Chinese drop shippers

[ZoneMan 11]

Some time back I posted a rant re all the new Chinese drop shippers. Today I was browsing some items and found this:

 

Shipping & Other Charges

 

This item is processed for shipment under the X-LARGE PACKAGE Category. All packages are shipped out of Hong Kong promptly. A tracking number will be emailed to you once your order is dispatched in the mail. Note: Should there be any import duties charged by the S.A. customs at the time of delivery, it is the buyer's responsibility. Every order is packaged like a gift, and a GREETING NOTE put inside. Custom inspections is by random, MOST packages will clear customs without any hassle. But some packages do get inspected by customs. Delivery timeframe is an estimate, packages can sometimes take longer to arrive due to S.A. customs inspections. ***ALL ORDERS GUARANTEED TO ARRIVE OR WE WILL RESHIP AT NO ADDITIONAL CHARGE***

 

Now I have several issues with this. For starters several "honest" BoB sellers are importing and reselling AFTER PAYING CUSTOMS DUTIES. These Chinese sellers has an unfair advantage over our local sellers by sircumventing duties. I also know for a fact that all items marked as "GIFTS" from China/Hong Kong are beeing stopped at Cape Mail untill original invoices are supplied (had a very bad eBay experience some weeks back - not blaming customs at all), which makes the the latter half of the statement above untrue. SAPO/SARS delay is CAUSED by the unlaw practise followed by Chinese sellers. I was informed by SAPO/SARS that they send parcels with proper invoices directly to local postoffices, but the one's marked as GIFTS/no invoice are held for inspection.

 

... just my 2c worth.