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| Metalworking (rec.crafts.metalworking) Discuss various aspects of working with metal, such as machining, welding, metal joining, screwing, casting, hardening/tempering, blacksmithing/forging, spinning and hammer work, sheet metal work. |
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What's with UPS?
Rant mode
Do these assholes have some sort of a lock on internet material suppliers in the USA? Shipping to Canada is so expensive with this outfit that I automatically cancel an order if that is the only shipping option offered. Aside from the fact that many US distributors seem to deliberately ignore the Canadian market those that do ship to Canada seem to be in love/bed with UPS. Get with it guys. We have money too but we are not going to be stupid with it. /rant mode Regards. Ken. -- Volunteer your idle computer time for cancer research http//www.grid.org/download/gold/download.htm |
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I think the problem is with the Canadian government, not UPS. Why don't you
try to fix the problems in your own country before complaining about another? |
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On Tue, 7 Sep 2004 22:21:38 -0700, "Footy" wrote:
I think the problem is with the Canadian government, not UPS. Why don't you try to fix the problems in your own country before complaining about another? When a transportation company tries to charge $35.00 service charge on a parcel clearly detailed as being a "manufacturers sample for evaluation - no commercial value" the problem lies in the brown truck - not in Ottawa. Gerry :-)} London, Canada |
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They do seem to, but it's not limited to US suppliers. I just
bought some stuff from Future Electronics (based in Canada). No duty charges because the goods were shipped from a US location, but shipping charge was $9 for stuff that could have been shipped USPS for 60 cents in a small padded envelope. I think many suppliers defer to UPS to deal with Canadian customs, and UPS makes a tidy profit for doing so. The Canadian gov't does not like money flowing south, makes it as inconvenient as possible. I say this from personal experience as a consultant. I was detained for over an hour in Vancouver until I was able to make it clear that I was supporting a Canadian division of a US Corp and was being paid by the US corp in US funds from US accounts. I still had to assert several times that I'd be doing "no useful work"; I'd attend engineering meetings but I'd not make anything useful that they'd rather a Canadian should be making. If your government creates impediments to trade that cause you inconvenience and discourages US vendors, perhaps you should direct your rants at them. Perhaps they're convinced that your inconvenience serves the greater overall economic benefit of Canada by keeping Canadian money in Canada as much as possible. On Tue, 7 Sep 2004 20:51:40 -0700, "Ken Davey" wrote: Rant mode Do these assholes have some sort of a lock on internet material suppliers in the USA? Shipping to Canada is so expensive with this outfit that I automatically cancel an order if that is the only shipping option offered. Aside from the fact that many US distributors seem to deliberately ignore the Canadian market those that do ship to Canada seem to be in love/bed with UPS. Get with it guys. We have money too but we are not going to be stupid with it. /rant mode Regards. Ken. |
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On Wed, 08 Sep 2004 01:25:16 -0500, the renowned Don Foreman
wrote: They do seem to, but it's not limited to US suppliers. I just bought some stuff from Future Electronics (based in Canada). No duty charges because the goods were shipped from a US location, but shipping charge was $9 for stuff that could have been shipped USPS for 60 cents in a small padded envelope. The problem is that UPS charges at both ends. A *lot*. They also try to mislead on their invoices, IMO. But real distributors such as Future, Avnet, Pioneer, Arrow etc. tend to charge a bundle for shipping whether foreign or domestic. I think many suppliers defer to UPS to deal with Canadian customs, and UPS makes a tidy profit for doing so. Most US suppliers don't really want to do anything outside the US, period. They have a fat profitable market and anything else is considered a hassle and a distraction. Unfortunately, USPS does not provided much of an alternative, because it's still an inefficient state-run monopoly, unlike most other developed countries where at least the retail end has been privatized (no line-ups). Post-911, AFAIUI, they also penalize exports by requiring all packages to be physically handed to a post-office clerk. UPS comes to the door and picks the packages up. The Canadian gov't does not like money flowing south, makes it as inconvenient as possible. Nonsense. On imports, the product and country of origin must be identified and any applicable sales tax (usually no duty on anything US made and many other things) paid, I don't know how it could be any simpler without a customs union (which would get into all kinds of unpleasant issues). "As inconvenient as possible"? Where in the world do you get that from? I've imported to both countries, and Canada is more free to imports than the US. Consider bond requirement in case of retroactive assessments, for example, which isn't even a question in Canada. FCC waiver hassles with huge potential fines. You can't even mail a single bl**dy factory-sealed chocolate bar into the US as of a month or two ago. Complex quotas on many categories of goods. Etc. All the politically expedient protectionism in all its forms hampers an orderly revaluation of the USD, which would make US exports easier and more lucrative and imports less attractive. say this from personal experience as a consultant. I was detained for over an hour in Vancouver until I was able to make it clear that I was supporting a Canadian division of a US Corp and was being paid by the US corp in US funds from US accounts. I still had to assert several times that I'd be doing "no useful work"; I'd attend engineering meetings but I'd not make anything useful that they'd rather a Canadian should be making. Any country should verify a visitor's status and legality/tax status of them working in the country. How it goes depends on how you answer their questions as well as the facts. You don't think the US, UK etc. hassle business visitors this way? Or is that ok? Degreed engineers (American/Canadian/Mexican engineers going in any direction) are generally free to work (as an employee) in any NAFTA country temporarily (up to a few years, renewable) under reciprocal rules, but there are a few documentation requirements (a letter from the emloyer etc.). If your government creates impediments to trade that cause you inconvenience and discourages US vendors, perhaps you should direct your rants at them. Perhaps they're convinced that your inconvenience serves the greater overall economic benefit of Canada by keeping Canadian money in Canada as much as possible. No, the problem (if you can call it that) is that the US market is huge and fat, and the suppliers are satisified enough doing domestic business. They don't want to bother (adding a field or two to their database) with getting an extra 10% from Canada or (even worse) dealing with overseas customers who might speak funny languages or make strange-sounding demands. A few progressive distributors such as Digikey have done it and are doing very well exporting (though they tend to run into trouble exporting to other fat markets such as the UK, smaller markets are easier). Best regards, Spehro Pefhany -- "it's the network..." "The Journey is the reward" Info for manufacturers: http://www.trexon.com Embedded software/hardware/analog Info for designers: http://www.speff.com |
