I bought a 3D printer for about$190 on 10 November. 2 weeks pass and it arrives in my country, I have to pay customs. That's fine.
Then I hear that customs has chosen my package to be audited and I have to send proof of payment and various other documents. Turns out that Banggood.com's carrier gave incorrect information on the import tag, citing the value of the item as$104 and this incurred a heavy customs penalty of more than$200 which is being charged to me.
I have questioned Banggood throughout this process and they give me similar responses all the time, this was the latest reply:
"Dear Muhammad Cassiem,
Thank you for your e-mail.
About the order 56967234, we are sorry to hear that you have charged by the customs. We advise you to find out about the import regulations and tariffs of your country.
And sometimes the price on the package will be revised by our shipping carrier in order to pass the customs inspection, which is actually beyond our control.
However, we kindly inform you that customer is responsible for paying all customs charges and import duties if orders without a tariff insurance. Below you can find more information about our policies for the tariff(link removed)
We suggest you buy the tariff insurance next time so that you will be eligible for a refund of its import duties.
Thank you for your understanding and we look forward to receiving your reply soon.
Best regards,
Stephanie"
Which is essentially means "we don't want to hear anything its not our problem". It is their problem if they're choosing this carrier that has a well known history of FRAUD.
Their tariff insurance also does not cover customs penalties so that doesn't apply at all.
Banggoods carrier is Rong Yao Lu LTD and Banggood knows very well that Rong Yao undervalues items to pass through customs. This constitutes fraud and tax evasion. It appears that Banggood does not care.
Currently my item is sitting at the cargo depot and will not be released until the fines are paid. The order number for the package is 56967234. In the previous review I copied an email from a Banggood rep and that number turned out to be incorrect.
Don't use Banggood until they change carriers, currently they are doing business and protecting fraudsters.
After a bunch of back and forth with various agents they've offered a refund if I return the item or a portion of the penalty.
Here's the thing, the penalty has to be paid no matter what because the tax agent has charged me, meaning I can't import anything else until that fine is paid in full. Banggood has now caused me to be blocked from importing items ever.
Furthermore, the DHL agent has said that for the item to be returned the customs case has to be closed and it will only be closed once the fee is paid.
Banggood has given a feeble reason for not paying due to the fee being more than the price of the item and that is not my problem, they chose to commit a crime so they have to pay.
- Thank You! We appreciate your effort.
