Excess baggage shipping services Dublin to Boston - price you get quoted is NOT what you pay at the end.
I was provided what I thought was a fair quote for shipping 4 Rubbermaid containers of clothes and toys from Dublin to Boston - 370 for shipment, 55 for ISF filing documents, 45 transfer of goods Mayo to Dublin for a total of 470 euro. I called Spratt Personal Shipping directly to enquire about the exclusions ("Local customs/handling charges in Boston, MA, USA") and asked for an estimated figure on the excluded fees. I was told they couldn't possibly provide this information but to contact their US agent working for another company "Schumacher" in the US. Which I did and was told I could clear customs in the US myself and collect the 4 items from the dock warehouse myself to avoid any additional fees. I have this in an email to Spratt indicating my intentions and their response in agreement. So I agree to have Spratt move the shipment and then get an invoice for 530 euro (apparently the pallet your goods sit on is a part of the cubic meter allowance - so an overage charge there that could have been avoided had Spratt been more forthcoming.) Turns out - Spratt had the goods shipped into NJ first, neglected to let their different agent there know that I was going to clear customs myself. I got charged for the customs and handling charges to the tune of $568 on top of the 530 euro I had already paid. I did some research and in the logistics industry it says handling and customs fees are readily available for all ports except those in third world countries. I'm assuming Boston didn't become "third world" this year and therefore the fees should have been indicated at the very least. My point with all of this is that I am your typical naïve customer that tried to do her due diligence to make sure there were no shocking additional fees and I feel as if I have been taken advantage of. I do believe Spratt prevaricated when they said they had no idea what the fees could potentially be. I also think the fees were higher in New Jersey versus Boston. And I definitely had to pay more for customs due to Spratt not notifying the shipping agent of my intent to clear US customs myself. All amounts were paid by wire transfer and goods took 4 times longer to arrive than originally specified. I have contacted Spratt and they think I have no reason to be upset. read more
