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Information Kuwait

Goodbye DHL!

DHL for the third time now have changed the way they calculate your shipment. I spoke to them on the phone and they have now started charging based on volumetric weight which means they’re now MUCH MORE expensive than Aramex Shop & Ship. Even if you deduct taxes unless its something very expensive you’re much better off using Aramex. To give you an idea of how expensive DHL has become, a reader just paid KD31 for a package that weighs just 1.3KG!

Until they go back to calculating based on actual weight I will be using Aramex again. At least with Aramex they don’t change their pricing structure on a monthly basis….

Update: I just realized something. DHL didn’t email, sms or call anyone regarding their price changes. They just randomly came up with a new payment system and expects everyone just to abide by it. Lots of people ordered stuff to their DHL mailbox expecting to pay a certain price only to find out they now have to pay triple that. Is that fair?

89 replies on “Goodbye DHL!”

but aramex facing a lot of troubles with the customs and i don’t know why !! my cam and many other goods r held in the customs for around 2 weeks without any single reason

i keep calling everyday and they always answer : still at the customs , nothing you or we can do about it

i’m using dhl just for important documents only because i don’t trust them with charging custom fees for 10$ items!!
i bought toy for 30$ they charged me 18 KD for customs i change to aramex from now on!

Yeah thats why I started using DHL, because they are quicker but now that they are costing around 3 times more than Aramex, I would rather wait 2 weeks then pay KD31 for 1.3kg.

31 for a 1.3KG box…must have been a really big box lol. But yeah I actually called DHL and asked the woman why they are screwing us over? I actually said why are you screwing us over and she was shocked lol. Aramex just takes to long and anything other than Aramex or DHL you can guarantee a large customs fee. Kuwait, the only country where you get screwed by both the government and the private sector 😀
And before someone here goes raving about the government, I just mean customs.

I’m seriously looking into collecting my packages from Bahrain, I’m just waiting on confirmation on custom charges. I really doubt it would be the same as what’s being collected here.

Damn.Just ordered the Cannon G11 from Amazon.Any idea how much that’s gonna cost me? I hope they don’t screw me over.

Oh no, can anyone tell me how to work out this then before i get another shock

16.8 x 13.4 x 5.5 inches ; 8.4 pounds

The “actual weight” charging was a big scam by DHL to get people to sign-up for the service.
Just paid KD 11 for a pair of sunglasses for pete’s sake!!.
It’s definitely good-bye for me too.

Wifi, i wouldn’t read into that too much, i was charged around $160 dollars plus for a pair of boots that weighed only 2kg but they packed them in a massive box.

I paid last week 173$ shipping for a 99$ gym bag.

DHL not only sucks, they are specialized in sucking and can easily win the award for the next century without competition.

We should all sign a petition and threaten that we’ll stop using their services if they don’t get their act together.Without us they’re nothing.

If only we can get organized and show them were not to be fucked with. This is getting out of hand and I for one am sick and tired of this BS.

I just paid KD 47/- shipping charges for a bike jacket !!!

I’m all in for a petition or something.

P.S: I only went with them after reading your post last Dec of how good they really are. Too bad no one said anything that it was only for Dec.

Aramex is suing the Government (customs) finally!

It is very obvious Customs has been trying for sometime now to make DHL the ONLY viable option for mailbox forwarding services ( DHL has a powerful Kuwaiti agent , Aramex has none)

Currently Customs is holding all of Aramex shipments, thus DHL price increase. I will not be surprised if Aramex decides to shut down its business in Kuwait if the situation with Customs doesn’t improve.

Like anything else in Kuwait, nothing positive will happen until matters get unbearably bad and some Kuwaitis protest in the papers or through their MPs, so the issue can get a lot of publicity and becomes very embarrassing to Customs/Gov officials and to the DHL local Agent. Other than that there is very little hope in getting back a (working) Aramex or see a more reasonable prices for DHL.

