It's been a long time, but the last time I did it 'customs' or at least a couple of officials at Heathrow
informed me there would be a charge of (about $100 I recall) to get it released...and or it could take
hours...I told them I'd wait...and about an hour later they said the bike could be picked up. Ask every
question you can when shipping. Is there a difference in price if I crate the bike (probably). Do you know
where you can store the crate once it arrives, and how to get the crate to the storage facility so you
can re-use it. And or, how much will a crate cost you nearby the airport? Any extra charges once the bike
arrives. If it is not crated what is the price difference? More than likely they'll ask you to drain the fuel, so
if you're planning on riding it from the airport you'll need fuel. You can walk to a petrol station (from Heathrow
as I recall in half an hour). What are you doing about insurance, prices are all over the map. Do you need an
International driver's license (good idea, I got one). Take several photos of the bike as it is being loaded. The
trucking company dropped mine off a forklift, and when they came to unload it, I noticed the rear mudguard
bracket was bent, then saw some other damage. The driver said, "They didn't say nothin' to me, I'm unoading it
right now." I grabbed his keys out of the ignition and told him to call his boss. The boss arrived and agreed
the bike had been dropped and he gave me insurance forms. The insurance company said, "Oh no, you are a
racer, we checked on you. You damaged the bike." I told them my racing days were over and I was a book
publisher who published books about racers, such as the Indy 500. In the end I did collect, and I was very
honest about the damage, but if I hadn't noticed it, I would have been stuck.