Review "How to beat UPS Brokerage fees"

[R-Audi]

So there are always discussions on various brokerage fee's, and UPS raping everyone. This past week I used UPS to my own advantage... I bought an exhaust in California, and needed it shipped. This box was about 1.5x4ft and damn heavy (Full 2.5 dp back exhaust)

Here's the rundown:

I sent the exhaust to:
UPS Supply Chain Solutions
309 2nd st
Sweetgrass Montana
59484

This border crossing is closest to Calgary, but I am sure there are similiar warehouses at other crossings. Search or call UPS for more info

You dont have to call them or anything, just send away. It is preferable to get a tracking number, so you know when the package arrives.
Sweetgrass is about an hours drive away from lethbridge, which is about 1.45mins away from Calgary (so 2.45 total one way) It is a nice straight drive.

You cross the border, and take your first right into Sweetgrass. When you get to the UPS warehouse you walk and and tell them your name, and show ID. They give you your package, and there is a small holding fee. (Our was $15usd for 4 boxes..two were full exhausts, the two others were small) Thats it, thats all.

When you arrive at the Cdn border for re-entry, you tell them what you were doing, and how much you are declaring. They hand you a slip of paper, and you go inside and then pay tax on the item. You need a reciept for what you bought for duties/tax.

Thats it, thats all.

For a round up of costs:
Shipping for full exhaust-CA.-MT border $40usd (1.5x4ft box)and Heavy!
Holding Charge at UPS $3.00usd
GST $30.00cdn
Then gas... $50cdn

Which is a ton cheaper then when I got my intercooler shipped up here, plus this box was bigger and heavier. I think UPS charged me $126 cdn brokerage on top of the $70 usd it cost to ship it here from Chicago.
If anyone has anymore questions let me know, this was super easy, and I wouldnt hesitate on doing it again for large items! (or wait till you have several small ones, or other friends with things down there)
Just as a note, they hold things for 60 days, then dispose of them.....And When you go down to SG, you have to bring some kind of reciept for tax purposes. I used my paypal print out and it worked fine.

[Weapon_R]

You can also ship UPS express, and the brokerage is not charged. I just shipped a 700USD item with them and paid $40 express shipping, it arrived without a single charge!

[Xtrema]

That solution only works if your times doesn't worth anything to you. That's at least a 8hr trip returned.

Also, did you really save any money? Are you sure the brokage fee doesn't include all the taxes? Even if it doesn't, you saved may be $100 for 8 hours of work, unless you really like the drive, you just worked for $12/hr and that's a huge assumption on you actually save that much.

[Zero102]

Brokerage fees suck. I tried driving down there to dodge the brokerage fees, and the guy at the border wrote down a number wrong, then claimed I told him the wrong value, yada yada yada, now I have a note on my file, so I get a full search every time I cross the border. That wasn't worth it.


The way I see it, the brokerage fees are usually equal to the difference in cost between standard shipping and express. But, with express you don't pay the brokerage, so you might as well shell out for the express shipping, since it will cost the same in the end, and you will get it sooner.

[googe]

just use DHL or airborne express

[Weapon_R]

Originally posted by Xtrema
That solution only works if your times doesn't worth anything to you. That's at least a 8hr trip returned.
.

Are you really earning every single minute of every day? I assume that a road trip with a couple of friends on a day off would be worthwhile. It would be fun and you do save a lot of money.

[R-Audi]

It ended up taking 5 hours, and it wasn't that bad at all. Since it was a holiday, I wasnt working anyways, so I would have been sitting around on my butt doing nothing. My original plan was to have a friend from Lethbridge pick my stuff up, but I ended up being board on Monday, so decided to head down.

The last package I had shipped cost me 70usd for shipping, then another 126 cdn for brokerage and taxes. Plus this box was about 1/2 the size and weight of my exhaust.
I do send small items via express or whatever each carrier calls them, but this box was 60lbs, and 1.5x4 ft. Most carriers will not even take something this large, not to mention the cost would have been like 4 times the amount.

