I am a small business importer of cosmetics from the European Union, and I am not a customer of FedEx, but I approve its action. FedEx sues for refund of Trump tariffs after Supreme Court ruling It is only a first step, and there are lots of possibilities that there are no further steps. The public may snort that " this will only line FedEx's pocket and consumers will never see a dime" needs some fine-tuning, but it is more likely than not, particularly if small businesses are involved. Congress can pass some laws to bring some sense to the process, but not in time to do much good, and those corporations with deep pockets will be there in the lobby looking after their own corporate interests. (Around 60% of Amazon's sellers are small businesses.)
Trump's tariffs get knocked out - but the hit to small business is just beginning | Morningstar
To understand how it works with my contracted US-based import transportation shipping company is that it is, well, complicated, but while consumer relief is not a hopeless exercise, it is close to it. Don't hold your breath.
Here is what I have experienced, and I do not know if FedEx works the same way, but it probably does. However, probably the power is in FedEx's own company broker's hands if small businesses are handled the same way by any of the other import shippers.(UPS, DHL). Big volume importers can afford their own brokers. If they are very big, they ship containers full, which goes through a different process.
We, as small businesses, do not have DC lobbyists, upfront containers full, or funds to sue FedEx if they win their suit, and if they choose to keep the proceeds and do not pass them on to us or to consumers. We, the importers, have to pay the tariffs up front to the shipper/broker before we even have our product in hand to sell it, compete in the marketplace, and generate revenue to pay the import bill, the manufacturer, and operating expenses. That is why many small businesses have had to close their doors.
Once the manufacturer from which I order their products is ready to ship, they call the company that provides the best or only service to pick up the goods and transport them to the US. Since the imposition of tariffs on Liberation Day, in advance of their landing in the US, the transportation company's small package brokerage is in charge and declares the amount of tariffs and administration fees they will charge us, the receiver/importer. They demand payment based on their own interpretation of the various rules, executive orders, and laws right up front. Given the fact that the products we import are shipped by air and are small packages (we do not do containers full), we have little or no chance to protest the import fees and duties, and either refuse the shipment and return it to Europe, or take it on the chin. The shipping company, in the meantime, has its own brokerage operation to levy its fees and duties (tariffs) and then hands the whole shipment off to the actual US customs officials, who then rarely disagree with the brokerage. As with cosmetics, the Food and Drug Administration officials housed near customs also make sure labeling and content comply with US rules, regulations, and laws. If we clear both, they may be released to be delivered to our place of business by the shipping company's local trucks. The whole chain of delivery, at best, if shipped by air, takes a week from the time the order is picked up at the European manufacturer's factory until I actually get it at my doorstep. I have had some shipments take a month. I still must pay what the transportation brokerage department rules are due before they will leave with me or refuse the delivery and ship it back to Europe, because the fees are outrageously wrong. I then distribute the product to Amazon, my retail customers, or fill internet orders myself on a platform like Shopify, hoping and planning to charge enough for the new duties and fees that have been added to my costs of doing business. If we disagree with the shipper's brokerage, we can "dispute" the charges for duty as being wrong. We have had disputes unresolved since last fall, so lots of luck with that.
The problem we as small businesses, have encountered is even keeping up with Trump's ever-changing deals and executive orders, and the other is access to the breakdown of what the shipping brokerage has based their tariff charges on. There appears to be little consistency on the part of the brokerage agent in giving their best guess of what the chaos and constant changes are on any particular day. This chaos is a major challenge.
In any case, the transportation shipper brokerage knows what they ruled and charged and sent to US Customs and how much money they collected from us, the receiver and importer, in their own paper trail, which they pass on to the US government. The shipper broker keeps what they get from up front as a fee for the service.. These shipper brokers are then in a position to claim a refund from the Trump administration. At that point, if the courts approve the refund to FedEx, FedEx can choose to refund part of what they have charged us, the importer, for the courts to rule on which parts of the tariff charges are illegal duty assessments in general. If say FedEX decides to part with some of the court award and pass it on to us, then we, as the importer, can then decide whether to lower our wholesale and retail prices or keep the change to cover the past up-front costs. At that point, the competition and the free market rule. If we cannot compete at the price we need to cover expenses or make any profit, we close our doors, too.
In any case, the small business importer like us has to pay all upfront in duty and tariffs (same thing) and pray that the brokerage is also correct, or dispute their charges, or return the shipment, or go out of business with no products to sell. So far we have hung in there, but our otherwise successful business has been harmed and impacted by the chaos of Trump's tariff obsession
I think we have just begun to see the impact of tariffs on consumer prices. Until now, big companies importing by the container or like cars, will have worked their way through their 2025 inventory and now are reordering for 2026 projections...and these for sure will reflect the price hikes. 90% of tariffs get passed on to consumers.
That Trump thinks tariffs would take the place of income tax is nuts: The only people benefitting from this would be those rich enough to not care; the rest of us on a budget would realize that such tariffs are as regressive as sales tax...which mean everyone pays the same but even small change or more hits those who are counting pennies proportionate to their income the most. The poor and middle class would be screwed.
MUFTIC FORUM BLOG: The Supreme Court ruling on tariffs today? Consumers see a partial relief
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