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Shipping question

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Shipping question

huertajv

It's all about the Mouse!
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Someone from Europe and myself made a trade, after discussing here on DPF.

I received the pins and the pins I sent are in Europe and in Customs.

They are asking them to pay over 100 for customs because the package shows insured for $600.

The insurance is to cover the loss of tha package in case it does not arrive there. The actual cost of the pins in the package are actually worth more but I tried to keep it low but still protect myself, as we all know how the mail system is.

What can we do? The other trader would like to refuse it and have me re-ship with a lower amount for insurance. They are willing to cover half the additional cost to re-ship. However if the package is lost they will not accept responcibilty for the lack of insurance.

The other idea they had was that I pay half the customs fee which would be over $80 and I already spent $50 on the shipping.

They agreed that we should ask the forum what to do.

Help from US, Moderators and Europeon traders please!!!!'

Thank you!!!!!

Vicki
 
Oh dear..... well, I would have sent it recorded/signed for/ etc and declared a low amount regardless and that way it would definitely get there because it would be tracked so the cost wouldn't matter.

This is a difficult question. I have refused 2 packages in the past and they have taken 3 months to get back to the USA :S
 
Calculate how much it would get the pins back to you, divide by 1/2 and agree to pay that amount towards customs. It would cost you that much to maybe or eventually get your pins back in an assumed condition you sent it out to if at all getting it back. Insurance is over if sent back to you because it's only insured to get the address you stated and returning it back voids the contract.

Was it agreed that the customs were the receivers obligation or any chat that insurance was involved?

At worst, take the loss and lesoned learned. Let us know incase this comes up for future trades overseas.

By the way, what pins were involved in the trade?
 
I dont know how many pins are in the package but if you can reduce the cost of each package they will not be liable for tax....I believe it is around the £30.
 
IMO, it is the responsibility of the receiver to be aware of the laws and responsibilities of their own county. Attempting to defraud the government is no better than stealing or counterfeiting a pin. If it's not okay to "cheat" Disney then why is it okay to cheat your government? We all know that customs fees apply. Yes, they can be expensive. But people need to consider the total cost of the pins, including customs before they enter an agreement. The "lesson learned" should be on the receiver's end, not Vicki's. She sent and declared appropriately.
 

If the pins were refused by the receiver, then they never reached the address if they are being held in customs. So, maybe they are still insured for the return trip. You might want to check on this. I know for me that international trades are a pain and much too much involved to be worth the trouble and costs that usually crops up...especially with expensive pins.
I usually send them on a wing and a prayer.
 
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Just to clarify a couple of item;

Nithing was discussed about insurance, customs, etc.

I added insurance at my cost because I have sent things that have been lost before. Hence the reason for insurance. :-(
I won't lie on a package because it is against what I believe in doing. Pay back to Ceasar what is oweing to Ceasar and all that.

I could re-ship them in smaller packages but what guarantee would I have that customs would not intervene?

I understand that in most cases it will be fine, but I tend to think towards the what if.

Also, I am not concerned about the insurance for the package being returned, although I guess I should be. I am concerned about the package getting there.

I understand how expensive customs can be and wonder what the cost is to mail a package, large padded envelope about 2 lbs from Europe to US? Was it close to $50 or did I pay a higher price because the US charges more to mail packages in its own way of getting fee's?
 
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It's entirely random if packages are picked up in UK customs. When I was over for the D23 expo I shipped over $500 worth of stuff home, insured it and declared the full amount. Was expecting the customs bill, it arrived with no bill.

I've had packages with $100's declared value some get customs others don't so there is no theory behind this.
 
Thanks!!!

 
Just checked on royal mail website
package up to 1kg(2.2lb)

[TABLE="class: results-table"]
Royal Mail[TR]
[TH="class: pf-strong, bgcolor: #000000"]Service[/TH]
[TH="class: pf-strong, bgcolor: #000000"]Delivery[/TH]
[TH="class: pf-strong, bgcolor: #000000"]Compensation[/TH]
[TH="class: pf-strong, bgcolor: #000000"]Tracking[/TH]
[TH="class: pf-strong, bgcolor: #000000"]Price[/TH]
[TH="bgcolor: #000000"] [/TH]
[/TR]
[TR="class: display-result-data"]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]

International Signed For
[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]Delivery aim 5 days[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]Up to £500[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]Within UK[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]£26.15
[/TD]
[TD="bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: display-result-data"]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]

Airsure
[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]Delivery aim 4 days[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]Up to £500[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]Delivery Confirmation[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]£26.50
[/TD]
[TD="bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]
[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]


