50% UPS Brokerage fee????

[kazoobers]

I bought an item that was $99.95 US. The Seller charged me $16.00 for UPS standard shipping to Canada.

The package arrived and here is a Brokerage C.O.D. due to UPS for $54.17. What a rip! The seller said nothing about additional fees due IN ADDITION to the $16.00 I paid him for the shipping. By looking under Help in eBay, I see there is nothing I can do about it.

[canuckchat]

... and i'm sure that everyone has all the time and inclination to spend on this manner of clearing their own packages...

[raspalrehal]

I bought an item that was $332 US plus shipping to canada of $30.

The package arrived and here is a Brokerage C.O.D. due to UPS for $93.55. The seller said nothing about additional fees due IN ADDITION to the $30.00 I paid him for the shipping. It is so unreasonable...

[canuckaloo]

The seller said nothing about additional fees

have you not been reading this thread? it is not the seller's responsibility to inform you of any brokerage fees - it is your responsibility as the importer to do the research before buying from out of the country

[canuckchat]

Value of item $332 US

Taxes if you are in Ontario would be around $45

UPS Brokering costs would make up the rest of the amount to the $93.55 you have to pay.

There IS a tacked thread that states "CANADIANS! READ BEFORE YOU PURCHASE FROM THE USA!" - it is not just there for decoration:

http://forums.ebay.ca/thread.jspa?threadID=600014592&tstart=0&mod=1213767559859

[kazoobers]

A reminder... make sure you let the Seller know about UPS and their exhorbitant brokerage fees. A lot of the sellers are unaware of the charges obviously because they are just using UPS as the delivery service.

I just asked a US Seller about an item I am interested in if he would ship via USPS instead of his offered delivery method of UPS, and I explained about the brokerage fees that UPS charges. His response......

"By the way, I didn't realize that UPS was charging more in fee's than the USPS. Thanks for letting me know that. I'm going to start listing the USPS for shipments to Canada instead of UPS from here on in. Thanks again,"

Slowly, we can inform the US sellers of this problem and they will all offer USPS as their main carrier to Canada!!

[sir*edward*ross]

UPS = Devil


666 is my snipe! ]:)]:)]:)

[scruffyhampsters]

my 667 snipe

[coco*and*co]

UPS and Fedex Class Action Lawsuits in Canada http://reviews.ebay.ca/UPS-FEDEX-LAWSUITS-IN-CANADA_W0QQugidZ10000000002180422

[plasmatdx]

I've been played by Fedex, UPS and Purolator. Tried them once, and each one of them had some unpleasant 'extra fee' on TOP of the taxes. They were on average SLOWER, less convenient, MORE EXPENSIVE then the standard postal services like Canada post or USPS.

I even had an EMS shipment from Japan arrive in less than three days and there were no extra fees that ended up doubling the shipping cost.

From now on I'm avoiding any specialized parcel service.

[kazoobers]

This is not a thread to sell items my friend!

[fivesmoothstonesministry]

I purchased a watch last year. The watch was free shipping. I reside in Brantford Ontario. The seller was from Dundas Ontario. We are 20 minutes away from each other. I waited and waited for my watch all November (2007)... I was annoyed and contacted the seller, he assured me that I would receive my watch @ Christmas. It was for a gift. I payed $19.00 dollars for my watch. It was a contractor watch and I will not break if you hit it hard. Well, UPS came to my door and demanded $63.00 dollars... I laughed and said, you must be kidding. The shipping was free. The item is from Dundas Ontario. I don't not take the item. I contacted the seller he told me that he would take care of it. Well, 3 weeks later I received a letter from UPS wanting their money. I called the seller, he said he dealt with UPS. I phoned UPS and they told me that the bill has been taken care of and no worries to me. I still at this point do not have a watch. It is August 4th, and I don't have a watch. Well I have been away on Holidays for the month of July and guess what awaits me in the mailbox. I receive a letter from RMS some collection agency. The letter was not in my name but my father's name. The person who I purchased the watch for. I have great credit.... I have never been put in a collections agency before. This RMS company demanded 62 dollars in 10 days... So, I am still fighting this issues as of today. Just beware of UPS.... Aimee

[ryanjmohio]

As a seller from the USA, this just happened to me and the person who won my auction. Everyone here knows the fees UPS charges are outrageous considering the USPS/Canada Post alternative. However, whether UPS's fees are ridiculous or not is purely a business matter up to them. The real outrage/scam/shadiness is the fact that they do not tell the shipper beforehand what they charge in brokerage fees.

I sent a package at a UPS store, and they didn't even mention the existence of any taxes/duties/fees. I'm currently battling them after they refused to deliver a package worth $60 unless the buyer paid $59 in fees/taxes. The joke is that they want $80 to return it to me...

