About customs charges - update

[Maxisoul]

There was here recently discussion about customs charges. Here's the link:

healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...

I just wanted to give an update on my own experience and some pointers for possible measures you can take, if you so choose.

The company that I felt scammed by is Piping Rock. I think it's okay to name this company because I didn't order any prescription drugs, just a supplement. First off, I thought it was based in the UK, because there was a union flag and the prices were in Sterling and there was no obvious indication on the website that the company is US -based, not even in the About Us section, which I had read. That's the first thing - don't take if for granted that because there's a union flag and sterling prices that it's based in the UK.

The next thing, imports are obviousy liable for customs, but there are exemptions, one being if the value of the purchase is less than £15. Fortunately, mine was under that amount, yet I still received a card from Royal Mail that my parcel was being held until I paid a customs fee and mail handling charge, which worked out to be the same price of the items I purchased. It wasn't worth it for me to pay the extra charge, so I didn't collect the parcel. Instead I emailed the company, which firstly ignored me, then begrudgingly refunded about half of my money but retained the rest as a 'restocking fee'. I asked if they had declared the correct value of the purchase on the customs declaration form and I was told, yes, that the blame lay with customs. Figuring that a company that is deceptive about its location might just possibly have no scruples about other things, like, inflating charges, I decided to go the sorting office to view the parcel. Lo and behold, inflated costs. I took photos,, sent these to the company and got the rest of my refund.

So, a few suggestions:

1. Have a healthy sceptism about what companies might tell you. It's really profit above all else, including honesty, for most companies.

2. It is not illegal for a company to inflate the value of purchases and they may do so for insurance companies - this came from Border Force UK in response to a query I sent. It's up to you then, whether you decide to take it up with the company.

3. If you decide to pay the fee you can claim back from customs, but probably not Royal Mail. If you send photographic evidence of the inflated costs to the company, they might be more likely to refund what you have lost.

4. Even if you decide it's not worth it to collect the parcel, you can view it, take photos and then give it back to Royal Mail, then send the photos to the company. You stand a much better chance of getting a refund on the original purchase if you provide photographic evidence to disprove the company's claims.

5. If you paid by Paypal, you can report it, as I did. They can't open a dispute over a customs issue, but they can look into a company's practices. I provided Paypal with a link to reviews which indicated the volume of complaints about Piping Rock's practices. Paypal said they would investigate and, depending on their findings, could potentially impose trading limitations on Piping Rock.

6. Paypal suggested reporting the company to trading standards in the US and UK. Because Customs Force have said that the practice of inflating the value of goods is not illegal, I don't know how beneficial this would be, unless perhaps the company has to warn buyers in advance that it does this. I did send a query to a US trading standards body, but I'm not sure if it was the right one, so I don't know if there'll be any response. I haven't yet been able to find the right UK body to send a query to.

Hopefully this will be of some help to others who fall foul in the same way I did. The expense of going to the post office, not to mention the time and all the emails far outweighted the value of my refund. But it's not about the money, of course. A few quid to each individuals amounts to a brave few quid for an unscrupulous company, which always turns me into a bit of a Rottweiler. I got my manky bone, so I'm happy. Good luck getting yours.

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

Rather underhand of them. I always check everything with a new supplier I am buying from. Piping Rock does actually say, in the Contact Us section

Live Chat is available Monday to Saturday: 8am - Midnight EST, Sunday: 9am - 6pm.

and gives their postal address as 2120 Smithtown Ave

Ronkonkoma, NY 11779

[Maxisoul in reply to SeasideSusie]

I didn't see that, because I was focused on the main text, where I don't think it unreasonable to expect reference to it. I found them to be a very underhand company throughout. They don't publish negative reviews on their website, bar a very few. Another lesson for me, to check reviews on companies on external sites.

[Somic67 in reply to SeasideSusie]

just wanted to say my recent experience.

I found they ship everything from a stock-house they have in USA - New York.

My purchase was a small package (200 gr) and this is what i got:

If you choose std courier:

- goods are not traked

- Custom tax (if any) are calculated and paid at destination custom

- delivery time to (Italy) can go from 1 to 2 months (difference is due to italian public courier)

if you choose the tracked courier (extra money depending on weight and destination)

- goods are tracked

- custom tax are calculated, shown and included in payment (before payment)

- delivery time (to italy) can go from 1 to 3 weeks (no local public postage involved)

hope this helps

here you can find the "International shipping rates

" taken from the bottom their italian site and translated in english by G**gle

"International shipping rates

International shipping rates are based on the destination of the delivery in addition to the weight of the order.

To find out how much shipping will cost, just add the desired items to your cart and proceed to payment. On the shopping cart page, you can view the estimated shipping cost and the order total.

Our items are manufactured and shipped from the state of New York in the United States and we are committed to serving our customers around the world. We are proud to offer multiple carrier options for international shipping. When purchasing, the customer has the possibility to choose which courier to use.

Taxes and import duties

When placing international orders, you may incur customs duties, tariffs or brokerage fees that are higher than expected, your order may not be deliverable, or customs may quarantine or return your order to us following their inspection.

Any duties, tariffs, brokerage fees, quarantine costs or local taxes applicable to the order are the responsibility of the customer. We cannot anticipate or estimate any country specific duties, tariffs, brokerage fees or taxes that may be applicable to your order. It is your responsibility to inquire about these taxes and pay them once they are applied.

"

[whispers]

I find that a lot of websites often change to the currency of the country I am in,

[Maxisoul in reply to whispers]

It was a new experience for me but, Yes, apparently it's quite common.

[AnnT49]

And don't just assume that because a website has co.uk that it is in the UK. e.g. vitaminegrocer.co.uk dispatches their products from the east coast of the USA. Always check where they are and where they ship from.

It should be somewhere on their website. If it isn't they are a scam company and don't buy from them.

[helvella Administrator in reply to AnnT49]

I agree.

However, there are some companies that don't identify specifically where they ship from. They say something like "orders may be fulfilled from our chain of warehouses in the UK and overseas". That is, they are not a scam, but they do not make it clear enough, and certainly you don't know by product.

In such cases, always assume it will be liable to charges.

[AnnT49 in reply to helvella]

Yes, sorry I didn't say that clearly. I meant that it is a legal requirement in this country, that anyone selling online in the UK, must state a postal address. In my experience, and with the use of scam checker, the ones that don't are invariably a scam company.

I mentioned that VitaminGrocer.co.uk, just to illustrate that co.uk doesn't necessarily mean that they are based in the UK. This merchant is a genuine company and openly states on their website that they ship from the USA and state their US address.

[Maxisoul in reply to AnnT49]

Thanks Ann and Helvella for your comments. I definitely would have thought co.uk was UK-based, so that's another good pointer. I don't think that Piping Rock is a scam company as such. I dare say it keeps itself right legally. For those of us who thought it was UK-based, we were left feeling scammed when faced with the choice of paying a customs fee or losing money we paid for our orders. Then there's the other issue of inflating purchase costs. Border Force UK has said it's legal practice for insurance purposes, but whether or not companies have to declare this upfront, I don't know. Again, it just leaves you feeling scammed. The fact that the company receives so many complaints about both issues but does nothing to make it clear on its website leaves me feeling that it is deliberately deceptive.

[helvella Administrator in reply to Maxisoul]

Thank you for putting in the effort to get to the bottom of the story.

[Maxisoul in reply to helvella]

Very welcome. I hate to see people getting exploited, so it was no problem. Thanks.