Whisky Idiocy or International Scotch Whisky Shipping Regulations 2013
Sometimes It seems that every single Authority out there is trying to make whisky drinkers feel bad. be it taxation , customs, silly regulations (750ml bottles in the USA!?). joy.
The latest bit of idiocy is happening as we speak and is changing the reality of online whisky shops, and making the life of whisky lovers worldwide a little (or a lot) more tough. If you are a whisky lover / geek / aficionado, i am sure you could have not missed the latest : whiskey is now being categorised under new Civil Aviation Authority regulations as ‘dangerous goods’, yes you heard that right. Dangerous goods. logical huh?
Essentially what this means is that whisky can not be shipped using regular mail anymore from the UK (using non-cargo planes), apparently some mail is transferred this way. This “can” sounds a bit logical ( you know, protecting your safety when you fly, and all that crap), but i really do not understand how come people can carry tons of “dangerous” whisky in their suitcases, bags, and rucksacks when they board an airplane (after massive duty free shopping, for example), without that being “dangerous”. In my opinion there is no difference.
What is also annoying is that you can send really dangerous stuff over the mail, but not whisky.
silly as it may seem this means trouble fro non EU countries such as the USA ( a big market i am sure), South Africa, and also the tiny Israeli market. Some online retailers have found other solutions that will enable them to continue shipping whisky with couriers worldwide, but that makes the shipping more expensive as well as making all goods go through customs, which makes it even more expensive. For Israeli whisky lovers it (almost) means, the end to online shopping, as prices of shipment are crazy and silly. If before the “reform” a package would ship for around 20 GBP (not cheap, but still logical), now according to LWF shipping tables, a single bottle shipping costs will be around 50 GBP, very unreal when speaking of bottles under 100 GBP, add to that 200% customs (which will then be compulsory) and you can do the math yourselves. paying X 4 for a bottle of whisky is not realistic. What do you know? being a whisky lover in Israel just got more frustrating than it was (and i thought that was impossible!).
i would love to hear your take on those new regulations. share your thoughts.
