Orphek FedEx Customs charges?! Did I get screwed??

[revhtree]

Please remember to keep politics out of the discussion. Thanks.

 

[Fish_N_A_Box]

I've run a business for over 20 years with me importing and exporting all over the world. I use to have buyers ask all the time to mark the items as "samples" or under value them. Customs got wise to the "samples" and started taxing those. By under valuing something, should it get lost or damaged in shipping the sender can not claim but what the value is... so if you sent a 500.00 item, but marked it as 50.00 and it was lost/damaged, you could only claim 50.00 and you'd be out 450.00!

the Duties and import taxes are the BUYERS responsibility.

It is the BUYERS responsibility to know their countries laws on importing and exporting. Should Orphek put a notice on their website that they are not responsible for duties and import taxes/fees? They could, but they don't have to. In reality this would most likely turn away business as the buyer would then be aware that their may be additional fees at their end and it would be just as cheap to buy from a local source or look at other brands.

Why do some packages get hit and others don't... it's a roll of the dice. They can't stop each and every one, but this time of the year they will hit more often than not. Higher the value of the item, higher the chance of it being hit with fees. Tis the season to make money.

Also as time goes buys and things become more computerized expect to see a increase in this happening.

Some carriers are more prone to getting hit with fees... Fedex is one of them. Then again they are making money off the fees themselves, so it makes sense for them to hit the higher priced packages. USPS doesn't have brokerage fees, but they can ask for Duties upon delivery or hold the package till such is paid.

Unfortunately you are going to get stuck with the cost. It is part of importing and ignorance is no excuse. Live and learn.

This is why things are higher in this country vs others.. the US retailer (or importer) must pay these fees and then add it into the cost of the product. It's not just the postage cost they have to account for.

I'm surprised Orphek is shipping directly if they have a US distributor/supplier for their products. They should be referring you back to them. Basically they are cutting out their distributor/supplier who is advertising their products and stocking them in the US at their cost. All I can say is that if I was said Distributor I would be dropping the product and dumping what product I had at my cost and telling Orphek to suck it. I've seen a lot of brands get dumped because of manufacturers doing this. The manufacturer then looses advertising in stores, which then people don't know about their product and sells decline greatly often to the point of a company going out of business.

 

[spscrackhead]

Not sure I agree that the bill should be stuck on you.
Have you asked orphek in a straight forward way to remedy this? I will admit, you are handling this much better than I ever would. Lol
@Fish_N_A_Box abox, I understand that the business you conduct may be in a different market with different customers who may be used to that type of fee being typical. But as the customer of orphek lights, it is my responsibility to know where they are shipping from and the import/export laws that apply? And that orphek shouldn't give me any type of notice? I am sorry but that just doesn't seem right to me.

 

[Fish_N_A_Box]

the market I deal with in my business is a very wide range of people.

It however is the consumer/buyers responsibility to know their laws on importing and exporting of goods. It falls back on researching before buying.

Should there be a notice on their website that states they are not responsible for import duties and fees.... again it's not required to do such.

I doubt they will decide to eat these fees for you. I wouldn't be willing to do such, but I also make sure my consumers know about these fees up front at time of purchase. It saves hassle down the road and a bitter taste in my customers mouth when they get that "surprise" bill in the mail or at time of delivery.

 

[DracoKat]

Orphek won't pay those fees, it's up to me. They've pretty much said it's buyer's responsibility and cut emails abruptly short. Unfortunately I had bad luck and forced to pay $73 and change for something I had no idea that may happen.

I do not know much about these government fees and customs, I cannot be expected to know it either if I've ordered fro china and never got hit before. You can imagine my surprise and anger through all of this. If I had heads up "by the way, you may get hit with customs charges, and it's your responsibility" somewhere when ordering, I'd at least be aware.

If Orphek had US Distributors, I agree they should've shipped from there- but they did not. I don't know why they chose to ship from China, they knew my location when I started communications with them. They could've sent me to a US distributor, but they chose not to for whatever reason I don't know. I could argue that Orphek should pay these customs fee because of failure to use US distributor, I don't know what their reasoning is.

I am bitter. Whether it's @Orphek 's fault or not, you can be certain I will NOT be ordering again from them because of these charges (Again, whether its their fault or not). I will simply find some place in the US that sells similar quality products to avoid those fees. and yes, I will give everyone who's considering Orphek the warning they may get hit with customs fees- let the buyer beware.

 

[Big E]

In the end you may have made out ok. US vendors seem to just pass on the cost.
They also don't have them in stock. I also noticed Orphek has upped the price to 180 per bar. Definately other options/manufacturers are worth exploring.

