They did put in a leaflet to tell me what happened and why the package had been opened.

But they didn’t actually seal up the package again. It could have fallen out, which I think is pretty poor.

ms spock said:

They did put in a leaflet to tell me what happened and why the package had been opened.

But they didn’t actually seal up the package again. It could have fallen out, which I think is pretty poor.

What was in it?

Bubblecar said:

ms spock said:

They did put in a leaflet to tell me what happened and why the package had been opened.

But they didn’t actually seal up the package again. It could have fallen out, which I think is pretty poor.

What was in it?

My wife has stuff inspected by customs and they used a Stanley knife to open the packaging damaging the contents

Cymek said:

My wife has stuff inspected by customs and they used a Stanley knife to open the packaging damaging the contents

Never had anything inspected this end, and I’ve been ordering drugs from Croatia* and everything.

*nicotine e-juice

A friend sent me chocolate from Germany once, and they decided to open that. The chocolate packet was not opened though.

Cymek said:

Bubblecar said:

ms spock said:

They did put in a leaflet to tell me what happened and why the package had been opened.

But they didn’t actually seal up the package again. It could have fallen out, which I think is pretty poor.

What was in it?

My wife has stuff inspected by customs and they used a Stanley knife to open the packaging damaging the contents

This is not good, but you can see how a mistake like that could be made. Here they slit it open, shoved a leaflet in and didn’t make any attempt to use sticky tape or so forth to seal it back up.

I get my packages inspected every now and then, but they always seal it up quite well afterwards. It is normally tins of tobacco, and they never open the actual tins to see what’s inside.

I’ve never had anything opened, IFAIK.

Hope that helps.

(Not quite the same, dept)

I had a suitcase opened by Security in the US.

In hindsight, I’m not surprised. I was carrying a few tins of maple syrup, all neatly packaged, and I’d thrown the cord from my phone charger on top before I closed the case.

It must have looked very suss.

:)

That is very poor form.
Contact them and make a compliant.

Then ask them about what they’re going to do about the “missing” contents….. ;)

Biosecurity is a complete joke in Australia. It’s a bit like sustainability. The word gets thrown around a lot, but most people don’t know what it really means and those that do don’t have anywhere near enough funding to implement it properly.

Opening parcels isn’t going to do much. There needs to much more effort in looking at international shipping. Things like fire ants don’t arrive in Sydney in a parcel. They come in shipping containers.

I had my carry-on luggage queried by the X-ray people at an airport.

They’d seen something odd in it, and asked me what it could be (they weren’t going to open it until they heard what i had to say).

It took a minute for me to grasp their description of it. Eventually, i was able to say “it’s a telescope”. It was the small collapsible telescope i carry with me – 25X magnification, and it fits in your pocket.

I’d never thought of how it might look on an X-ray. They examined it, and seemed to have doubts, but eventually said ‘o.k.’

It’s difficult to imagine how you’d hi-jack an aircraft with a telescope – “look out, he’s got a telescope! He might look through it and..uh…see us as if we were much closer”.

captain_spalding said:

I had my carry-on luggage queried by the X-ray people at an airport.

They’d seen something odd in it, and asked me what it could be (they weren’t going to open it until they heard what i had to say).

It took a minute for me to grasp their description of it. Eventually, i was able to say “it’s a telescope”. It was the small collapsible telescope i carry with me – 25X magnification, and it fits in your pocket.

I’d never thought of how it might look on an X-ray. They examined it, and seemed to have doubts, but eventually said ‘o.k.’

It’s difficult to imagine how you’d hi-jack an aircraft with a telescope – “look out, he’s got a telescope! He might look through it and..uh…see us as if we were much closer”.

maybe they imagined it was a collapsible bazooka?

roughbarked said:

maybe they imagined it was a collapsible bazooka?

That probably would have been o.k., it was my own invention.

After all, the Brisbane cruise ship terminal displays a list of items you can’t take aboard. It includes ‘flamethrowers of a military design’. Thus, Jamie Hyneman would have been fine, with the one he built for one of the ‘Myhtbusters’ episodes.

captain_spalding said:

roughbarked said:

maybe they imagined it was a collapsible bazooka?

That probably would have been o.k., it was my own invention.

