I live in America!! rant

I am an American citizen; I walk on American soil;
I carry a blue, United States of America passport.
I have a mailbox at the end of my driveway and my
mail is delivered by a United States Postal Service
deliveryman. I live in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
and have a zip code like all other American areas.

So why do Stateside vendors always rip me off for
"foreign country - special handling fees"?

A Stateside vendor wanted $49.00 "special handling"
to send me an ignition condenser can. $49.00 shipping!!
Even some folks here on the forum believe it costs a
fortune to send anything here. It doesn't.

A very kind BCF member bought the condenser I needed
and shipped it to me. It arrived today via U.S.P.S.

<span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="color: #990000">It cost #1.34 to ship. NOT $49 danged dollars!!!!</span></span>

So it costs vendors and additional $48.66 to type 123456
instead of 654321 ??

Many, many thanks Phil!!!
It is a pleasure to know an honest man.
I owe you a big one. Tomorrow I'll repair my car.

dale

I don't know who you're complaining about, Dale - but frankly USPS gives you a fabulous luxury. Honesty has nothing to do with it. It costs me $1.68 to mail a 6oz envelope across town. It also costs me $1.68 to mail the same envelope to you, or to Guam. Does that make any sense?

Moss charges $6 more to send to PR, Alaska, and Hawaii. A whopping $6 extra. For me to send a package to PR via UPS costs 2-4 times more than to send the same package to NYC.

Once you're out of the "lower 48" things change. Get used to it.

Dale: How can you put a price on paradise? I guess you'll just have to bite the bullet!

aerog said:

I don't know who you're complaining about, Dale
- but frankly USPS gives you a fabulous luxury.

Honesty has nothing to do with it.

Once you're out of the "lower 48" things change. Get used to it.

Click to expand...

<span style="color: #000066">Bullpoop!! Honesty has EVERYTHING to do with it.

For Example: I have paid $55. "special handling" for a few small
bits I needed. When they arrived, via U.S.P.S., the actual cost was $2.40
This happens all the time.

You might approve of dishonest merchants "charging what the
market will bear" but I don't. The profit should be in the part's
price NOT in dishonest shipping rates.

No way !! $49 to mail a condenser ???
That's out and out theft and profiteering.
No, I will never get used to dishonesty.

Honesty and integrity make the man. I.M.O.

d </span>

:thumbsup:

Stuart.

Dale:
I have agree with you, someone is just plain trying to rip you off. I just sent a 1275 pulley to a guy in England at a flat rate of $11.95, US Postal Service "priority mail". The pulley weighs about 4 pounds and is a whole lot bigger than a condensor and the UK (from Los Angeles) is a bit further than to PR - and is a whole other country.
I agree - grrrrrrrrrrr...
Roy
:hammer:

I realise that it may not be allowed on this forum but public exposure of deceptive practices by any given company is absolutely the best way to get back at them. Especialy in a marque driven meadia, rather it be Brittish auto parts or toasters.
I too hate deceptive marketing practices, hidden costs, and or exorbitant shipping fees.

Right under that are web sellers that don`t include the pricing of thier merchandise on thier websites!
I figure, if they are that ashamed of thier pricing ............ I can`t afford to purchase from them anyway!
If they have a pricing request email setup, why bother? just move on to a website that isn`t ashamed to display thier asking price.

More and more these days, honesty is becoming a rare comodity!

Maybe this puts it into perspective:

A hefty birthday package mailed from New England
and the condenser on top of it. Yes, I know I can choose
not to purchase from merchants like this but for many folks
here on the island, it isn't antique car parts they are attempting to purchase.

It's dishonest internet merchants profiteering..

Perhaps they just don't want to sell to Puerto Rico, but legally aren't allowed to "discriminate" :wink:

Dale, I think we've gone over this before...& I've offered ot get your parts to you via US Post at actual cost.

However, when I send things to PR via the US Post, they treat it as a foreign entity....has to do with PR's status as a territory & not a state.....UPS & FEDEX take alot of their shipping practices from the US Post Office (& actually follow the post office in price increases)....so long as the post office considers PR a "foreign entity" you'll find UPS & FEDEX international prices....right or wrong.

Oh, I also ship things to Canada & UPS FEDEX are more expensive to there than to PR - the post office is also more expensive to Canada than PR.

One of the things you just have to accept for living in paradise.

& 99% of the time, I don't think anybody is trying to rip you off! They're just too large to offer the individualized service some of us little guys do.