Doing this may not be worth your time if you have small items, but definately made sense for us. We had two full exhaust, a y pipe, computer part, two intakes and some other crap that we picked up. The bill for all of those parts would be WAY more then what we ended up paying.

[GC84ever]

I just ordered a set of brakes (front and rear) form the US. value about $1000CAD.

I was told that if they mark it as a gift, or if they mark it as less than $10USD I wouldn't need to pay brokerage.
So far the plan is he'll be shipping them as replacement parts?

What do you guys think?

[Khyron]

Originally posted by GC84ever
I just ordered a set of brakes (front and rear) form the US. value about $1000CAD.

I was told that if they mark it as a gift, or if they mark it as less than $10USD I wouldn't need to pay brokerage.
So far the plan is he'll be shipping them as replacement parts?

What do you guys think?

And if it gets lost or damaged, you have no insurance for its value. Plus customs might still open it, but I don't think that's a huge risk.

Khyron

[RickDaTuner]

man UPS charged me a $20 brokerage fee on some home made cookies from the USA.. now thats FUCKING LOW!!!...

some how they never were able to process a brokerage charge for some headers i bought a while ago... now they are sending me to a collection agency... FUCK THAT!! UPS can suck my left huevo before the get that money... :thumbsdow

[GC84ever]

So what would you guys recommend so that I don't get raped by canadian customs?

Should I just leave it as marked as replacement parts.

[BlackArcher101]

Originally posted by GC84ever
I just ordered a set of brakes (front and rear) form the US. value about $1000CAD.

I was told that if they mark it as a gift, or if they mark it as less than $10USD I wouldn't need to pay brokerage.
So far the plan is he'll be shipping them as replacement parts?

What do you guys think?

A 30 lb 'gift' that is only worth $10? That would be opened at the border for sure. The easiest way to bypass the insane charges is to request they use a different company. Perhaps USPS.

[TimG]

I just got a set of 18" wheels and tires from tirerack and UPS "only" charged me $75-ish for brokerage.

I only had my stuff shipped via UPS because that's the only way tire rack ships. Otherwise I always insist that the shipper sends via USPS. no brokerage and no BS.

[GoChris]

just dont ship UPS. then theres no worries

[GTS Jeff]

Originally posted by GC84ever
I just ordered a set of brakes (front and rear) form the US. value about $1000CAD.

I was told that if they mark it as a gift, or if they mark it as less than $10USD I wouldn't need to pay brokerage.
So far the plan is he'll be shipping them as replacement parts?

What do you guys think?

haha if customs caught that...well I dunno what they'd do, but I assume you'd get fucked somehow. It's best to mark it as warranty replacement if you want to be all fraudulent-like and make sure the company sending it includes a receipt in the box saying warranty replacement too. Don't think customs doesn't open shit because they do. I'd say 1/3 of my car parts get opened crossing the border.

As for other options:

-use USPS, they can be slow, but there's no brokerage and it gets brought in through Canada Post (to your door)

-use UPS and when you get the package and the fees, call them and bitch for a refund. Not something I'd personally try, but I think rage2 made a thread about that a loooong time ago.

-when shipping, it's possible to request that you clear the item yourself through customs (or something to that effect) which works like this. You tell them you wanna do that, they say ok and don't charge brokerage. They ship the item out and it'll get held at the local warehouse, who will give you a ring when the package arrives. You drive down there to fill out the forms and shit to declare the item, then you can pick the fucker up and go home. I've done this once before, but it was awhile ago and I don't quite remember all the details. A trip to the airport (I think that's where customs is in Calgary) is a LOT smarter than wasting a day driving to the border. haha no offence to R-Audi...

[Ntense_SpecV]

Originally posted by RickDaTuner
man UPS charged me a $20 brokerage fee on some home made cookies from the USA.. now thats FUCKING LOW!!!...

some how they never were able to process a brokerage charge for some headers i bought a while ago... now they are sending me to a collection agency... FUCK THAT!! UPS can suck my left huevo before the get that money... :thumbsdow

I also received a letter from some collection agency that said I owed $36.XX from an uncollected debt on a shipped item. All I did was call up the collection agency and explained to them that I did in fact receive my parts and sign for them, however there was no money exchanged to the driver. The lady at the collection agency told me that the driver is responsible for collecting the money and that if he doesn't do that then to bad so sad for UPS. Basically he didn't know or forgot and the charge got removed completely. Took me about 15min....give them a call - it's worth it.