OR3 120 - 48" Reef Day Plus LED Light Bar - Orphek

Free Shipping on Everything, Rewards, Free Swag, Price Matching & Free Returns.

www.saltwateraquarium.com

How many bars did you order?

 

[DracoKat]

In the end you may have made out ok. US vendors seem to just pass on the cost.
They also don't have them in stock. I also noticed Orphek has upped the price to 180 per bar. Definately other options/manufacturers are worth exploring.

OR3 120 - 48" Reef Day Plus LED Light Bar - Orphek

Free Shipping on Everything, Rewards, Free Swag, Price Matching & Free Returns.

www.saltwateraquarium.com

How many bars did you order?

I ordered one bar, and ordered on black friday, so I got it for $160. I guess the discount helps take the brunt off the customs too.

It's not as bright as I hoped it would be. I feel like I got more color with SBreef Sbar (and they are more expensive, so I chose Orphek to try based on reviews)

 

[GQuinn]

Sorry for your troubles, but thanks for letting us know. I learned something from this thread.

 

[Fish_N_A_Box]

Orphek won't pay those fees, it's up to me. They've pretty much said it's buyer's responsibility and cut emails abruptly short. Unfortunately I had bad luck and forced to pay $73 and change for something I had no idea that may happen.

I do not know much about these government fees and customs, I cannot be expected to know it either if I've ordered fro china and never got hit before. You can imagine my surprise and anger through all of this. If I had heads up "by the way, you may get hit with customs charges, and it's your responsibility" somewhere when ordering, I'd at least be aware.

If Orphek had US Distributors, I agree they should've shipped from there- but they did not. I don't know why they chose to ship from China, they knew my location when I started communications with them. They could've sent me to a US distributor, but they chose not to for whatever reason I don't know. I could argue that Orphek should pay these customs fee because of failure to use US distributor, I don't know what their reasoning is.

I am bitter. Whether it's @Orphek 's fault or not, you can be certain I will NOT be ordering again from them because of these charges (Again, whether its their fault or not). I will simply find some place in the US that sells similar quality products to avoid those fees. and yes, I will give everyone who's considering Orphek the warning they may get hit with customs fees- let the buyer beware.

They would not have had a US Distributor ship to you at the price you paid.. that distributor paid import fees just like you, would add those to the cost and their markup as well.

What they should have done was refer you to one of their US dealers/Distributors so as not to be underselling their own suppliers.

This would also give you the following by buying local:

Product arrives damaged or it has issues down the road, you are dealing with someone local, not 5000 miles away.
Return shipping cost are going to be a lot cheaper.
Customer Support- In US phone number, not some international, high rate per minute calling charges or playing email tag trying to explain something.
Speed of a swap out if under warranty. Not having to wait for it to go back to China and then come back to you. With possible delays in customs and charges again... shouldn't happen, but I've seen it happen and it's a pain to dispute.
Need a part, quick ordering.

There are reasons why you should support local vendors. Without these local vendors could you imagine ordering parts and supplies from outside the US all the time? talk about a PITA that would be.

It would be nice if they put something on their website, but like I said it would most likely push business away from them and that's not what they want. However in the end it drove you away, but they still got you cash first.

Live and learn.....

 

[Admann]

You are experiencing the effect of the new tariffs.
Stock prices on American shelves do not reflect a price adjusted for the new fees.
Selling this stock to you from China allows them to let you eat that cost without losing money on shelf stock whose price doesn't currently reflect the tariffs.
Expect price increases, except by the manufacturers that had the foresight to raise their prices earlier.
Everyone seems to have adjusted to the Ecotech increase after a few months of complaining.
Electronics are especially affected.
I am no economist, obviously, just some casual observations.

 

[MnFish1]

You are experiencing the effect of the new tariffs.
Stock prices on American shelves do not reflect a price adjusted for the new fees.
Selling this stock to you from China allows them to let you eat that cost without losing money on shelf stock whose price doesn't currently reflect the tariffs.
Expect price increases, except by the manufacturers that had the foresight to raise their prices earlier.
Everyone seems to have adjusted to the Ecotech increase after a few months of complaining.
Electronics are especially affected.
I am no economist, obviously, just some casual observations.

I dont think this is an effect of the new tariffs are you sure thats the case? - From my experience - its random. There has always been a 4% duty on LED's (actually 3.9%) - There was supposed to be an increased tariff - but I'm not sure if it was one of those that was cancelled or not.

That Said - the only time that goods are tariffed is if the purchase is over 800$ as far as I can tell. The rest is the normal duty/customs fees that (unfortunately) seem to be randomly assigned (I am under the impression that this light costs less than $800).

