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O.K. I've been reading that some of you use UPS. So, I decided to check it for a bear I need to send. This is my first bear to got to Russia. Off to UPS I went with my 1 lb , small box only to be quoted $213 shipping !!!!! I nearly fainted ! Am I missing something. They only offer courier service , not regular delivery like Canada Post I was told.
Shane are you out there, or any other Canadians or anyone that uses UPS . Is it more reasonable only when shipping in North America ???
Good Grief !
BruinwerksI have only used UPS for US shipping. If it is not 'get it here yesterday' urgent, they have a ground service as does FEDEX or at least they used to. I think its the 'courier' thing thats killing you.
Remember never have things sent to you from the US via UPS as the customs fee they charge to process your package is insane!
Cheryl 
Thanks Cheryl, you are right it is the fact that it is only courier rate to Russia. I think I'll try the online site to estimate some US rates out of curiosity.
Yes, I learned the hard, painful way about receiving a UPS shipment from the US - OUCH !!!
That is nutso Tammy!!!!
But just so you know, it isn't customs you are paying when recieving items by UPS but a brokerage fee...not to nit pick but I like to make it clear when I buy something from someone who offers UPS that I don't want UPS not because of customs because if i have to pay it I will, but it is a brokerage fee that UPS charges to take your items through customs. The reason I say this is some people get snarky if you say "customs" as opposed to "brokerage fees"
Hugs,
Krista
BruinwerksYou're right Krista - I was having a major brain fart moment and could not for the life of me think of the word 'brokerage' so I subbed in 'customs fee' but what I meant was the charge they add on to 'process' your orders for customs. Thanks for the clarification!
Off to shove a GASEX pill in my ear :crackup:
Cheryl
Newcastle, OntarioHi Tammy,
I have only used UPS to Canada and the US, as well. It used to be that $15.00 US for shipping would cover the UPS charges to most anywhere in the US. Now the US dollar has really dropped and they have just raised the prices for UPS with a new fuel surcharge, so it doesn't cover the cost anymore - I'm either going to have to charge more for UPS or just stick with Canada Post "sigh*
hugs,
Brenda
Yeah, Krista it was the $17 brokerage fee plus another $5 handling fee on a $20 purchase that shocked me. :doh:
Brenda, Thanks for the info on UPS' new fees. I may just stick with Canada Post.
Flying Fur Studioswow, that IS high! WOW
I just got a shipment from UPS and I was lucky.....no fees! I guess they don't charge them everytime and boy do I feel lucky now
ontario, canadasorry people - i just have to vent. :redface:
"stuff" doesn't just float through customs - in any country - an actual customs entry has to be prepared and duties & taxes paid ON YOUR BEHALF. that's why there are brokerage charges. failing that YOU would have to physically go to the border and meet that package (amongst 5 million other parcels!) and clear it through customs yourself. *deep breath*
THANK YOU!
P.S... in NO way am i defending UPS. i'm NO fan of theirs!
Ellen, I totally agree with your vent :hug:
It just seems unreasonable to have a $17 charge on a $20 purchase-customs fees weren't that much. I know it takes the same amount of time to do all the paper work for each package regardless of value. I have no problem paying appropriate customs fees at all, or the $5 handling fee. I accept that. I just don't like having to pay extra to UPS when I don't have to do it with US Postal Service. I'm sure US Postal/Canada Post has to do just as much paperwork etc for their $5 handling fee even when I still pay customs/taxes on top of that !
That's my beef - having to pay a middleman extra when I can get it through US postal service cheaper.
Does that make sense ? I'd just hate to see the brokerage fee on a large order ---yikes.
Tammy~
I shipped my first bear to Russia earlier this year and I had the same exact shock. I was quoted over $200 shipping from both UPS and FedEx...ouch. So I just shipped through our regular old US post office...Global Express (fully insured) for only $30. It took a little longer but it arrived safely.
I have a regular collector in Canada who told me never to ship her packages by UPS because of their extra fees....she would rather wait a few extra days and have it shipped by our US Postal Service.
Krista and Ellen~
I was not aware that it was a "Brokerage Fee"...thanks for the explanation. But that's a pretty big difference between the $30 that I paid and the over $200 shipping that I was quoted just to have someone walk your package through customs.
