I absolutely concur.... Dip & pack, shipment costs, and trophy care in general are extremely important aspects in planning a safari that are often overlooked or simply taken for granted by the safari client. I highly recommend prospective safari clients to ask question in regard to trophy care & shipment as part of the vetting process of their outfitter of choice. Most African taxidermists and dip & pack facilities have a several different shipping/logistics companies that they can use. They may prefer or recommend one over another, but it is important for the client to know that you have choices here. You are not obligated to use the only the shipper that your dip & pack company recommends.
Furthermore, any dip & packer worth their salt (pun intended), will do their best to pack your trophies using the crate space as efficiently as possible. They should also be able to give you a reasonable estimate of the final packing and shipping costs before the invoice is due. Some companies are hesitant to do this because there is no way of knowing the exact volumetric weight until your crate is packed, weighed, and sitting on the loading dock. Regardless, any reputable company should be able to give you a "reasonable" estimate based on recent shipments of similar volumetric weight.
@Rock375 , do you know what air carrier Coppersmith used? This is a definitely a potential problem.... I dealt with this same exact issue last May when I received my trophies in Miami. The air carrier selected by the logistics company was Turkish Airways because they had the best air freight rates at the time. The cost quoted for the actual shipping seemed quite reasonable, so I had no issue at the time of shipment. Once my trophies were cleared, my import agent presented me with a final invoice with an additional charge of $600 from Turkish Airways for a 10 day airport storage fee. Needless to say I was livid!
I was also told by my agent in Miami that they have no control over when the various state and federal inspection agencies get around to their specific parts of the clearing process. My agent claims that they file the paperwork to initiate the clearing process upon arrival of the crate, but they have no control over when the actual appointment will be scheduled. A big part of this potential problem could also be luck of the draw in regard to the specific port of entry and the particular agents assigned to your inspections. So, I am not sure what, if anything can truly be done to avoid this in the future. This was my 6th trophy shipment from RSA in 13 years, and the first time my trophies were held up in Miami for clearing. The only distinct difference in this last shipment was Turkish Airways. Delta had been the carrier used in my 5 previous shipments. According to the shipper, Delta is much more expensive and has a backlog of 3-5 months on freight shipments out of RSA.
For what it was worth, I blasted the logistics company for using an air carrier that is charging storage fees for a time issue that the client has no control over. My clearing agent and the logistics company were both sympathetic to my outrage over this, and both offered modest refunds on part of their charges as a gesture of good faith....Turkish Airways told me to pound salt... They stated that their policies and fees are clearly provided to all customers commercial and private, and that they too have no control over how long a shipment will remain in quarantine for inspection. I'm quite certain Turkish Airways is not the only airline that charges storage fees, so this is something everyone needs to be aware of and prepared for....