Royal Mail £8 Internal Post Handling Fee scam?

paddyrg

CiderImbiber wrote: »

Ok, I get it about customs, but you must admit the items that get chosen for tax seem to be picked randomly. I've bought several items from the US and only one incurred import duty/handling charge even though they all looked the same.
(Also, while the import duty might be understandable, the £8 handling fee is still a bit much).

What this means is you get lucky more often than not! The £8 fee it cost you once is probably better than the £8 fee + VAT & duty you could well be charged on every shipment! Expect that fee, and treat it as a bonus when you don't get charged. Or use a courier that charges a flat percentage for clearance but does so on 100% of shipments. The odd £8 will seem like a bargain.

acmp

I've just been stung by this. If I had chosen for Royal Mail to process this for me it would have been fine, but I didn't have a say in it. I was informed that I owed them £8 and if I don't pay then I won't get my goods.

This is simply demanding money with menace. I can't see another view for it.

If HMRC contacted me (they have my details, they are on the packet) then I could pay them or CHOOSE to let a 3rd party handle it for me. But this is not the case sadly.

I doubt I will get anywhere with a complaint, but that is what I am going to do.

paddyrg

acmp wrote: »

I've just been stung by this. If I had chosen for Royal Mail to process this for me it would have been fine, but I didn't have a say in it.

In fairness, it's up to you, the importer, to know what you're doing - and that includes knowing tax is due, and arranging the handling thereof. By not taking steps, RM has handled it for you. If HMRC wrote to you (cost of say £1 for letter and stamp) then someone also has to store the item in a bonded warehouse until you respond etc. Bonded warehouse space and handling is expensive - frankly RM saved you money.

Blackbeard_of_Perranporth

acmp wrote: »

I've just been stung by this. If I had chosen for Royal Mail to process this for me it would have been fine, but I didn't have a say in it. I was informed that I owed them £8 and if I don't pay then I won't get my goods.

This is simply demanding money with menace. I can't see another view for it.

If HMRC contacted me (they have my details, they are on the packet) then I could pay them or CHOOSE to let a 3rd party handle it for me. But this is not the case sadly.

I doubt I will get anywhere with a complaint, but that is what I am going to do.

A good point. I think that as you do not want Royal mail to handle your packet of trinkets through customs, you should tell your store to put on the parcel. Addressee will import personally.

They can ring you directly when they put it on the aeroplane, telling you where it is going to land etc. then you can go there yourself, and unload it. Then take it through customs, paying any duty imposed, and save yourself the £8 charge. Simple.

Oh and by the way, if you are not there when the plane lands, it will be left on the tarmac.

custardy

acmp wrote: »

I've just been stung by this. If I had chosen for Royal Mail to process this for me it would have been fine, but I didn't have a say in it. I was informed that I owed them £8 and if I don't pay then I won't get my goods.

This is simply demanding money with menace. I can't see another view for it.

If HMRC contacted me (they have my details, they are on the packet) then I could pay them or CHOOSE to let a 3rd party handle it for me. But this is not the case sadly.

I doubt I will get anywhere with a complaint, but that is what I am going to do.

same posts,different people
The horse has long left and you are busy locking the door

Scarpacci

The argument that customers don't choose Royal Mail is a tad flimsy. When you're ordering you must have a pretty good idea what sort of delivery service is going to end up delivering it. If it's a postal service (say USPS in the U.S.) then you'll be expecting Royal Mail, so who else would handle the customs processing? If it's a courier you'd surely be anticipating their fees - which in most cases will be as much or more than Royal Mail. In any case, you should be expecting some fees if you're spending over £15.

If you don't want Royal Mail to handle it, how do you propose a. the parcel reaches a UK port for clearance and b. who is going to finally deliver it to your house? Or are we expecting Royal Mail to pluck these items out of the mail stream, send them to HMRC for the importer to clear themselves, then collect them and finally deliver them? If consumers were routinely attempting to clear their own parcels through customs, don't you imagine HMRC would have to add some sort of charge too? It's going to mean more work for them, too.

