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Dhl, Is It Possible 2 Check ?


Lexus2D
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I had 2 buy my lads Ds Lite over seas due 2 me not been able 2 get a Silver 1 in the UK :crybaby:

Iv now had an invoice from DHL for the customs they paid on my behalf :o

Can i check they did pay it & are not just pullin a fast 1 on me :unsure:

Cheers 2D! ;)

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Just had a look on the HM customs website Trudi,

3.6 Where can I ask about or query a customs charge?

If you have any questions about a particular customs charge you should contact Customs at the postal depot shown on the charge label as soon as possible. If you write to Customs you should include as much detail as you can including, if possible, the charge label, the sender's declaration and the part of the wrapper with your address on it.

Maybe get in touch with the dhl depot that dealt with your package, Or go direct to customs if your unsure of the charge/payment made? DHL are normaly very good with this type of thing and if you get in touch with them they will usually explain? :)

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DHL won't be trying to pull a fast one, if they've sent you an invoice for this then they've had to pay the charges, so you'll have to pay the bill, sorry. Basically it's pot luck, sometimes you'll get stung for this, sometimes you won't, it depends on the item etc (e.g. whether customs spotted it as something that they can charge you for).

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A couple of years ago my son had some "excess baggage" shipped home from Argentina as he couldn't carry it. He had it sent to my address as he was continuing on to Peru. I eventually got a bill from DHL for something like £200 in customs and other charges :rolleyes: . Needless to say he got the bill passed on to him from me :hehe: .

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You can always ask the seller to mark the item down in price or mark it as a gift but then if it gets damaged in transit you will only be able to claim back the value on the declaration form, nasty bit of work really!

I wasn't happy having to pay UPS 70 quid for my FMIC when it came seeing as they'd lost the package twice and had me wasting my time running around depot to depot but they wouldn't release the package without payment - they're a waste of space and time.

They were absolutely pathetic - at one point they left me waiting 30 minutes in the canteen as the manager was too scared to come and tell me they'd lost it again after I'd just drive 30 miles!

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DHL won't be trying to pull a fast one, if they've sent you an invoice for this then they've had to pay the charges, so you'll have to pay the bill, sorry. Basically it's pot luck, sometimes you'll get stung for this, sometimes you won't, it depends on the item etc (e.g. whether customs spotted it as something that they can charge you for).

Just to clarify a few things here -

All of the large integrators (TNT, UPS, FedEx, DHL) perform pre-Customs clearance well in advance of the flight landing in the country. All the details are submitted by the carrier to HMrC and when the plane touches down (wheels down) that is when they receive the message back from Customs to state whether to hold or not for examination.

It is not customs who look and see if something is supposed to be charged Duties/Taxes but the carrier in the main part. Customs will only scroll the manifest and look for any suspicious items or anything else they may be interested in.

A carrier has a responsibility to ensure that all D&T's are collected and paid correctly - and will be fined if they regularly allow shipments through without payment.

All D&T's are calculated based upon the value and description as provided on the commercial invoice. The description is as important as the value - as different duty rates are payable on different commodities - and due to the vast number of commodity codes - an item can be classed as different things by different operators.

Eg - If you order a Wheel Bearing made from Steel from the US - dependent upon what description is supplied on the CI then that could alter the amount of Duty you pay.

It could be listed as "Automotive Bearing" or "Automotive Wheel Bearing" or "Generic Car Part" or "Bearing made primarily of Steel" or "Steel Machine Part" etc etc

Each of these could (although I havent checked in this example) attract different rates - so its dependent on what the employee who is doing the pre-clearance classifies it as. It could be "zero rated" (ie 0%) under one category but 20% using another.

None of them would sting you for HMrC charges that they hadnt had to pay themsleves - They may however charge a "admin" or handling fee. This is to cover the cost of the operator doing the clearance work and submitting to customs.

VAT is, in the main part, chargable on everything imported into the EU - and is charged on the "CI Value + Duty" at the rate currently in use

Finally - Mis-declaring an items value is a criminal offence and therefore not advisable - It is exactly the same as walking through the Nothing to Declare channel when reterning from outside the EU - knowing you are over your limit.

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Just had a look on the HM customs website Trudi,

3.6 Where can I ask about or query a customs charge?

If you have any questions about a particular customs charge you should contact Customs at the postal depot shown on the charge label as soon as possible. If you write to Customs you should include as much detail as you can including, if possible, the charge label, the sender's declaration and the part of the wrapper with your address on it.

Maybe get in touch with the dhl depot that dealt with your package, Or go direct to customs if your unsure of the charge/payment made? DHL are normaly very good with this type of thing and if you get in touch with them they will usually explain? :)

Cheers thats alot 2 take in lol

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I've got one of these off fed ex, i am ignoring atm until they get shirty. I have no problems in paying the customs fee thats just one of those things, if they get you they get you if they don't you've done well.

What annoys me is the admin charge i've always tried to figure out how the hell thats my responsibility. I did not contract their services, i did not ask for carriage so how is any charge due to postage my issue.

I've never gotten around to arguing it with them but i might this time to see if i can get it to work

After a quick bit of research (i still need to ring up customs to check) you must pay the customs charge regarless its a legal tariff, however the admin fee is what they add and there is apparently no legal standing for it. So you could just tell them to shove it up their hoop

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