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DHL invoicing me for VAT + admin fee "paid on my behalf"...?


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@ssparks2003

 

This is why we pay higher shipping costs and customs taxes. A letter 10 miles away will cost you the price of a stamp. I don't think it's fair to just throw it on consumer ignorance. DHL is taking advantage of an ambiguous directive that aims to help with convenience re parcel delivery. Yes, consumers should read the fine print, but we don't always have control as to who picks up our package when it is taken from customs. I do not get to choose who the shipper will actually be. When my package left it's origin, it was with a different delivery company, a local Tunisian one. How could I have possibly known that DHL would in fact pick the parcel up from customs. This is not a favor, but a way to make more money. And to be taxed on that fee, on top of customs, is just unnecessary. I'm sure the EC isn't questioning more money. I hate to sound conspiratorial, but I don't want to be naïve either.

 

Some decency/better business practice would have consisted of the following: Notifying me that there is indeed a customs charge, and once I pay that, they will continue delivery; or, they could pay it on my behalf for a service fee of 11.90 euros and have it out of customs the following day. We live in the digital age. An email or note under my tracking status would have cost them much less than the current debacle I'm dealing with.

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@amgrl

 

so when you purchased you product you confiirmed with your seller that the goods would be shipped DDP and not DAP? they mean diffrent things and they cover diffrent amounts of the service.

 

DDP = Delivery duty paid (delivered to your door no extra costs because you have paid it up front)

DAP = Delivered at Place (everything excluding Import duty and taxes (custom clearence))

 

Since your parcel was sent DAP someone has to organise the payment of duty and taxes, sort the customs clearence, hold the goods in a bonded warehouse while clearence is arranged. this all costs the courier money.

 

Since you have not paid DDP this process needs to be handled by someone and that is the courier, if you belive that DHL or whichever courier could do this process gratis then you as the consumer are ignorant of the reality of managing the millions of parcels that they move across borders every year, the cost in man hours, the paperwork, the records that need to be kept etc, etc, etc,

It is easier to enter a rich man than for a camel to pass a needle

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Still, not ignorance.

 

These companies are getting their hands into our pockets to be even more profitable.

 

I can make my own mind, as yes I am still a very much capable person of making my own decisions.

 

And there is a conflict of interest. They do the so called FAVOR "NOT REALLY!!!" and then apply taxes on it for our lovely government.

 

We are getting robbed twice over.

 

For example in my case, why should I be dealing with all this trouble? I especially bought an item that was in the UK. The seller decided to send it to my from China.

 

How am I to blame and be charged for this?

 

I did not bought anything from China, therefore I shall not pay.

 

I'll only be paying these fees because the seller is refunding me these moneys.

 

Otherwise they could stick it.

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@ssparks2003

 

There should be transparency. The fee isn't a holding cost or a customs tax. It is a disbursement fee because they paid the tax on my behalf, so an interest payment of sorts. Letting me know beforehand for an unplanned service I'm receiving and paying for is, plain and simple, ethical business practice. So again, not ignorance... consumer common sense.

 

p.s. In all honesty, if it was a small percentage of the cost of customs, I would have been annoyed but probably paid it. 119% though, no way man. Completely uncalled for. Also, if the EC wants to dip their hands into policy like this, they should finish what they started. Letting these companies have free reign on mitigating this convenience fee is subject to exploitation.

 

@albertc30

 

Glad you got reimbursed and it all worked out. If the receivers don't know, then the sender should. Having to reimburse you passes the information along in a way. They'll make sure the next person knows that might happen so it's not a shock.

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But the solution is there already, when you purchase somthing from overseas request that it is shipped DDP, yes it will cost you more because you will pay the duty and the shippers handling charge for all the paperwork up front but then you won't have to pay anthing when it lands.

 

As it stands you have paid for 90% of the service i.e everything except for customs clearence and documentation. someone has to finance this, the likes of DHL organise the paperwork and sort out the duty payable. that way you get billed; you pay them and they ship the goods on. instead you proppose that they store your goods for an udefied time, send letters and emails to the recipients, wait for recipents to pay duty sort customes clearence, inform DHL that clearence has been recived then DHL can ship? and where will DHL's cost be covered to do this? and how long should DHL hold a parcel in a bonded warehouse waiting for the customer to sort out payments to C&E? what happens in the client does not pay C&E?