[Ven]

A set of $89us spark plug wires ended up costing me <$180us after UPS bent me over with their "brokerage" fees. Actual shipping cost was only $18us from Cali. That was the first and last time I used UPS, now 3 years later.

[RedBull]

I used USPS to get my camber plates for my car and there were no brokerage fees, and it was shipped to my door via Canada Post. The sucky thing though, was it took 3 weeks :eek: If I were in a rush I would have been screwed, but if you have the time it's a cheaper alternative.

-RedBull

[/////AMG]

Canada sucks for sending packages anyway, damn customs. :thumbsdow

Can't you guys ask the seller to use another company?

[Hash_man]

^^ Personally I have received most of my car parts through usps... and have had to pay a small customs fee, $40 was the most.

But then again, I haven't been raped that bad by ups... For a 50lb package, which was pretty damn big, they only charged me $75.

Does anyone know if fedex has retarded charges like that?

[broken_legs]

Fedex GROUND and UPS GROUND rape you

If you pony up the extra few bucks for an express or overnight it doesnt go through the same Customs Broker that charges so much.

If your item is "worth" less than 20 dollars Canadian you do not have to pay customs on it and thus you will not get charged a brokerage fee for filling out some paperwork and paying the customs fee for you.

We should also be mad at the government, they charge GST on teh Brokerage Fee

:banghead:

[pinoyhero]

Haha, read this thread and got whacked so I thought i'd share. $35 clear corners + 20.86 in brokerage, nice....

[dsmturbo]

The catch is that most companies will only ship UPS or Fed Ex as they have tracking #'s in case there is a dispute with customer as to whether or not they received their shipment, etc.

We were going to order a clutch, springs etc from RRE and shipping via UPS Express is $260 USD, pretty steep I think but that is only way they will ship other then regular UPS

[heavyD]

Unless the item is extremely heavy you are better off shipping UPS red most times. Not only do you get the item overnight, the cost of red will be usually less than the brokerage on a ground shipment.

[racin_jayson]

ups is a bunch of thieves same with fedex,
I ordered a clutch from the states, shipped with ups, the retard kept delivering it to my neighbours adress by accident, (my neighbour is only there 2 months of the year, and his door is RIGHT next to mine) so i put a note on the door saying that he should be delivering next door, and i also called ups to tell them, the retard put the delivery notice on the door over my note! this happened 4 times until i flipped out and told them to hold it at the depot, so i had to drive to calgary, i explained the situation to the manager and got my package, he was nice engouh to apologise for the moron driver and offered to waive the brokerage fees, i was stoked until a week later when i got a letter threating me with a collection agency if i didnt pay the brokerage fee. :guns: I wanted to bomb them

[glennc]

Ive had best luck with USPS.

Customs brokerage is some guy sitting at a desk saying hmmm, 73.92 sounds about right...

[GTS Jeff]

I just beat the UPS brokerage fees AGAIN and using a very easy method too. I requested that the item be marked as a gift by the shipper...anyway, sure enough I get dinged about $30 in brokerage fees. When the driver comes to deliver the package, I mention that it's a gift, he makes a few calls, then waives the fees for me. :thumbsup: It also helps to not be a dick to the driver.

[b_t]

Originally posted by heavyD
Unless the item is extremely heavy you are better off shipping UPS red most times. Not only do you get the item overnight, the cost of red will be usually less than the brokerage on a ground shipment.

With UPS's premium service, they include the brokerage fees up front.. its great if the seller splits it 50/50 with you :D if you ship regular, the brokerage fee is not calculated, and then they slap on a few extra fees for not declaring it up front.

If you declare something as a gift, I recall that it will be duty free up to $60 and then you will have to pay brokerage and that again.

[pinoyhero]

OK can anyone answer the question of how much we need to add to a price in the US for shipping a set of wheels and tires. I know we have to pay GST at 7% so thats easy but what else, just brokerage? Duty?

