Parcel Motel

keyboard_cat

lisar816 wrote: »

I wan to buy a 32 in tv from argos ebay, how would this work using parcal motel? What would the cost be and do they deliver it, if so to were?
I'm sure a few people on here have used it for this purpose,they might have some info,thanks.

Got one delivered a few weeks ago cost me 7 euro. i called before hand and gave them the boxed dimensions first and was told it would be 7 euro but if it was slightly bigger then the numbers i gave her it could be 15 it would cost a bit more for delivery. i picked my one up in the local nightline depot. if there is one near you, you can collect it there for no extra fee

Rougebladez

So if I order an item and get free uk delivery and give them the Antrim address Will they be charged the 4.50 to send it from the Antrim address and then I'll be charged the 3.50 to collect?

Thinking of signing up.

nava

Rougebladez wrote: »

So if I order an item and get free uk delivery and give them the Antrim address Will they be charged the 4.50 to send it from the Antrim address and then I'll be charged the 3.50 to collect?

Thinking of signing up.

The standard price is €3.50 doesn't make a difference if they receive it in the Antrim or the Dublin address, it gets deliver to your selected parcel Motel. If the parcel is oversize prize will depend on the sizes and you have the option to collect from their warehouse or get deliver to you at an extra charge.

PS: if you are going to register if you want send me a PM me so I can get a free stay because I refer you (not sure if you get anything)

rusty999

lisar816 wrote: »

I wan to buy a 32 in tv from argos ebay, how would this work using parcal motel? What would the cost be and do they deliver it, if so to were?
I'm sure a few people on here have used it for this purpose,they might have some info,thanks.

You may need to inform them that theres an oversize parcel coming to you as in my opinion and speaking from a lot of experiences, the oversize issue is the Achilles heel of Parcel Motel . Hopefully its improved recently .

upinthesky

rusty999 wrote: »

You may need to inform them that theres an oversize parcel coming to you as in my opinion and speaking from a lot of experiences, the oversize issue is the Achilles heel of Parcel Motel . Hopefully its improved recently .

Actually found pixmania to have great prices on tv's, so ill be getting one there instead..

The Black Oil

I'm expecting something from the US. According to An Post's tracking, it cleared Customs (Port Laoise Mail Centre) as of 6pm tonight. It'll hardly reach PM this evening. Last time I used them I got a text around 10:30pm.

nava

The Black Oil wrote: »

I'm expecting something from the US. According to An Post's tracking, it cleared Customs (Port Laoise Mail Centre) as of 6pm tonight. It'll hardly reach PM this evening. Last time I used them I got a text around 10:30pm.

1st will need to be deliver to Nightline (tomorrow) and after they will deliver to your locker probably tomorrow evening.

rusty999

The Black Oil wrote: »

I'm expecting something from the US. According to An Post's tracking, it cleared Customs (Port Laoise Mail Centre) as of 6pm tonight. It'll hardly reach PM this evening. Last time I used them I got a text around 10:30pm.

Just wondering did you pre pay the customs on your delivery or was there any to pay? I made the mistake of buying something from USA whereby there was no option to pre pay the customs duty. It turned out to be a bit of a nightmare in the end and got sent back for some reason. It put me off using parcel motel for anything other than Uk purchases. Good Luck with your delivery and hope all goes ok
Rusty

The Black Oil

It's a digital camera, seemingly there's no customs on those (perhaps depending on the value, not sure). I have a thread about it here. It currently says 'release from customs', will find out tomorrow, I guess.

nava

The Black Oil wrote: »

It's a digital camera, seemingly there's no customs on those (perhaps depending on the value, not sure). I have a thread about it here. It currently says 'release from customs', will find out tomorrow, I guess.

Hope there is no customs on it.

If it's going to Nightline they will not pay customs charges and reject the delivery, maybe give Nightline a call in the morning to explain to them in case threre's as anpost collects the charges on delivery, keep and eye on the tracking if rejected contact anpost and try to get it redirected to you.

rusty999

The Black Oil wrote: »

It's a digital camera, seemingly there's no customs on those (perhaps depending on the value, not sure). I have a thread about it here. It currently says 'release from customs', will find out tomorrow, I guess.

Great !! let us know how things go . Cheers , Rusty

Stinicker

I would just like to update the thread as I have reached a milestone with Parcel Motel in that my 100th parcel arrived into the locker today. I started using the service last may. I would like to thank Parcel Motel for their hard work and brilliant service.