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#6
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I live in Hawaii (last I heard still part of the US) and UPS charges a $10
surcharge on top of they're regular shipping fee for anything that comes out here. I never use them. Karl "Ken Davey" wrote in message ... Rant mode Do these assholes have some sort of a lock on internet material suppliers in the USA? Shipping to Canada is so expensive with this outfit that I automatically cancel an order if that is the only shipping option offered. Aside from the fact that many US distributors seem to deliberately ignore the Canadian market those that do ship to Canada seem to be in love/bed with UPS. Get with it guys. We have money too but we are not going to be stupid with it. /rant mode Regards. Ken. -- Volunteer your idle computer time for cancer research http//www.grid.org/download/gold/download.htm --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.754 / Virus Database: 504 - Release Date: 9/7/2004 |
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#7
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What about FedEx? Are they the same? Never bash our northern neighbors!
Anybody that can brew those beers and grow those fish has my undying respect. Besides, Canada will make a wonderful addition to the tax base and natural resources in the US when we take them over and cut them up into states. "Ken Davey" wrote in message ... Rant mode Do these assholes have some sort of a lock on internet material suppliers in the USA? Shipping to Canada is so expensive with this outfit that I automatically cancel an order if that is the only shipping option offered. Aside from the fact that many US distributors seem to deliberately ignore the Canadian market those that do ship to Canada seem to be in love/bed with UPS. Get with it guys. We have money too but we are not going to be stupid with it. /rant mode Regards. Ken. -- Volunteer your idle computer time for cancer research http//www.grid.org/download/gold/download.htm |
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On Tue, 7 Sep 2004 22:21:38 -0700, "Footy" wrote:
I think the problem is with the Canadian government, not UPS. Why don't you try to fix the problems in your own country before complaining about another? Boy, there's a knowledge based reply. Maybe you thought it Was USPS instead of UPS? Brian Lawson, Bothwell, Ontario. |
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#9
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Ken Davey wrote:
Rant mode Do these assholes have some sort of a lock on internet material suppliers in the USA? Shipping to Canada is so expensive with this outfit that I automatically cancel an order if that is the only shipping option offered. Aside from the fact that many US distributors seem to deliberately ignore the Canadian market those that do ship to Canada seem to be in love/bed with UPS. Get with it guys. We have money too but we are not going to be stupid with it. UPS is easy to deal with, and has been very smart in hooking their software systems up to internet vendor's systems, so the generation of shipping paperwork is automated. All the on-line distributors, whether electronics (Digi-Key), machine tool (MSC), MRO (McMaster-Carr) etc. use this facility, as well as many of the big eBay sellers. (Of course, Fed-Ex has the same stuff, now, but I think UPS was there first.) But, for my little business, totally NOT-automated, USPS looks pretty good to me. I save on shipping charges, delivery only takes a day or so longer, and I have much less damage, at least within the US. But, sending stuff via post to Canada, I have had WORSE damage than even UPS can inflict. I think I have had 75% of my shipments to Canada damaged! And I mean serious damage, like half the items missing, or circuit boards crushed! That is apalling! I believe in 15 years of operation, I have only had a couple of USPS packages damaged within the US. With UPS, I have learned how to pack small items to be shipped with a low probability of damage, but heavy stuff, like logic analyzers and rotary tables get smashed every time. If I had to guarantee this kind of stuff would not be damaged, I'd end up sending a 6" rotary table in a 10 FOOT box filled with foam blocks holding a small box inside. I just can't understand why they do this! Obviously, they just open the doors of the semis and push the entire contents out onto the pavement 4 feet below! I mean, it isn't an occasional package that gets damaged, it is EVERY SINGLE ONE that has a heavy object inside. When I send any goods over 1 Lb to Canada, I have to fill out the customs declaration, and the customer gets a bill at the other end. It seems to take 2 weeks PLUS to get a shipment delivered to Canada. Of course, I can have a package in Detroit in 3 days. I do remember getting a UPS shipment of an unsolicited software demo from Protel in Australia some years ago, and fumed over getting a $5.01 bill from UPS. $5.00 customs clearing fee, and $0.01 duty paid. Jon |
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#10
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On Wed, 08 Sep 2004 07:45:00 GMT, Spehro Pefhany
