With the shipping they charge, it’s almost 50% extra on the cost of the order. In comparison, I shipped US$9500 of solar batteries across the border last month and paid $170 to a reputable broker that actually had to do some work.
What unmitigated scumbags.
I called UPS to protest a $100 fee charged on an under-$300 item. They discounted the brokerage portion of the fee by half for me (wow, so generous), which I paid over the phone, and I requested they hold the parcel at one of their locations for me to pick up because it was a Christmas present for my housemate.
So of course they delivered it to the door, my housemate answered, the delivery person cheerfully announced what the thing was that had just arrived, and charged her the full $100 fee right there.
I spent six months contesting this double-charge and finally scraped back enough from them to constitute a proper refund for her only a few weeks ago. I talked to nine different representatives over the phone and had to explain the situation three different times to the same representative over email. UPS’s indifference and incompetence is staggering.
Priority 1: Get the Money
Priority 2: Get the Goods
Priority 3: Move the Goods
They get you coming and going. If they can squeeze you for any extra money along the way they’re bound to do so. If they knew that you had a life-saving item in your package I could see them suddenly charge an extra handling fee due to the importance of the item. “Oh, this is the Insulin you need? It’d be a shame if something happened to it.”
What burns me is that they ALREADY got the money with the goods. They were paid to deliver an item described as X to location Y. Then, they come back to the recipient and say "of, you have to pay us to receive your item because we took it across the border and had to do some work (that probably amounted to 5 minutes).
It’s a bloody scam
To be a scam there needs to be dishonesty. They are honest about the shipping fees being for shipping alone, with any brokerage fees being a separate line item to be paid as brokerage services are needed.
They certainly do prey on ignorance, though.