Cardinal Global Logistics (UK) Ltd Reviews 

We use Cardinal Maritime services for both our LCL ad some FCL service and find them very helpful and efficient.
Their on-line quoting system is excellent as are their follow-ups to our general email enquiries to them.

Tony Lewis
Director
Prestige Global Logistics

Excellent customer service, good prices. They will always find a solution to your seafreight shipping needs.

Not been doing it very long but the online quote system is very helpful and helps with going back to our customs quickly.
Also received answers to any questions very quickly through email from staff members.

I would recommend using this company, I have really got to know them over the past year, I have been working with these guys and can honestly say they are professional and friendly and will help you shipping containers and have modern and up to date equipment.

John Russell and James Goldsmith have always gone out of their way to help me and make sure that I received the best service possible.

I have been dealing with them every week for the past few years and can honestly say that I have never come across a company where the staff go out of their way for customers like these two do.

They truly are an asset to the company and I will continue to use Cardinal simply because of the customer service that I am getting.

Excellent service & staff really helpful especially Lynsey Armitage quotes always turned around quickly and competitive.

Lynsey, Gabriel and everyone at Basildon Cardinal Maritime,

My boxes arrived safely in Dubai (within a month) and I just want to say thank you so much. Words cannot express how happy I was with the service I received but throughout this whole process you have been amazing, I have had no need to stress. You have saved me so much financially and I do really appreciate it, if you ever come to Dubai- feel free to stay with me.
My new place, feels like home....Thank you :)

Lynsey and team are always very quick to reply to export rate requests often giving a couple of options with different transit times. Rates are usually extremely competitive and sometimes very much so. I did say to Lynsey just a few weeks ago ”sometimes I wonder why I go anywhere else”! Well done Lynsey and the export sales team at Cardinal.

We are more than happy with Sabeena's work. She's always available for us, even at weekends if necessary and always willing to help and find solutions.

Very easy to use. Very responsive to quotes and bookings team are great on the phone. Our account rep is Lynsey - I would recommend her to anyone.

We find Cardinal to be a reliable and trustworthy partner. Responsive to requests both commercially and operationally. Overall pleased with the service levels we receive.

Cardinal are helpful & friendly.
They are always happy to go the extra mile.
Special mentions to Lynsey Armitage & Chloe Huckle who are always willing to help out in a crisis.

Very competitive prices and friendly staff. Always there to help if there's ever a problem. Very happy with level of service.

Lynsey was great! Very professional and efficient . Highly recommend!

Excellent customer services, competitive price.

Fantastic service! Particularly John & James (import dept). Friendly, approachable staff. Has the right balance between online facilities available and the personal human touch. Definitely not the faceless machine that most others are becoming.

They ripped me off properly. But no doubts I will be filing a complaint to trading standards, as luckily I do have all the proof I need.
I received a letter about and arriving notice, with form including,to fill to form out I had to apply for EORI number, so I did and I understand it was my delay, so they signed for the form on 22 of June. the invoice was paid 20 June. Accept this letter none tried to contact me at all, no email or phone call or any letters. 0. I called many times, and all I was getting, that they can't find the shipment by invoice number so probably it is not here yet. I wrote a thousand emails- no reply, later I was told I was emailing to wrong email address, but there was not written on the website, just the one email address -info@ -question why is none replying to these emails if they see someone is looking for the shipment, they should at least give the email address to send an enquiry to. And finally when I was already really angry they found my shipment and the form I send - 6 of July, so today- 16 of the July the shipment is still with them even I already paid all the fees - including 1000 pounds for storage, which apparently was reduced by half, but somehow I feel It is the company's fault. I’m not going to leave it like this, as I had to borrow money to pay the bill. And the other thing- there is no communication with the company they just not responding to anything, as I read reviews much to late I do understand now why….
I just read a reply it is really not funny anymore, as you send me a form and all details were correct on it even an email address, your employer told me you called me once... so why you did not send an email to me, or a letter, why when I called you told me the shipment is not here yet. so many unhappy customer and you still keep saying you are doing a good job... we will see that the trading standards will say.

Having imported a lot of Europe this was my first delivery from out with the EU. One pallet delivered from Dubai (1m3) Cardinal wanted nearly £700 to clear customs and deliver to Glasgow (not including Vat or duty) after phoning 3 other companies I was told this is 3 times the standard rate but as Cardinal had the pallet they would charge a hand over fee to allow another company to complete this for me (equaling the same £700). After chasing them for the invoices these were sent on Friday afternoon (3.30pm) requesting payment before Saturday or there would be storage charges. As we were closed and not opened until Monday (business) payment wasn’t cleared until 8am Monday morning. After which an £80 storage invoice arrived.

Items finally arrived and the carrier driver was very helpful (which is the only positive).

I would not suggest using this company as their main goal is to screw as much money out of you as they can. Needless to say I will be using a different company for future imports.

This was my first time importing goods so the entire process was a little unfamiliar. I received an email around the time my shipment was due into the port, a very assumptive email from Cardinal Maritime, I copy and paste a section from the email here:

"Dear Client,

We are delighted to confirm your cargo will be arriving imminently. The team are working hard to have the container unpacked and your cargo available as quickly as possible.

We will need your release instruction and payment before we can release your goods. Please also take note as to whether an original bill of lading is needed or not to avoid unnecessary delays."

Their invoice was attached and the bill totalled £696.70. My shipping charges had been paid to the manufacturer, all I really needed to do was get some help with the customs clearance paperwork and onward shipping. (this price quoted didn't even include shipping to my door, I would have been expected to collect this from Felixstowe.) The charges seemed excessive.

I should probably add at this point that the goods I was importing totalled 110kg and had a trade value of around £700. I was now being charged the value of my goods to have the goods I had paid for.

Assuming there had been some misunderstanding I called Cardinal, I was told to sign the document they sent and they would see what they could do over the charges. I felt a railroaded by the whole process.

I called a separate freight forwarder who explained the process and offered to look at the documentation. They managed to do the whole lot for a 3rd of the price which included shipping to my door. The other company will remain nameless as I want the purpose of this review to remain pure: Cardinal Maritime are aggressive and ruthless, whilst their practices may be legal, they are certainly immoral- (verified by others in the industry.) The only thing I can really liken this to is having my own goods held to ransom. I run a small business and advise anyone planning on importing goods to ensure that the manufacturer does not assign Cardinal Maritime as your freight forwarder. There are decent companies out there. The other reviews speak for themselves.

I try to keep a balanced view with anything like this but I've struggled to find any argument in their favour, my advice would be to avoid at all costs.

**Update, Cardinal Maritime have since replied to this review. I believe they've done more 'passing the book' than addressing the points raised. Unsatisfactory but not unexpected. I would welcome a phone call or a meeting to discuss this further with Rick as I live locally**