I called UPS international to see if perhaps the UPS store I dealt with was just a case of local incompetence, but apparently it's not. I called to get a quote, and the rep had a canned "this rate doesn't include applicable taxes, duties, and brokerage fees" tacked onto the rate quote she gave. I then asked, "what are the taxes/fees etc going to be?" She said, "well they vary and nothing is standard so I can't say, but let me get the number for canada border services." I said, "Oh, so other than the cost to ship it that you quoted me, the only other fees are taxes charged by the canadian government?" "Yes."
Not only that, but the exact brokerage fee UPS charges is available on their website. So it's obvious they don't even train their own employees to know about the fees they charge. It's a very messed up situation that UPS probably wants to keep that way simply because if everyone who wanted to ship to canada knew of the rate differences, no one would use UPS.

[kazoobers]

"Oh, so other than the cost to ship it that you quoted me, the only other fees are taxes charged by the canadian government?" "Yes."

So they calmly blame Canada for their own fees. What a joke!

[grannio204]

It is not the shipper's responsibility to know about, or be concerned with UPS graft charges. The buyer should do some research. If the seller will not ship via USPS or something other than UPS. find another seller.

[ryanjmohio]

^Yes, I agree. But I refunded the seller because I am making this a personal project of mine to see through to the end. I am finding multiple layers of incompetence and/or lies, and this should not be a legal practice.

I called canada border services to ask what taxes/duties would be assessed, and they told me it would only be 13% of the value of the goods to import into nova scotia. That means every other fee quoted to me by UPS was a fee that UPS charged me, not the canadian government. Their own employees are apparently unaware of these fees, as everyone I've talked to at UPS insists these are canadian government fees, not fees charged by UPS. It's a joke.

[grannio204]

In the majority of cases between Canada and the USA, duty is a thing of the past. In fact, I think it could be argued that if you bought something from an American seller and it was made in Europe, there will still be no duty, using the logic that the original importer (the American) would have paid the duties to get the thing into the States. If a seller tried to pass the duty on to me, I would politely tell him/her to take a hike.

The fees over and above your PST/GST contribution are charged by UPS - there is no question about that. The government wants the taxes only. If this was a government charge, ask the UPS employees why the government only picks on them, and no other cross-border carriers.

Also remember to ask the seller if s/he will ship via USPS before you place your order, I mean, bid. Some sellers get special rates for using USP on local deliveries and pickups, and USP will spank them if they find out their customers are using other carriers.

Finally, IMHO initiating a lawsuit against UPS because of their exhorbitant fees is not the Canadian way - nobody forces you to use it, and the suer would be embarassed and poor when it's all over. They may just decide to hold court in Greece or Italy or any other country where they have a presence, and you are responsible to get their on your own ticket.

[grannio204]

PS to add that what UPS is doing is not a joke. It's very real and is costing a lot of unsuspecting people a lot of money. When you buy something that is expensive (that Martin guitar, for example), you dream about it until it arrives. When it hits your city or town, you feel like you have just had some great sex. If the UPS guy says give me the dough or you don't get the guitar, what do you think you would do? Pay the graft, of course!

I wonder where UPS is standing in the line to get money from the US Feds to bail them out of potential failure due to bad business decisions and ignoring customer satisfaction? (Hmmm ... who does that remind you of 🙂 )

This message may self-destruct at any time and without warning.

[jakeeangel]

"I think it could be argued that if you bought something from an American seller and it was made in Europe, there will still be no duty, using the logic that the original importer (the American) would have paid the duties to get the thing into the States. If a seller tried to pass the duty on to me, I would politely tell him/her to take a hike."

I'm afraid not Granny. That's not how it works. If you import the item into Canada and the Canadian government says duty is owing on it, it is and you have to pay it. You pay that to Canada Customs not a seller though. That has nothing to do with the seller.

Here ya go, here's the table on duties & their tariff code numbers. Find the appropriate category, click on it and read it to find the percentage of duty to be charged on the item.

http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/trade-commerce/tariff-tarif/2008/01-99/tblmod-1-eng.html

[grannio204]

So much for Free Trade then ...

Without going through the documentation on the link you provided, I will take your word on it.

It just makes sense to me that if an American reseller buys an item from another continent, s/he will have to pay the applicable duty to get it into the USA. If I have to pay a duty to get that item from the American reseller into Canada, then the duty is paid twice.

Of all of the stuff I have purchased from the USA, including Puerto Rico, during the past bunch of years, I have not been charged duty on anything. I have bought stuff that is available in Canada (prior to the Free Trade thing, it used to be duty free if the product or a similiar product wasn't made in Canada), but I haven't bought any hazardous materials, animals, or meat 🙂

I would be intersted in hearing what other Canadian buyers have discovered when bringing in an item from the USA (only).

I won't be able to respond for awhile - I have reached the magic number of 10 posts today and after this, I will be stiffeled by eBay.

Have a great evening all.

[jakeeangel]

Duty is charged based on the item and where the item is made/country of origin. Where it is shipped from doesn't matter.

As to paying duties, they go to the government. What that person paid, if any, to the US government when they brought it into the US has nothing to do with any duties you may have to pay to the Canadian government for bringing it into Canada. They are separate and have nothing to do with the other.

Think of a used car. Someone paid tax to buy the car new and the next person pays tax when they buy it used too. That's just the way it works.

Free trade only applies to items made in the US, Canada & Mexico depending on the quantities. Clothing for example has a whole bunch of restrictions even if made in the US or Mexico. It can get complicated.