A flat-fee isn't always best for consumers, undoubtedly, but ultimately that Royal Mail charges something seems entirely fair. These charges are something you just have to be aware of and factor into decisions.

acmp

I think the man issue for me is the size of the 'handling fee', it is certainly more than DHL charged me recently.

To avoid the fee totally you need to complete a C21 form for HMRC before the item is shipped and get your number out on the packet, you can then go and claim the packet yourself and pay the VAT.

Perhaps if RM charged a more palatable feel say not exceeding 50% of the vat to a limit of £10 people would not mind as much.

But a handling fee that is greater than the charge just seems unfair.

Oh, and you can't pay the fee on line and collect your packet, there simply isn't an option for that. So I now have to go and try to pay at the counter where they may or may not accept cards, RM can't tell me!

KxMx

acmp wrote: »

I think the man issue for me is the size of the 'handling fee', it is certainly more than DHL charged me recently.

To avoid the fee totally you need to complete a C21 form for HMRC before the item is shipped and get your number out on the packet, you can then go and claim the packet yourself and pay the VAT.

Perhaps if RM charged a more palatable feel say not exceeding 50% of the vat to a limit of £10 people would not mind as much.

But a handling fee that is greater than the charge just seems unfair.

Oh, and you can't pay the fee on line and collect your packet, there simply isn't an option for that. So I now have to go and try to pay at the counter where they may or may not accept cards, RM can't tell me!

I paid online for my last charge and they delivered it two days later I even had the option of naming a delivery day (2 days was the minimum).
You are correct though you cannot pay online then collect. My delivery office only takes cash but this is explained on my card.

Everything was explained on the RM card which was put through my letter box. All options laid out. Did you not get a grey/silver card? It's all on there and I still have my last one so I can prove it. I thought they were all the same, maybe incorrectly?

I have said previously the charge is slightly unfair on smaller value items. But a flat fee is the best way, the same amount of work has to be done whether it is worth £20 or £200, in fact if there was a sliding scale fee and calculations to be done on each item, that would involve more work surely which would raise the overall fees?

People with large value items do not complain about the fee. I'm repeating myself again (but since others keep coming back with the same complaints I won't feel bad!) but there are usually winners and losers in a situation and in this case I agree a flat fee is unfair on the smaller value items, but it's not the end of the world.

Life is unfair sometimes it shocks me that so few people seem to realise that! I'm 26 and known for a long time you won't catch me whining about it

custardy

acmp wrote: »

I think the man issue for me is the size of the 'handling fee', it is certainly more than DHL charged me recently.

To avoid the fee totally you need to complete a C21 form for HMRC before the item is shipped and get your number out on the packet, you can then go and claim the packet yourself and pay the VAT.

Perhaps if RM charged a more palatable feel say not exceeding 50% of the vat to a limit of £10 people would not mind as much.

But a handling fee that is greater than the charge just seems unfair.

Oh, and you can't pay the fee on line and collect your packet, there simply isn't an option for that. So I now have to go and try to pay at the counter where they may or may not accept cards, RM can't tell me!

So does DHL always charge less than RM?
Do they handle items from all global carriers?
A flat rate fee seems more 'fair' than a % fee,doesnt it?
Otherwise is it a sliding scale of how much you can spend?
Why would you pay your fee online and then collect it?
Wouldnt you simply pay cash/cheque whilst collecting?
The card you got offers payment options available.
As has been pointed out by KxMx,seems he/she get it
Dont you?

CiderImbiber

I understand why people get upset about these charges, especially when they're unexpected. However, it's best just to put it down to experience - VAT and handling charges exist, and no amount of moaning is going to change that.
I was annoyed at first, but after reading this thread and talking to the seller I now realise there's no one to blame. (The only thing I would say is maybe the VAT threshold is a bit low).
The important thing to remember is: is the item being imported worth £15 or more? If it is then it's liable for tax, so expect to pay it.