Customs seized items australia, NEED ADVICE!

[stillconfused]

Originally Posted by ebaysucksthebigone

huh well it looks like your in the same boat as me... did you have that blue letter in yours ? please let me know how you go in the coming week(s)

2 letters from customs asking me to fill out their forfeit forms.

[ebaysucksthebigone]

hey got an update.... greenbeans.. thanks for the advice and yes your right im dumb for putting in any real names and addresses, but then again... how was i suppose to know i was importing illegal copies of disney movies they seemed like they were genuine when i purchased them from what seemed to be a legitimate drop shipper.

@stillconfused. i got the same forfeit letter. On behalf of disney enterprises co... blah blah.... it basically says to my knowledge you need to give consent to destroy the goods in writing otherwise legal action may be taken.

Im not entirely sure what to do know by the sounds of what others have said i should ignore this letter ???? dont reply dont do anything with it. However this sounds serious and the last thing i want is to be taken to court for damages. What do i do???

I was thinking of calling this person on behalf of disney direct and just setting it straight saying that im legit starting a drop ship business but if the goods are ⊗⊗⊗⊗ then they should go direct to the source not myself... id rather confront the problem instead of run away from it secretly makes me look even worse dont you think ? Oh and by the way greenbean i cant ignore the letter anyway because it came by registered mail so i had to sign for it at the post office before i opened it. So now they know i have it either way... i have to make a quick decision on this in the next 24-48 hours i believe.

If you or anyone else can help in this matter let me and stillconfused know.

Cheers.

[rsot]

You're asking for legal advice now - what you have been getting is info that has helped people deal with this IN GENERAL.

Now, and mind you I am just saying what I would do in your position, I would still ignore - if it ever came up to high escalation then yes, by all means seeking legal advice but I would not be signing my name away and giving info on anything UNLESS it escalates.

I know what you're thinking - it's getting serious but that's what these companies want you to think. Customs destroys **** on a regular basis - having your signature and name on file puts you in their system...and systems can cross-link so easily. If you were ever to go to court, any defence you might have on not knowing, etc. would be gone.

That's why lawyers say not to sign sh*t or make statements. The same thing applies here - forget. Yes keep your eyes open and Yes stop what you're doing (i won't say to go stealth because I don't condone this stuff) but in the meantime, shred it and don't cooperate.

Lesson learned. All the best to you for the future.

[stillconfused]

I shredded mine and put it in a plastic bag with the rubbish and empty my cat's cat litter on it. Anyone want to go through my rubbish??

Originally Posted by ebaysucksthebigone

@stillconfused. i got the same forfeit letter. On behalf of disney enterprises co... blah blah.... it basically says to my knowledge you need to give consent to destroy the goods in writing otherwise legal action may be taken.
Cheers.

[ebaysucksthebigone]

wow this gonna be interesting..... ill take the advice on this forum and see what happens, wont sign anything and will ignore the letter....

@still confused..... keep me updated on how things go regardless....

ill keep the forum posted on what happens on my end as i know for a fact this happens all too often and im sure others are in this or have been in this situation before.

wish me and still confused luck.... lol

[somo]

Do not sign anything from any brandname companies even they send someone to knock at the door. Just say you do not know this person or never heard of this name before.
They might keep annoying you for a month ( once a week at least) and They will disappear

For the Au custom letter. Do not ignore it. Sign and send it back to them. Once they recieved your letter to let them destroy items. They will stop sharing your information with those companies.

It works with me since May 2010 til now.

[GTB]

Originally Posted by GreenBean™

Well they are not so different.
First thing you did incorrectly was attempt to import foo-foo items and expect to get away with it. By the sounds of it, you even had your home address on the parcel. Doh!

2ndly you get notcie from Customs about a seizure AND you contact them? DOH!

3rdly you com to the forum in panic wanting to be bailed out. Ideally you should have checked here about attempting to try to import items. Why?
You could have found out several things to do to stop this panic.

If you import, never use your home address ( c**p in your own nest etc)
If you import have a import agent. They can be a barrier between you & customs.
NEVER CONTACT CUSTOMS if you get parcels, letters that are not what you expected. GO back to the seller & see what alternatives might be available.
Here's another one. DONT IMPORT COUNTERFEIT ITEMS.

AND teedon dont be telling Australian users how good Australian Customs were one month ago just because your foo-foo items landed. I agree items get through but you know damn well that since mid June counterfeilt DVDs are being seized in most countries. And these items come from China. So stop trying to persuade users it is OK to import foo-foo items

well said greenbean!!!!!!!!!!!! some people!!!
i watch australia border force and they seem to do a good job and take pride in their border policing,,im not experienced but i think aus customs will be one of if not the hardest place to import illegal things like drugs,counterfeit items,weapons etc,they go mad if you dont declare food for gods sake

[elscapo]

In these situations you should always IGNORE. If you reply, sign a statement or anything, it can be used against you in future proceedings as an admission of guilt. These types of letters are always phrased to trick people like, ohh we will probably leave you alone if you sign this letter admitting you imported counterfeit products, etc. In reality, in my opinion, this letter is the only way they can catch people doing this sort of thing, because for all they know you bought the items off a chinese seller on ebay yourself, etc. its a very difficult thing to go after everyone, but anyone naive enough to sign a document from a brand company is the one who is going to face legal troubles in the future.

