My parcel arrived the Heathrow DC from Spain on October 2nd and it has been "held" by Customs since then. (I thought EU countries did not have to go through customs)
Does anybody know how long does it take? I talked to Royal Mail today and I was really upset about this situation, especially when the rep told me that from November 12th I can file a complain and mark it as "lost." (WTF?)
I have previously shipped items with no problems with a maximum time one week (since shipping date from Spain). I live in a fairly well known place in London and was expecting to receive it within a week of arriving the UK.
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Parcel in Heathrow Worldwide DC
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For information about any other mail or if you have a complaint or general query, we first suggest you contact Royal Mail, see the link HERE.
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Snaggletooth
- EX POST OFFICE
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Re: Parcel in Heathrow Worldwide DC
There have been a lot of complaints about things taking a long time to get through customs, starting in August and ending a couple of weeks ago. You may have got caught up in that. The date given is the official date at which your item flips from being regarded as 'late' to regarded as 'lost', it's the same for all items.
Even EU stuff has to go through customs to some degree, probably because there are country specific rules to adhere to. If it's coming from the Canaries rather than mainland Spain then the item will be subject to full customs checks & charges as the Canaries are not members of the EU (but are part of Spain).
I notice your username: is the item a laptop? This could cause additional problems.
Even EU stuff has to go through customs to some degree, probably because there are country specific rules to adhere to. If it's coming from the Canaries rather than mainland Spain then the item will be subject to full customs checks & charges as the Canaries are not members of the EU (but are part of Spain).
I notice your username: is the item a laptop? This could cause additional problems.
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macbookair
- Posts: 2
- Joined: 10 Nov 2015, 18:51
- Gender: Male
Re: Parcel in Heathrow Worldwide DC
Thanks for the reply.Snaggletooth wrote:There have been a lot of complaints about things taking a long time to get through customs, starting in August and ending a couple of weeks ago. You may have got caught up in that. The date given is the official date at which your item flips from being regarded as 'late' to regarded as 'lost', it's the same for all items.
Even EU stuff has to go through customs to some degree, probably because there are country specific rules to adhere to. If it's coming from the Canaries rather than mainland Spain then the item will be subject to full customs checks & charges as the Canaries are not members of the EU (but are part of Spain).
I notice your username: is the item a laptop? This could cause additional problems.
My parcel is from mainland Spain (Madrid) and it does not contain anything illegal or subject to customs upon arrival. Do we have any average waiting time for people who have been through this? At this moment I am sitting at 8 days.
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Snaggletooth
- EX POST OFFICE
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- Gender: Male
Re: Parcel in Heathrow Worldwide DC
Time spent in customs seems to be highly variable. 8 days is not that long on recent performance. But your first post says that it has been 5 weeks and that is a long time.
I was not implying that your parcel contained illegal items, but I was in part trying to explain why they exist for traffic within the EU. I was more concerned that your item could be held up if it contains a laptop and the sender hasn't followed the packaging rules but the error wasn't picked up until it entered the UK.
Another potential issue is if the package contains alcohol or tobacco, as you can't post them into the UK except by prior arrangement, even from an EU country.
I was not implying that your parcel contained illegal items, but I was in part trying to explain why they exist for traffic within the EU. I was more concerned that your item could be held up if it contains a laptop and the sender hasn't followed the packaging rules but the error wasn't picked up until it entered the UK.
Another potential issue is if the package contains alcohol or tobacco, as you can't post them into the UK except by prior arrangement, even from an EU country.
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SpacePhoenix
- MAIL CENTRES/PROCESSING
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Re: Parcel in Heathrow Worldwide DC
If the item is a laptop, is it all in its original packaging? If it isn't how is the battery packed within the item (eg in the laptop, separate, etc)?