British brands have warned they are being “doubly penalised” after DHL suspended deliveries to the US because of President Trump’s tariff war, which is loading extra costs and paperwork on to exporters.
The logistics group temporarily halted shipments worth more than $800 to the United States for business-to-consumer deliveries on Monday as it scrambles to deal with added shipping complexities caused by White House policy changes on imports.
UK brands that export to the US have said it is now a “major nightmare” trying to get goods to American customers and hope that other companies including UPS and FedEx do not follow suit.
William Church, joint managing director at premium footwear brand Joseph Cheaney & Sons, which ships products to the US, said the delivery suspensions were “yet another side effect of the uncertain and confusing environment we are in. It is a huge frustration for anyone who relies on this channel of trade.”
Walpole, the trade body for luxury brands, including Burberry and Alexander McQueen, said British luxury brands, which rely heavily on US exports, were being “doubly penalised as their most important clients in the US can’t get their goods sent to them”, while those who can will be slapped with 10 per cent tariffs.
Helen Brocklebank, its chief executive, said many luxury goods exported to the US were valued over $800, including bespoke suits and alcohol.
Simon Cundey, the owner and managing director of Henry Poole, the Savile Row tailor, said the suspension by the shipping companies was “detrimental for many aspects of trade between the UK and the US”. About 50 per cent of its total sales come from the US.
Sabina Savage, the British luxury scarves and clothing label where 90 per cent of its customers are based in the US, said she was “getting hit with additional costs from all angles”.
“We are looking at other shipping providers, but the problem is that we’ve built up business with DHL over so many years and had negotiated very good rates with them,” she said. “But at this point, we don’t really have any choice […] and it means absorbing more costs for now.”
A shipping expert said DHL suspended shipments to the US from Europe because Trump has “imposed the same kind of red tape and procedures that were previously imposed only on shipments valued at over $2,500, which requires far more detailed paperwork, stating exactly what’s in the package, exactly how much it is, the origin of the goods, etc.”
A spokeswoman for DHL said: “Effective April 5, all shipments to the US with a declared customs value over $800 require formal entry processing. The threshold was previously $2,500. This short-term change has caused a significant increase in formal customs clearances and, hence, has increased the workload for customs clearances across the express industry.”