Just my 2 cents

[imthatguy]

I finally came to the conclusion that 90% of this forum is selling China counterfeit replica bootleg goods on Ebay

[ebaysucksthebigone]

Update: Its been a number of weeks and no follow up letter from disney, things look promising

[Shambleau]

Hi everyone

I work in the "industry" and will share some information.

The forfeit notice is a requirement as the goods technically belonged to you so they basically need your OK to destroy the items.

The moment you are caught importing something you shouldn't be, your details are recorded as well as the suppliers ( whatever info was on and inside the package).

Whether Disney decides to launch legal action against you will depend on a number of things - mainly the qty of foo foo items you imported - if it was a small number and not what is considered a commercial quantity, you *MAY* have gotten away with it and learned a valuable lesson.

[TopRatedSeller]

as previously said once you sign it you admit that you impoted the goods.. if you ignore letter you can always say i wasnt expecting such a goods and they were sent to me by mistake (of course its foolish explenation but best possible) the other thing is how can they track your payment (if you paid directly to the company then yes its a problem) but most of chinese suppliers use forwarding agents who puts labels on their behalf and different name appers on the import label then the name of company who received the cash (you can always claim that they mixed your order with somebody elses).
Better way to avoid this type of confusions is use secure source of paymen - stealth paypal account ? use different shipping address, use different name - never reply any letters unless they just ask for value to estimate charges.
And the best way is not to import this type of goods

[funziggy]

Originally Posted by stillconfused

Zumba is on Customs hit list.

Trade Marks and copyright - Notices of Objection

Actually the link is for a Notice of Objection to the registration of a trademark. That is totally unrelated to customs.

However I don't doubt customs has a hit list. I'll ask a family friend at Xmas BBQ. He's been on Border Security a few times but won't appear again unless they pay him

[stillconfused]

Originally Posted by ebaysucksthebigone

Update: Its been a number of weeks and no follow up letter from disney, things look promising

I have received another letter from Customs saying that no further action will be taken in regards to the DVDs. And therefore the items will be released to me.

I have to arrange collection or postage of the items by contacting Australian Customs and Border protection service Sydney NSW Detained Goods Store on such and such phone number and present this letter at the time of collection.

I have 30 days from the time of the letter to collect them or they will be forfeited to the Australian Government.

Now, I wonder what would happen if I showed up asking for my items?

[ebayism]

Hi Mate,

Just let them destroy the goods. I have had the same happen to me. You see the $$$ and get all excited and forget, hold on these items are probably ⊗⊗⊗⊗. Don't stress, just be careful with your next import. NO ⊗⊗⊗⊗!

As far as a customs broker goes, they can be expensive, I use one but I import on a large scale LCL and FCL. I don't think a customs agent is the right approach unless you are a large scale importer, or (let me contradict myself here) importing over $1000 in goods as then you will have to declare it to customs and the paper work can be very tedious and confusing.

Just remember to use due diligence with your suppliers and check the Aussie Customs website trademark section to see if the item you plan on importing is restricted or not, although this is not a comprehensive list it may help you to narrow it down a bit.

Good Luck!

[stillconfused]

Thanks mate.

I had actually forgotten about it and assumed that they would have destroyed them ages ago. I'm not looking to import anything for a while. I'll be happy to just sell what I have and think about other avenues for making a little extra $.

[ebaysucksthebigone]

Update: I too was given this letter after a number of weeks and they basically said the items will be released to me i guess because i never admitted anything and didnt sign anything its probably a law to protect my goods i dont know, however the letter said to call them to either pick up the goods or they can post them out to me. I called them and said to post my goods out, which they did AT NO CHARGE... weird.. i have my goods.....

Anyway why did it turn up like this ? was this whole thing a scare tactic ? or did i just get away with it because it was a small quantity ?

Again i wont be importing for a while as well... cheers.

[stillconfused]

Same thing happened to me.

Perhaps it's a legal thing, they need your permission to destroy the items and if they don't receive it, they have to hand them over.

I have no idea, just guessing.

But if you, or anyone else in Australia, intend to import products, you might want to read this article.

Customs cracking down on eBay, online store purchases entering Australia - online shopping - PC World Australia

[zjnkzjen]

Australia faced a lot of disaster in the past, the main reason why your custom is strict is ECOLOGY ....

Try go to the customs department, with a possible Invoice, amount paid and what the items are and what they might be made of. Talk to them and try providing them your contact information or even business information.

They might release the goods if it is your first time and pay something on your goods imported. Must be they want some income :P

Goodluck mate with your stuff

[marcell]

I also had package seized by au customs 10 days ago. It was sent to Bo Box with a @@@@ name. I ignored the custom letter and now got a letter from the trademark owners...asking me to fill forms, sing them etc....saying this is serious matter...

I'm planning just to ignore this letter, as the seized package only contained 20 pcs. Is this the best thing to do?

Would they go as far as finding out the real owner of the post box? Does this matter as the package had @@@@ name on it?

Should I sent the letter back and say I do not know this person or is the best thing just to ignore it?

[unkown5454]

Read the forums regarding this issue. There is much information. Do not respond to them.