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Courier company DHL disguises processing fees as import taxes, overcharging customers in an “unlawful scheme,” a new class action lawsuit alleges.
A nationwide class action filed in B.C. Supreme Court last week by lead Plaintiff Gayle Vallance alleges that DHL has been making “false, misleading and deceptive” claims about fees and profiting off its misrepresentations, reports CBC.
Vallance said that she paid DHL $98 to ship two books on fabric weaving from the United Kingdom, and when they arrived in Canada she was told she had to pay $33.16 in “duties and taxes” before they were delivered. However, after numerous inquiries to the company, Vallance, a retired school teacher, found that $17 went to DHL as a processing fee.
The class action claims that DHL misrepresents its own processing fees as government import and tax fees by sending email to customers with the subject line “IMPORT DUTY/TAX PAYMENT,” that advise customers to pay the so-called tax or risk losing their parcel, reports CBC.
“I don’t think anybody has any difficulty paying for taxes and duty that’s properly owing and payable,” Vancouver lawyer Scott Stanley, who is representing Vallance, told CBC.
“It’s when there’s additional fees that aren’t clear where people get their backs up.”
Stanley said DHL was already being paid to deliver the packages, and the processing fee wasn’t transparent.
“DHL was unjustly enriched by its conduct,” says the claim.
The class action says that DHL’s conduct breaches the federal Competition Act and “constituted an unfair business practice contrary to consumer protection legislation” across Canada, reports CBC. “DHL was unjustly enriched by its conduct.”
DHL spokesperson Daniel McGrath told CBC that the company does not comment “on active legal matters.”
Vallance’s class action lawsuit comes a month after a story was published on CBC about a Calgary woman who experienced the same shock at the courier’s “hidden” processing fee. After the story was published, a number of other DHL customers came forward with the same complaint.
Vallance wants to represent a nationwide Class of DHL customers who have paid DHL processing fees, and who “sustained loss and damage” from paying those fees. The class action is also seeking payment for “stress and anxiety,” reports CBC.
It’s not just courier companies that face legal action over delivery fees.
In the United States a number of food delivery apps have been hit with class action lawsuits over hidden delivery fees. In March, a class action was filed against Chipotle by Plaintiff John Dundon, who claims that the Mexican food chain adds a 10% “service charge” to delivery orders, effectively making its ‘free’ or ‘$1’ delivery advertisements untrue and misleading.
Do you use DHL for deliveries? Have you ever been surprised by the company’s import tax rates?
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39 thoughts onDHL Overcharges Customers With ‘False’ Processing Fees, Class Action Lawsuit Alleges
Add me to this lawsuit I have been charged many times for this “processing fee”.
I to wish to join the growing chorus of complaints against DHL over the additional duty and processing charges this company indulges in. I was recently charged $21.53 CAD on a very small electronic item that I paid $57.23 CAD for. I had already paid the merchant a $14 CAD shipping fee. I have contacted the merchant and warned them of this practice by DHL and was promptly refunded the amount charged by DHL. This company obviously thinks the cost benefit ratio of over charging out ways its reputational cost in the world of business which is short sited to say the least. This is the only shipping company I have dealt with that indulges in this practice and I too will be contacting merchants in the future to clarify that this company will not be part of our transaction. Additionally I will take every opportunity that presents itself to enlighten people of DHL’s current business practices.
I to wish to join the growing chorus of complaints against DHL over the additional duty and processing charges this company indulges in. I was recently charged $21.53 CAD on a very small electronic item that I paid $57.23 CAD for. I had already paid the merchant a $14 CAD shipping fee. I have contacted the merchant and warned them of this practice by DHL and was promptly refunded the amount charged by DHL. This company obviously thinks the cost benefit ratio of over charging out ways its reputational cost in the world of business which is short sited to say the least. This is the only shipping company I have dealt with that indulges in this practice and I two will be contacting merchants in the future to clarify that this company will not be part of our transaction. Additionally I will take every opportunity that presents itself to enlighten people of DHL’s current business practices.
Our Small business has been overcharged numerous times which we have had to dispute. Under the Fair Trading Act, we should not be charged duties to export Canadian products to the US yet we are consistently invoiced for hundreds of dollars!
Our latest battle is a charge for $2013.95 on Import/Export Duties for an item that is worth $1960 USD.
BTW: They delete your records after 3 months so that they can conveniently say that there are “no records” after you pay!
Add us in to the lawsuit.
Why does this story contain no information about how to join this lawsuit, or what the process is? It’s the most popular question as I’m sure it is with most other stories.
DHL charged us $50 for a $9 bottle of Ink .. that we selected regular shipping on to avoid DHL
my package was worth 200 CAD.
The fees were:
DUTY: 14.75
GST/PST: 31.27
Processing Fee: 17.85
I know I should have paid the GST/PST only.
Dont know how I ended up paying a total of 63.87 CAD!!
Thieves !!
I had a delivery from Amazon in Oct. 2017 by DHL and they asked for Import duties which were not on the Amazon order or shown on checkout. I complained to Amazon, the shipper and Paypal who all said they had no control over DHL. Cost me an extra over $8.00.
Include me please.
I complained to Dhl, Paypal, and the Vendor in France, and DHL acknowledged they made a mistake, and rolled back the fees I paid, but I lost alot of time and effort doing this. Almost gave up. So add my name to this list.
It caused me alot of stress and pain. Very disappointed with DHL.
They have records of my complaint. Should not have been charged this in the first place.
Add My name to this claim also.