Hello,

I live in the UK and purchased an item from a Thai vendor that cost around $1000 USD, and wish to return it.

I am a private individual and it was a one-off purchase.

I believe the vendor wishes me to send it via normal post and underdeclared and described as something else, so as to avoid customs charges. (It is a small item that could be 'repackaged' to look like something else, I suppose).

However I would much prefer to pay for Fedex or perhaps DHL and properly declare the goods.

• My question is: if I declare that I am returning the merchandise on the description part of the customs document, will Thai Customs give it a bye?

The fact that it is being returned should be easily provable, with paypal evidence and order numbers etc.

• However I don't know if tax byes on returned merchandise are given by Thai Customs as in some other parts of the world - do they simply tax regardless, especially when the courier companies are handling the goods?
• I have read also of an insurance fee and freight charge, will this be levied also on my seller, regardless?
• Is there any realistic chance of theft of the item if using Fedex or DHL?

I have returned merchandise to the USA before, and signed a form that went in the Fedex document envelope to assert that the goods were being returned, and had a scan of a similar form from the seller. The goods went through US customs back to the seller without a problem.

• Is there an equivalent for Thailand?

I have perused a number of the very useful threads on this forum, including:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/582182-help-how-do-you-solve-irrational-customs-duty-charges/

but cannot find information pertinent to my case.

Any help would be appreciated.

Cynics might suspect that a vendor receiving a USD1000 returned item described as something else of much lower value might say he had only received the cheaper item and not the USD1000 one.

Hi KittenKong, good point...!

However this gentleman has been in business for at least ten years and has a number of satisfied customers on another forum. Though it is my first purchase from him. Nonetheless, a good point, and well taken.

His other customers on the other forum grumble about the returns procedure too. A couple have had things get lost when returning via the 'normal post' route but it has constituted a small enough percentage of their purchases from him that they aren't put off.

However I can't risk losing $1000. Yet I want to try and do right by the vendor as best I can.