I had ten parcels arrive before Christmas and all came on time and never experienced any congestion or waiting for a locker. So Parcel Motel have a 100% record for me and I have come to rely on them and nowadays even if I'm ordering something small from the UK I just automatically send it to Parcel Motel because it will arrive here faster despite the detour via Northern Ireland than waiting maybe a week for it to come via An Post. Alot of the stuff especially smaller items I have ordered will arrive within 2 days after ordering, next day to NI and following day to Kerry via Parcel Motel.

The Black Oil

Attempted delivery failed, returned to sender (An Post), presume that means there's a charge in there somewhere. Will investigate.

nava

The Black Oil wrote: »

Attempted delivery failed, returned to sender (An Post), presume that means there's a charge in there somewhere. Will investigate.

Yes looks like it, try to contact anpost 1850 57 58 59 or Finglas Delivery office (01)8345307

The Black Oil

First person I spoke to in An Post was very helpful. Second call...just wanted me to get off the line ASAP. Am none the wiser re the charges, yet.

rubadub

The Black Oil wrote: »

It's a digital camera, seemingly there's no customs on those (perhaps depending on the value, not sure).

There is strangely no duty on digital cameras, but there is VAT.

Duty only kicks in past €150.

rusty999

Been there and done that !! Had a nightmare with all of them before Xmas and had 2 separate deliveries sent back to Usa. Keep on their case is what I would advise and dont take no for an answer. Thats interesting about the threshold for cameras being 150 as its much lower for everything else as far as I know ? Maybe i'm wrong..

rubadub

rusty999 wrote: »

Thats interesting about the threshold for cameras being 150

sorry, I meant the limit before duty (bar excise duty on booze etc) is applied is €150 on all goods, but there is no duty on the digital cameras anyway.

The VAT limit is still €22 on the camera, and at 23%, but in practice it the limit is currently a bit more, €26.08.

rubadub wrote: »

I emailed revenue about the €22 limit, in some old threads I was saying the limit is higher than €22 in most cases and they confirmed it. €26.08 at the current 23% VAT rate. The limit was higher when VAT was 21%

Hi,
I was reading on revenue.ie that the limit is €22 until something is applicable for VAT when importing from online shops

http://www.revenue.ie/en/customs/leaflets/pn1179.html

Consignments not exceeding a total customs value of €22 may be imported without payment of VAT.

However it goes on to say

Where the customs duty on a consignment of goods amounts to less than €10 it will not be collected. Similarly, VAT liability amounting to less than or equal to €6 will not be collected.

So on typical imported items like a DVD the VAT is 23%, so if the DVD is €25 it is above the €22 threshold limit, but the VAT would only be €5.75 so is below the €6 limit. Am I right in thinking that this in effect means the real threshold value for non-excise items at 23% is €26.08 -since only items above this value will have VAT equal or above €6.

Thanks

Dear ***,
Your calculations in the example you quoted are correct but do remember that, if the freight costs or the VAT rates increase, the €22 threshold will produce a different result. This threshold is set in European Law, while the €6 de minimus limit is just a local practice based on administrative expedience.

Regards,


****
Customs Division

The Black Oil

Waiting to hear the reason for refusal. No doubt it's a charge, just a case of what and how then to proceed.

Tried PM - they don't really know as they get thousands of items per day.

The Black Oil

Looks like it may be going back to Portlaoise. Hopefully, they'll accept a change of address (have put this in email, so we'll see) and can proceed from there, then I'll pick up the charge (€80) upon delivery. Will know not to use PM again re items from the US. It's a pity in one sense as it seems to boil down to communication. The tracking gave the impression it had cleared Customs. Had they contacted me (perhaps in writing) to say there was a charge I could then have paid and it would have gone to PM. But I guess that isn't very practical as they probably have thousands of items and they can't write to everyone. Person in Portlaoise was very helpful, to be fair.

The Black Oil

Online tracking from An Post said it's on route to customer, but by phone they reckon it can't be stopped and may be on way out of the country. Sigh. Fun and games.

rusty999

The Black Oil wrote: »

Looks like it may be going back to Portlaoise. Hopefully, they'll accept a change of address (have put this in email, so we'll see) and can proceed from there, then I'll pick up the charge (€80) upon delivery. Will know not to use PM again re items from the US. It's a pity in one sense as it seems to boil down to communication. The tracking gave the impression it had cleared Customs. Had they contacted me (perhaps in writing) to say there was a charge I could then have paid and it would have gone to PM. But I guess that isn't very practical as they probably have thousands of items and they can't write to everyone. Person in Portlaoise was very helpful, to be fair.

