@MinnBobber The Stomer boxes are HUGE and way too big for the courier companies. I suggest that you pop by a local shop and pick up the best box from them (they should give them or charge a small fee). Then just take off the front wheel, fender, pedals and remove bars (be careful with the Stromer bars as the stem comes out differently than most bikes. Try to keep the stem in place and remove the bars. Now with that make sure you protect the fork and pad the heck out of it. Use lots of padding around the fork (not bubble wrap around the forks as they will burst during shipping).
By doing this you will be able to use the standard couriers like FedEx, UPS etc..... and it will be a lot cheaper.
Now for shipping Dangerous Goods (lithium battery), you do need to be certified and apply the appropriate labels to the box. Many couriers will want you to set up a DG account and fill in paperwork before they will accept your shipment. With the laws being enforced big time now they are becoming much more strict with this. In Canada, we are seeing a HUGE increase in enforcement here and fines being issued to those in non-compliance.
It would actually be cheaper to leave the battery in the bike and ship it as "lithium-ion batteries contained in equipment" as the DG will be the same but if shipped separately you will need to pay extra for the 2nd box. If you elect to ship is as a 2 box shipment (battery separately) then the box with the battery (nothing else in the box can be added) then you need to protect the connectors (tape is fine), bag it in an antistatic bag then identify the box as "lithium ion batteries" along with the correct required labels.
So, in short, this is not going to be easy and it's not cheap.
My opinion is to see if there are any DG certified bike dealer near you. You may find their rates are better and they would already have a DG shippers account set up.
FYI - Personally I always pay for the insurance on the value of the bike in case of damage.
hope this helps,
Will
shop.scooteretti.com
