posted on September 1, 2000 04:02:19 AM
So far, 3 packages from sellers in Europe and Asia (out of 5) have had that Green INSPECTED BY US CUSTOMS tape stuck on it's surface.
What irks me is that I had bought Lego Sets only obtainable thru European Sources and 1 Statues that I could only obtain exclusively from Japan. And the way they sealed it back up is applaing!!
A package by package breakdown:
Package 1: 1 Big Lego Piece; Battery Box from Set 6430. Opened, then carefully sealed with the tape. Marked on form as "Gift."
Package 2: 6641 Police Van. Was Inspected, but I guess the inspector forgot to seal his cut properly, alas my set would've fell out!! Marked as "Gift."
Package 3: Biohazard (Know as Resident Evil here) Statue Set. Wrapping ripped apart, and then taped back together with that green tape. Comic Book added as a Gift was torn up. Marked as "Merchendise."
Sheesh, now the US Customs are aganst eBay Buyers and Sellers? Who's next?
:\\\"Crystalline Sliver cannot be the target of spells or abilities.
posted on September 1, 2000 05:00:06 AM
Sliver ...
They have the right to inspect packages coming and going from the USA, and there are random checks. They are not LEGO collectors, so they don't care about keeping the mint condition of the packaging.
Several packages I sent to Canada were intercepted and opened by US and Canadian customs ... the ZIP code, weight, and superb packaging made them look like possible drug shipments.
posted on September 1, 2000 06:15:02 AM
And yet, huge semi-trucks from Mexico routinely pass into the United States on a daily basis with NO inspections at all....they can't check all of them, there's just too many.
But a small package going to and from Canada gets special attention. Go figure.
posted on September 1, 2000 06:19:25 AM
CS - I'll trade you our Canada Customs guys for yours anyday. EVERY package coming into Canada is opened by them, causing delays in receipt. And, they do their usual guesstimate of the value, regardless of what is stated on the sticker - I end up paying their graft, then claiming it back. [wonder if they are in cohoots with the post office?]
The difference, as far as I can tell, is your guys are looking for bombs, drugs, etc. while ours are looking for pictures of naked ladies
posted on September 1, 2000 07:10:50 AM
RB ..... I've had numerous parcels come through Canada Customs that haven't been opened. Trust me, they don't have the time or manpower to inspect every parcel coming across the border.
As far as parcels going to the US from here, I only know of 4 out of close to 1000 in the past 3 yrs that the US customs have opened & inspected.
posted on September 1, 2000 02:32:12 PM
I had over $200 worth of mint record albums shipped to England. English customs opened the package to inspect it, but closed the box up so poorly the records were no longer mint--the covers were damaged. The poor buyer, who had purchased insurance, was not able to prove his claim--the post office wanted to jump through all kinds of ridiculous hoops. Really rotten service.
posted on September 1, 2000 04:43:21 PMevery package comming to australia has been checked by customs
ACComputing - I have to disagree with your statement. I am also located in Australia and of the 300+ packages I have received, only ONE has been opened by Australian Customs. The reason? The Seller wrote the title of the book on the Customs' declaration and the title had the magic word "sex" in it.
Australian Customs does not have the time, manpower or money to check each and every package that enters Australia. Either you are incredibly unlucky or your purchases are packaged in a manner that raises red flags (or maybe your post was a slight exaggeration) - you pick.
posted on September 1, 2000 08:10:42 PM
crystalline I can relate to a dislike of US Customs. I leave the US on a regular basis on business and pleasure. Every single return is a nightmare. I mail items home on a regular basis while abroad. I have yet to get an item mailed to myself that wasn't opened probed shaken profusely and on occasion slightly damaged.
abacaxi: Under United States AND International Customs Law, Lego's are considerd to be items that shouldn't be warranted to being opened. Techniclly, they should pass without being opened.
But my main gripe here is how some Idiot at Customs resealed my goods IMPROPERLY. That green Tape they stick on would've covered that gash they made, but instead, the second one had that tape BELOW the gash, and only a courteous Postal employee (Thank God) must've notice, as the gash was covered by Priority Mail Tape.
As for my third, Here's the layer by layer breakdown:
Wrapping paper with the Stamps, Customs Form, Postmarks, My Address and the seller's addy.
Another Layer of Wrapping paper.
Two layers of Bubble Wrap
Box (Obviously, the guy stopped here, as the box tape that sealed the ends weren't touched.)
Wads of Newspaper
Bubble Wrap wrapped around the Statue.
RB, ACComputing, reddeer, creamypete: From what i've heard, you guys, along with England and several other countries, by far have the most notorious Customs.
