Postal carriers prepaying customs duties

seamus

This kind of leads on from another thread about certain companies who send you stuff unsolicited and then try to charge you for it.

Quite often the big courier firms (DHL, UPS et al) when bringing in an item of significant value will pay the customs charges incurred on the import of that item.
When they drop the item off, you sign for it and in signing agree to pay the associated customs charge. Sometimes they ask you to pay COD or they bill you.

But quite often the addressee doesn't sign for the item. The company may leave it with a neighbour (who consequently signs for it) or another member of the household.
It does eventually arrive to the addressee, but they haven't signed for it, and thus have not agreed to pay the customs levies.

What are the carriers' rights in these cases? Can they enforce an invoice for the charges against the addressee, or can they reclaim the goods as their property?

hullaballoo

You cannot reclaim goods without a retention of title clause. You can withold delivery via a lien.

It would seem odd that the purchaser would have to sign in order to pay the fee. It's standard practise (in fact, I've never seen it done any other way) that the seller pays directly for the delivery (where it's provided for) and then recoups it through the purchase price from the buyer.

dermot_sheehan

seamus wrote:

This kind of leads on from another thread about certain companies who send you stuff unsolicited and then try to charge you for it.

Quite often the big courier firms (DHL, UPS et al) when bringing in an item of significant value will pay the customs charges incurred on the import of that item.
When they drop the item off, you sign for it and in signing agree to pay the associated customs charge. Sometimes they ask you to pay COD or they bill you.

But quite often the addressee doesn't sign for the item. The company may leave it with a neighbour (who consequently signs for it) or another member of the household.
It does eventually arrive to the addressee, but they haven't signed for it, and thus have not agreed to pay the customs levies.

What are the carriers' rights in these cases? Can they enforce an invoice for the charges against the addressee, or can they reclaim the goods as their property?

Interesting scenario, generally you're only bound to a contract if you're a party to it, perhaps doctrine of restitution will come into play here (doctrine of unjust enrichement). Else there might be something in customs legislation allowing them to chase you.

hullaballoo

I'm pretty sure they just factor any fees into the contract. I'd say it would make for awkward dealings to have it any other way.

Victor

hullaballoo wrote:

It would seem odd that the purchaser would have to sign in order to pay the fee. It's standard practise (in fact, I've never seen it done any other way) that the seller pays directly for the delivery (where it's provided for) and then recoups it through the purchase price from the buyer.

The nub of the problem is non-EU sellers, selling into the EU, without collecting import duties, VAT, etc. and leaving the courier company to collect these.

While EU Commission -v- Yahoo (?)* means the really big boys play ball, there is a significant number of cases where the seller avoids its responsibilities under EU law, which they deny being governed by.


* Yahoo refused to charge their French customers VAT, claiming the service was provided outside the EU. http://www.techlawjournal.com/alert/2002/05/07.asp