"Revised Customs charges raised"

[Durzel]

Hmmm

I imported a set of speakers from the States recently, order value was $430. I know from speaking to the seller that he declared it at $100. Not strictly legitimate I know, but I was prepared to swallow that if it got damaged or lost.

I should say, for what it's worth, it's a product that has no UK distributor, so importing was my only option.

Been following the tracking, HMRC jumped on it as soon as it arrived and sat on it for a couple of days - which apparently isn't that bad all things considered - but then something I've never seen before on the tracking got me concerned...

13/6/2018 11:00 International Hub Released from customs
13/6/2018 10:47 International Hub Revised Customs charges raised
13/6/2018 10:41 International Hub Customs charges raised
11/6/2018 11:31 International Hub Awaiting Customs clearance
11/6/2018 11:23 International Hub Arrived in the UK

Because of "Revised Customs charges raised" I'm assuming they opened it and thought "this must be worth more than $100" and modified the charges? But based on what bearing in mind there is no UK seller of these speakers? There was only a gap of 6 mins between one charge being applied, and another?

Anyone had this before?

[P924]

I'm guessing, but maybe they made a mistake, and corrected it?!

[Durzel]

Just curious to hear of anecdotal evidence of anyone who had experienced similar.

I'd be amazed if HMRC thought "we should charge this guy less"

[PugwasHDJ80]

Suspect its a typo- ie they meant to charge you £30 but were about to charge you £3000 or similar

[RedWhiteMonkey]

You might want to hope that there is no invoice in the package stating the $430 you paid when the export sticker will have $100 on it.

[Ean218]

Durzel said:

Hmmm
I imported a set of speakers from the States recently, order value was $430. I know from speaking to the seller that he declared it at $100. Not strictly legitimate I know, but I was prepared to swallow that if it got damaged or lost.

Are you confusing the declaration for insurance on the shipper's form with the custom's declaration slip which is entirely separate?

The goods do not have to be on sale in the UK in GBP for HMRC to know what they're worth. If they are widely available in the US then they will calculate the value at current exchange rates.

[Durzel]

RedWhiteMonkey said:

You might want to hope that there is no invoice in the package stating the $430 you paid when the export sticker will have $100 on it.

That's a good point. That is a distinct possibility as it was purchased from a business rather than some random eBay person.

Ean218 said:

Are you confusing the declaration for insurance on the shipper's form with the custom's declaration slip which is entirely separate?

The goods do not have to be on sale in the UK in GBP for HMRC to know what they're worth. If they are widely available in the US then they will calculate the value at current exchange rates.

All I really know is that the seller told me (quote) "When I ship out of country I value at $50 per set of speakers" (I bought two sets).

I guess ultimately there's not a lot I can do besides wait, and I don't imagine I would know the difference between what they were going to charge, and what they are now charging.

Was just curious as to whether "revised customs charges" was something others had experienced before.

[Durzel]

Charge ended up being just over £35 including whatever Parcelforce charge for handling, so $100 valuation sounds about right.

[andy_s]

- was just going to say 'raised' doesn't necessarily mean 'increased', probably more in the sense of 'he raised a point at the meeting', ie applied/caused to occur.

[millen]

I've had similar when buying cycle wheels from China. From memory the customs charge was likewise around £35 on a £300 order, though the ParcelForce handling fee was on top, despite the vendor declaring $100 value. They won't allow collection before the charges have been paid online. I don't remember the exact timeline on my stuff but yours was in customs for 48 hrs which perhaps suggests they did research the selling price.

That said I have a friend who ran a model aircraft distribution business. He always whinged that he had to pay full duty while many online eBay sellers got away with blatant under-declaration. Will be interesting post -Brexit.....

[dmsims]

These "handling" fees are taking the piss

Complain! I have had 100% succes in getting them removed