wrote: AFAIUI, they also penalize exports by requiring all packages to be physically handed to a post-office clerk. UPS comes to the door and picks the packages up. Right. With USPS the mailer must personally present the parcel along with the little green customs sticker. Digi-Key will ship USPS domestically. Since I'm in MN, ordinarly USPS usually arrives 2d day and it's always considerably less $ than UPS. Digi-Key charges actual shipping cost rather than marking up "shipping" as well as goods. The Canadian gov't does not like money flowing south, makes it as inconvenient as possible. Nonsense. On imports, the product and country of origin must be identified and any applicable sales tax (usually no duty on anything US made and many other things) paid, I don't know how it could be any simpler without a customs union (which would get into all kinds of unpleasant issues). "As inconvenient as possible"? Where in the world do you get that from? I've imported to both countries, and Canada is more free to imports than the US. Consider bond requirement in case of retroactive assessments, for example, which isn't even a question in Canada. FCC waiver hassles with huge potential fines. You can't even mail a single bl**dy factory-sealed chocolate bar into the US as of a month or two ago. Complex quotas on many categories of goods. Etc. All the politically expedient protectionism in all its forms hampers an orderly revaluation of the USD, which would make US exports easier and more lucrative and imports less attractive. Guess I've been told! You would know, having done it in both directions. The guy at Vancouver actually told me they wanted to keep money in Canada. I didn't make that up. Maybe I just had an unusual experience. I've sure seen some horror shows in US customs/immigration with visitors being treated so badly I wished I could intervene on their behalf. That was in Boston. Made me want to pretend I was a Canadian! say this from personal experience as a consultant. I was detained for over an hour in Vancouver until I was able to make it clear that I was supporting a Canadian division of a US Corp and was being paid by the US corp in US funds from US accounts. I still had to assert several times that I'd be doing "no useful work"; I'd attend engineering meetings but I'd not make anything useful that they'd rather a Canadian should be making. Any country should verify a visitor's status and legality/tax status of them working in the country. How it goes depends on how you answer their questions as well as the facts. You don't think the US, UK etc. hassle business visitors this way? Or is that ok? Degreed engineers (American/Canadian/Mexican engineers going in any direction) are generally free to work (as an employee) in any NAFTA country temporarily (up to a few years, renewable) under reciprocal rules, but there are a few documentation requirements (a letter from the emloyer etc.). I musta said a "wrong thing" in Vancouver, though I don't know what that might have been. Never had a speck of trouble entering the UK or Europe for business or pleasure. |
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#11
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Don Foreman wrote:
On Wed, 08 Sep 2004 07:45:00 GMT, Spehro Pefhany wrote: AFAIUI, they also penalize exports by requiring all packages to be physically handed to a post-office clerk. UPS comes to the door and picks the packages up. Right. With USPS the mailer must personally present the parcel along with the little green customs sticker. Digi-Key will ship USPS domestically. Since I'm in MN, ordinarly USPS usually arrives 2d day and it's always considerably less $ than UPS. Digi-Key charges actual shipping cost rather than marking up "shipping" as well as goods. Many companies calculate "shipping" as the cost to ship to you plus the cost to have the raw goods shipped to them. We do it and it might appear to be a bit of a ripoff, but it allows us to understand our costs a little better and not have to fold shipping into our cost of goods. |
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#12
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Gerald Miller wrote:
On Tue, 7 Sep 2004 22:21:38 -0700, "Footy" wrote: I think the problem is with the Canadian government, not UPS. Why don't you try to fix the problems in your own country before complaining about another? When a transportation company tries to charge $35.00 service charge on a parcel clearly detailed as being a "manufacturers sample for evaluation - no commercial value" the problem lies in the brown truck - not in Ottawa. Gerry :-)} London, Canada 'Big Brown' has long been known as a 'gouger' when it comes to brokerage fees. Whenever I have to order stuff from the States I insist it comes via US Mail and not UPS or FedEx (FedEx are just as bad but they send you a bill 2 months later!) Canada Post charges a flat rate per parcel for brokerage (around 5 bux IIRC) over a certain value. In fact, my last parcel was a gift from a friend (and marked as such) and I paid no duty, taxes or brokerage fees on that one. If you have a Customs office in London you can do your own brokerage and if you tell UPS you do your own paperwork they do not charge their 'rip off' fees, BUT, you do have to collect the parcel from their depot. Unfortunately that doesn't work for me as my nearest depot is in Windsor and they insist on the brokerage fee as it is done at the border. -- Larry Green |
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#13
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On Wed, 08 Sep 2004 10:43:46 -0500, the renowned Don Foreman
wrote: I musta said a "wrong thing" in Vancouver, though I don't know what that might have been. Never had a speck of trouble entering the UK or Europe for business or pleasure. Worst case seems to be a lone (ie. not a corporate employee) person entering with "tools", equipment or commercial quantities of goods of some kind (that you could earn a living from) in hand. It's always okay to go for pleasure, to go to a trade show (even with reasonable samples in hand), to make a sales trip (even with commercial samples). So, if you're there for a meeting, to visit a trade show, and to visit friends/relatives, you know which ones to mention first. Degreed engineers (and a few other folks) are a special privileged category so always give that as your occupation (only if it's true, of course). Things where you are billing a foreign company for work actually done for them on foreign soil are indistinguishable from working there as an employee, so you become potentially subject to all kinds of tax and work permit regulations (both the IRS and CCRA like to get their pound of flesh). It MAY be okay, depending, but they will have to ask a lot of questions. US immigration in particular sometimes is suspicious that a "visitor" is actually a returning illegal immigrant that has set up shop in the US, and likes to see even rudimentary proof of living/working permanently somewhere else (driver's license, business card etc.). Anything out of the ordinary (for example, a "visitor" holding the return half of an airline ticket originating in the US, or suspiciously little luggage) can trigger further questions. Unfortunately, further initiatives that make short-term precleared business travel easier (such as the E-APEC business travel card) are more on the back burner these days in North America. Best regards, Spehro Pefhany -- "it's the network..." "The Journey is the reward" Info for manufacturers: http://www.trexon.com Embedded software/hardware/analog Info for designers: http://www.speff.com |
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Top posted because it's getting long again.