 

I don't think you really understand the logistics of what you are suggesting, DHL bring through the airports 10,000's of parcels a day. I just checked parcel force website, they move 7 million international parcels a year and they are not a big player in this market

Edited by ssparks2003
extra info

It is easier to enter a rich man than for a camel to pass a needle

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You keep talking about storage when I'm referring to a brokerage fee. I think you might be missing my point. Also, when clicking my shipping option, I was choosing between ground shipping or expedited. No other information/option was given. And like I said, DHL wasn't in the picture until my parcel left customs. They delivered my package, said nothing about their fees, and billed me weeks later. I've paid for customs myself over-the-counter before, why not have that option this time? Transparency is the issue here. I understand that parcel companies may have costs that the consumer doesn't see, but it doesn't give them the right to blindside people with them.

Storage/warehouse handling is a completely different issue. If they have to hold my package for days bc I haven't paid customs, then we can talk about storage issues. If there's a connection between these two things I'm missing, then please clarify, otherwise let's stay on topic. We're talking about a brokerage fee and whether or not a company can hold you accountable through sizeable fees for taking it upon themselves to pay on your behalf.

Has anyone found a light at the end of this tunnel yet? I saw someone mention they simply just ignored the carrier's correspondence, and they stopped sending letters at some point. Anyone else?

 

The last letter I sent was to the creditors explaining that I am in dispute with the company over this charge. Things have been quiet for about a week now.

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I know this isnt DHL but i bought my wedding dress from china for 100 quid. I received the dress...and then 3 weeks later, a letter from TNT asking for 26 pounds. My uncle is a tnt employee and told me to ignore it, so i did and nothings come of it. I bought something else from abroad and when it was delivered, my Royal Mail postie said there was a charge but dont worry about it... and so i tested it, and bought the same item just an extra lot which came to 60 pounds. I got RM card through the door saying i needed to pay 20.08 which included their £8 handling fee which ive paid online and await delivery.

 

so it seems TNT will deliver the item and invoice for customs and excise later but royal mail will not!

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Ok, take your point about staying on topic; pop'ed onto the UPS website (as it was the first one that came up on google that had the info i was looking for)

 

Brokerage Services

UPS Brokerage services are provided at no extra cost for routine customs clearance. Our aim is always to provide the one-step, seamless process and quick customs clearance that is crucial to on-time delivery. Clearance preparation begins while your shipment is still in transit because of the advance notice feature on the UPS network. Government regulations require specific documentation for international shipments, and UPS provides expert services for the preparation of complete and accurate export documentation. We offer optional customs services to help you prevent unpredicted delays to your shipment. Some of these services are subject to additional charges. Please see these charges in the Additional Charges table.

 

Additional charges that may apply for customs clearance procedures include, but are not limited to, the following:

 

  • Clearance procedures involving a government agency other than customs
  • Transit procedure
  • Storage
  • Customs inspection
  • Border inspection post charges
  • Shipments cleared by a third party

 

So keeping this on topic, brokerage is a bit more than just paying your duty to the goverment.

It is easier to enter a rich man than for a camel to pass a needle

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I think it would assist if disgruntled occasional importers understood who they contracted the import clearance to. Most seem to have an issue with the carrier when the reality is that they have contracted with the shipper and its chosen terms for transit.......... whether a Chinese exporter decides to hide this information from the buyer to undermine the UK market I'll leave up to the reader to decide.

 

For amgrl........ there would be an element of storage/warehousing within the costs of the clearing agent as it must provide a registered erts facility for non community imports. Without such a facility there would be no cheap option to purchase non community goods.

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  • 3 months later...