English AND Canadian Customs WILL systematiclly destroy or STEAL (a much more appropiate term for confiscate) anything they consider pornographic (guess a perk of the job, eh?) They also WILL open anything with a declared value of over $50. I have no clue about Aussie Customs, but I heard they are even worse than England and Canada combined.
mzalez: See above. England supposedly rips open anything over $50 declared value.
yuper592: I have no clue. Sellers intuition I guess. I never ever request them to send it as a GIFT.
macandjan: History has a way of biting us in the arse, huh?
:\\\"Crystalline Sliver cannot be the target of spells or abilities.
edited for UBB...why can't it be so frickin easy?
[ edited by Crystalline_Sliver on Sep 2, 2000 12:15 AM ]
posted on September 2, 2000 01:05:07 AM
*sigh* everytime US customs opens one of my packages, it's either a book or a magazine. They basically ruined one of my magazines, cut through 3/4 of it at the spine.
The latest inspection, I fully blame the seller. An artbook wrapped in bubblewrap, then covered by a colorful Japanese newspaper, inserted into a plastic bag. Slapped the address label I sent her on the bag and taped a piece of paper with her address. Heck if I was a customs official, I would check the package also. Slit into the spine of the artbook which totally ruined it. I had to buy a new one, this time from a US seller.
posted on September 2, 2000 03:32:09 AMS_C, How is an inspector supposed to know that your package contains Legos - or any other item that "shouldn't be warranted to being opened"?
This seems to be in the same line of your initial charge that "now the US Customs are aganst eBay Buyers and Sellers" - how does a Customs inspector know the item is connected in any way with ebay?
Last time I checked, US Customs did not subscribe to The Psychic Connection. But maybe regs have changed...I wouldn't know, of course, since I'm not psychic either
posted on September 2, 2000 03:50:24 AMHCQ: The Customs Declaration Form (i.e. that Green Slip) lists what is suppose to be in the package. Maybe you have filled out a few when you sold stuff Internationally?
Also, I know that under Customs law, if the item is marked "Lego's", then the package should not be hampered in transit...yes, I know, "find me the proof, and I'll believe you..."
I'm lucky NOTHING hasn't been either lost, damaged, or destroyed...after I spend nearly A MONTH trying to obtain the item.
And, my quote on Customs trageting eBayers was just sarcasim...
:\\\"Crystalline Sliver cannot be the target of spells or abilities.
posted on September 2, 2000 05:12:31 AM
CS - HCQ doesn't know about the green (or white) customs form - she refuses ro ship Internationally, and I recall one of her reasons had something to do with the amount of time it takes to fill out these forms ...
posted on September 2, 2000 07:21:37 AM
Crystalline_Sliver -
They open packages to make SURE there are nothing but LEGO pieces in there. If shipped DIRECT from the LEGO factory in a Legos shipping container, they would have passed untouched, but shipped person-to-person they lose their halo.
As for the repacking, send a snapshot of the packing mess to the customs service and tell them to do better next time.
posted on September 2, 2000 07:58:43 AM
US Customs can open & inspect anything that they damn well please, and they do.
As far as:
They also WILL open anything with a declared value of over $50
That just isn't true. I've had numerous items shipped to Canada over $50 US in value that have not been opened or inspected. I've also had items under $50 that have.
The last item I had held up at US Customs was close to 2 years ago. It was an Aussie boomerang from the 50's-60's that some overzealous Customs agent thought was of significant cultural value. They refused to release it until the Australian Gov had seen a scan of it.
posted on September 2, 2000 09:02:19 AM
Hi Reddeer,
My customs agents in T.O. must be zealots because I have been charged fees on everything into canada including a 5$ book (but that was only because sellers writing was illegible and the declaration read as $25.00 -ouch US$) since January/2000.
Before this, they couldn't care less. They have, in all fairness, never opened anything up except for a case of "banned" books (not porn!!) and then they let them through after I paid my "dues" and have never held up any delivery nor requested eBay invoices, etc.
But youre right, they aint so bad as some would make out.
By far the post office reaps the biggest reward receiving a $5.00 handling fee for every parcel they inspect on behalf of our government. And whaddya gonna do?
posted on September 2, 2000 10:58:29 AM, Lego's are considerd to be items that shouldn't be warranted to being opened. Techniclly, they should pass without being opened.
Gosh, and here I've been paying my speedboat couriers big bucks to smuggle in my heroin, when all I had to do was have my Hong Kong supplier label the package "LEGOS"!
I do sympathize with your frustration over the repacking, C_S. I'd think that the solution is to have your overseas sellers pack the items with the assumption that the boxes are going to be opened, and make it as easy as possible for Customs' gorillas to repack the items with some degree of success.
posted on September 2, 2000 12:59:09 PM
CS, I wasn't trying to imply that you had asked your sellers to mark "gift" on the customs form. I was just noting that perhaps this would send up a red flag at customs?? If it was my job to pick and choose which packages to open and inspect, the ones marked "gift" would probably be my first choice. Course, maybe I'm just a suspicious person.
