DHL - being chased for payment - am I missing something?

[deniser]

I have a really strange situation which won't go away.

A customer returned goods to us by DHL. Returns are at the customer's cost as per T&C.

I received an invoice (didn't at that stage know what it related to) through the post from DHL. Not having had any dealings with DHL I rang them up and they said a mistake had been made and the invoice had nothing to do with us and we can ignore it.

Next thing is a bailiff's letter turns up with increased amount because of their fees. I rang them and explained the previous conversation. They asked me to email which I did.

Today I got an email from DHL saying the invoice was definitely correct as per the enclosed delivery note and waybill. The delivery note shows that we received the item - correct - and the waybill shows our customer's name, address and DHL account number as the sender and our name and address as the recipient. At the top of the waybill is a section where you can tick who pays for the delivery and this is just left blank.

I just don't understand how DHL can think we should be paying for this. Surely the sender who sent it (UK) with her own DHL account number should be receiving the bill? I can't seem to get this through to them.

Am I missing something?!

 

[Paul Kelly ICHYB]

Did the parcel come form outside the UK?

 

[1-4-me]

Deniser,
If the box stating who pays for the goods the sender usually pays. All you can do is again get in touch with DHL and ask them to put the invoice in query. You then need to get in touch with your customer and ask them for confirmation that they will pay the courier charge. All thhis evidence has then to be sent to DHL's accounts department. hopefully then they wil issue you with a full credit. It can take a while but don't let DHL get the better of you.

 

[gibby]

We had a similar issue with Fedex but it was from the USA.

Basically a customer returned a very small parcel and we got a bill for duty.
We explained to Fedex that it was a return not a purchase, but they bombarded us with letters & then demands from a debt collection firm threatening court action etc.

We wrote once, stated the situation but the hassle just kept coming.
We ignored the rest and they have gone quite, but I suspect they have spent more in postage than the money the were chasing.

If you don't have an account &/or agreement with DHL they have no legal right to collect anything.
Do ask them for a copy of your agreement!

There seems to be more & more firms chasing debts like this in the hope ppl pay up.

DHL have always been rather poor from our experience. We used them once and never again.

G

 

[OldWelshGuy]

DHL (or anyone) can not unilaterally create a contract.

Their contract is with the person who instigated the delivery, not you. Simply write to them recorded delivery and state that at no time have you entered into, nor do you wish to enter into any contract with their company, and that your only commitment to them was to accept delivery of a parcel sent by their customer, the one who initiated collection and delivery.

 

[deniser]

DHL (or anyone) can not unilaterally create a contract.

Their contract is with the person who instigated the delivery, not you. Simply write to them recorded delivery and state that at no time have you entered into, nor do you wish to enter into any contract with their company, and that your only commitment to them was to accept delivery of a parcel sent by their customer, the one who initiated collection and delivery.

I have already done this by email. I am waiting for their reply. I just don't understand where they are coming from on this one. I am just baffled.

The parcel came from within the UK so it's not a question of duty; just the sender's charges.

I am beginning to wonder if some kind of returns fraud is involved here and whether - just speculating - the customer has possibly opened an account in our company's name.....unlikely I guess because we had to produce lots of paperwork for our courier accounts but not inconceivable.

All I have is an account number. I think I might give them a ring on Monday to ask what the name is on the account.

 

[OldWelshGuy]

If the customer has done this then they have commited fraud and it is a police matter.

 

[deniser]

If the customer has done this then they have commited fraud and it is a police matter.

If she has I will of course report it but in the meantime, it is only wild speculation on my part!

 

[Talay]

Cease and desist or bill for your time.

 

[deniser]

Things are getting stranger and stranger. I have now received a credit note for £20 for unrecoverable tax and import tax......

 

[deniser]

Having done some further investigation it appears that we have an account (only an import duty/VAT account) with DHL which we knew nothing about and that a customer has somehow managed to get hold of this account number and use that on her waybill and ask for charges to be levied to that account hence the bill and bailiff's letter in question.

DHL assures me that:
1. no third party can find out or be given a customer's account number
2. the account number that has been given is only for import duty/VAT and cannot be used for shipping costs
3. even an employee of DHL cannot locate an account number for us on their system because we don't have an account for shipping costs

So who has written our VAT/import duty account number onto the Waybill and accepted the parcel for shipping???!!!

Anyway, I have finally managed to get through to them that something strange is going on here and they are investigating.

Has anyone ever come across something so odd?