I just wanted to let everyone know, and those that may stumble across this thread later, that DHL ended up rescinding its fees and only charging me for the customs. Keep in mind, they threatened with creditors and sent bill after bill, which was making me worry at times because I'm not the type to let stuff like this accumulate. The local consumer protection agency here in Hessen, Germany corresponded with them on my behalf, and they eventually stopped bothering me. There was a letter forwarded from the agency (one that DHL sent them) saying they would do me this "favor" of waiving their fees. That struck a nerve a bit, but I was okay with paying just the customs and not for a service I didn't agree to (them paying customs on my behalf). I don't think they will stop doing this in the near future, but if enough people stick to the their guns about these fees, them maybe we can change it one day.

 

Good luck and all the best!

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thanks for the update amgrl :)

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  • 3 months later...

Just an addition to this thread I just informed DHL that they incorrectly over calculated my Duty and VAT. However their response is below. They have not offered to reimburse my £10 admin fee only tried to make me pay another £30 to correct their error. Or I can fill in a load of forms because of their error to reclaim. Is this really allowed I don't see why I should do anything as they are clearly not completing their duties which I assume I paid for as part of the £10 fee.

 

 

"Thank you for your recent enquiry which I have been passed to respond.*

 

I can confirm I have recalculated the charges based on the information you sent to Harveen on the value of goods including shipping of 650USD - Which would result in an overcharge of duty £3.52 and Vat £10.34 (please see some calculations below) - However before I can proceed with this amendment to HMRC I will require confirm you accept the £30.00 post clearance modification fee which will be billed once amendment/credit submitted this is charged for all post entry amendments which we are requested to submit to HMRC on our customers behalf.* This is listed in our standard tariff guide. In addition we can only complete the Vat reclaim on your behalf if you are NOT Vat registered (if you are not vat registered please provide a declaration to state this and you wish DHL to recover this on your behalf) - Regretfully if you are Vat registered then the current Vat amount will remain and need to be recovered via your vat return.

 

However you may also submit the claim to HMRC directly, please see attached the documentation required to this.* Should you wish me to submit the claim on your behalf please confirm your acceptance of these costs, however if I do not receive a response within the next 48hours* we will close the file."

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  • 1 month later...
I just wanted to let everyone know, and those that may stumble across this thread later, that DHL ended up rescinding its fees and only charging me for the customs. Keep in mind, they threatened with creditors and sent bill after bill, which was making me worry at times because I'm not the type to let stuff like this accumulate. The local consumer protection agency here in Hessen, Germany corresponded with them on my behalf, and they eventually stopped bothering me. There was a letter forwarded from the agency (one that DHL sent them) saying they would do me this "favor" of waiving their fees. That struck a nerve a bit, but I was okay with paying just the customs and not for a service I didn't agree to (them paying customs on my behalf). I don't think they will stop doing this in the near future, but if enough people stick to the their guns about these fees, them maybe we can change it one day.

 

Good luck and all the best!

 

Thanks for this thread, it has been interesting reading and I agree with you that other people should resist these unprincipled and un-contracted additional charges.

 

LV

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Thanks for this thread, it has been interesting reading and I agree with you that other people should resist these unprincipled and un-contracted additional charges.

 

LV

 

I look forward (not!) to the couriers forcing me to deal with HMRC on any imports as a result.

 

I'd prefer that the courier's gave people the choice : I'll happily stick with what I do currently - pay the charge while the package is in transit to the UK, so it doesn't get delayed.

 

If you'd prefer to have your package held up while you deal with HMRC - be my guest. Please don't ask for a change from "forced to pay courier" to "can't pay courier, have to deal with HMRC" - I suspect it'll be an awkward process.

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I used to do my own import paperwork but it is not easy to get the inflormation required such as the destination codes for ports and airports (Heathrow not LHR as it is for luggage tags) but if you are importing as a business and just buying the same classes of goods then you can save yourself a good few quid. One problem I encountered is when collecting goods from the sheds at airports and ports you get given the runaround and are very much cold shouldered for wanting to do it yourself with some shipping companies staff being downright rude for not using the facility they offer at a cost.

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  • 3 months later...

Ordered supplements from the USA some time ago, delivered by DHL. 2 months later a letter by post demanding VAT and £10 admin fee. Emailed them, and they responded

Dear Customer,

Thank you for writing to us and apologies for the delay in response.