After all, the Brisbane cruise ship terminal displays a list of items you can’t take aboard. It includes ‘flamethrowers of a military design’. Thus, Jamie Hyneman would have been fine, with the one he built for one of the ‘Myhtbusters’ episodes.

that’s an interesting twist.

I’ve had whole shipping containers picked out for inspection. Container gets delivered with a tag on it that you’re not allowed to remove to open it, you have to make a booking for an AQIS person to be there. Then they inspect every package as you unload the container. Plus they charge you a fee for the privilege of getting in your way.

party_pants said:

I’ve had whole shipping containers picked out for inspection. Container gets delivered with a tag on it that you’re not allowed to remove to open it, you have to make a booking for an AQIS person to be there. Then they inspect every package as you unload the container. Plus they charge you a fee for the privilege of getting in your way.

One of my tobacco packages got opened and there must have been a really girly swot on shift at the time. I got sent a letter requesting the tobacco duty before they would release the package.

THE BASTARDS

sibeen said:

party_pants said:

I’ve had whole shipping containers picked out for inspection. Container gets delivered with a tag on it that you’re not allowed to remove to open it, you have to make a booking for an AQIS person to be there. Then they inspect every package as you unload the container. Plus they charge you a fee for the privilege of getting in your way.

One of my tobacco packages got opened and there must have been a really girly swot on shift at the time. I got sent a letter requesting the tobacco duty before they would release the package.

THE BASTARDS

How much was it?

party_pants said:

sibeen said:

party_pants said:

I’ve had whole shipping containers picked out for inspection. Container gets delivered with a tag on it that you’re not allowed to remove to open it, you have to make a booking for an AQIS person to be there. Then they inspect every package as you unload the container. Plus they charge you a fee for the privilege of getting in your way.

One of my tobacco packages got opened and there must have been a really girly swot on shift at the time. I got sent a letter requesting the tobacco duty before they would release the package.

THE BASTARDS

How much was it?

Shitloads!

I ended up paying, per tin, what I would have to do if I bought it in a shop in Australia.

UNCONSCIONABLE

party_pants said:

I’ve had whole shipping containers picked out for inspection. Container gets delivered with a tag on it that you’re not allowed to remove to open it, you have to make a booking for an AQIS person to be there. Then they inspect every package as you unload the container. Plus they charge you a fee for the privilege of getting in your way.

• Northern English accent* “You were lucky!”

We used to send containers to Saudi. They searched every container we sent, they “re packed” them by chucking it all in un secured and loads of expensive stuff got broken on the truck journey from the port to our venue. Happened every time.

pommiejohn said:

party_pants said:

I’ve had whole shipping containers picked out for inspection. Container gets delivered with a tag on it that you’re not allowed to remove to open it, you have to make a booking for an AQIS person to be there. Then they inspect every package as you unload the container. Plus they charge you a fee for the privilege of getting in your way.

• Northern English accent* “You were lucky!”

We used to send containers to Saudi. They searched every container we sent, they “re packed” them by chucking it all in un secured and loads of expensive stuff got broken on the truck journey from the port to our venue. Happened every time.

Did you get paid?

roughbarked said:

pommiejohn said:

party_pants said:

I’ve had whole shipping containers picked out for inspection. Container gets delivered with a tag on it that you’re not allowed to remove to open it, you have to make a booking for an AQIS person to be there. Then they inspect every package as you unload the container. Plus they charge you a fee for the privilege of getting in your way.

• Northern English accent* “You were lucky!”

We used to send containers to Saudi. They searched every container we sent, they “re packed” them by chucking it all in un secured and loads of expensive stuff got broken on the truck journey from the port to our venue. Happened every time.

Did you get paid?

You mean did customs pay for the damage? No, no , not a chance.

We took to having a tech stand outside the port and stopping our trucks and repacking the containers by the side of the road.

pommiejohn said:

roughbarked said:

pommiejohn said:

• Northern English accent* “You were lucky!”

We used to send containers to Saudi. They searched every container we sent, they “re packed” them by chucking it all in un secured and loads of expensive stuff got broken on the truck journey from the port to our venue. Happened every time.

Did you get paid?

You mean did customs pay for the damage? No, no , not a chance.

We took to having a tech stand outside the port and stopping our trucks and repacking the containers by the side of the road.

