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.

[deev_hutch]

Now here's where you're getting into the territory of "it does not matter what we think".

I don't think I have enough facts to have an opinion on this. It depends on what the actual cost of doing the brokerage is to UPS. They are entitled to make a fair profit on the brokerage service, but I have no way of telling what that fair profit might be.....

[canuckchat]

Its not just eBay buyers that get hit with these brokerage charges; anybody that orders online from a USA company and the item is shipped via courier will most likely incur the charges as well - except where they are included in the S&H charge, some companies arrange for this to be done as has been noted in this discussions previously!

[deev_hutch]

So.. They should simply clearly advertise their brokerage rates, and not put them in "fine print" as one poster has put it. (and no, that does not mean that USPS has to put information on their stamps, smarty-pants!)

Another analogy, if I may:

Say you buy a new fridge for $500.00. The salesperson says that they can have it delivered by ABC delivery company for a $25 charge. You say "great"!
When ABC delivery arrives with your fridge, they say "there is a mandatory trans-gargle fee of $280.00. Pay up or you get no fridge". When you complain to them and to the original appliance store, they say "you should have read the ABC delivery company website, where in fine print, they show the trans-gargle fee. Tough luck for you sucker!!"

You find that if you had only asked them to ship you the fridge using XYZ delivery company, they also have a trans-gargle fee, but it is only $20.00

[canuckchat]

.. .somehow... i think many are missing the point...

[gsr63]

deev_hutch:
"Now here's where you're getting into the territory of "it does not matter what we think".

I don't think I have enough facts to have an opinion on this. It depends on what the actual cost of doing the brokerage is to UPS. They are entitled to make a fair profit on the brokerage service, but I have no way of telling what that fair profit might be..... "

I agree - I am just trying to get an idea. Going back to the original post waaay back in 2006, the topic is "50% UPS Brokerage fee????" - so, that user felt that 50% of the price of his item was too high...

I am trying to get an idea of what people think would be a price that is reasonable. If 50% was too high for the original poster - what is more reasonable? 20%? 10%? Or, simply, a flat rate as you have suggested.

Thanks!

[canuckchat]

- if the item is valued at $20, then 10% of that is $2 - you are NOT going to see $2 billed for brokerage

[canuckchat]

... this is going along the lines of "S&H was more than the I paid for the item" ... when the item sold for $0.99 but it weighs 4 pounds and costs $25 to ship .. .well, duh, ya, its going to cost more to ship than $0.99!!

[gsr63]

Actually, if the item is $20.00 Canadian and under, it should be completey free of any charges, brokerage, duty and or taxes. It's called an OIC.

"Order in Council (O.I.C.) clearances for shipments of $20.00 CAD or less; these types of shipments are automatically released through Canada Customs duty and tax-free. These shipments do not require any formal document preparation, as long as there is a full description and valuation shown on the manifest (e.g. air waybill, bill of lading etc.)"

Since a $20.00 item is completely free, it is not inconceivable that a $30.00 item could be $3.00.

However, from your past responses, it is evident that you don't like this topic or want to add any value to it. No big deal, you can just stop replying to it if you no longer have input.

I'm asking for input from people who are interested in giving input into a better system - not just complaining about the current challenges. Whether there will ever be a better system implemented is another story alltogether! 🙂

Thanks!

[canuckchat]

...you'd have to write to the President/CEO/CFO of UPS to see if they'd be interested in implementing a different system for consumers... I'm pretty much 99.999999999% sure those people do not read these forums....

[adam12adam12]

Bumped to the top again & again & again & aga........

[kazoobers]

Good to hear from you again adam12!

[nlb604]

Latest UPS "gotcha". received a bill today from UPS for the brokerage fees from a package delivered in early Nov/07. $56.00 that I would have denied at the door but now they have billed me directly.

[adam12adam12]

Well thanks kazoobers. The last 5 cent promotion got me back into auction mood. Ever since all the fees have jumped sky high, and are going up again for the Post Office, it's a hobby not worth putting the time into anymore. I used to love doing this, but to put an hours time into just one auction to make a dollar... don't think so.

Merry Christmas to all here, and see you at the next five or dime sale.

...adam12

[whsyerfroggy]

Have a question. When UPS brokers a package for us we get to pay their fee, now if we send a package to the states do they get to pay the brokerage fee too? I guess what I am asking is does it work both ways? and if so why is it not widely known?

[sysfixr]

it has to do with the ridiculous 20$ limit for us.
The US's limit is 200 ... IF you sold something there UPS worth 201, yep they'd be hit the same way

c: c:\spot c:\spot\run
run spot_run

[sysfixr]

should be

"sold something there worth <200$, and sent it UPS"

c: c:\spot c:\spot\run
run spot_run

[whsyerfroggy]

So they make more money off of us......Thanks

[deev_hutch]

FYI, here is the comparison for UPS brokerage fees for standard service delivery from the US to Canada and vice versa

**Canada to US:**
Goods valued at $200.01 to $1,250.00 $23.00

Goods valued at $1,250.01 to $2,000.00 $34.00

Each Additional $1,000.00 or part thereof $1.65

**US to Canada**

Goods valued at$ 20.01 to $40.00 $7.00

Goods valued at $40.01 to $100.00 $19.45

Goods valued at $100.01 to $200.00 $29.00

Goods valued at $200.01 to $350.00 $38.92

Goods valued at $350.01 to $500.00 $43.73

Goods valued at $500.01 to $750.00 $49.73

Goods valued at $750.01 to $1,000.00 $55.58

Goods valued at$1,000.01 to $1,250.00 $61.58

Goods valued at$1,250.01 to $1,600.00 $65.46

Goods valued at$1,600.01 to $5,000.00 $69.03

Each additional $1,000 $5.38

And... for the UPS apologists.... The brokerage paperwork for simple packages is virtually the same going each way across the border. (ie VERY simple) So don't trot out the "oh, the paperwork in Canada is sooooo much harder" excuse.

[whsyerfroggy]

Even if the paperwork is harder it is not that much harder. The question that seems to be asked here a lot is "what would be a reasonable price?". Well the U.S. rates seem reasonable to me.

[deev_hutch]

"Well the U.S. rates seem reasonable to me."

That may be, but the Canadian government is the one who sets the threshold at $20 to collect GST. The US Govt threshold is $200. UPS can do nothing about that.