How to Choose a Shipping Company to the Caribbean

A shipping company asks you to hand over goods worth hundreds of dollars and trust a promise. Run these five checks before the handover.

• A real place. A company has a warehouse or an office you can walk into, at an address that exists. That is why this directory lists companies with their own websites and real bases — and why claiming a listing is free: real companies want to be found correctly.
• A sailing, not a someday. Ask which day the boat leaves and which port it arrives at. Real companies answer with dates.
• The full price. The headline plus pickup, handling, and what your family pays on arrival. Get it in writing on the receipt.
• A tracking number. Ask: “Will my receipt carry a number I can follow myself?” A company with a tracking desk says yes and prints it. A company that says “call us” is asking you to trust the phone queue.
• How they answer. Call twice with two different questions. A company that answers plainly before you pay will answer plainly after.

Price matters — but the cheapest quote from a company that fails three of these checks is the most expensive barrel you will ever send.