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.

When couriers take on a client’s shipment they have a contractual obligation to have it delivered to the end person’s door. Now to go on and charge us an ADMIN fee, for releasing parcels from customs, is outrageous and it seems the government supports these practices. If anything there seems to be a conflict of interest where the more parcels are held back by customs the more fees will these business charge plus taxes on top. I'll have someone making decisions for me when the time comes that I cannot make them myself and will not take it lightly others doing so on my behalf and without my express consent. Together we can put a stop to it. It's our hard earned money. These companies are just getting their hands in our pockets and getting richer whilst we, middle class, can hardly afford the food we put on our tables. And to make matters ever worse, after a couple of weeks, demanding payment and threatening with debt collection agencies who will charge you for doing so. I'll be starting a petition soon and start a blog about it. If we get together we can make a difference.

Hi all. I might be paying mine but all due to having found what I got from ebay. It turns out this was for a PIR flodd light I bought in the UK but the seller decided best to have it shipped from Hong Kong. They have agreed to refund me all moneys that DHL are asking of me, allowing me to pay DHL. Other than that, it's outrages that most of you see this as a favor. I am a grown up person and in good mental health so I'll make my own decisions, not the government and sure as hell not these money grabbing businesses. If we all pay what's to stop other business from doing exactly the same? Regards, Albert

Hi all. I totally agree with the original thread. The issue is not the vat or duty fee but the courier charging you for a service you did not request. I am now in a battle myself with DHL for charging me £10.60 for an item that was marked, according to them, at a value of £53.02 plus the £10.00 admin fee. I don't even know what is this about! They say it refers to an LED sample. What? A sample worth £53.02? I did bought some LED's, 3 to be precise, 1 orange, 1 red and 1 green but even that was sent from the UK. So what on earth is this about? And off course, they say I have received and signed for it. I was willing to pay the VAT for the total of £6.99, the cost of my 3 LED's but now I won't pay any of it. I can even find the business that has sent me this LED sample in my eBay purchases. In my opinion, it would be much better, to just make me go and get it, just like parcel-force done a few years back. This way you would definitely know what was it being related to. I will stand my ground and won't pay. They can send as many threatening letters they want and pass it on the collecting agencies. I just won't have it. The banks got away for too long and so will these money grabbing companies that like to put their hand son our pockets to take our hard earned cash. If nobody puts on a fight and questions these business practices they will carry on forever. And for those of you saying it's just a £5.00, then, now it's £10.00, I bet you won't be saying that when they hit you in the face with £20.00 or £30.00 or more for a simple admin fee. They have to get the item to your door step, it's their contractual obligation to the sender, their client. Regards, Albert