 

[MnFish1]

Here is a paragraph that applies I think to this situation - the whole article (link) is below. Its a summary of how customs processes goods from overseas: I encourage anyone ordering from overseas to read the complete article as it has a great deal of information

"Importing Process Paying Duty: The importer is ultimately responsible for paying any duty owed on an import. Determining duty can be very complicated, and while shipping services will often give an estimate for what the duty rate on an item might be, only CBP can make a final determination about what is owed. You should not be misled into thinking your purchase price includes duty because the seller cannot say with absolute certainty what the duty will be. As a rule, a purchase price that includes shipping and handling does not include duty or any costs associated with clearing the goods through CBP. First time importers are often surprised by bills they receive for duty, U.S. Customs and Border Protection merchandise processing fee, and something referred to as "customs fees," which are actually charges for the services of the broker who cleared your goods through CBP."

Note - thus in this situation - Orphek is not responsible for telling the customer about possible customs fees.

Internet Purchases

Securing America's Borders

www.cbp.gov

 

[Brian_68]

Yes, the reality is the consumer pays the tariffs. If a company imports the goods to the US they have to pay the tariff and then utimately pass it on to the consumer. If you buy direct from China it is your responsibility, sometimes the carriers catch it and charge, sometimes they miss it. For those that want to see some of the products impacted including LEDs and video game consoles at 15% in December:

New, higher tariffs could raise the prices of these Chinese-made products

President Trump announced new tariffs on Chinese imports Friday after Beijing said it'd retaliate against Trump's latest duties with its own tariffs

www.usatoday.com

The list is long and expensive to the US consumer. Many companies like Walmart are big enough to negotiate with their suppliers, forcing them to eat the added cost which cuts into the suppliers profits, not Walmart. Ultimately someone in the US pays though.

 

[MnFish1]

Yes, the reality is the consumer pays the tariffs. If a company imports the goods to the US they have to pay the tariff and then utimately pass it on to the consumer. If you buy direct from China it is your responsibility, sometimes the carriers catch it and charge, sometimes they miss it. For those that want to see some of the products impacted including LEDs and video game consoles at 15% in December:

New, higher tariffs could raise the prices of these Chinese-made products

President Trump announced new tariffs on Chinese imports Friday after Beijing said it'd retaliate against Trump's latest duties with its own tariffs

www.usatoday.com

The list is long and expensive to the US consumer. Many companies like Walmart are big enough to negotiate with their suppliers, forcing them to eat the added cost which cuts into the suppliers profits, not Walmart. Ultimately someone in the US pays though.

What you say is correct - but - does it apply here? If you look - Food and drug clearance was $20. 7$ was advance fees. So that brings the bill down to 40$ approx for 'customs fees'.

In any case - NORMALLY - the item has to be >$800 to be dutied - UNLESS - the person is importing multiple things - and customs thinks its a commercial entity. OR - unless the person importing IS a commercial entity.

I'm just not sure anyone can say 'why' this light was applied a customs fee. I would suggest that the OP talk about this with customs. In any case - (per the OP) - he was not 'defrauded' by Orphek.

BTW - If Orphek warned everyone to check with their countries about customs - would that help or hurt their sales (If you want an answer to this - try calling to figure out what duty you.would pay on a given item to customs).

 

[jda]

I am not a pro, but if the stuff had aluminum or steel in it, then it likely is applicable to those tariffs. Only raw LEDs would apply to any LED tariff, unless finished LED products were specifically listed.

 

[sfin52]

I just got a shipment worth $350+ from Hong Kong in like 3 days and did not have to pay any shipping fees.

Same here

 

[MnFish1]

I am not a pro, but if the stuff had aluminum or steel in it, then it likely is applicable to those tariffs. Only raw LEDs would apply to any LED tariff, unless finished LED products were specifically listed.

Me either - but my understanding is that those tariffs are on 'raw product' ie. raw steel or aluminum - not a product that has those materials inside.

 

[MnFish1]

Same here

We're not talking about 'shipping fees' - we're talking about custom duty - and if the person that sent it stated on the customs form that it was <$800 - you shouldn't have to pay anything (and you didnt).

 

[sfin52]

We're not talking about 'shipping fees' - we're talking about custom duty - and if the person that sent it stated on the customs form that it was <$800 - you shouldn't have to pay anything (and you didnt).

It was.

 

[MnFish1]

It was.

Right - (to the OP) - he got charged. The other person didn't. From what I read - if the person sending declares the value at >$800 - you will for sure get charged duty. If they value it as <$800 - you may or may not have your package inspected and duty applied. I think the second thing is what happened to the OP. But - back to the OP - none of it was the fault of Orphek..