"Underpaid shipping" when shipping from US to UK?

[eilif]

Hey Folks,
      Just wanted to see if any of you had run into this situation.  I recently sent a package of 6 aprox-54mm plastic  figures to the UK.  I don't have the receipt, but I don't recall the shipping seeming higher or lower than previous international shipments.

Now the recipient has let me know that he is being told by the UK post that he must pay 15GBP in "underpaid shipping" fees before receiving his package.   15 GBP is more than the original shipping charge would have been.
Is this a common thing?  Is there a recourse?  Are there any suggestions I can give to the recipient to help him out.

I'd like to help this guy out, but I'm not particularly interested in paying more than double shipping.  Looking forward to your perspectives.

[joroas]

Not sure of the exact wording, but he may have fallen victim to Customs and Excise who will charge the appropriate tax and a fee for charging him........

[Momotaro]

Get the exact wording from him - Customs charges are usually the responsibility of the buyer.  In fact ask to see a photo of the letter.  There's actually no way for you to pre-pay customs charges delivering to the UK.

Basically, if the item (alone) is valued at more than £15, he will be charged import duty+ VAT (sales tax) on the item AND postage costs.  There's also an extortionate "handling fee" of £8 that the Post Office charges for collecting.

If it is Customs, he can pay it and get his item (it will be sitting at his local Post Office), or not pay it and not get it.  I wouldn't hold much hope of arguing the case - the police wish they had the powers of Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs...

I recently paid £18 customs on £50 worth of imported goods - it is getting expensive.

Underpaid shipping would be surprising.

[6milPhil]

I suspect it's HMRC too. My worst was £60 on a gift from the U.S. 

[Mr. Peabody]

Speaking as one stung...
Always be considerate and careful when filling out those customs forms. It's easy to accidentally describe the contents of a package full of stuff that shouldn't be hit with charges, as goods levied at the most extortionate rates.

[carlos13th]

Its very likley to be customs and the ridiclous admin fee the charge along with charging you customs fees rather than unpaid shipping.

[v_lazy_dragon]

I think the others pretty much have the right of it - never been hit for underpaid postage on an international order, but have often been hit with customs charges of about £15 (The majority of which is the handling fee). It's always difficult striking a balance between 'too cheap to incurr customs fees' or 'atleast it will make paying the handling charge worth while'....
Giving the recipient the benefit of the doubt, I seem to recall the post-office using the same form for both under-paid postage and customs, albeit with different boxes ticked?

[Silent Invader]

zander the VLD is correct about it being the same form, you can see it here

http://m.royalmail.com/h5/feeToPay?login=true

[eilif]

Thanks for the information folks.  I've asked him whether he's visited the post yet to determine the details and I'll see what he says.

Appreciated.

[Deedles]

Up until very recently I always got the underpaid shipping option ticked when I had ordered something more than £15 worth from the U.S. .. Recently they have been leaving a grey card instead of red one that says custom duty and  "highway robbery" collection fee ( ok I may have made that bit up)..

But it's a simple fact that if you import stuff to the UK you get stung by Royal Mail and HMRC..

[WitchfinderGeneral]

I always thought the German ZOLL sucks but at least they don't have a "collection fee"! In fact if the duty+tax is UNDER a certain value we have to pay NOTHING.    Maybe you should join the EU? 

[Westfalia Chris]

I always thought the German ZOLL sucks but at least they don't have a "collection fee"! In fact if the duty+tax is UNDER a certain value we have to pay NOTHING.    Maybe you should join the EU? 

Well, yeah, but how far do 22 Euros (incl. shipping) take you before you're liable for import VAT? Exchange rates being what they are right now...

[WitchfinderGeneral]

The actual value is slightly higher than 22 (more like 25 euro) since they pass on driving home your duties if the total is lower than 5 euros. I often left the cutoms office with a big smile because they wanted to see the bill for my shipping, did all that paperwork and then said "you have to pay... uuuh.. nothing". It isn't much but enough for the usual 1 - 3 blister packs or a book. Especially those smaller orders often lack a proper customs decalartion so they want me to pick it up and pay the customs. An additional handling fee would be really annoying.