Air freight restrictions : Anyone else?

[websnail]

Just received word today that the Post Office and pretty much any courier have been advised by the Home Office in the UK, to refuse any airmail that contain printer cartridges of either ink or toner form.

The advice I've received is that stuff could easily be returned, disposed of or just take forever to arrive, if there's any indication it's printer related..

Anyone else had any input on this or advice... ?

 

[The Hat]

Martin will that include bottles of ink as well? :|

 

[websnail]

Martin will that include bottles of ink as well? :|

Hard to say... Problem is that anything that hints at being printer related is most likely going to get extra scrutiny so at bare minimum I'm expecting the odd delay.

The most informative article on the whole mess is here:
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2d8b3370-e5c8-11df-b023-00144feabdc0.html

The daft part of all of this is that printer cartridges are hardly the only way to do what was attempted recently so the knee jerk reaction seems pretty daft but par for the course when it comes to government at the moment.

Anyway, we shall see...

 

[stratman]

This was obviously a plot by Canon, Epson, et al to keep us from refilling!

/sarcasm off

Your article mentions "approved" sources as not hindered by the ban. Can you become "approved"?

On the flip side, what do you expect the governmnet and the airlines to do - status quo?

The world is being shaved by a drunken barber.

 

[websnail]

This was obviously a plot by Canon, Epson, et al to keep us from refilling!

/sarcasm off

... I was waiting for that, but lets be honest, they can't be overly unhappy about it..

Your article mentions "approved" sources as not hindered by the ban. Can you become "approved"?

Those are where you have regular shipments such as low weight, high value components that travel by air freight from some big companies (eg: IBM, etc...).

... So, unless I really up my game some, I doubt I'll become "approved" to that level anytime soon... What I am doing though is putting a consignment note in a document envelope on the outside from here on in, marked "ATTN: Customs" so they'll at least know what it is or develop an understanding of who I am with shipments.

On the flip side, what do you expect the governmnet and the airlines to do - status quo?

In truth, use some common sense... How anyone thought the current system was a good idea where items are scanned/X-Ray'd/etc.. at point of origin (if at all) and then trans-shipped further on... well, the mind boggles.

The other problem is that it'll be the honest folk who'll get the hassle... At the moment if you don't mark your package customs forms as containing cartridges/etc... they will probably get through.

... and yes, agreed that doing nothing isn't an option but I do wonder about how much is to appear to be doing something, rather than anything substantial.

The world is being shaved by a drunken barber.

Yup... ain't that the truth...

 

[jackson]

I fear the Western World is run by headless chickens - perhaps that's unfair;chickens are said to get smarter without a head to weigh them down.

 

[qwertydude]

You see then the terrorists will try to smuggle bombs shaped like letters and paper then we'd all be in trouble because the mail will just stop.

 

[turbguy]

Already done, with disease spores.....

 

[fotofreek]

no problem there - thank the lord for email!

 

[The Hat]

I sent some KMP ink + cartridges to the US not tens ago with a customs form and return address, it got there in four days unopened, so maybe if we're carful things will work out.

fotofreek no problem there - thank the lord for email!

The Email isnt too safe eider, the good lord will have to up his game..