As far as I can see, UPS contracts their brokerage workings rather than doing it themselves. I once received a copy of one of these UPS broker invoices by mistake from our regular broker. Although UPS probably still makes a huge profit, adding a middleman to the mix probably is part of the increased cost. As to Don's comment about being held at the border trying to explain, been there...done that. There is a NAFTA booklet (about 40 pages IIRC) that is downloadable from the Canadian Government that explains what you can and cannot get away with in terms of going to Canada. I suggest you try and find it (sorry, no time to find a link right now) and adjust what you tell customs to match those requirements. Often it's a matter of semantics for the border people. Simply using the wrong word sends up a red flag that costs you hours in customs. Koz Don Foreman wrote: They do seem to, but it's not limited to US suppliers. I just bought some stuff from Future Electronics (based in Canada). No duty charges because the goods were shipped from a US location, but shipping charge was $9 for stuff that could have been shipped USPS for 60 cents in a small padded envelope. I think many suppliers defer to UPS to deal with Canadian customs, and UPS makes a tidy profit for doing so. The Canadian gov't does not like money flowing south, makes it as inconvenient as possible. I say this from personal experience as a consultant. I was detained for over an hour in Vancouver until I was able to make it clear that I was supporting a Canadian division of a US Corp and was being paid by the US corp in US funds from US accounts. I still had to assert several times that I'd be doing "no useful work"; I'd attend engineering meetings but I'd not make anything useful that they'd rather a Canadian should be making. If your government creates impediments to trade that cause you inconvenience and discourages US vendors, perhaps you should direct your rants at them. Perhaps they're convinced that your inconvenience serves the greater overall economic benefit of Canada by keeping Canadian money in Canada as much as possible. On Tue, 7 Sep 2004 20:51:40 -0700, "Ken Davey" wrote: Rant mode Do these assholes have some sort of a lock on internet material suppliers in the USA? Shipping to Canada is so expensive with this outfit that I automatically cancel an order if that is the only shipping option offered. Aside from the fact that many US distributors seem to deliberately ignore the Canadian market those that do ship to Canada seem to be in love/bed with UPS. Get with it guys. We have money too but we are not going to be stupid with it. /rant mode Regards. Ken. |
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#15
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Some time ago UPS raised *all* their rates. They are now completely
noncompetitive and are solely milking their market share. I never use them anymore if I can help it. Try FedEx. - GWE Ken Davey wrote: Rant mode Do these assholes have some sort of a lock on internet material suppliers in the USA? Shipping to Canada is so expensive with this outfit that I automatically cancel an order if that is the only shipping option offered. Aside from the fact that many US distributors seem to deliberately ignore the Canadian market those that do ship to Canada seem to be in love/bed with UPS. Get with it guys. We have money too but we are not going to be stupid with it. /rant mode Regards. Ken. |
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On Wed, 08 Sep 2004 09:57:48 -0700, Koz
wrote: As to Don's comment about being held at the border trying to explain, been there...done that. There is a NAFTA booklet (about 40 pages IIRC) that is downloadable from the Canadian Government that explains what you can and cannot get away with in terms of going to Canada. I suggest you try and find it (sorry, no time to find a link right now) and adjust what you tell customs to match those requirements. Often it's a matter of semantics for the border people. Simply using the wrong word sends up a red flag that costs you hours in customs. Koz SNIPPED ABOVE. VERY VERY TRUE!! I have a theory/saying, which from my side of the border (Canada) applies to US Customs/Immigration, but I'm sure works for agents in both countries. That is that there isn't one of those agents that gets promoted or special recognition because of how many people he let into the country (either one). He gets that by how many he can justifiably keep out!! And all in all I think they do very well. Just get into the inside office someday and it's pretty fascinating to watch. Take care. Brian Lawson, Bothwell, Ontario. |
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#17
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"Don Foreman" wrote in message
... On Wed, 08 Sep 2004 07:45:00 GMT, Spehro Pefhany wrote: All the politically expedient protectionism in all its forms hampers an orderly revaluation of the USD, which would make US exports easier and more lucrative and imports less attractive. Guess I've been told! You would know, having done it in both directions. The guy at Vancouver actually told me they wanted to keep money in Canada. I didn't make that up. Maybe I just had an unusual experience. I've sure seen some horror shows in US customs/immigration with visitors being treated so badly I wished I could intervene on their behalf. That was in Boston. Made me want to pretend I was a Canadian! I also had a small grilling from the customs officer when traveling into Vancouver, for the same large US-based company, although on an entirely different business matter. However, before the trip I got plenty of coaching from people at work about precisely what answers to give to certain questions, and I'm certain that short-circuited much of the possible trouble. This was probably well after Don's trip, and I'm glad to finally find out where the hard-won experience came from. THANKS, DON! Pete |
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#18
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Footy wrote:
I think the problem is with the Canadian government, not UPS. Why don't you try to fix the problems in your own country before complaining about another? You are dead wrong on that. USPS - no problem. UPS are gougers. Standard brokerage fee of $35 + any duty and taxes. Most stuff from US (e.g. inserts from Travers) are duty free. $10 worth of these gathered tax of about $1.50 PLUS $35 for UPS. Same parcel by USPS - no problem. Fortunately, a number of companies now have Canadian ordering (e.g. KBC, Digi-key). Ted |
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#19
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Don Foreman wrote:
Made me want to pretend I was a Canadian! Be sure you have friends in high places before trying it. Recently a Syrian born _Canadian_ _citizen_ travelling to the US from Canada was deported from the States to Syria. He had a rather unpleasant and lengthy stay there. I musta said a "wrong thing" in Vancouver, though I don't know what that might have been. Never had a speck of trouble entering the UK or Europe for business or pleasure. Maybe the guy had a fight with his wife. I've had good and bad times going both ways across the US/Canada border. Ted |
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Don Foreman wrote:
If your government creates impediments to trade that cause you inconvenience and discourages US vendors, perhaps you should direct your rants at them. Perhaps they're convinced that your inconvenience serves the greater overall economic benefit of Canada by keeping Canadian money in Canada as much as possible. You are unusually ill informed for you on that one, Don. Try checking into US impediments to trade. e.g. softwood lumber. "Free trade" seems to mean that the US should be allowed to export anything anywhere. Imports are an entirely different matter. Ted |
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That's not exactly true.