I'm getting a Deja Vu here and thats exactly what I was thinking might happen--but was hoping I was wrong-- at the beginning of this thread. It just reinforces my thinking that Parcel Motel is NOT suitable for using to order stuff from USA. Sorry to hear about your own experiences and fingers crossed that you will get it resolved. It took me months to get my money back from 2 different suppliers in USA.

The Black Oil

I should probably put this in my own thread from before.

It's a little odd that now USPS tracking info has more accurate details (written) compared to what I'm seeing on An Post's page. As of 10am this morning said it was on route to customer (based on An Post), but meanwhile, USPS reflects that as 'Customs clearance processing complete', so I'd guess it's in Portlaoise and either been rejected, or else they're trying again. If it's coming to me, and goes to the shipping address (PM Finglas depot), it'll be rejected again.

I get different information depending on who I talk to. Some say it can't be stopped, they can't change the address. I understand the address thing as I'm sure they don't want to take the risk there. I've always been polite and it's on me, really. Should have done my homework a little better and not used PM in this instance. I emailed the dispatcher in the US and he said it's likely still here and they perhaps won't return it for 2 weeks. Hard to know if that's true. We'll see what happens next.

Bodhran

Ordered an item from UK supplier (Sheffield) at 22:57 on Thursday 26 June and collected it in Parcel Motel Charlestown (Finglas) at 17:30 today Saturday 28 June.
And all for just €3.50.

rusty999

The Black Oil wrote: »

I should probably put this in my own thread from before.

It's a little odd that now USPS tracking info has more accurate details (written) compared to what I'm seeing on An Post's page. As of 10am this morning said it was on route to customer (based on An Post), but meanwhile, USPS reflects that as 'Customs clearance processing complete', so I'd guess it's in Portlaoise and either been rejected, or else they're trying again. If it's coming to me, and goes to the shipping address (PM Finglas depot), it'll be rejected again.

I get different information depending on who I talk to. Some say it can't be stopped, they can't change the address. I understand the address thing as I'm sure they don't want to take the risk there. I've always been polite and it's on me, really. Should have done my homework a little better and not used PM in this instance. I emailed the dispatcher in the US and he said it's likely still here and they perhaps won't return it for 2 weeks. Hard to know if that's true. We'll see what happens next.

I think PC should just inform their potential customers that they are not a suitable service for buying stuff from the USA. Take it from me--it rarely works out !! I had several shipments sent back as a result of it arriving at customs here but then customs have no info on you. All they see is a parcel with a PM number and an address for parcel motel in Antrim. They MAY have tried to contact parcel or maybe not- but the 1890 number provided will get them nowhere and they just dont want to know about it anyway. Now, if It was coming from the UK with your home address on it they would contact you directly or have the courier collect the duty.But, when its coming from the Usa with a Parcel motel address on it neither themselves OR parcel motel want to know. Parcel Motel have no interest in collecting duty or customs fees on anything coming from USA. Its a waste of time using their service for this particular route. But , from UK or Europe --very good service. Apart from a few hiccups with Oversize parcels .

rubadub

rusty999 wrote: »

I think PC should just inform their potential customers that they are not a suitable service for buying stuff from the USA.

I never thought it was suitable for ordering from any country if VAT was applicable. Maybe they could spell it out a bit more.

http://www.parcelmotel.com/faqs.html

What happens if there is VAT and/or Duty due on my item?

Please ensure that any charges payable are paid in advance of delivery. Parcel Motel will not accept responsibility for payment of any VAT or Duty charges due on items delivered. If the postal operator or courier asks for cash on delivery, your item will be refused by us.

sio27

Hi just wondering in relation to buying from America,... I want to buy something off an ebay seller in the US and although the item will be sent through the ebay global shipping scheme which means I pay customs duty etc. in advance and Ireland is listed as a destination they send to I cant buy the particular item it keeps coming up restricted,,I purchased stuff before through global shipping and got it delivered no prob I contacted this particular seller but they were of no help to me does anyone know if I could use parcel motel for this as I will be paying duty, vat and postage in advance? any advice appreciated.

rusty999

Depends on what the item is. If its a restricted wood for example like Brazilian rosewood. Or if its a liquid --no chance.
tell us what the item is and maybe can be of more help
Rusty

sio27

Hi Rusty, Its a cosmetic so I suppose it would be classed a liquid, only a 30ml tube I cant get it over here any more but it will cost me about €75 so dont know weather to take the chance or not!

rusty999

sio27 wrote: »

Hi Rusty, Its a cosmetic so I suppose it would be classed a liquid, only a 30ml tube I cant get it over here any more but it will cost me about €75 so dont know weather to take the chance or not!

