Royal Mail Confiscating & Destroying Stoves?

Discussion in 'Stove Forum' started by Paraffin Cyclist, Apr 28, 2013.

  1. Paraffin Cyclist

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    Greetings --- I'm from the USA and recently won an auction on ebay UK for a 1934 Primus 96 with a soldered-on clamp for mounting on a bicycle, which is being posted to me via Royal Mail signed-for delivery. It has been more than 10 days, and the package has not yet arrived. Normally this would not trouble me in the least, but whilst looking at another ebay UK stove auction the seller states that (no doubt due to the recent Boston Marathon incident) Royal Mail is now confiscating all pressure stoves entrusted to it, and destroying them without compensation. Does anyone here know this to in fact now be the case? If it is true, then it is indeed a sad day for the hobby. :-({|=

    I will certainly report back to Spiritburner as to my personal experience, whether or not the stove arrives.

    Cheerio,

    Peter
    Paraffin Cyclist
     
  2. Paraffin Cyclist

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    Note: There are now several listings from ebay UK sellers stating Royal Mail is destroying stoves...

    One auction quote: "PLEASE NOTE.DUE TO ROYAL MAIL BEING BLOODYMINDED AND CONFISCATING AND DESTROYING THESE ITEMS I PREFER TO SEND THIS TYPE OF ITEM BY RECOGNISED AND RELIABLE COURIERS."

    Peter
    Paraffin Cyclist
     
  3. Spiritburner

    Spiritburner Admin SotM Winner Subscriber

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    Post office counter staff are now questioning re contents of parcels & will be refusing to accept vintage liquid fuelled stoves in case of fuel residue. Not new regs - rather tighening up of existing ones I believe & part of an international agreement. From this summer the same question will apply to internal parcels, which can also travel by air. Nowt to do with Boston.

    I've a parcel of stoves etc I'm packing for Sweden - it won't be going Royal Mail.
     
  4. Paraffin Cyclist

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    Thank you, Chief, for the kind and informative response. I've written to a couple of ebay UK sellers and asked them if they could tell me of any direct experiences they've had with Royal Mail confiscating and/or destroying stoves. Still waiting for responses, and will relay any pertinent ones here.

    Cheerio,

    Peter
    Paraffin Cyclist
     
  5. Paraffin Cyclist

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    This just in from a kindly ebay seller...

    Peter
    Paraffin Cyclist
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jul 2, 2015
  6. Vintagetwinshock

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    Hi,

    Last year, I sent an Optimus 324 rider to Thailand, this was an ebay sale & it was diverted onto a surface carrier resulting in a 3 month transit time during which the recipient became very irate. Fortunately common sense prevailed & he was thankful to receive the stove.

    Transit of fuel stoves by air is a problem owing to international aviation regulations, I have heard that backpackers are recommended to take a seperate fuel bottle type stove (MSR XGK &c) without a fuel bottle & buy one at their destination together with stove fuel. Even the airlines can refuse your stove in passenger luggage.

    If this situation with Royal Mail is true, I would urge those affected to file for compensation & force the issue. They cannot be allowed to get away with it. If enough people make claims, it shouldn't be long before an announcement appears on their website.

    Meanwhile, it's important to post your experiences on this site so others are kept informed.

    John

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    If in doubt, brew up.
     
  7. boknasild

    boknasild Subscriber

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    Hello
    Have received two stoves from UK this spring. One a Primus 210 tank took 1 month to cross the North Sea. When it arrived the package was torn and the paperwork indicated that it came from Belfast. But there was included a letter from Royal Mail where they excused themselves and telling me that an old brass stove can be dangerous to aircraft.
    The other stove was a Opt 8R.And it arrived just after 5 days With Royal Mail.Incredible.
    brgds Bjørn
     
  8. yonadav

    yonadav Subscriber

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    1. I received one stove from the UK that was diverted by RM from air to surface, and took 13 (yes, thirteen) months to arrive. The package was badly mutilated, but the stove survived. That was 2 years ago.

    2. The airlines (IATA) regulations for flying with liquid pressure stove require that the tank be drained and flushed with some non-volatile liquid, like water or cooking oil. After that, a stove can be flown in either checked baggage or carry-on pack.

    3. having read the recent news on RM practices, and since I cannot afford the price of couriers like Fedex or DHL, I am not going to risk buying any more stoves from the UK. Sad.

    4. I keep wondering how these same stoves do not pose a hazard to the Fedex and DHL aircraft flying from the UK, not to mention all other 150 countries that do not consider stoves hazardous.

    Yonadav
     
  9. Sparky

    Sparky Subscriber

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    And you Brits wonder why we Americans don't trust our own government! Can the Royal Mail cite one example of a disaster related to a partially fueled stove going thru the mail? Do we have an instrument of mail destruction? :shock:
     
  10. Shed-man

    Shed-man R.I.P.

