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!

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.

@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.

@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.

Hello everyone, I am also having a similar issue with DHL (Germany). I ordered a gift that shipped from Tunisia and was picked up by customs. For a 10 euro customs charge, DHL tacked on another 10 euro for their admin fee for paying it on my behalf + VAT on that fee, charging me a total of 21.90 euros. I completely agree with the first and last post of this thread, and I am standing my ground by not paying this fee as I consider it completely unethical to charge for a service I did not agree to. I've already received letters from creditors, which have their own fees, so I'm pushing about 100 euros now. Furthermore, I've written letters to my local consumer protection agency and the creditor explaining my dispute with DHL. We are all just waiting to hear what DHL has to say about it. Meanwhile, I did some research and it seems there has been new legislation surrounding parcel delivery. Just google "parcel delivery European commission." “Convenience” for customers is a topic. One of the DHL reps over the phone mentioned the law changed in June allowing this fee; it seems that, with these new policies, parcel delivery companies have been given the freedom to mitigate customs clearance on behalf of the consumer by charging fees they deem appropriate. Basically, they've become legal loan sharks. I will keep everyone posted on what happens in my situation, and I believe that if enough people speak out about this fee, these companies will realize that consumers won't fall for this [problem]/extortion/unethical bs. Best, J