I usually try Amazon.co.uk first for something like that. If they dont have and its not available there then the other option is to get it in Usa but send it to an acquaintance or family member who lives there? If you dont have someone who would post it over to you and its restricted on the site you bought it on then unless the seller is prepared to help out theres no point in buying it from that particular seller. Dont use parcel Motel as your shipping address on this transaction and that's from someone who has been there and regretted it. You would be better off just have it sent directly to yourself as there no benefit having it sent to them and chances are it will be returned as they dont want to know about customs or duty so the customs will send it back.

You can be lucky sometimes with buying in Usa and things do get through without customs duty being charged here, but its rare. Your problem is different as you say you could pay the duty and customs at source ? So why use them at all ? If you have not already paid I would explain all of this to your seller and ask to withdraw from the sale if its on Ebay ? And , if you keep trying I would guarantee that there is always another seller who is only too pleased to help out with your shipping problem , Hope it works out for you. Rusty

2Shae

Unfortunately parcelmotel have now raised their price to 3.95 per go.
It was already an expensive luxury but now they are pushing it too much. I wouldnt mind if there was a cheaper rate for smaller items as I rarely go past the smallest box.

rusty999

Ahhhh !! didn't see that one coming I must admit.

Wonder how much the over size has gone up then ?

nava

rusty999 wrote: »

Ahhhh !! didn't see that one coming I must admit.

Wonder how much the over size has gone up then ?

No change on the oversize packages.

Receiving Parcels €3.95
The new price for receiving parcels using your PMID via our virtual UK and Dublin addresses will increase by 45c to €3.95. Our Virtual UK address still allows customers to buy goods on sites that don't ship to the Republic of Ireland and make savings on shipping costs.

Sending from Parcel Motel to Business/Residential Address €6.50
The base price for sending parcels from a Parcel Motel to an address in Ireland will decrease by €3.00 from €9.50 to €6.50. Click here to see how you can save money sending parcels today.

Red Silurian

Miserable shower of *insert derogatory name here*

I was 5 minutes late on Sunday night to collect my parcels so they expired, now I'm after being charged €3.95 extra as they didn't pick them up until yesterday to take it back to their depot to reprocess it

That's 2 parcels that cost me €14.90 (3.50+3.95 each) to get delivered from Amazon, and they'd have been free to my home address!

I know what I'll be doing in future I guess!

rusty999

colmtheperson wrote: »

Miserable shower of *insert derogatory name here*

I was 5 minutes late on Sunday night to collect my parcels so they expired, now I'm after being charged €3.95 extra as they didn't pick them up until yesterday to take it back to their depot to reprocess it

That's 2 parcels that cost me €14.90 (3.50+3.95 each) to get delivered from Amazon, and they'd have been free to my home address!

I know what I'll be doing in future I guess!

You sure they would be free to home address ? I alway thought Amazon.co.uk only shipped free to a UK address. Or maybe you do have a uk address so you would have been ok ? If thats the case I have been spending money foolishly. Must check it out.

AlanS181824

I think ParcelMotel refused my Amazon delivery as I didn't have enough money to cover it...

rusty999

AlanS181824 wrote: »

I think ParcelMotel refused my Amazon delivery as I didn't have enough money to cover it...

Thats something else I often wondered about, Lets say a parcel comes in and theres not enough to cover it in my account. Do they notify you by email ? I usually make sure theres a few quid in there just in case as I get frequent deliveries from them but I wouldn't like to think they would refuse or send back an item without giving me a chance to top up . I did have a major problem at Xmas when stuff arived from USA and was sent back without me knowing about it. That was a customs issue and PM dont deal with customs or accept anything with customs fees due on it. I know better now and wont order anything from USA using parcel motel .

Red Silurian

rusty999 wrote: »

You sure they would be free to home address ? I alway thought Amazon.co.uk only shipped free to a UK address. Or maybe you do have a uk address so you would have been ok ? If thats the case I have been spending money foolishly. Must check it out.