How much is brokerage on a set of wheels and tires? andf how much is duty 6%

[GTS Jeff]

Originally posted by pinoyhero
OK can anyone answer the question of how much we need to add to a price in the US for shipping a set of wheels and tires. I know we have to pay GST at 7% so thats easy but what else, just brokerage? Duty?

How much is brokerage on a set of wheels and tires? andf how much is duty 6% It depends on who you're shipping with and with what service. Check their websites.

[ex1z7]

I was looking to ship a box of Trix cereal from Michigan or Minneapolis to Thunder Bay and fedex wanted 40 bucks in shipping for a 700g box, value @ 3 $.. And 75 for fedex express.

... Ha beat that.

[barbarian]

Alternative is to have them put on your car in Montana, drive down a dirt road to put some dust on them, and then come back.

Not advocating that anyone does this, of course.

[b_t]

Originally posted by pinoyhero
OK can anyone answer the question of how much we need to add to a price in the US for shipping a set of wheels and tires. I know we have to pay GST at 7% so thats easy but what else, just brokerage? Duty?

How much is brokerage on a set of wheels and tires? andf how much is duty 6%

its about $45 a box (flat rate brokerage fee) plus tax 7% always and duties which are different for different things. So that means if your wheels and tires come in four seperate boxes, you are looking at $180 minimum brokerage and will probably pay more like $250.

[Lexxan]

Can we all just drop the discussion and ____NOT____ use UPS?

[Zokambaa]

Originally posted by b_t


With UPS's premium service, they include the brokerage fees up front.. its great if the seller splits it 50/50 with you :D if you ship regular, the brokerage fee is not calculated, and then they slap on a few extra fees for not declaring it up front.

If you declare something as a gift, I recall that it will be duty free up to $60 and then you will have to pay brokerage and that again.



I ordered an 18 pound food processor from the states, the guy claimed it was worth $55 (not sure if he claimed it as a gift or not) and while I didn't have to pay canadian duty, I did have to pay UPS bendover fee... but their cornhole fee is apparantly based on claimed value so it ended up being about 29 + GST plus GST on the claimed value of the processor... I fucking hate ups but it was the only way this guy would ship...
(there were some people picking up a poster/painting in a roll and since the sender claimed some huge value they ended up paying 70 or 80 in UPS anal raping fee

I've had way better luck with US-Postal service/Canada Post... that way I only pay GST and duty on the claimed value and it gets here at about the same time

I avoid UPS at all costs, even fed-ex isn't as bad as ups

[scat19]

ground = brokerage
air = no brokerage

supply chain solutions = oversized packages.

[CalgarySupra]

good idea but you cant just go the united states on your buinesss these days without be looked at sideways by us customs. no matter if ur there are good reasons or not.

[ClayMan]

I want to do this with some tires from Tire Rack...

What is this service called? Do you have to give UPS a call ahead of time? And how do they identify packages sent to them? (I'm assuming you send it under your name, to their address?)

Tire prices here are ridiculous..

[Mangina]

Originally posted by Lexxan
Can we all just drop the discussion and ____NOT____ use UPS?

Some retards still can't figure this out.

[Isaiah]

UPS is going to come crashing down when this class action suit gets off the ground.

[zieg]

Heh, I do that all the time in Vancouver. Point Roberts has places like that, and it's only a half hour drive for me. :poosie:

[ClayMan]

Originally posted by Mangina


Some retards still can't figure this out.

Gah... Can we please just let the OP answer my question?

p.s. Tire Rack only ships by UPS. And Express costs 5X as much.

[Talies R]

R-Audi,

I called UPS to confirm, and I was told

UPS Supply Chain Solutions
309 2nd st
Sweetgrass Montana
59484

is not an address I can have packages shipped to.

:dunno:

[RodM]

UPS etc charge the brokerage fee come hell or high water, I live in Lethbridge and as mentioned in this thread, I get virtually anything I need sent to the UPS drop in Sweetgrass. You don't need to phone ahead, just watch the tracking # and you will see someone at the "warehouse" signs for it, usually somebody named BAKER. It costs you $4.00 for the first package and somewhat less for each after that.