[TABLE="class: results-table"]
Parcelforce Worldwide[TR]
[TH="class: pf-strong, bgcolor: #000000"]Service[/TH]
[TH="class: pf-strong, bgcolor: #000000"]Delivery[/TH]
[TH="class: pf-strong, bgcolor: #000000"]Compensation[/TH]
[TH="class: pf-strong, bgcolor: #000000"]Tracking[/TH]
[TH="class: pf-strong, bgcolor: #000000"]Price[/TH]
[TH="bgcolor: #000000"] [/TH]
[/TR]
[TR="class: display-result-data"]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]

globalexpress
[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]Guaranteed 1 day[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]Up to £200[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]Tracked[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]£53.20
[/TD]
[TD="class: pf-pfw-sendnow-button, bgcolor: #CDC9C9, align: right"]
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: display-result-data"]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]

globalpriority
[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]From 3 days[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]Up to £100[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]Tracked[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]£48.10
[/TD]
[TD="class: pf-pfw-sendnow-button, bgcolor: #CDC9C9, align: right"]
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: display-result-data"]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]

globalvalue
[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]Delivery Aim 5-9 days[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]Up to £100[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]Not Tracked[/TD]
[TD="class: display-result-data-expandable, bgcolor: #CDC9C9"]£28.30
[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
 
and found this on gov website2.3 What are the limits for customs duty and import VAT?
  • Commercial consignments of £15 or less are free from customs duty and import VAT. For example, goods purchased over the internet with an intrinsic value not exceeding £15, will not be charged any duty or VAT but this does not include alcohol, tobacco products, perfume or toilet waters. See paragraph 2.6, 2.7 and section 3.
  • If you are sent a gift with a value of £40 or less, and which complies with the rules shown in paragraph 2.5, it will be free from customs duty and import VAT, but this does not include alcohol, tobacco, perfumes and toilet waters.
  • Customs duty becomes payable if the value of the goods is over £135 but duty is waived if the amount of duty calculated is less than £9.
however as disneyqueenuk says not all packages are picked up on.but what gets me is the hefty charge the post office adds on for collecting the tax for the customs and excise office.

sorry, can you tell I have been hit with a big and unexpected tax bill in the past
 
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Actually I appreciate!!!!!!!

Thank you!!!

Am thinking of having the package sent back & me re-mailing it in smaller amounts.

Vicki

 
If the pins are worth a considerable amount and are hard to come by then I agree you did the right thing by putting on it to recoup your losses in case something did happen to them in transit. I can imagine how shocked the person might be to find they have to pay over £100 but then it is up to them. if they dont want to pay it then you get the pins back and try to send them again but you would have to not add the real value on sending them the second time as customs could easily intervene again.

I agree with yvonne that its totally random as we have been charged only once for something we ordered from the US which was a thundercat statue (the 3rd one) and we got charged but then the other 2 and the one after got through fine, even pins with high values mainly pass through with no charges but then I think Ireland is a little less stirct on the custom charges than in the UK.

If they refuse it could it possibly get lost on the way back to you as I doubt Royal Mail would add tracking back on it.
 
I'm not sure if I would've made a trade worth $600 overseas in the first place. But what's done is done. So here's what I would do from here:

You did your part, and did it correctly and honestly.

If the other person refuses the package, I would say the trade is off. Your pins are returned to you, and you return the other trader's pins back to them. The other trader pays half of your shipping cost to send their pins back, IMO.
 
This is a tough one to call. If I'm sending very rare expensive pins to the UK, I always send them by International Priority mail with DC# and tracking. That way I don't have to insure them since they can (supposedly) track them and they have to be signed for to get them. I did send something insured once and when the receiver got hit with customs forms, I put in a form to waive it. Can't remember how that went, but in the end they didn't have to pay customs. And that taught me about International Priority Mail.
 
if the person is offering to pay half the shipping to ge them sent again I would ask they pay for the full amount of shipping as it would probably cost less than that of the customs fees to re-send the pins again.
 
Thank you everyone! Keep them coming to help me decide what to Fo.

I want to be fair for everyone's sake.
 
1. I think the insurance was appropriate under the circumstances.

2. Yes, it costs that much in the US to send to the UK for 2 pounds (insurance probably cost about $5-10). One ounce to the UK is already $3. Each additional ounce is $0.78+

3. Offer a compromise.
 
So I am thinking of offering to re-mail once I receive it back and have them pay me $50 which would be far less than half the custom fee's.

I would then divide the pins in separate packages and mail that way to avoid custom fee's. This will cost over the $50 but I think it is a far compromise.

What does everyone think? Especially those from Europe.

Vicki
 

Half the customs fees is 50 pounds, right? Which comes out to $80, which is $30 more than the $50 you were thinking about. With that in mind, and the cost of how much it would be to re-ship, I might just call it a "loss" and pay the 1/2 of the customs fees. That way you don't have to worry about the package coming back to you, re-packaging, re-shipping, etc.
 
I didn't have my friend from Europe add insurance because of this reason and I got them just fine . When I send over the pond, I send priority , no insurance, as gifts and mark Disney pins, quantity , never had a problem . And I give the recipient the customs number on ticket .
 
Actually it is closer to 110 euros. So this would make it even more and $50 would only be about 30 or so euros. All in all it works out better for them and then I'm not pay even more money.
 
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