Sorry for the inconvenience caused to you.

Whenever a product is imported to UK and the value of the product exceeds £15.00,

It is liable for import Duty and VAT payment for customs clearance.

The VAT calculation is done by the HMRC for the package which is imported to UK.

Please find attached customs document for customs reference number. UK Customs HMRC contact number 0300 200 3700.

The reason why the Duty & VAT was not updated is because this shipment was not updated in our collection file that is why you did not receive any call or text message from DHL regarding this payment before delivery. For more query on this kindly contact our Aviation team at 01332 857 082.

Spoke to HM Customs who advised me that VAT at 20% was payable, couldn't comment on admin fees. I emailed offering to pay VAT, was told to ring an 084 number. I declined and asked for an email address but they said

Unfortunately, we do not have a direct email address for the head office. Hence, we request you to contact our head office at 0844 248 0777, option 6.

Emailed them again saying that I expect all correspondence to be dealt using the email address given on their letters. Waiting for a response.

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start a new thread

 

 

of your own please

 

 

dx

Ordered supplements from the USA some time ago, delivered by DHL. 2 months later a letter by post demanding VAT and £10 admin fee. Emailed them, and they responded

Spoke to HM Customs who advised me that VAT at 20% was payable, couldn't comment on admin fees. I emailed offering to pay VAT, was told to ring an 084 number. I declined and asked for an email address but they said

Emailed them again saying that I expect all correspondence to be dealt using the email address given on their letters. Waiting for a response.

please don't hit Quote...just type we know what we said earlier..

DCA's view debtors as suckers, marks and mugs

NO DCA has ANY legal powers whatsoever on ANY debt no matter what it's Type

and they

are NOT and can NEVER  be BAILIFFS. even if a debt has been to court..

If everyone stopped blindly paying DCA's Tomorrow, their industry would collapse overnight... 

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  • 1 year later...

I am not sure if everyone realises over here that each carrier still needs to clear each package from HMRC irrespective of if there is VAT due or not.

 

 

The cost of this service is included in the shipping cost which is the reason International Shipping is generally costlier than Domestic Shipping.

 

So when a carrier asks for an admin fee when there is a VAT/duty due, this is simply an excuse as the admin work involved does not change as the same documentation needs to be submitted for each shipment.

 

 

What differs really is the credit facility that the carrier provides to us as they are making a payment to HMRC from their account before we pay to them ?

 

This is why I also feel it is outrageous to charge a flat fee of £11 by DHL for shipments with low value of VAT/duty or 2.5% of the VAT/duty amount paid.

 

In both cases the financing cost is much lower and the fee charge does not reflect the true cost.

 

To make matters worse,

DHL has now even started including a virtual shipping cost of transporting the item from the Airport Borders to my home address even though this is included in the shipping cost.

 

 

This they claim is being asked by HMRC to be included to calculate VATable amount.

I have so far never heard of this practice from Fedex, UPS, Royal Mail.

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DHL speak utter cobblers, VAT becomes payable as soon as the plane lands in the EU.

 

This is a blanket tax and isnt broken down to the "last mile".

 

BIf a parcel is sent inland only then it may attract VAT on the postage costs according to what service is used.

 

Ordinary post is VAT free

but PARCELs rather than packages are VATable

 

so it is possible that HMRC is desperate to get money where it is not due by tweaking the meaning of the law to their advantage.

 

However, the sender will be liable,not the recipient, unlike duty and VAT on the imported items.

 

DHL should grow a pair and tell the taxman where to go.

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  • 3 months later...

to prevent further newbies innocently keep re=opening a very old thread

this is now closed

 

 

if you have a similar issue

start a new thread

please don't hit Quote...just type we know what we said earlier..

DCA's view debtors as suckers, marks and mugs

NO DCA has ANY legal powers whatsoever on ANY debt no matter what it's Type

and they

are NOT and can NEVER  be BAILIFFS. even if a debt has been to court..

If everyone stopped blindly paying DCA's Tomorrow, their industry would collapse overnight... 

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