I have had stuff sent to me there for several years with no problems. Just a warning, don't screw with the guys as the border, all I am ever charged is the GST and risking being put on their "Search everytime" list isn't worth the few bucks you might save. I take the printed receipts, usually from PayPal and have literally bought thousands of dollars worth of items, including hardwood flooring, alarm systems, tools etc. The only thing I have found to date that you get hit with actual "duty" is laminate flooring which has a 30% duty besides the GST. I probably cross the border twice a month and by being honest with the measly 5% GST I have no problems. Last time the guy in line in front of me at the Customs guy inside, declared a case of whisky but tried to sneak in a few 24 packs of beer. They did a random search, he lost the beer and was told right there to expect to be searched each and every time he crosses the border from now on. His duty on the beer would have been just over $6.00 more than what he already was paying for the whisky that he declared. What a hassle for 6 lousy bucks.

If you buy something in the US and they will ship it via USPS (US Post) then you will avoid the brokerage fee entirely. You wil have to pick up your package at the local postal outlet and pay the GST but that will be all. My neighbour and I also share a US Postal box in Sweetgrass for such items that will ship via US Post and where the seller won't ship to Canada. As well works great if you wish to have Direct TV satellite as you will need a US billing address.

[Dewywin]

Thought I would give a update as I tried for a long time to set up a pickup site with:
UPS Supply Chain Solutions
309 Second Street
Sweetgrass, MT 59484

It took forever to get a answer and I finally decided to call their Main Office 226 First Street in Sweetgrass...I was told that the Warehouse location no longer exits and they are not recieving packages..I had a pleasant chat with the lady and Got her to relay some info where I could have items sent for pickup in Sweetgrass :) Her answer was http://www.attheborderstorage.com I talked to a fellow there named Bobby...he was a real nice character to deal with :) check out the site....you can even use his mail box for deliveries, he excepts UPS, Fedex etc...I use R&L carriers when I need freight sent to Sweetgrass for pickup.... why? example I had 135lb. smallengine delivered to Sweetgrass, Montana from Muncie, Indiana for $134.95 US..Fedex was $216.95 US for the same trip and item. Just a headsup if your trying to save some coin... hope this helps a few who said UPS Supply Chain Solutions in Sweetgrass won't except any packages..

[Zokambaa]

guess you'll have to find a way to con the sender in to saying it is worth less than $20


Fuggin ups.. what a$$holes...

I don't know how many companies 'Ive refused to do business with now because they only deal with UPS...

FU(K! UPS FU(K them with a rusty pair of hedge clippers!!!!

[Clark-Kent]

I had to pay $112 with UPS at my door for brokerage fees and all that for my Apexi N1 :(

[95teetee]

Originally posted by GC84ever
I just ordered a set of brakes (front and rear) form the US. value about $1000CAD.

I was told that if they mark it as a gift, or if they mark it as less than $10USD I wouldn't need to pay brokerage.
So far the plan is he'll be shipping them as replacement parts?

What do you guys think? I bought a used profec b spec 2, UPS charged a $50 brokerage fee.
When I bought my springs, I asked the shipper to mark the box as a gift. UPS charged a $50 'gift tax':rolleyes:.


UPS is like Ron Burgundy's guns. They'll getcha.

[King Banana]

Important information about Sweetgrass Parcel storage on 118 Bank St:

Parcel pickup Mon-Fri 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
(Weekend and after hours pickup available with prior notice.)

BUT

If you want to schedule a pickup, he is charging 20$ for after hours pickup.

:(

for my poor 175$ intercooler

Man this sucks, but what can I do right?

[s dime]

anyone going to sweetgrass this week? Pm reply, thanks!

[RickDaTuner]

Its really best that you go yourself man, I have been down there a few times this month, and
1) they wont release your package to anyone but the person on the shipping label.
2) Canada customs does not like the fact that you are paying duties for an item that is not yours.

US border agents are also giving every single guy that tries to cross the border a very hard time.