Should have put a couple of boxes of playboys on top. They would have stopped searching.

party_pants said:

I’ve had whole shipping containers picked out for inspection. Container gets delivered with a tag on it that you’re not allowed to remove to open it, you have to make a booking for an AQIS person to be there. Then they inspect every package as you unload the container. Plus they charge you a fee for the privilege of getting in your way.

There’s a good chance it was a random sampling event. Unless there is a specific reason for checking a container, checking a few at random is the best that happens. It’s as useless as checking Spocky’s parcel. When the various authorities take this approach, you end up with invasive species. I’ve spent the past few years trying to clean up some of the mess that’s been caused by our current lack of biosecurity.

I wish there was a reasonably efficient way to either inspect or fumigate each and every container coming in. I can’t see it happening though. Driving the cost of imported goods up on the basis of saving our environment and agricultural industries is not likely to become a high gubmint priority.

Teleost said:

party_pants said:

I’ve had whole shipping containers picked out for inspection. Container gets delivered with a tag on it that you’re not allowed to remove to open it, you have to make a booking for an AQIS person to be there. Then they inspect every package as you unload the container. Plus they charge you a fee for the privilege of getting in your way.

There’s a good chance it was a random sampling event. Unless there is a specific reason for checking a container, checking a few at random is the best that happens. It’s as useless as checking Spocky’s parcel. When the various authorities take this approach, you end up with invasive species. I’ve spent the past few years trying to clean up some of the mess that’s been caused by our current lack of biosecurity.

I wish there was a reasonably efficient way to either inspect or fumigate each and every container coming in. I can’t see it happening though. Driving the cost of imported goods up on the basis of saving our environment and agricultural industries is not likely to become a high gubmint priority.

yeah, they are random selections AFAIK. I guess if you fail one of them you start to get picked on.

Last time I had a package opened by customs it was from Jamaica. In my case I suspect that someone handling the package had been smoking pot, perhaps even the postie.

captain_spalding said:

I had my carry-on luggage queried by the X-ray people at an airport.

They’d seen something odd in it, and asked me what it could be (they weren’t going to open it until they heard what i had to say).

It took a minute for me to grasp their description of it. Eventually, i was able to say “it’s a telescope”. It was the small collapsible telescope i carry with me – 25X magnification, and it fits in your pocket.

I’d never thought of how it might look on an X-ray. They examined it, and seemed to have doubts, but eventually said ‘o.k.’

It’s difficult to imagine how you’d hi-jack an aircraft with a telescope – “look out, he’s got a telescope! He might look through it and..uh…see us as if we were much closer”.

I suppose at one point it would have been difficult to imagine someone being able to hijack a pane with box cutters as well….

ms spock said:

They did put in a leaflet to tell me what happened and why the package had been opened.

But they didn’t actually seal up the package again. It could have fallen out, which I think is pretty poor.

“This is a matter of National Security, ma’am, we can open an inspect any package we like. But we don’t have the required tools or skills to reseal.”

I had some tea opened, but that’s it.

I’ve never had any posted package opened.. and I get drugs and anthrax spores sent in from all over the word.

they’ve never checked out my package either.

Arts said:

I’ve never had any posted package opened.. and I get drugs and anthrax spores sent in from all over the word.

The anthrax is probably unsolicited though.

ChrispenEvan said:

they’ve never checked out my package either.

Probably insignificant.

Arts said:

I’ve never had any posted package opened.. and I get drugs and anthrax spores sent in from all over the word.

Why do you need antrax spores sent in, when it is endemic in part of Australia?

Michael V said:

Arts said:

I’ve never had any posted package opened.. and I get drugs and anthrax spores sent in from all over the word.

Why do you need antrax spores sent in, when it is endemic in part of Australia?

I like to be inclusive

“AUSTRALIAN photographer Peter Lik has made history by selling his photograph, Phantom, for $A7.8 million — the most money ever paid for a photo.

The Melbourne-born photographer, who lives in the United States, can now lay claim to selling four of the world’s 20 most expensive photos.”

well done to him.. awesome work. I was going to buy one of his prints, but they are probably a bit out of my price range now…

wrong thread.. obviously..

Maybe it is so expensive because the print was laced with drugs.