GO ARAMEX!
Seriously though, if Aramex decides to shutdown, you guys have no idea how fucked we would be, DHL can do whatever it wants as it wouldn’t have much competition.

3ad i just got a package from DHL that costs me 36kd for 4.6 kilos which DHL sum up to 5. madree that doesnt seem too bad for me

Regarding you update Mark. If we were in the US or any country with a decent law system we could have sued their asses for not providing notice. Unless of course there is something in the fine print they provide us that we have to agree to that states something along the lines of they cannot be held liable for any change in shipping charges which I am sure there is lol. Big companies tend to know how to cover their asses well.

Mark,
I hope you believed me now that DHL too are charging according volumetric weight. In fact all courier companies are doing the same.They will check your shipment actual & volumetric weight & will charge you the highest amount.

I dare you guys to boycott DHL or ARAMEX for an entire month! One month is more than enough to make them realize that they need us more than we need them!

Before the boycott starts, we need to have a realistic set of demands ready.

But then again, I doubt that this will happen because we are all so self-consumed by materialism.

RISE MY FELLOW PROLETARIATS! THE POWER TO CHANGE THE GREEDY CAPITALIST MACHINE IS IN YOUR HANDS!

…just ask Karl 😉

Hosam: It has nothing to do with believing you or not. DHL were charging according to actual weight and now based on volumetric weight. Simple as dad.

Regarding other courier companies, Aramex has always charged based on actual weight.

Ya rabi walla belsha

Ppl left ARamex when they increased their pricing o prolonged their shipping times + added taxes

They left to DHL which was supposedly faster and less expensive

Only for DHL to take advantage of the situation… very stupid move by DHL sra7a… many ppl will stay with Aramex now… unhappy but at least they know what will they be paying exactly

Why do we always start with something good and then it goes down hill? Why?

now we are left with what? I have ordered a friggin cupcake book 2 weeks ago from Amazon and Aramex still have it in stuck the Customs… what do i do? GO to DHL and pay triple the price and get it faster? Or wait for ARamex who is charging me 5.5 KD for the shipping + Customs + Looks like it will bring it on the first anniversary of me purchasing that book

You are right Mark. I got a mini calendar from Amazon that costs 19$ and was charged at customs 13.75 KD, plus the shipment, it ended up at 21 KD. Pathetic. DHL is not worth it anymore.

Btw, regarding Bahrain comment. Indeed I know people opened bahrai Aramex box and pick their stuff from their weekly

You guys complaint a lot.

DHL has every right to adjust the prices the way THEY want it to maintain the same level of standards they are serving customers today. If you want detailed tracking system, fast shipping, insurance on your packages, and good services then you have to pay more than your competitors because unlike FedEx, uPs, and most importantly aramex, DHL uses their OWN air lines to deliver parcels to Kuwait, and if you choose to ship with DHL Express rather than easyshop, they deliver to your door-step by 9 AM as opposed to FedEx, uPs, Aramex, TNT, etc.

If you don’t like DHL’s prices that’s fine stick with aramex (no one should blame you for it) but to go the extra step and accuse DHL of being “scam” or “sucking” this is where you cross the line, especially if the only evidence you have is “they changed their prices!!!!”

@desertsky:
I for one would continue to use DHL, they are giving me what I want, that is delivery to my door-step by 9 AM (tell me another company that will deliver to your door-step by 9 am) 🙂

Funny seeing everyone freaking out over here as if it’s the end of the world lol
Anyway, I hope many of those who suggested a petition, realize that DHL’s target audience is not you guys, ordering silly stuff over amazon. Their market in Kuwait is more oriented towards corporate companies and businesses, hence how they just started this forwarding services recently, and it’s not even completely through them, it goes through Borderlinx.
So everyone, please stop crying and move onto a different forwarding service, because this whole group crying that’s going on will get you no where!

@KA fan,
it’s a scam because they changed to actual weight to get customers to sign up – but changed to whatever fits their fancy (a random formula one day, then volumetric weight the next) without informing the customer.

