Post Brexit wine delivery from Portugal

MCurrie

I ordered a box of wine from Portugal Vineyards last month which including delivery cost €76 . Yes - classy. However today DHL have text me to say I’ve to pay duty/tax of £111! I’m waiting for a response from them as I’m sure it’s a mistake. I was prepared to pay 20% VAT if necessary but I was under the impression that since my order was less than £135 I should probably be exempt. It’s so confusing. Is there any advice ? 

dj1471

Did the merchant charge you VAT? They should have charged you UK VAT at 20%, however there is still excise duty to pay on the wine plus a handling fee from DHL.

£111 does seem high, that’s about how much you should have paid in total after VAT and duty. Perhaps the merchant has incorrectly declared the value.

In any case you’ll need to pay the invoice from DHL and claim any excess VAT and duty back from HMRC. Couriers are quick to pass these debts to debt collection agencies if they go unpaid.

visidigi

Alcohol has excise due, there is no £135 allowance.

saker75

Some good Information here
https://www.jancisrobinson.com/articles/brexit

Sandtree

What ABV is the wine? Most the excise tax will be £3/bottle but higher strength will be almost £4/bottle and there is no minimum value for excise duty to apply.

VAT is calculated on the total of goods, duty and carriage so the total goods will be over £135 after adding excise duty and so the total value gets 20% on top.

mattyprice4004

I don't think it's a mistake - you really need to do your homework before hitting the 'buy' button from outside the UK these days. 
Excise + VAT on a decent quantity of wine could easily be more than the cost of the wine itself. 

SquirrelA

If DHL did not tell you about the charges before they delivered they can't claim the money from you.  They have been sending "invoices" to people 3 or 4 months after delivery when the goods cannot be returned. I asked DHL over 2 months ago to explain the legal basis for their "invoice" and after a few holding responses they went completely dead.  Ask them to tell you the legal basis for their claim that you are owe them money, either the tax claim or the charge they add on top. The DHL website does not come close to setting out any basis for a direct obligation on consumers to pay money to DHL when the contract DHL had was with the shipper.

Sandtree

SquirrelA said:

If DHL did not tell you about the charges before they delivered they can't claim the money from you.  They have been sending "invoices" to people 3 or 4 months after delivery when the goods cannot be returned. I asked DHL over 2 months ago to explain the legal basis for their "invoice" and after a few holding responses they went completely dead.  Ask them to tell you the legal basis for their claim that you are owe them money, either the tax claim or the charge they add on top. The DHL website does not come close to setting out any basis for a direct obligation on consumers to pay money to DHL when the contract DHL had was with the shipper.

The legal basis is an act of parliament that covers for all couriers, was posted on here a couple of months ago as I asked the same question, and there is no requirement for you to be told in advance.... ignorance is no excuse in law

powerful_Rogue

SquirrelA said:

If DHL did not tell you about the charges before they delivered they can't claim the money from you.  They have been sending "invoices" to people 3 or 4 months after delivery when the goods cannot be returned. I asked DHL over 2 months ago to explain the legal basis for their "invoice" and after a few holding responses they went completely dead.  Ask them to tell you the legal basis for their claim that you are owe them money, either the tax claim or the charge they add on top. The DHL website does not come close to setting out any basis for a direct obligation on consumers to pay money to DHL when the contract DHL had was with the shipper.

What a load of nonsense.

The legal basis is here - https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2000/26/section/105

It's upto the importer to be aware of their obligations when importing goods into the UK.

Even pre brexit you could not bring in excise goods tax free unless you accompanied them.

SquirrelA

powerful_Rogue said:

What a load of nonsense.

The legal basis is here - https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2000/26/section/105

It's upto the importer to be aware of their obligations when importing goods into the UK.

Even pre brexit you could not bring in excise goods tax free unless you accompanied them.

Powerful Rogue, not nonsense at all.  

First, the postal services act does not apply to the deliveries in question and the statute is based on other international postal treaties.

Second, the issue in question is of the direct liability of the purchaser to the shipper with whom the shipper has no contractual nexus.

powerful_Rogue

SquirrelA said:

powerful_Rogue said:

What a load of nonsense.

The legal basis is here - https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2000/26/section/105

It's upto the importer to be aware of their obligations when importing goods into the UK.

Even pre brexit you could not bring in excise goods tax free unless you accompanied them.

Powerful Rogue, not nonsense at all.  

First, the postal services act does not apply to the deliveries in question and the statute is based on other international postal treaties.

Second, the issue in question is of the direct liability of the purchaser to the shipper with whom the shipper has no contractual nexus.

Please eleberate, because based on what you've said, I still think you're wrong.

Why does the Postal Services Act not apply to this situation? (I think you'll find it does, and as such, your second point will be covered.)