We've had Canadian customers refuse to accept packages that we sent using the USPS "Global Express" service because USPS hands the packages off to couriers who charge their own brokerage fees (which are higher than UPS charges). Nobody at the post office here knew anything about the brokerage fees, but after the last package was returned I got the postmaster to go through their documentation and saw that they do use private couriers and do not have control over the brokerage fees. The only reason that your normal USPS stuff comes through without the high brokerage fees is that the American tax payers are paying the US postal service to handle the paperwork; rather than charging the Canadian customers like they should be... which may seem fair to you, but it doesn't to me. David "Ted Edwards" wrote in message ... Footy wrote: I think the problem is with the Canadian government, not UPS. Why don't you try to fix the problems in your own country before complaining about another? You are dead wrong on that. USPS - no problem. UPS are gougers. Standard brokerage fee of $35 + any duty and taxes. Most stuff from US (e.g. inserts from Travers) are duty free. $10 worth of these gathered tax of about $1.50 PLUS $35 for UPS. Same parcel by USPS - no problem. Fortunately, a number of companies now have Canadian ordering (e.g. KBC, Digi-key). Ted |
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On Wed, 8 Sep 2004 14:57:38 -0500, the renowned "David Courtney"
wrote: That's not exactly true. We've had Canadian customers refuse to accept packages that we sent using the USPS "Global Express" service because USPS hands the packages off to couriers who charge their own brokerage fees (which are higher than UPS charges). Nobody at the post office here knew anything about the brokerage fees, but after the last package was returned I got the postmaster to go through their documentation and saw that they do use private couriers and do not have control over the brokerage fees. The only reason that your normal USPS stuff comes through without the high brokerage fees is that the American tax payers are paying the US postal service to handle the paperwork; rather than charging the Canadian customers like they should be... which may seem fair to you, but it doesn't to me. David *What* paperwork? They just hand the box, exactly as they receive it over the counter, to Canada post, who then does the entry, does local delivery and collects any taxes due. USPS does far less than they would for a domestic delivery. Best regards, Spehro Pefhany -- "it's the network..." "The Journey is the reward" Info for manufacturers: http://www.trexon.com Embedded software/hardware/analog Info for designers: http://www.speff.com |
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On Wed, 08 Sep 2004 09:57:48 -0700, Koz
wrote: snip As to Don's comment about being held at the border trying to explain, been there...done that. There is a NAFTA booklet (about 40 pages IIRC) that is downloadable from the Canadian Government that explains what you can and cannot get away with in terms of going to Canada. I suggest you try and find it (sorry, no time to find a link right now) and adjust what you tell customs to match those requirements. Often it's a matter of semantics for the border people. Simply using the wrong word sends up a red flag that costs you hours in customs. Koz You mean like the time I was asked if I had more than US$1000 on me when arriving at Delhi Airport in the mid '80s? I said no, This was a correct answer to the question. I didn't mention the UK£2000 worth of travellers cheques! Mark Rand RTFM |
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#24
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David Courtney wrote:
That's not exactly true. We've had Canadian customers refuse to accept packages that we sent using the USPS "Global Express" service because USPS hands the packages off to couriers who charge their own brokerage fees (which are higher than UPS charges). Nobody at the post office here knew anything about the brokerage fees, but after the last package was returned I got the postmaster to go through their documentation and saw that they do use private couriers and do not have control over the brokerage fees. The only reason that your normal USPS stuff comes through without the high brokerage fees is that the American tax payers are paying the US postal service to handle the paperwork; rather than charging the Canadian customers like they should be... which may seem fair to you, but it doesn't to me. David I think the key phrase above is *USPS "Global Express"*. It would make sense for the USPS to outsource 'expedited' packages through a set-up specifically designed to handle that traffic. However, regular USPS air or surface mail is handled between the USPS and Canada Post. It may take a few days longer to receive the goods but I find it for more cost effective. Larry Green |
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#25
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Ted Edwards wrote:
"Free trade" seems to mean that the US should be allowed to export anything anywhere. Imports are an entirely different matter. Your hitting the nail squarly on the head. |
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#26
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On Wed, 08 Sep 2004 16:59:16 -0400, Larry Green
