — shown on tariffs as W/M. The carrier compares the actual weight against the volume of the consignment and charges on whichever produces the greater figure. This is why accurate dimensions matter as much as accurate weights: a light but bulky consignment is charged on its volume. We will confirm the basis when we quote.
Typically around four to ten weeks door to door, depending on the destination, the routing, and whether the cargo is FCL or LCL groupage. LCL takes longer than FCL on the same lane because the cargo has to be consolidated before departure and deconsolidated on arrival. Sailing schedules, transhipment and destination port congestion all affect the final figure, so we give you a realistic transit time when we quote rather than a headline number.
We handle your UK customs export entry. Import clearance, duties and any taxes in the destination country are the responsibility of the importer or consignee. That split is normal for international freight, and it matters commercially — the receiving business needs to be ready to clear the cargo, or it will sit at the destination port accruing charges.
As a minimum we need a commercial invoice and a packing list showing the goods, their values, weights and dimensions, together with the full consignee details. Depending on the goods and the destination you may also need a certificate of origin, and dangerous goods require a declaration and a safety data sheet. We will tell you exactly what is needed for your commodity and destination before we collect.
Send us the commodity, the weights and dimensions, the origin and the destination, and we will come back with a quote and a realistic transit time.
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