UPS SCS South Africa (Pty) Ltd

My E-Type Jaguar starter motor arrived in ZAR on 18/03/2018 from the UK. I did not agree with the UPS calculation of Duties and VAT. I referred UPS to local Customs Tarif Schedule1/Part1/Section XV1, to a legal opinion and the fact that the supplier was not a registered exporter thus the declaration on the invoice should be in accordance with the proviso for items less than 6000 Euros in value. No response other than I just had to pay to obtain the part and they promised to claim duty/vat back. After more than 150 e-mails and nearly three years the outcome is: Over this period UPS confirmed on 04/05/2018 the refund claim was submitted but on 19/06/2018 UPS reports the claim was not submitted. UPS comes a full circle over and over again and on 30/09/2020 insists the declaration on the invoice must reflect a registered exporter's declaration in spite of my reference to the relevant Customs Schedule. Low and behold on 25/10/2020 UPS reports time has elapsed and no refund can be claimed. I have always responded immediately but often had to wait weeks on end for UPS to respond. Surely this should have been a simple matter to resolve. UPS will never again courier any item on my behalf. The E-type has recently had two new parts imported from the UK, by an alternative courier, all sorted within a few weeks. UPS qualifies for the worst PR experience I have had, ever.!!