Parcel Force Clearance Fee

rainbow_carnage · 26 January 2008 at 11:45PM

I bought a watch from a company based in Japan for around £70. I knew that there would be VAT charged on that, so I factored it into the cost. The watch was sent via a Japanese postal company.

This week I received a letter from Parcel Force demanding not only the VAT (£13.38), but also a Clearance Fee of £13.50.

How did PF get involved? Why them and not standard Royal Mail? It's a small parcel. I didn't choose to use PF. If I had the choice, I would've avoided them at all cost. Not only are they overpriced, but they service is appalling. What exactly did they do to merit a £13.50-fee? They said that it's their "express delivery" fee. What express delivery? I had to go to the depot myself to pick up the parcel. So they chose the more expensive delivery option for me (the fee on regular delivery was £8) and then didn't even attempt to make a delivery. Of course, I could've sent them a cheque, waited a few more days, and then they may have delivered the parcel themselves, but that's hardly considered "express".

advent1122 · 27 January 2008 at 1:36AM

The clearance fee gets 'em everytime.
You have no choice and it is one of the risks you take when buying from overseas.
I order stuff from America and sometimes it gets through without any import tax or fees and sometimes I have to pay.

rainbow_carnage · 27 January 2008 at 1:43AM

I don't mind paying the VAT. It was pretty clear from the start that I would have to pay it. But the Parcel Force fee? That's clear profiteering. They are holding the parcels for ransom. You have no choice but to pay up.

When I book tickets online, the ticket broker charges a fee. Fair enough. I choose to use their service. The fee is clear upfront, before you commit to buy anything. If I'm unhappy about it, I have the option of going down to the box office in person.

I did not choose to use Parcel Force. Neither did the sender. They didn't even provide a service, as I got the parcel from the depot myself.

Ugh.

superscaper · 27 January 2008 at 11:14AM

rainbow_carnage wrote: »

I don't mind paying the VAT. It was pretty clear from the start that I would have to pay it. But the Parcel Force fee? That's clear profiteering. They are holding the parcels for ransom. You have no choice but to pay up.

When I book tickets online, the ticket broker charges a fee. Fair enough. I choose to use their service. The fee is clear upfront, before you commit to buy anything. If I'm unhappy about it, I have the option of going down to the box office in person.

I did not choose to use Parcel Force. Neither did the sender. They didn't even provide a service, as I got the parcel from the depot myself.

Ugh.

VAT doesn't covers customs and import duty which if charged to PF they pass on directly to the customer. Most decent retailers give you fair warning that you may possibly have to pay customsduty (which is a separate issue from VAT). http://customs.hmrc.gov.uk/channelsPortalWebApp/channelsPortalWebApp.portal?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=pageTravel_ShowContent&propertyType=document&resetCT=true&id=HMCE_CL_001454

They may overcharge by factoring in an "admin" fee but the clearance fee wouldn't have been charged unless there were import charges made to parcel force. You could always make them take it back to Customs and then pay them directly for the charges and have your own courier collect it from Customs. But I suspect you won't be saving any money. Most international retailers make it clear that you should check up on customs duty as it's the recipient's responsibility.

smcaul · 27 January 2008 at 8:17PM

This subject has been raised many time before. But to answer your post, the Japanese courier chooses their world wide partners, so blame them for their choice. Another point to note is that every courier in the UK charges these fees, many of them charge far more then PF so in fact the Japanese courier may have done you a favour by using PF rather then some of the others.

If you buy from a non EU country then this is a fee you should factor in - sometimes you may gain by it not being charged, other times you will have to pay it.

Forris · 28 January 2008 at 10:54AM

superscaper wrote: »

They may overcharge by factoring in an "admin" fee but the clearance fee wouldn't have been charged unless there were import charges made to parcel force.

I'm afraid you are wrong here! The clearance fee is for the handling of the parcel. Parcelforce have to receive the parcel from Customs and process it. I have seen parcels on many occasions, that Customs have checked, decided that there is no VAT or duty to pay, yet PF have still charged the fee because they have had to handle and process the parcel.

superscaper · 28 January 2008 at 12:39PM

Forris wrote: »

I'm afraid you are wrong here! The clearance fee is for the handling of the parcel. Parcelforce have to receive the parcel from Customs and process it. I have seen parcels on many occasions, that Customs have checked, decided that there is no VAT or duty to pay, yet PF have still charged the fee because they have had to handle and process the parcel.

Then you should have requested a refund: "These clearance charges are only applied if a duty or tax is payable on the parcel." and for just handling while Customs process it "We will not levy a fee for the first 10 days" (from Parcel Force's website)

JohalaReewi · 28 January 2008 at 2:08PM

You might want to read through this thread...
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=323766

custardy · 28 January 2008 at 3:32PM

why not complain to customs?
they decide to accept the payment from the carriers and open up the chance of a charge.
so why not approach them as to why you are not able to pay directly?

rainbow_carnage · 30 January 2008 at 1:35AM

PF's Clearance Charge has nothing to do with Import Duty. Firstly, it's independent of both the size and value of the parcel. The girl in front of me in the depot queue had a huge box that she could barely carry. Mine was a watch box. We both had to pay £13.50. Secondly, the bill that I got from PF has no amount listed under either Import Duty or Excise Duty. There's only a VAT charge and a PF charge.

custardy · 30 January 2008 at 5:55AM

rainbow_carnage wrote: »

PF's Clearance Charge has nothing to do with Import Duty. Firstly, it's independent of both the size and value of the parcel. The girl in front of me in the depot queue had a huge box that she could barely carry. Mine was a watch box. We both had to pay £13.50. Secondly, the bill that I got from PF has no amount listed under either Import Duty or Excise Duty. There's only a VAT charge and a PF charge.

i dont get your point?the VAT is the import duty
however again my point stands.plenty of sabre rattling re: the delivery compaies yet no one seems to query HMRC?

Parcel Force Clearance Fee

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