@KA Fan
I don’t think your talking about the service were talking about. Since you claim they ship to your door step. Easy Shop Customers have to go pick it up themselves.

@KA fan,

you must be a DHL agent/employee or something?

what DHL is doing now is taking advantage or the customers by raising their prices. since Aramex(the only competition they have with this service) are having major issues with customs.

This is the biggest insult a customer can take from a company offering services. This is goodbye to DHL for me too.

Btw they only charge based on volumetric wight on big boxes. If its a small box(very small box) then it still works by actual weight, thats what i was told today at least.

I am totally in a fix.My aramex parcels have been sitting in kuwait for over 10 days on the excuse of customs and DHL is undependable in costing. What to do ?????????

DHL SUCKS BIG TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My wife got charged KD 23.770 Fils for 05 packs of LEGS branded Panty Hose. PANTY HOSE… I still cant believe it… I told her fuck it … with her legs she dont need panty hose coz they look absolutely amazing with our without it. FUCKINH HELL.. 24 KD for panty hose it aint even close to that price here in Kuwait

@Rotsu : that’s what i was told today, they go by whichever is higher… I think i’m still gonna use DHL for small orders of books, blu-rays, dvds, and cds.. .larger orders and anything else will have to go to either aramex or ushopweship….

so what about ushopweship or aramex or myus? which one is the best? how long do they take to deliver? whats the deal?

im leaning towards ushopweship? whats the pros/cons of it?

erm i got my macbook pro adapter yesterday, was about 2 Lbs and it cost me 6 KWD, i think that was based on actual weight and not volumetric. The guy there even told me it was based on actual weight and not volumetric.. Mark did you check with them again?

I’ve had a package at DHL for less than 12 hours, and I just got a text msg “Plase pick up shipment within 72 hours to avoid additional storage charges”?! WTF? Anyone else get this msg?

Help,

Checked this am and parcel had arrived in my postal suite and have just checked now and its vanished. Please someone tell me this is ok and it will turn up!

Well one of my parcel arrived in my po box speck cover for mac and guess what

Shipped weight 1.70 kg
Duty $ 1.65 KWD 0.48
Tax $ 0.00 KWD 0.00
Shipping charges $ 41.14 KWD 11.99
Total charges $ 42.79 KWD 12.47

This cost $32 to buy!

Try fedex..my company 4 accounts with different shipping companies(fedex,dhl,aramax,senator) and Fedex always gives us the cheapest rates

I’m sorry, but I don’t get what the hype is about. People who claim to be fleeced by DHL should get educated on how volumetric weight is calculated. If DHL only charges by volumetric weight, heavy items in small packages would technically cost very less to import. Who wants to volunteer shipping in… say, a glass brick, to find out? Really…!

All couriers charge the same way; i.e. by the greater of volumetric or actual weights. Aramex is no different from DHL or anyone else. The only difference is the rate per unit of weight at which they charge.

In any case, would it be cheaper to have Amazon or other vendors ship direct to Kuwait? If your answer to that is no, you already have a good deal.

Whodunnit you missed the whole issue.

he problem is that DHL was charging ONLY on actual weight and they suddenly changed it to volumetric weight without informing the customers.

Secondly Aramex charges based on actual weight and NOT volumetric weight. They don’t charge the same way like DHL.

You need to get your information straight.

Effective 1st November 2008, DHL Express will progressively update the volumetric calculation for its shipments in response to efforts to standardize the volumetric weight calculation for low-density packages.

In line with today’s advanced aircraft design and technology, it is necessarry for DHL Express to adapt a new computation in order to make efficient use of cargo space and to avoid over-bulking. By doing so, we can better streamline our operations and in the process, deliver the benefits of space saving back to our customers. This initiative will also encourage shippers to improve packaging efficiency by using more compact and environmental-friendly packaging, thus reducing shipment volume and resulting in reduced shipping costs.

https://www.dhl.com/publish/g0/en/tools/volume.high.html

Now that I think if it DHL is guilty in terms of switching the prices without informing their customers. In their defense though they never said charging based on just the weight will be a permenant thing so I don’t know what to think of this anymore.