calmly ranted: I think the key phrase above is *USPS "Global Express"*. It would make sense for the USPS to outsource 'expedited' packages through a set-up specifically designed to handle that traffic. However, regular USPS air or surface mail is handled between the USPS and Canada Post. It may take a few days longer to receive the goods but I find it for more cost effective. I recently sent some of my glare guards to the Canadian Space Agency via USPS Global Priority. I didn't hear anything about customs or delays from them. Then again, it took 5 weeks to get paid for 'em, too.  ------------------------------- Iguana: The other green meat! ------------------------------- http://diversify.com Comprehensive Website Development |
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On Wed, 08 Sep 2004 16:59:16 -0400, Larry Green
wrote: I think the key phrase above is *USPS "Global Express"*. It would make sense for the USPS to outsource 'expedited' packages through a set-up specifically designed to handle that traffic. However, regular USPS air or surface mail is handled between the USPS and Canada Post. It may take a few days longer to receive the goods but I find it for more cost effective. Larry Green NEVER, NEVER, NEVER use any special handling options unless it is absolutely necessary. Surface mail here in the "Frozen North" will in all probability take ten percent longer to reach it's destination, at half the cost as air mail. Gerry :-)} London, Canada |
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#28
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Don, I've travelled on buisiness from Canada to the US quite a few
times & run into the exact same situation (once) with US immigration so it goes both ways  . Not sure about the guy who gave you the lineabout keeping money in Canada, unfortunately we have our fair share of burocratic assholes as well  . The goverment has very little controlon money going out of the country for persnal or buisiness purchases. Of course depending on what you've ordered you may have problems getting it in, but thats a different discussion. FYI if Future shop had sent your order from a Canadian location via UPS you would have been docked the same outrageous "brokerage" fee. Howard. On Wed, 08 Sep 2004 01:25:16 -0500, Don Foreman wrote: They do seem to, but it's not limited to US suppliers. I just bought some stuff from Future Electronics (based in Canada). No duty charges because the goods were shipped from a US location, but shipping charge was $9 for stuff that could have been shipped USPS for 60 cents in a small padded envelope. I think many suppliers defer to UPS to deal with Canadian customs, and UPS makes a tidy profit for doing so. The Canadian gov't does not like money flowing south, makes it as inconvenient as possible. I say this from personal experience as a consultant. I was detained for over an hour in Vancouver until I was able to make it clear that I was supporting a Canadian division of a US Corp and was being paid by the US corp in US funds from US accounts. I still had to assert several times that I'd be doing "no useful work"; I'd attend engineering meetings but I'd not make anything useful that they'd rather a Canadian should be making. If your government creates impediments to trade that cause you inconvenience and discourages US vendors, perhaps you should direct your rants at them. Perhaps they're convinced that your inconvenience serves the greater overall economic benefit of Canada by keeping Canadian money in Canada as much as possible. On Tue, 7 Sep 2004 20:51:40 -0700, "Ken Davey" wrote: Rant mode Do these assholes have some sort of a lock on internet material suppliers in the USA? Shipping to Canada is so expensive with this outfit that I automatically cancel an order if that is the only shipping option offered. Aside from the fact that many US distributors seem to deliberately ignore the Canadian market those that do ship to Canada seem to be in love/bed with UPS. Get with it guys. We have money too but we are not going to be stupid with it. /rant mode Regards. Ken. |
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#29
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Google "UPS Sucks"
or look here- http://www.vcnet.com/~rossde/ups_sucks.html I find most suppliers will ship USPS if asked too & the package meets size/weight limits. If not, go someplace else. Howard. On Tue, 7 Sep 2004 20:51:40 -0700, "Ken Davey" wrote: Rant mode Do these assholes have some sort of a lock on internet material suppliers in the USA? Shipping to Canada is so expensive with this outfit that I automatically cancel an order if that is the only shipping option offered. Aside from the fact that many US distributors seem to deliberately ignore the Canadian market those that do ship to Canada seem to be in love/bed with UPS. Get with it guys. We have money too but we are not going to be stupid with it. /rant mode Regards. Ken. |
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#30
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Tom FEDEx as wellas other couriers do indeed charge brokerage fees,
check out thier websites. They are, IMHO, nowheres as bad as UPS & are up-front about it. Try to find mention of this on the UPS site, it's there if you know what you're looking for but you have to really search for it. As for political union, heres my initial terms: 1. Name of the country is to be changed to "Canada & The Other Guys" 2. Get used to funny looking money 3. Selected sections of Quebec & New Jersy are to be cut loose 4. You can keep the guns, but possesion of a bullet is Bad News 5. You will adopt the national dress, namely a Touque & "Beaver Patrol" t-shirt 6. You'll have to pass a linguistics test, demonstrating the ability to make yourself understood in both official languages while saying "Eh?" 7. A written confession that we won the war of 1812 8. As both governments seem to be full of hacks, twits, bums, crooks, hangers on & morons all