The products that are eligible for "super saver delivery" and can be sent to Ireland can be sent for free to Ireland if the order totals more than £25

rusty999

colmtheperson wrote: »

The products that are eligible for "super saver delivery" and can be sent to Ireland can be sent for free to Ireland if the order totals more than £25

Thats good to know. Thanks !!

AlanS181824

rusty999 wrote: »

Thats something else I often wondered about, Lets say a parcel comes in and theres not enough to cover it in my account. Do they notify you by email ? I usually make sure theres a few quid in there just in case as I get frequent deliveries from them but I wouldn't like to think they would refuse or send back an item without giving me a chance to top up . I did have a major problem at Xmas when stuff arived from USA and was sent back without me knowing about it. That was a customs issue and PM dont deal with customs or accept anything with customs fees due on it. I know better now and wont order anything from USA using parcel motel .

I received an email from them saying this;

"You have insufficient balance on your account to cover the 3.95 charge for your parcel. Please log into your Parcel Motel account and top up."

I have since added my debit card for future use but there's nothing on the ParcelMotel login about this parcel.

The delivery with Amazon was standard Royal Mail so there was no tracking.

I asked them on Facebook and they seen the post and never responded.

Will have to wait and see I suppose.

nava

AlanS181824 wrote: »

I think ParcelMotel refused my Amazon delivery as I didn't have enough money to cover it...

They do not reject parcels because of that reason, the only reason they might refuse it is if customs is due on it, maybe item or packaging were damage, forbidden item, etc

AlanS181824

AlanS181824 wrote: »

I received an email from them saying this;

"You have insufficient balance on your account to cover the 3.95 charge for your parcel. Please log into your Parcel Motel account and top up."

I have since added my debit card for future use but there's nothing on the ParcelMotel login about this parcel.

The delivery with Amazon was standard Royal Mail so there was no tracking.

I asked them on Facebook and they seen the post and never responded.

Will have to wait and see I suppose.

Say nothing, checked the account there now and it's in the Topaz in Carlow since 6 this morning!

Not sure how that worked if there's no money on the account!

Checked my bank there now and they took out the €3.95 a few minutes ago.

Nice of them to continue sending it to the Parcel Motel even though they haven't got paid yet.

AlanS181824

nava wrote: »

They do not reject parcels because of that reason, the only reason they might refuse it is if customs is due on it, maybe item or packaging were damage, forbidden item, etc

It's actually in my local ParcelMotel waiting for me now!

Going to get it now ina sec.

thecivvie

colmtheperson wrote: »

The products that are eligible for "super saver delivery" and can be sent to Ireland can be sent for free to Ireland if the order totals more than £25

I ordered something using Super Saver postage, took over a week to be posted and was on the slow boat to China before it got to me and the seller was in the UK

thecivvie

colmtheperson wrote: »

Miserable shower of *insert derogatory name here*

I was 5 minutes late on Sunday night to collect my parcels so they expired, now I'm after being charged €3.95 extra as they didn't pick them up until yesterday to take it back to their depot to reprocess it

That's 2 parcels that cost me €14.90 (3.50+3.95 each) to get delivered from Amazon, and they'd have been free to my home address!

I know what I'll be doing in future I guess!

Bit tough isn't it. I always get a final warning text from them, At the end of the day, what do you want, the lad to sit there for an hour or two to see if you turn up. They have to pay a lad to collect so he ain't sitting there for nothing

The Pontiac

Hi,

What time would I need to send a parcel today if I want the customer to receive it on Monday?

The size of the box is 12" x 9" x 9", I assume this would fit in the medium size locker?

First time actually sending a parcel via Parcel Motel.

Cheers..

The Pontiac

Got an email back from Parcel Motel and they said 6pm to be safe.

A lot cheaper than An Post!

Usually use DPD, but depending on the size, this will suit me for certain deliveries.

BrianHenryIE

If an eBay seller says they only ship to the verified PayPal address will there be a problem? My PayPal account is verified and I've used it a few times with Parcel Motel. Do I just chance my arm?

innthe

is there any site like this, but which i send the parcel to UK mainland, and they send it to ireland?

Ardennes1944

I've a package that arrived yesterday morning to my PM, I can't get to collect it until tomorrow, will I be ok with the 48hour rule because it's a Sunday?