Moan, moan, moan----get it off your chest or have a chat

[mark smyth]

Giles what would happen if US customs destroyed your order.

Have you used this company before now? How do you rate them?

[Paddy Tobin]

I had an e-mail today from a Chinese publishers to apologise for the delay in delivery of a book - the heavy snows in China had delayed the transportation from printers to distribution centre. I was assured that the book would be with me very shortly. Good service.

Paddy

[Carlo]

...and it (cold stratification) is not happening to YOUR package, Giles. I'm an hour from Newark, NJ and it's a lovely 57F here right now...

[Michael J Campbell]

I think that some of the DHL workers must have served their apprenticeship with an Airline Co. That's why they know how to send the parcels to the wrong destination.

Brendan Grace,an Irish commedian tells a story about going on holidays, when he asked the check-in girl to send one suitcase to Paris,one to Berlin and one to Madrid, she said, oh! we can't do that, and he replied, you did it the last time I was going on holidays.

[mark smyth]

  LOL

[David Shaw]

Not happen now, Michael, you can only take one suitcase, if your lucky!

[mark smyth]

One suitcase full of plants

[Anthony Darby]

I ordered some seed from Jelitto. (nothing untoward about that).
They seem to send things by DHL which is trackable. (handy eh?)
Monday morning: parcel in Hannover.
Monday afternoon: parcel arrives Paris (ok, can almost understand that).
Tuesday morning: parcel arrives Newark (yes folks, that's Newark NJ, not Newark Notts    )

I wouldn't touch DHL with a ten foot pole. Bunch of muppets! Tried to charge me VAT on home made Christmas presents from the USA that had an insurance value put on the package. Even gave me an account number. I've never used them so how I can have an account beats me! I never paid, told them why, and eventually they got the hint. I still get parcels sent via these idiots, but the last one took the scone! They tried to deliver it to my house. Needless to say there was nobody in, so they took it back to the depot (Perth, some 30 miles away). I had to either collect it in person or have it redirected. I said the latter and gave my school address (Falkirk). "No can do. That's in the Edinburgh area and we don't deliver to Falkirk from Perth!" Useless twatts!

[Lesley Cox]

I sent a package of paper documents to Pensylvannia many months ago. Should have taken a direct flight to Los Angeles then across the States to the eastern side. They arrived after about 6 months, by way of several Asian addresses. Just as well they weren't plants.

But last week I had a phone call (I always get them from insurance companies, people wanting donations or to sweep the chimneys just as I'm cooking dinner and I tend to be a bit abrupt with most.) from a natural health product company saying I was on their records as having ordered something called Natural B. No, I said, you've got the wrong person. Oh no, she replied and gave my address as well. I can't imagine how you came by that, I haven't ordered any such thing and I don't want it. Well we can't cancel the order she said, you'll have to take it. NO, I said and eventually told her to b....r off. Last I heard of it, but yesterday my daughter told me she had ordered and paid for, a product called Natural Bee, bee pollen tablets which she thought should help my arthritic knees and also residual pain from my recent surgery. Oh God. My poor Susan is left to try and contact the company and pick up the pieces.

[Paul T]

Lesley,

Oh dear!!    At least your daughter could have told you when she ordered it!! 

Giles,

I've had seed come from America via Austria.... the old "al" in the middle of the name "Australia" obviously didn't quite matter to whoever directed that one on it's way.  Good luck in receiving it eventually, hopefully still in good condition.

[Rogan]

I once sent a letter to "Dublin Farm" - no prizes for guessing what happened next! 

[Maggi Young]

Stuart Pawley of the Seed Exchange has just got a parcel from Irleland which missed the UK part of his address... it's been to Australia! 

[mark smyth]

Makes you wonder if there is a lost mail mountain somewhere.

When I was last in USA I forgot a 35mm camera lens. It was mailed to me but UK customs took it. I got a phone call to say they wanted VAT on the item. I said it's my lens and it was bought in the UK. "Can you prove it? Do you have a recepit?" They did eventually give it to me.

[Anthony Darby]

Mark, lenses and cameras used to have an import sticker on them to indicate that they had been imported to the UK by the seller and duty paid. It was a gold thing. I don't see it on any of my new cameras, or did I dream it?

[TC]

As someone who was in the Customs and Excise for 40 years, maybe I could defend the indefensible
Mark's incident with the UK Customs is quite typical. From the Depts. point of view, they do not know if it is an undeclared import or returned goods.  The only proof is a receipt or details of where the item was obtained. Normally, for low value items, an official declaration as to ownership will be accepted. For higher value items,the Dept. has access to the records of all goods imported into the UK including serial numbers. These records can be checked to the original importer.  I can remember stickers on items of camera equipment but they had no official cognizance.  They could easily be taken off and put on another item. I think it was the importer's idea to show that they were not"Grey"imports
It is an unfortunate fact of life that there are many crooks trying to get round the system and the innocent can be inconvenienced because of this.
I can remember in my days checking VAT the number of "honest" people I dealt with - their words - not mine.  What a surprise I used to get when I discovered large amounts of undeclared cash in the business, claims for speedboats, household goods and lavish entertainment expenses etc !!!
However, to be fair, they were only doing what a good percentage of our politicians were up to.
I can remember one time I was out on a Vat inspection and the boss was out.  When I asked for the books, the office girl asked which set did I want.  I asked for both sets.  They made interesting reading. The picture on his face when he arrived was worth seeing !
Anyway, it's great to be out of it.  Dealing with crooks on a daily basis sours your outlook on your fellowman