Had a call from DHL in response to my query. A pleasant gentleman reassured me that all carriers charge an admin fee, and he explained that the process of obtaining custom clearance was more involved than just pressing a few buttons on the computer. He agreed to waive the admin fee on this occasion (£8, which is currently £10). So I ended up paying the VAT amount. Whilst I'm not convinced that, given the huge number of parcels they process, £10 is a fair charge. Neither am I sure about the legality of this under contract law as has been extensively debated on this and other threads. I've decided to keep things simple for myself in future; either I will limit myself to ordering items costing no more than £15 (no VAT or admin fee payable), or I will factor in VAT and admin charge to the total cost to work out whether I'm saving money by importing.

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.

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.