Mark and everyone else commenting or reading this here.. I’m as pissed about this as the everyone else but these are points from the terms of service agreement we all signed up to by clicking on “I Agree” and paying the signup fee:

17. Customer agrees to pay DHL a one time Mailbox Setup fee, in the amount published online. Additional shipping fees will be charged as per the rates published online. All Rates are stated in local currency exclusive of VAT, Fuel Surcharge and Customs duties. All charges are calculated according to the higher of actual or volumetric weight as specified in Terms and Conditions.

18. The Shipping Rates, and other costs such as Fuel Surcharge, are valid until December 31, 2009. DHL may decide to amend the fees, as need be. Customer’s use of Services after any such amendment constitutes assent and incorporates the amendment into this Agreement.

This has been the case for me and all my friends so far… the higher of the two was payed, sometimes ridiculously higher if your stuff was shipped in a larger package or a number of larger packages! One of my buddies ended up paying more than twice the value of what he’d ordered because they were in 6 large packages. In fact to tell the truth I’ve consistently paid less than the invoiced amount online. Which is what we’ve legally agreed to pay.

Be smart about it, I’m only ordering packages of up to 8 Blu-rays or so, or a couple of cds, or 5-6 graphic novels-books to dhl at a time, especially if it’s pre-ordered blu-rays, or graphic novels.

Anything larger or anything I’m unsure of the size of the package of, including clothes I’ll ship to ushopweship.. I’d rather wait an extra week or two. My HD movies, books and graphic novels I’d rather have asap.

Unfortunately we all legally agreed to the points above and the rest of their terms and conditions:

https://www.borderlinx.com/m/pages/dhl-kw/terms-and-conditions

Just be smart about how you use their service and you’ll be fine, otherwise wait the extra week and go with the competitors for everything else you order that you don’t mind waiting for. It sucks, but that’s what we have to go through to order stuff online, could be worse.

I dont think anyone wants to sue them and it doesn’t matter if its in the fine print or not. It’s good etiquette/customer service/good policy to inform your clients of price changes before they order items and not when they go to pick up the items.

I wasn’t talking about suing them, I was just saying that half of the angry comments are just moot, because everyone agreed to those two points.

And I agree with you Mark, as a customer I should be informed of any change in the service I’m paying for, actually I think it’s a legal obligation. It’s pathetic that they didn’t, but is it really a surprise?? We’ve been putting up with crap like this forever in this part of the world, customer service is grossly misunderstood. That’s changing, but not as fast as we’d like it.

I really hate Aramex sometimes. I hate the way they increased prices because gas prices were over $100 a barrel but then when they dropped down the prices stayed up. I hate the way packages now take 2 weeks to clear customs.

But I do respect their professionalism. You get a feeling from them that they do want to do better and improve but with DHL you get a feeling this is a small part of their business, its not important and if customers don’t like something.. tough luck.

BTW I ordered two things from Amazon last night and sent them to Aramex. I would have sent them to DHL if it wasn’t for their new pricing change so they’ve already lost me and I am sure other customers who have accounts with both are going to choose Aramex the next time they order something.

Aramex are the most professional out of the three.. Ushopweship used to be great, but are quite lousy these days. I send my big packages to aramex because ushopweship’s tracking system is completely down, it’s been down for more than two months now. Clothes are usually sent to ushopweship because they’re slightly faster than aramex, and blurays, books, and comics to dhl. It’s a pain in the ass managing between the three, but I hate waiting for the movies and the comics, especially the comics.

Hell Mark,
I paid 11 KD for 0.5kg weight at DHL!!! they were measuring my package and charged me by volumetric weight!