Its still worth the 3 hour drive though. The people who run At The Border Storage are fairly amazing! Last time I was there, they informed me that they are getting a bigger warehouse. and will be able to accept Cars, Bikes, and any other freight that you need shipped there.

$5 a BOX!!!! whats not to love about that.

and if you drive a honda its only about $35 in gas. so $40 Total. plus the Customs fees.

[derran.m]

I arrange for local pickup and have one of my truck drivers pick the items up ... have my driver pay seller in cash, and poof no problems at border, no extra charges for duties etc...

For any other person... if you want to avoid UPS charges, set yourself up with a broker. I am looking at a sheet now that $0-$100 $15.00 to clear
100-250 - $20.00 to clear etc etc etc max charge through these guys is $125.00 CAD for goods valued at 19000.01 to 999999.99
For risk of getting banned I will keep my mouth shut ... UPS inflates their charges significantly, so that screws you there ... if you go direct to a broker to handle the clearance, they will only charge you the actual amount. You then advise UPS/FedEx/whoever to clear freight under your name with billy bob's customs brokers .... very easy to handle - most brokers will even handle a one-time clearance, where they bill your credit card and that's it that's all....

[Zewind]

Where does one find a Brokage for this?

[rage2]

Fedex brokerage rocks. $10 flat rate on everything I've shipped so far, even for stuff over $10k.

I got the FedEx system figured out so well now, that when I buy something at 5pm eastern time out east, I can have it shipped, cleared and at my door by 11am. True overnight... talk about service.

[derran.m]

Originally posted by Zewind
Where does one find a Brokage for this?

Just search Customs brokerage on google ... or pm me and I can point you in the direction

[gyu]

So UPS charges on private sales on used items as well? :banghead: The seller marked the thing I bought as $100 value but he's not sure if he marked it as a gift or not. Does the seller get charged anything when the item gets delivered or only the buyer?

[Maxx Mazda]

Use the up-level UPS shipping. (UPS Express.) It's almost double the cost, but includes brokerage so it's actually much cheaper. $70 gets it there faster, and no fees, compared to $30, plus $45 brokerage and 4 days slower. It's a no-brainer.

[shakalaka]

I read on google, not sure how accurate this is. It stated that when ups comes to deliver the package at your place, just tell them that you will be self clearing it and are not going to pay the brokerage fee. They take it back and you go to Canada customs to self clear it and then give ups the release form and they'll bring it back to your house. And done. I had to do this when my cf hood got here, it wasn't with ups but the company had no brokerage services so the only options were either to self clear it or hire a brokerage company.

[gyu]

Originally posted by Maxx Mazda
Use the up-level UPS shipping. (UPS Express.) It's almost double the cost, but includes brokerage so it's actually much cheaper. $70 gets it there faster, and no fees, compared to $30, plus $45 brokerage and 4 days slower. It's a no-brainer.
Problem is that seller already sent it with UPS standard

[Isaiah]

Originally posted by shakalaka
I read on google, not sure how accurate this is. It stated that when ups comes to deliver the package at your place, just tell them that you will be self clearing it and are not going to pay the brokerage fee. They take it back and you go to Canada customs to self clear it and then give ups the release form and they'll bring it back to your house. And done. I had to do this when my cf hood got here, it wasn't with ups but the company had no brokerage services so the only options were either to self clear it or hire a brokerage company.
I'm an importer and clear things every day. People don't realize how easy it is to do if you have the right paperwork. You go to the customs office and it's literally a 10 minute task. Consumers (and companies) either don't realize they have this option or they don't understand that it's something a retarded monkey could do.

Do not hire a customs broker.

[cream]

Like someone stated above, Attheborder storage is pretty great! Had my rims delivered there by Fedex, drove down today and picked them up. Re-entering canada, the guy was so chill. I stated my rims were around 400 and I was good to go. Paid AtTheBorderStorage 10$US and 52$ for a tank of gas.

Something else I used for my exhaust was Bay City Brokers. Its a flat rate of 16$ (or a bit higher if the value is over 500?) plus 5%GST. Paid a total of 37.XX$CND for my exhaust.