Sorry if this sounds like a rant - its actually just ramblings based on my fighting with the post office over the exact same thing!

Tony, I know you give me an honest deal.

But most merchants do not.

I don't understand the foreign country thing.
When our friends send us packages there
are no forms filled out. Just our address
and zip code with postage in the upper
right corner.

The package I got today was a simple name,
address and zip code. Cost $1.34 with no special
forms or anything.

It's odd a merchant in NJ will mail a bit to California
(3000+ miles) for $6.00 and then charge me $45 to mail
the same bit 1300 miles to San Juan. The only differences
being I am closer and I have a different zip code.

Just a rant 'cause $56 bucks to ship a tiny $2.99 bit
the Mrs. wanted is pure robbery.

Merchants have access to zip code to and from to get
USPS costs. Like Aweman stated. Many crooks out there.

regards buddy,

d

Whenever I try to send things to PR, I have to fill out all the foreign forms...once I refused to do so & the package got all the way to the first postal distributiod point in PR & was returned because it didn't have the proper declaration forms! So, there on the island there are also problems...

tony barnhill said:

Whenever I try to send things to PR, I have to fill out all the foreign forms...once I refused to do so & the package got all the way to the first postal distributiod point in PR & was returned because it didn't have the proper declaration forms! So, there on the island there are also problems...

Click to expand...

US Postal Service motto: The process is MORE important than the product. (and you thought it was that rain-sleet-snow thing.)


Dale, anytime you need anything shipped, let me know. I'll be glad to get you anything you need.

Most vendors use UPS because the always used UPS. I find that most times to most places world wide, the post office is by far the cheapest way. I sell stuff on Ebay fairly often, and a lot of stuff goes overseas. Most of the time people are shocked at how cheap it is. If more vendors would wake up to the USPS, they might drive prices down on the "other two" If I don't use the P.O., then I use FedEx ground. It still normally beats UPS.I guess they were charging you to go down to the PO and deal with it. The reality is, the PO will pick up, just like the other 2 I am not shipping enough to justify that, but most vendors probably are. Just buy from Tony, or get one of us to deal with it for you . No big deal on my part. I have a friend in Argentina I occasionally buy Jag parts for.

Yep, Jesse, post office picks up from me - I just send them an email that I have a package to pick up...I do all the postage right here on my computer.....except for international which I have to do the proper paperwork for customs, etc. at the PO.

Dale, I suspect it goes to the fact that we are living in a brain dead generation. Some person somewhere with a thimbleful of active synapses entered the address in a computer and that's what the computer told them.

Now, can we use this same means to get you a new gas tank? :laugh: Someone here can procure it and send it to you. I know shipping has been a huge obstacle, perhaps this is a way to minimize that expense?

Shipping/Handling - just another way to increase profit ...

Dale - remind us again why you chose to live in Puerto Rico and not in Florida? Seems the fishing, weather, food, etc. would be just as good, and you could drive Amos from the Keys to California on dry land. And you could order parts and pay a heck of a lot less for shipping!

Tomas

I was at the post office this morning shipping a grille to Canada & asked about shipping the same thing to Puerto Rico - price was within $5.00!

So I asked about shipping a TR6 gas tank to PR...$42 to $52 depending on whether or not it goes parcel or priority....& depending on whether or not I guessed the size & weight properly....don't have to do cubic feet for shipments to Canada, do have to do cubic feet for shipments to Puerto Rico...has to do with aircraft cargo space.....interestingly, post mistress told me tiny, light packages to PR cost more than larger heavier packages because they require specialized handling when going into the aircraft hold!

Now, a TR6 gas tank (10-288) normally sells for $299.95....my price is $250.00...thus, the shipping to PR is basically free because of my discount....so the only shipping that would have to be paid was from VB to me which is $31.75! If it costs $31.75 to come to me & $52 to go from me to PR, I'd say me to PR is cheaper than Kansas to me!

Of course I try to figure exact shipping where possible - sometimes I'm on target, sometimes a little under, sometimes a little over...but I try to balance it all out at the end of the year......VB charges based on total price of order not weight....so they incorporate the salary of the folks packaging, their packaging material, etc. in their shipping charges......I don't since I reuse VB & Moss packaging materials & do all the work myself.

Dale

Do you see more PR or American flags?

Here we have more PR :wink:

Here too. (At least in NYC where I work...)