Shipping HHG and UB

         The next step is to plan when you want your household goods (HHG) to be shipped. This is done through the transportation office, again, be sure to have a copy of orders and POA if your Sponsor is not with you. I wasn't allowed to even make an appointment with transportation without my POA.  Planning this can be a little frustrating and confusing since the time of shipping can and will vary. It really depends on the time of year you are PCSing.  The sooner you ship your HHG, the less time you have to live without them here in Germany.  My husband and I flew out at the end of June, right in the middle of PCS season. We had our HHG packed on May 2^nd and they arrived in Germany June 15^th, which meant it took a little over 10 weeks to arrive. We were able to send our HHG so early that it arrived in Germany before we did! You will also ship unaccompanied baggage (UB), which is a small shipment of items that you may deem as necessities (sheets, towels, pots, pans, extra clothes, etc) to use before you HHG arrive. We packed our UB on May 18^th and they arrived in Germany on June 18^th, taking just over four weeks. The UB is FedEx’d over to make sure it gets here quick. Many families arrive in Germany and have another few weeks to wait for their HHG to arrive. This UB should hold you over until you get everything! Unfortunately bad things can and do happen. We know a family that arrived to Germany the same day we did and their UB has been lost. I'm not sure how that happens but it can. Just be prepared for everything and try not to stress, they are only material things. Just remember to pack in your suitcase things that you have to have. 

           There is a weight limit for HHG and UB but all military gear (uniforms, TA-50, books, paperwork, etc) does not count towards the overall weight. Set those items aside when HHG or UB are being packed and remind the packers that it is military gear. Our packers just estimated the weight and documented it because they packed other items with Army gear. They don't actually weigh the exact amount, at least they didn't for us. Weight limits are set by the number of dependents and the sponsors rank.   

            Be patient when it comes to HHG arriving in Germany. If you get there and your HHG have not arrived or you have to wait a few weeks, the Army will provide temporary furniture that they will then pick up once your HHG do arrive. When your HHG and UB are actually being packed, don’t be afraid to tell the movers what to do, but be nice so they take care of you stuff. If you feel like something isn’t packed well enough ask them to repack it or wrap it better. I had to ask our movers to re-wrap all my nutcrackers and Christmas ornaments. They wanted to leave them as is and just wrap my plastic tub in brown paper. They might give you dirty looks, as mine did, because they don't want to do extra work but it is your stuff! You have the right to make them do their job the right way! While they are packing, they are also tagging everything and writing it on an inventory sheet. Keep an eye on that sheet and notice what all their abbreviations mean. If you have a new piece of furniture and it has SC written next to it that means it’s scratched. Have them show you the scratches and if it’s not right make them change it. They will mark scratched, dented, and chipped next to everything to cover their rears! The movers are also supposed to have a specific list of high value items. I did not know this when they packed our HHG, I later learned when UB was packed that they should always have a high value items list. The items on the high value list have to be signed for once they are delivered. I would advise that you write down and take pictures of all your high value items before the movers arrive to begin packing. Once all your HHG or UB are packed, ask for the seals that go on the crates, they look like bumper stickers. Our movers for HHG never sealed our crates. But it was our first PCS and I've since learned my lesson. Sign the seals in permanent marker so when you receive your crates you will know if they were broken into. Just remember to be patient. I know it can get stressful to hand over everything you own for someone else to ship across the ocean.