[gyu]

Originally posted by Isaiah

I'm an importer and clear things every day. People don't realize how easy it is to do if you have the right paperwork. You go to the customs office and it's literally a 10 minute task. Consumers (and companies) either don't realize they have this option or they don't understand that it's something a retarded monkey could do.

Do not hire a customs broker.
How does one get the right paper work? Do you just go to the customs office, tell them your info, and they'll give you the paper work to fill out and once you're done you can take your stuff?

[Isaiah]

No, the shipper should provide you with all the paperwork. The only things you need are two copies each of:

- Bill of sale or invoice
- Waybill or bill of lading

That's it unless there are special regulations pertaining to the item you're importing such as a vehicle, certain food products, tobacco, etc. If you don't have both the waybill or invoice though, they will send you away.

If you don't know how to do it, there's an instruction sheet posted at the customs office or you can ask one of the CBSA officers for guidance.

[shakalaka]

^Yup that's what I did with my cf hood. I was a bit hesitant first but then after I was done it was so damn simple. It was a $800 or so hood and you guys can imagine what UPS would have charged me as a brokerage fee. All I had to pay was $45 or so GST at the customs office by doing it myself.

Now what I wonder is if you can actually do that with UPS. As in, refuse to take delivery and just get all the paperwork and go on self clearing it. Provide UPS with the release form, take your package and tell them to fuck themselves.:D

[gyu]

^I bought it off a guy on a forum so there's no invoice, should I just make one up then?

Edit: Would the e-mail you get from paypal after you send or receive money be considered a receipt? It doesn't state what was bought though, and I paid the guy more than how much he wrote down for the value when filling out the paperwork

[TimG]

if any of you guys work at a place that gets a business discount with a courier, try to send and receive stuff through your work.

Fedex gives us a 75% discount on their web site quote for priority overnight (brokerage fees included). I've sent and received guitars using this method with awesome results. sent and received electric guitars between here and the Boston area and they were delivered the next morning around 11am. no hidden fees. I ended up cutting a check to work to pay for the shipping costs, and it's no more than what you would pay for "normal" ground shipping.

all courier companies fuck joe public for shipping.

[kbye]

I got my sway bar shipped through UPS from the US. I did my own clearance through the CBSA office in Calgary. Don't let UPS fool you into thinking that you have to be at the port of entry in order to self-clear: YOU DON'T.

What I did:

1. As soon as I got my tracking number, contacted UPS through email and asked for two documents: the shipment manifest and the commercial invoice. Also told them to mark my package as CLEAR OWN.

2. UPS sent me the commercial invoice, but gave me some bullshit about not sending me the shipment manifest because the port of entry is in Winnipeg.

3. Went to the CBSA office, talked to the lady there. She said she gets that b.s. from UPS all the time, so she called UPS for me to get the shipment manifest. Did the rest of the paperwork for me.

4. Paid $4.82 in taxes and got my B15 form.

5. Called UPS, let them know that I cleared it, and they sent to my door. Showed them my B15, no C.O.D.

The only reason I used UPS ground was because the company I bought from only shipped with UPS. I saved 30 bucks not using express, and another 40 by doing my own clearance.

[SportEL]

Mixed reviews with self-clearing. From the other thread where I asked the question if anyone has tried self clearing, and here was one response.


Originally posted by lint
I've done it and I wouldn't do it again. If you chose to self clear, the shipment still needs to go to a bonded warehouse in town. The bonded warehouse starts charging you the minute the truck arrives with your shipment. I believe $75/day was the rate when I did it, and it doesn't matter if you're there to pick it up off the truck and it doesn't hit the ground. That's a minimum. If you can't get there that day, the meter keeps running. You need to pick up the paperwork from the bonded warehouse and then get yourself to one of the CBSA offices in town. I went to the one in the NE. You need to wait and clear the package, pay your taxes, and then take it back to the warehouse for them to release your package. Depending on how busy the CBSA office is you can expect to wait. It took me close to an hr and there was only 1-2 other people there. Add in driving time and

It wasn't worth it to me to save $25. Next time I'll gladly pay the fees, have my package delivered to my door and eat lunch instead of wasting it driving across town.