Personally, instead of just indulging on the things I wanted, I decided I would only purchase stuff I “needed.” I decided not to purchase anymore cloths, dvds, magazines etc. because i really dont need them.
So if you want to be happy about the situation we’re in, then stop shipping stuff you don’t need.
Plain and simple.
And if you “need” something, you won’t be bothered all that much for paying a few extra bucks in the end.

Hey guys, i got charged K.D. 32 for a Canon Rebel XSi DSLR, i bought from amazon. The funny part is that package only weighs 2.2 kg. They don’t have any tax mentioned in the ministry’s clearance form. They say they have paid K.D. 17.5 to the customs, but don’t have any official receipt. They just have one paper prepared by dhl which mentions these charges. In my tracking account i was told it would come to K.D. 21. I am wondering why there is too much difference?

BAJS says:
February 8, 2010 at 10:51 pm
If only we can get organized and show them were not to be fucked with. This is getting out of hand and I for one am sick and tired of this BS.

This says it all. I am beginning a website. That site will grow daily with people who are fed up with big business killing the littly guy. How many billions in profit do these fn companies need? I will post this website in less then 2 weeks. I will inform the address on this message board. Then my friends, slowly but surely we the people will take back control from these money sucking greedy execs who want to steal our last dime so they can continue buying BMWs and mansions in beverly hills. Spread the word. From shipping companies to retailers, change is coming. Change from a president? From your elected officials? Get real. Its not coming unless we make it happen ourselves. One at a time, everyone who visits the website makes a committment to stop using the service, product, or whatever. This will grow exponsntially until those greedy fks are either forced out of business, give us our money back, or change their business practices with an apology that better be more then just empty words.

TJ

DHL is officially DEAD in my book, and there is no way in hell I will EVER use their shitty service again.

They actually stopped a shipment which had a PS3 game!!! Heavy Rain if you are wondering, and it seems they are doing this completely by random, just few days back I received 2 copies of Dante`s Inferno and that game has an M rating! and before that they refused to ship a bluray for the movie The Hangover!

I’m so disgusted and I just want everyone out there to know that DHL WILL BLOCK YOUR SHIPMENTS WHENEVER THEY LIKE AND FOR NO LOGICAL REASONS.
I prefer to wait 10 more days with Aramex than to have my Games-DVDs-books not shipped at all!

___________________________________________

Here is a copy of the Email I got from DHL

We have received a new delivery today to your EasyShop suite 0605-****.

Here are the details:
Shipper: AMAZON
Shippers ref: 1Z8V92A713960*****
Description: game – prohibited
Status: Prohibited goods

Unfortunately DHL employees don’t know English.Look to this one how he wrote the word “better”!!!!!

**IMPORTANT**

Confirmed DHL WILL NOT SHIP ANY VIDEO GAME that contains “violence”, which is basically 95% of the games these days!

Here is the E-mail I got from them…I have ordered Heavy Rain and Battlefield Bad Company 2 for the PS3 so I had to re-order them again using Aramex this time….120$ down the drain 🙁

I think Easyshop is following the Saudi or the Emarati restrictions on Videogames, for there is no restrictions on ((VIOLENT)) games in Kuwait.
________________________________________________

*Actual DHL Email*

Please advise us the video game name and description, also please note as per policy if the video games contain any violence we will not be able to move the shipment.

How ever I have requested easyshop to advise us on the same.

Rgds

John Fernandes

Visapak/Tcpc/Easyshop coordinator.
Tel : +965-22246500 X 3016

To be honest I have tried DHL and now TNT Worldshop and they suck! I thought it would be different than Aramex but guess what! they are worse!

TNT claims that you get your shipment within 3 days.. I got mine after 7 days! They charge more than aramex for customs – KD2!

There price might seem cheaper but its more expensive and very unprofessional in dealing with customers… the owner claims that if you do not use ur account for 2 months they will automatically cancel it and give ur spot to someone else!

I say stick with Aramex even though they are late sometimes… but very professional in dealing with your queries! Go aramex

TNT Kuwait is the worst company ever, they even made me pay 12kwd for customs clearance of an A4 paper….last time I deal with them

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