administration will be handed over to the Mexicans As I think about it there may be more terms. In the mean time if you accept send me a certified cheque for $1 Billon & I'll get the deed out o you the next buiness day .H. On Wed, 08 Sep 2004 11:54:46 GMT, "Tom Gardner" wrote: What about FedEx? Are they the same? Never bash our northern neighbors! Anybody that can brew those beers and grow those fish has my undying respect. Besides, Canada will make a wonderful addition to the tax base and natural resources in the US when we take them over and cut them up into states. "Ken Davey" wrote in message ... Rant mode Do these assholes have some sort of a lock on internet material suppliers in the USA? Shipping to Canada is so expensive with this outfit that I automatically cancel an order if that is the only shipping option offered. Aside from the fact that many US distributors seem to deliberately ignore the Canadian market those that do ship to Canada seem to be in love/bed with UPS. Get with it guys. We have money too but we are not going to be stupid with it. /rant mode Regards. Ken. -- Volunteer your idle computer time for cancer research http//www.grid.org/download/gold/download.htm |
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#31
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I tell you what, I won't send anything to Canada anymore because of the
brokerage nightmare. I had a Canadian tell me he would take care of the duties on an item, ended up being $80 or so US dollars, FedEx tried to collect them from him, he naturally refused, so FedEx dinged my account. Its a royal pain in the rear end. I don't know what the answer is but as long as governments have control of it, it is what it is. I realize this guy was a flake, and I'm not labeling Canadians at all, its the paperwork hassel. I don't think much of UPS and now FedEx Ground anymore. Recently FedEx told me that I can't insure a used item. Only new items in their factory packaging. These idiots expect ME to be responsible for their mishandling of goods. Ah well, just another one of those things that gripes me. :-) |
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#32
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Ya know, maybe its time to try the guys in the Yellow Van
DHL?? |
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#33
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Don Foreman wrote in message . ..
They do seem to, but it's not limited to US suppliers. I just bought some stuff from Future Electronics (based in Canada). No duty charges because the goods were shipped from a US location, but shipping charge was $9 for stuff that could have been shipped USPS for 60 cents in a small padded envelope. I think many suppliers defer to UPS to deal with Canadian customs, and UPS makes a tidy profit for doing so. The Canadian gov't does not like money flowing south, makes it as inconvenient as possible. I say this from personal experience as a consultant. I was detained for over an hour in Vancouver until I was able to make it clear that I was supporting a Canadian division of a US Corp and was being paid by the US corp in US funds from US accounts. I still had to assert several times that I'd be doing "no useful work"; I'd attend engineering meetings but I'd not make anything useful that they'd rather a Canadian should be making. If your government creates impediments to trade that cause you inconvenience and discourages US vendors, perhaps you should direct your rants at them. Perhaps they're convinced that your inconvenience serves the greater overall economic benefit of Canada by keeping Canadian money in Canada as much as possible. Gee, if you change 'Canada' to 'USA' you'll have an exact description of what your INS people do all the time. Since I don't see many complaints about that, I consider that you're just getting what your Govt has sown. I used to work for and be paid by a foreign subsidiary of a US corporation. Had that sort of hassle whenever I flew into the USA. Shrug. Get used to it. Since the USA decided to tighten up all sorts of rules & regs in a totally useless attempt to stop something, other countries on the recieving end are doing the same to US citizens in turn. You fingerprint nationals on entry, we do the same in return. So it goes. I don't bother going to the States any more, too much hassle and my country is on the 'favourite few' list. God help the rest..... PDW |
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#34
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"Ken Davey" wrote in message ...
Rant mode Do these assholes have some sort of a lock on internet material suppliers in the USA? Shipping to Canada is so expensive with this outfit that I automatically cancel an order if that is the only shipping option offered. Aside from the fact that many US distributors seem to deliberately ignore the Canadian market those that do ship to Canada seem to be in love/bed with UPS. Get with it guys. We have money too but we are not going to be stupid with it. /rant mode Regards. Ken. I purchased some items from a firm in Nebraska a few weeks ago. I requested the parcel be sent via U.S. Postal Service. The guy commented right away about the UPS ripoff. When the goods arrived at the border, they were taken by PBB Logistics. That's an outfit run by Purolator and under contract to Canada Post to handle parcels from the USPS. I recieved in the mail an invoice from PBB for the duty and taxes owing. Around $20 including brokerage fee. They charge 3% of the due amount as their fee. Minimum $5. |
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#37
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Howard!
