What 'door-to-door' really means — and what it usually doesn't
A lot of "shipping to Africa" services quote you door-to-port: they collect in the UK and drop your cargo at the destination port or airport, then leave your family to find a clearing agent, pay charges and arrange a van. That's not door-to-door. Rolats delivers to the recipient's actual door — the house in Lagos, the shop in Accra, the address in Harare — so the person at the other end simply receives the goods. One company, one price, one point of contact, start to finish.
How door-to-door works, step by step
- UK collection (first mile). An adhoc driver picks up from any UK address — home or business — and brings your cargo to our Dagenham depot.
- Depot & paperwork. We weigh, consolidate and prepare the UK-side customs documents — we're HMRC Customs Authorised and EORI registered.
- Ship by air or sea. Air for urgent/fragile/high-value (£5.90/kg + £20 handling); sea for bulk (from £70/bag).
- Customs clearance at destination. We coordinate clearance so cargo isn't held at the port or airport.
- Final-mile delivery. We deliver to the recipient's door and confirm receipt.
Door-to-door to Nigeria and Ghana
The two corridors customers ask for most are door-to-door to Nigeria and door-to-door to Ghana from the UK. We deliver to home and business addresses in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Accra, Kumasi, Tema and beyond — by air in days or by sea in weeks, the recipient's door either way. The same true door-to-door applies to Zimbabwe and our wider network of around 45 African countries.
All-in GBP — nothing to pay at the African end
Door-to-door also means door-to-door pricing. You pay once, in GBP, all-in — collection, shipping, clearance and final delivery in a single quote. There are no surprise charges billed to your family at the African end, which is exactly where door-to-port services leave people exposed.
Why door-to-door with Rolats?
Because we own the whole chain — UK collection, Dagenham depot, air and sea freight, customs clearance and final-mile delivery — Rolats removes the gap where door-to-port services hand you off. Pan-African specialists since 2007, HMRC Customs Authorised, all-in GBP, true door-to-door to the recipient's actual door.