Madam, - Each Christmas in years past my brother in the United States has sent me a modest gift parcel.
This year, for the first time, a private company newly affiliated with the US Postal Service has impounded the package and presented me with a bill for the payment of VAT, import duty and its own administrative fee. The total runs to €124.44.
Failure to pay results in the automatic return of the parcel to its sender, with additional shipping charges imposed.
As the amount stipulated matches my weekly disability benefit, I find myself unable to meet the company's demands. Consequently, I am informed that my Christmas gifts are to be summarily sent back to the US.
I wonder if I am the only person to whom such a thing has happened at this festive time of the year. - Yours, etc.,
THOMAS HALL,
Meath Street,
Dublin 8.