I printed out your guidelines and conditions and sent them to my Congressman, expect a check any day now. The only stickler is which parts of Quebec? Can we keep the wilderness part and nuke Montreal? ...along with all of NJ? "Howard Eisenhauer" wrote in message ... Tom FEDEx as wellas other couriers do indeed charge brokerage fees, check out thier websites. They are, IMHO, nowheres as bad as UPS & are up-front about it. Try to find mention of this on the UPS site, it's there if you know what you're looking for but you have to really search for it. As for political union, heres my initial terms: 1. Name of the country is to be changed to "Canada & The Other Guys" 2. Get used to funny looking money 3. Selected sections of Quebec & New Jersy are to be cut loose 4. You can keep the guns, but possesion of a bullet is Bad News 5. You will adopt the national dress, namely a Touque & "Beaver Patrol" t-shirt 6. You'll have to pass a linguistics test, demonstrating the ability to make yourself understood in both official languages while saying "Eh?" 7. A written confession that we won the war of 1812 8. As both governments seem to be full of hacks, twits, bums, crooks, hangers on & morons all administration will be handed over to the Mexicans As I think about it there may be more terms. In the mean time if you accept send me a certified cheque for $1 Billon & I'll get the deed out o you the next buiness day .H. On Wed, 08 Sep 2004 11:54:46 GMT, "Tom Gardner" wrote: What about FedEx? Are they the same? Never bash our northern neighbors! Anybody that can brew those beers and grow those fish has my undying respect. Besides, Canada will make a wonderful addition to the tax base and natural resources in the US when we take them over and cut them up into states. "Ken Davey" wrote in message ... Rant mode Do these assholes have some sort of a lock on internet material suppliers in the USA? Shipping to Canada is so expensive with this outfit that I automatically cancel an order if that is the only shipping option offered. Aside from the fact that many US distributors seem to deliberately ignore the Canadian market those that do ship to Canada seem to be in love/bed with UPS. Get with it guys. We have money too but we are not going to be stupid with it. /rant mode Regards. Ken. -- Volunteer your idle computer time for cancer research http//www.grid.org/download/gold/download.htm |
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#38
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Hey, I like Montreal! The parts I was thinking about are where most
of the people don't want to be part of Canada anyhow. As fer NJ, I was really only concerned about getting rid of Hoboken. But, whatthehey,Eh? If you want to make it glow(ier) in the dark, I'm willing to amend the agreement. H. p.p.- Don't forget to tell your congressman its a certified check, otherwise you'll have to wait untill it clears the bank before the deed goes out. (via UPS) On Thu, 09 Sep 2004 19:05:12 GMT, "Tom Gardner" wrote: Howard! I printed out your guidelines and conditions and sent them to my Congressman, expect a check any day now. The only stickler is which parts of Quebec? Can we keep the wilderness part and nuke Montreal? ...along with all of NJ? "Howard Eisenhauer" wrote in message .. . Tom FEDEx as wellas other couriers do indeed charge brokerage fees, check out thier websites. They are, IMHO, nowheres as bad as UPS & are up-front about it. Try to find mention of this on the UPS site, it's there if you know what you're looking for but you have to really search for it. As for political union, heres my initial terms: 1. Name of the country is to be changed to "Canada & The Other Guys" 2. Get used to funny looking money 3. Selected sections of Quebec & New Jersy are to be cut loose 4. You can keep the guns, but possesion of a bullet is Bad News 5. You will adopt the national dress, namely a Touque & "Beaver Patrol" t-shirt 6. You'll have to pass a linguistics test, demonstrating the ability to make yourself understood in both official languages while saying "Eh?" 7. A written confession that we won the war of 1812 8. As both governments seem to be full of hacks, twits, bums, crooks, hangers on & morons all administration will be handed over to the Mexicans As I think about it there may be more terms. In the mean time if you accept send me a certified cheque for $1 Billon & I'll get the deed out o you the next buiness day .H. On Wed, 08 Sep 2004 11:54:46 GMT, "Tom Gardner" wrote: What about FedEx? Are they the same? Never bash our northern neighbors! Anybody that can brew those beers and grow those fish has my undying respect. Besides, Canada will make a wonderful addition to the tax base and natural resources in the US when we take them over and cut them up into states. "Ken Davey" wrote in message ... Rant mode Do these assholes have some sort of a lock on internet material suppliers in the USA? Shipping to Canada is so expensive with this outfit that I automatically cancel an order if that is the only shipping option offered. Aside from the fact that many US distributors seem to deliberately ignore the Canadian market those that do ship to Canada seem to be in love/bed with UPS. Get with it guys. We have money too but we are not going to be stupid with it. /rant mode Regards. Ken. -- Volunteer your idle computer time for cancer research http//www.grid.org/download/gold/download.htm |
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#39
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Yes, it would appear that I had my head up the proverbial on that one.
Apologies and retractions humbly offered. I guess what one cranky customs official says should not be taken as government attitude. I've no doubt the US has a few (or more) similar dolts in similar jobs. I'm surprised about your softwood lumber comment though. I often must stop for a train at a nearby Burlington Northern/Santa Fe grade crossing, see car after car of lumber go by with big red maple leaf logos on the covers. Looks like someone has figured out how to do it. I wish I knew where it was going. I think my local Menard's imports from Outer Twistovia or perhaps Warpland.... "Ted Edwards" wrote in message ... Don Foreman wrote: If your government creates impediments to trade that cause you inconvenience and discourages US vendors, perhaps you should direct your rants at them. Perhaps they're convinced that your inconvenience serves the greater overall economic benefit of Canada by keeping Canadian money in Canada as much as possible. You are unusually ill informed for you on that one, Don. Try checking into US impediments to trade. e.g. softwood lumber. "Free trade" seems to mean that the US should be allowed to export anything anywhere. Imports are an entirely different matter. Ted |
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#40
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Don Foreman wrote:
I'm surprised about your softwood lumber comment though. I often must stop for a train at a nearby Burlington Northern/Santa Fe grade crossing, see car after car of lumber go by with big red maple leaf logos on the covers. Looks like someone has figured out how to do it. Every attempt of the US to justify the high duties on Canadian softwood lumber has been rejected by the tribunals yet the US continues appeal after appeal. This is due to political pressure from US lumber interests that are enjoying the resulting high prices. Of course the US building trades aren't happy but they don't have as much clout as the big producers. was going. I think my local Menard's imports from Outer Twistovia or perhaps Warpland.... Yeah. Get the gyproc on fast before it gets a chance to dry. Ted |
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