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    I will not use RM anymore for stoves, lamps, or any parts of the same :thumbdown: :thumbdown: . I now use courier services and find that they are so much better :thumbup: . A good tip :!: it is very much safer if you use a courier service that has interests (business) in both despatch and recipient countries, this way they know their way around the local legislation. The bigger couriers also have their own cargo aircraft, so there is no risk to passengers, so this is another safety factor taken out of the equation. I can certainly recommend Fedex and UPS from UK. Good luck with your mailing - Steve.
     
  11. jbf

    jbf Subscriber

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    Received a stove the 25th from the UK royal mail came air. Issue seems to do with a pressure vessel and flying Have asked sellers to remove fuel cap when posting ,forgot this time.Received a Kerosene lamp from across the country about 10 days before may have had half a tank of fuel when mailed.Unfortunately it did not stay in the tank. ](*,)
    Not good news if this is happening, was often cheaper to buy Stoves in the UK or even Germany because of sellers charging more from the US.
    thanks for the heads up
    john
     
  12. pau-i-amor

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    I'm complete agree with you, Steve. ;)
     
  13. Jeopardy

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    Can't wait for RM to be privatised! :^o :^o or do I mean :D/ :D/ ? Only time will tell.

    Regards
    John
     
  14. Paraffin Cyclist

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    Well, my 96 stove arrived today in the original shipping box from the seller, which was stuffed inside a Royal Mail pouch. The box had been sliced open, but all the contents were present and neatly repacked into the Primus tin. A form letter entitled, "ROYAL MAIL Security Screening --- Suspect Item" stated that the parcel had been opened after having been x-rayed because "in this instance the contents of this parcel resembled certain items classified as dangerous or prohibited goods. For more info visit: www.royalmail.com/prohibitedgoods."

    Okay, so I lucked out this time and am glad for it, but I'm not so myopic that I'm jumping up and down and saying, "Goodie for me!" Rather, I feel the sigh of relief as one who has just dodged a bullet. But even more, I feel terrible for those UK sellers who've had their goods destroyed.

    Additionally, since virtually all the stoves I buy are from the UK (not b/c of lower prices there but b/c that's where the neat, old, pre-war stoves with cycle clips come from), it now means either rolling the dice w/ RM [doubt I or any informed seller would ever risk it] or paying a premium for FedEx, UPS or another courier. Even worse, I suspect that, in the near future, if there is no change in RM policy and as horror stories circulate, only the more regular and savvy UK stove sellers will be willing to deal with international shipments of pressure stoves. Not a good day for the hobby or for friendly commerce with our friends from across the pond.

    All the best,

    Peter
    Paraffin Cyclist
     
  15. Trojandog

    Trojandog United Kingdom Subscriber

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    One of the problems is that stoves and lamps are not listed as prohibited items by RM. But, they catch you on a clause at the bottom:

    "We reserve the right to refuse any other item banned by law or that in our opinion may be harmful or dangerous to our customers or employees. If you send dangerous goods and do not comply with the applicable terms and conditions and legal requirements then we may deal with the goods as we see fit including destroying or disposing of the relevant goods." (My emphasis).

    So even if the item being sent is not listed as banned, they can still choose to destroy it!

    A possible way round it would be to completely dismantle a stove into it's component parts, in the hope that the screeners don't recognise it as a stove?

    Terry
     
  16. rik_uk3

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    I'm with shedman, use a courier service. There is not a lot of difference in pricing, they pick the parcel up and it gets there fast. RM talk is common here but I just can't see why any of us still send stoves via RM.

    I feel for Yon, just did a quick price check and a parcel to Israel £68, same parcel to the USA £34.
     
  17. Vintagetwinshock

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    Hi,

    I'm definitely with Terry Trojandog) on this one, previous stoves which I've sent had 'No fuel' stated on the declaration together with it's contents, dismantling a stove is certainly a good idea, provided the burner tube &c can be removed from the fount & the stove is of a type which can be dismantled, Primus/Optimus #1 & #5 types originally came in their boxes complete, are senders of these items going to have them converted to removeable legs by a master fettler prior to shipment?, could be a good sideline for the likes of Stu (Loco7stove) in the coming months. :?:

    Last nights despatches programme showed secret footage obtained within a private courier, it was shocking to see parcels falling off conveyor belts, employees throwing packages, some marked fragile, even broken packages were placed in one corner of a building for disposal with the attendant free for all of goods going out the back door, many to end up on ebay.

    Seriously, are we to entrust our goods to these companies with such a track record?, people want reassurances, yet we have to use these couriers on account of RM.

    I throw open this post to RM to post a statement regarding this situation.

    John

    -----------------------
    If in doubt, brew up.
     
  18. threedots New Zealand

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    :-k Couldn't RM have a system where a sender could pack the stove in front of a RM employee; who could then mark the item as having been checked and declared safe and free from any dangerous substance - before posting?
    Shouldn't take too much effort or expense to set up and provide that service. John
     
  19. teletim

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    That's what I use to do Terry when I sold on stoves,and mark the parcel as Brass Ornament or just Ornament,seemed to fool them.
    Only ever had one sent back which was on it's way to Bulgaria.
     
  20. teletim

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