Winnipeg man brings dream car home after tariff border battle

CTV’s Danton Unger has more on a Winnipeg man’s tariff nightmare being resolved.

A Winnipeg man’s tariff nightmare may have all been caused by a mistake at the border – a mistake that nearly cost him more than $46,000.

Pat Fletcher’s dream car – a 1968 Dodge Charger RT – now sits safely at home in his garage.

“It’s just surreal,” he told CTV News. “I feel just great. It’s just awesome.”

But this story very nearly had a different ending for the 77-year-old car enthusiast.

After years of saving, Fletcher purchased the 68’ Charger down in Texas earlier this month for US$98,000.

When he tried bringing it home the first time, the Canadian border agents told him he would have to pay more than $46,000 in tariffs and taxes.

With no way to afford the massive bill, he was forced to leave his dream in the U.S.

“It didn’t sound right to us from the start,” said Sarah Abbott, the director of operations at Border Brokers in Winnipeg.

While at a car show in Winnipeg over the weekend, Abbott said several people were asking her about Fletcher’s situation.

“It was just constant,” she said. “The news got a lot of traction with people, because these are all people who love those classic cars and there’s a larger market to be able to buy from within the United States.”

Abbott said when she heard about what happened, she knew something was off.

“There was definitely some mistakes made,” she said.

The Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) previously told CTV News a 1968 Dodge Charger may be subject to a 25 per cent surtax, referencing a code which includes vehicles manufactured more than 25 years ago.

But Abbott said this code would only be in effect if all vehicles in general were subject to Canadian tariffs.

“Surtax doesn’t apply to vehicles yet at this time. It may come in April, but it doesn’t yet,” she said. “So with the kind of trickiness of the wording, it was thought that that surtax should be used to put it back onto a vehicle, even though it didn’t apply.”

She warned this may all change come April 2, when a new round of tariffs are expected.

But for now, with Abbott’s help, Fletcher was able to bring his car home Tuesday—tariff-free.

CBSA would not comment on the outcome of Fletcher’s case, citing privacy concerns.

“It is important to note that travellers present themselves to a border services officer with different goods being declared and we cannot speculate or comment on individual outcomes,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

Despite this whole ordeal, Fletcher doesn’t hold any grudges.

“There’s a lot of confusion in this stuff with the border guards too, you know? It’s all new to them,” he said.

But he does have a warning for Canadians.

“Just be careful what you do,” he said. “Get advice from a broker, you know, and that’s the proper way to do it.”