:hug: ~Kathy
Tammy...I hve friends in Russia and Serbia...I use Canada Post all the time and it is great. Never lost anything and it gets there in about 10 to 15 days...same amount of time it takes a parcel to reach us from the eastern states. Pretty good I thought.
Have never bothered sending anything with UPS after finding out how much they ding us for extras when they deliver to our door. As a matter of fact I have sent things back if they tried to collect $50 on top of what I paid. Both times the sender happily then shipped it back to us via regular U. S. mail.
Little Bear GuyI have to agree, I would use Canada Post for Shipping anywhere overseas. UPS is fine for North America, but again you have to watch out for the brokerage fee's. We shipped a bear to Florida awhile ago and the collector got slapped with a $28.00 brokerage fee. She was advised by UPS that we didn't pay something on our end and she was really mad at us about it. We called UPS to get clarification and we spent about an hour on the phone with them, as they kept telling us it was the US government that the fee was for. The more I talked to them then it came to light that it was a brokerage fee and not a tax. We called the collector back and explained this to her and her husband but she was still mad, she still thought that we should cover that cost. I explained to her that on our website it clearly states we are not responsible for import taxes or any other duties or such. It was the first time I had ever heard of one of our collectors getting hit with this brokerage fee for something shipped to the US.
As for shipping overseas it still cost us a fortune even with Canada Post, we shipped a small package to Australia last yr, it went in a box that was 9x9x9, to ship it airmail was going to be 131.00 and by slow boat it would be 85.00 and would take 4 weeks. We sent it by slow boat 
and it took 16 weeks to get there. I was livid and we were in the middle of claiming the insurance on it, shipping to the UK the same size box by air was around 65.00. The cost is just outrageous, I'd love to ship more bears overseas but at those cost I don't think any collector would pay it for shipping.
big hugs
Shane
ontario, canadalet's not forget how much we pay in taxes either - to cover dear old Canada Post AND their wonderful services. *gulp* ...nothing is cheap ...or free.
Bears by EdieAs for shipping overseas it still cost us a fortune even with Canada Post, we shipped a small package to Australia last yr, it went in a box that was 9x9x9, to ship it airmail was going to be 131.00 and by slow boat it would be 85.00 and would take 4 weeks. We sent it by slow boat and it took 16 weeks to get there. I was livid and we were in the middle of claiming the insurance on it, shipping to the UK the same size box by air was around 65.00. The cost is just outrageous, I'd love to ship more bears overseas but at those cost I don't think any collector would pay it for shipping.
Wow, Shane, that must have been some "WEIGHTY" bear for that kind of postage - you could send it by small packet for way cheaper if it was under 1kg to the US or 2kg international. Of course then you only have $100 insurance on it so that could be a deterrent.
Bears by EdieI just got a shipment from UPS and I was lucky.....no fees! I guess they don't charge them everytime and boy do I feel lucky now
Heather you only have to pay UPS brokerage charges if there is a custom fee (or like GST or PST) owing. If the parcel is from a business (and therefore considered a purchase even if they mark it "gift") then you are allowed a value of $20 Canadian before you pay anything. If it is a legitimate gift then you are allowed $60. (At least those were the rates a year or so ago and I haven't heard if they have changed any). I know I have occasionally gotten lucky with Canada Post and they haven't charged me any fees when they should have but I think that UPS would be less likely to let something slip by them!
Little Bear GuyWow, Shane, that must have been some "WEIGHTY" bear for that kind of postage - you could send it by small packet for way cheaper if it was under 1kg to the US or 2kg international. Of course then you only have $100 insurance on it so that could be a deterrent.
Actually Edie it was not very heavy at all, it was only a little 9" bear and some packing material. I don't think it even weight 1.5lbs. We were given no options for shipping all we were told was ground or air, and we said the cheapest way possible and that's what they supposedly did for us.
hugs
Shane
I just hate that you can't always get a straight answer from Canada Post...or never the same answer twice in a row...it seems to depend upon the day or the person behind the counter on any other day. Sheeeesh..it is tough to figure them out at all...that sounds way out of line to me too Shane.
