Canadians: Is this normal?

[termis]

Bear with me - I'm new to the great white north.

So I just ordered 4 8PDT switches for modifying my Duo/PCE systems from the US, cause I couldn't really find a switch like that readily available here (in Calgary), for a total of US$22 + $10 Shipping.

The UPS man comes today, and I had to pay NINETEEN FUCKING DOLLARS for GST + brokerage fees?  Even with the exchange rates adjusted, that's like 75% of the item value! WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT ABOUT?  I call UPS and those fees are what it is for anything above CDN$20.  She claims it's essentially the same thing no matter where you lived - BULLSHIT.  I've lived in 4 different countries for a year or more, and this is the first time I had to pay retarded fees like that for a small shipment from overseas.

So if you guys order anything from anything out of the border, and the sending party fills in more than CDN$20 for an item, you guys always pay this?

Sorry for the language, I'm pretty damn annoyed.  I mean, I can understand a few bucks for duty for a $22 shipment, but come on...

[Keranu]

Tell that UPS man to take off, eh?

[GUTS]

Anytime I sell stuff on ebay to people in Canada I always mark the value below $20 and mark it "gift", same with people in the UK, you have to mark it lower than $30 and as a "gift" or they get charged retardedly high taxes on it.  Plus sometimes I've had shit get stuck in canadian customs and take almost a month to get to the person because some asshole decided to take their sweet time inspecting it.

[td741]

The UPS man comes today, and I had to pay NINETEEN FUCKING DOLLARS for GST + brokerage fees?  Even with the exchange rates adjusted, that's like 75% of the item value! WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT ABOUT?  I call UPS and those fees are what it is for anything above CDN$20.  She claims it's essentially the same thing no matter where you lived - BULLSHIT.  I've lived in 4 different countries for a year or more, and this is the first time I had to pay retarded fees like that for a small shipment from overseas.

It's UPS.  They are scam artists for anything being sent over to canada.  On a few occasions it'll go unscathed, but UPS Canada will charge relatively excessive brokerage fees when any item crosses the border into Canada.  Hell, I was charged over 33 dollars in brokerage fees and GST (on the brokerage fees) when Canadian customs didn't charge a CENT!

More literature: http://www.cbc.ca/streetcents/archives/guide/2002/17/s07_01.html (Note: this is from 2002, so fees most likely went up!)

More annoyed people: http://www.rossde.com/UPS_sucks/

I tend to avoid UPS like the plague and request all shipments to come via USPS (and Canada Post).  FedEx isn't horrible but you might get a bill in the mail after you've received your parcel.

[termis]

Okay, now I see the picture.  Thanks for clearing that up.

Does UPS actually expect repeat customers with these kinds of extortionate fees?  That's the last fucking time I use those motherfuckers.

[td741]

Okay, now I see the picture.  Thanks for clearing that up.

Does UPS actually expect repeat customers with these kinds of extortionate fees?  That's the last fucking time I use those motherfuckers.

Sometimes you have no option... Many US-based e-commerce sites use UPS.  I often have to take in the extra work to ask how they ship a package and usually tell them that I will not accept a parcel shipped by UPS cross-border.

Also note: generally parcels shipped from within NAFTA countries will get dinged for "taxes" (essentially GST-6%) on the converted canadian dollar amount.  Customs might not bother if it's a low-value amount ( I also got lucky getting 500$+ replica costume props go through without charge since it was light-weight and plastic).  Brokerage fees tend to only get charged when companies have to forward that amount in taxes (well, except for UPS.)

When a parcel gets imported from outside NAFTA, you might get dinged with duty and/or other customs fees.  I got a bunch of free t-shirts from a company in France and ended up getting charged ~40$ since clothing has some of the worse duty fees.

[CrackTiger]

Never order anything by UPS. If UPS is the only shipping option, then buy from somewhere else.

I don't have the time or energy to type out the novel of how fantastically I've been raped over by them every single time.

Always choose regular government postal service, like USPS. Canadapost's "handling" fee is $5. Last time I got something from UPS, their "handling" fee was $35 to collect $3 of duty on a $10 item. Its always the fastests method and always has the least problems, including getting snagged by Customs. Packages from Japan arrive in 2 - 3 business days by regular Airmail.

But the worst part of UPS is all the messed up stuff they do to your package.

If they don't return it to sender and then leave you a pick up notice, it'll still come crushed with a large dirty footprint across it, right on top of the "Fragile" stamp. I've had to visit their warehouse several times and it looks like the U.S. factories in the Sony ad in the movie "Crazy People"(one of Keranu's favs I'm sure ).

Fedex isn't so hot either, so like I said before, always choose regular airmail. EMS always takes 2 - 3 times or more longer.

Okay, now I see the picture.  Thanks for clearing that up.

Does UPS actually expect repeat customers with these kinds of extortionate fees?  That's the last fucking time I use those motherfuckers.

The son of my last landlord worked at UPS for a while and told me how systematically it's messed up all the way to the top and how they were running at a deficit ever since they fitst opened up in Canada.

And outside of major cities, they "franchise" out their deliveries to any bum with a van or pickup truck(this is part of my epic SFIICE story).

[GUTS]

I don't know if DHL delivers to Canada yet, but those guys are fantastic.  I've been nothing but super happy with everything I've shipped with them, they take good care of the packages and actually pay attention when it says "fragile", and their rates are cheaper and faster than UPS or FedEx.  Honestly I don't know why anybody still uses UPS or FedEx, they both suck ass.

[termis]

(this is part of my epic SFIICE story).

Now you gotta finish! (if you haven't posted it elsewhere, that is...)

[Keranu]

(this is part of my epic SFIICE story).

Now you gotta finish! (if you haven't posted it elsewhere, that is...)

Seconded!

[CrackTiger]

I don't know if DHL delivers to Canada yet, but those guys are fantastic.  I've been nothing but super happy with everything I've shipped with them, they take good care of the packages and actually pay attention when it says "fragile", and their rates are cheaper and faster than UPS or FedEx.  Honestly I don't know why anybody still uses UPS or FedEx, they both suck ass.

DHL bought out Loomis a while ago, so they're here, but I don't know if they're as good as they are in other countries or just the old company they bought with the DHL brand slapped on it.

I just worked a graveyard shift on one hours notice, so I don't have the energy to rehash my sfiice adventure, but I'll try yto summerize it soon.

[TurboXray]

I've got zinged for customs charges when ordering from Canada to the US. I also received charges from FedEx for shipping a package to someone in Canada.