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FedEx and UPS charged fees for collecting tariffs. Now, customers want that money back.

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Another legal fight over tariffs is brewing — this time, over the fees shipping services such as FedEx and UPS charge to handle the duties.

After the Supreme Court ruled many of President Donald Trump’s tariffs unconstitutional last month, some companies sued the federal government seeking refunds. Some, like FedEx, said publicly that they would pass along any tariff refunds that they get to businesses and consumers who ultimately paid them.

The tariffs themselves aren’t the only charges customers got stuck with, though. Shipping services, including FedEx and UPS, also tacked on brokerage fees and other charges to the tariff bills they sent customers.

A half-dozen recent lawsuits filed by customers against shipping companies are seeking refunds for those fees, too.

The lawsuits argue that the shipping companies never should have charged the fees in the first place, and that the shippers, not the government, owe the customers. In some cases, the fees totaled as much as the cost of the tariffs themselves.

The shippers “made the decision to assess that additional fee,” John Yanchunis, an attorney at Morgan & Morgan, a firm that filed a lawsuit against FedEx over tariffs and brokerage fees, told Business Insider.

The plaintiff in Yanchunis’ lawsuit, a South Florida resident who ordered a pair of tennis shoes from Germany with a declared value of $140, received a $36 bill from FedEx. The bill included $21 in now-unconstitutional tariffs and $15 in “FedEx’s customs brokerage and duty advancement fees,” according to the complaint.

Yanchunis said that his case aims to get compensation independent of FedEx’s lawsuit over the tariffs themselves. “Why should consumers have to wait for Federal Express or any other company to battle it out with the government?” he said.

At least five similar lawsuits, most seeking class-action status, have been filed against either FedEx or UPS since the Supreme Court’s ruling last month.

A FedEx spokesperson did not comment on whether the company plans to refund brokerage fees for shipments subject to the tariffs. The spokesperson pointed to a February statement in which the company said, “if refunds are issued to FedEx, we will issue refunds to the shippers and consumers who originally bore those charges,” though it did not mention related fees.

A UPS spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.

FedEx and UPS could face questions about costs in court

For average consumers, the fees became apparent this past summer when Trump ended the de minimis loophole, which had allowed shipments valued at less than $800 to enter the US duty-free. Consumers began receiving tariff bills from UPS and FedEx for international shipments containing everything from wine from Italy to camera lenses from Japan.

Some customers told Business Insider that UPS also charged them late fees and threatened to send their bills to collections as they attempted to correct errors, such as incorrect tariff rates.

Some of the lawsuits against FedEx and UPS argue that, like the tariffs themselves, the companies never had standing to collect the brokerage fees.

“Even if FedEx refunds the void duties, the brokerage fees remain unlawful charges for which there was no lawful basis,” the complaint in Yanchunis’ lawsuit reads.

While the US government has collected $133 billion in IEEPA tariffs — those that were ruled unconstitutional — it’s not clear how much shipping services such as FedEx and UPS have collected in fees.

UPS said in its annual report filed earlier this year that, despite having to adjust to the tariffs, the company “achieved revenue growth of 3.4%” in its supply chain solutions business, “driven, in part, by brokerage results.” Its brokerage business also contributed to the company’s operating profit, according to the report.

Deciding how much of the brokerage fees companies like FedEx and UPS might have to pay back would be tricky, said Adam Hanover, managing director of restructuring and dispute resolution at advisory firm CohnReznick.

Courts handling the lawsuits might have to decide how much of the brokerage fees were the companies’ actual costs and how much they took as profit, Hanover said. FedEx and UPS pay their own in-house brokerage teams, which handle many of the tariffed shipments, for example.

FedEx cited “customs-related brokerage fees due to the removal of the de minimis exemption” as a factor that increased its operating expenses in recent quarters, according to the company’s quarterly filing.

“You can really go down a rabbit hole on this one,” he said.

Patrick Penfield, professor of supply chain practice at Syracuse University’s Whitman School of Management, said that FedEx’s $15 charge on the shoes in Yanchunis’ case seems “somewhat excessive” for such a low-value consumer good. FedEx says it charges either $15 or 2% of an item’s value, whichever is greater, for shipments valued at less than $800.

The lawsuits are likely to determine whether those fees actually were excessive — and how much consumers could get back.

“FedEx is entitled to some money, but I think it was a little bit too much money,” Penfield said.

Do you have a story to share about tariffs? Contact this reporter at abitter@businessinsider.com or via encrypted messaging app Signal at 808-854-4501. Use a personal email address, a nonwork WiFi network, and a nonwork device; here’s our guide to sharing information securely.




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McDonald’s execs are figuring out how to handle more customers on GLP-1s

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McDonald’s is gearing up to feed a growing consumer group on weight-loss drugs.

In a Wednesday earnings call, McDonald’s executives talked about how the chain was testing menu items for more customers on GLP-1s.

CEO Chris Kempczinski said he expects GLP-1 adoption to continue to grow, adding, “as adoption grows, we know that consumers’ behavior changes.”

He said these customers are interested in protein-rich products, and that McDonald’s already has a menu of high-protein dishes. Vice President Jill McDonald chimed in with examples of McDonald’s Snack Wraps, Sausage Biscuit sandwich, and chicken McCrispy Strips.

“But we’re also seeing changes around maybe less snacking, changes in some of the beverages that they drink, less sugary drinks,” Kempczinski said. “And so all of those things are factoring into some of what we’re out there experimenting with and testing with.”

Jill McDonald added that the team has ideas in the works for how to better serve customers on GLP-1 drugs in the long term, though she did not share any additional details.

GLP-1 adoption in the US is on the rise. An EY consumer products expert told Business Insider last year that 10% of the entire US population was on some form of GLP-1 drugs. These drugs, like Ozempic and Wegovy, are known to suppress appetite, leading to users opting for small portion sizes.

And it’s reshaping the US food and beverage sector.

It’s not just McDonald’s that’s thinking of this growing customer base. Brands that sell packaged foods, like General Mills and Conagra Brands, have smaller-portion products targeted at people with shrinking appetites. Conagra Brands, which owns brands like Slim Jim and Marie Callender’s, labels some of its Healthy Choice frozen meals as “GLP-1 Friendly.”

Shake Shack in December introduced its “Good Fit Menu,” with high-protein, gluten-free, vegetarian, and “GLP-1-friendly” choices. The menu included three burgers wrapped in lettuce instead of buns.

McDonald’s reported a 5.7% increase in global comparable sales in its latest quarter, with sales of about $7 billion. Its stock price remained relatively flat after earnings were announced.




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Elon Musk says Europe’s biggest airline will lose customers without Starlink

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The CEO of Europe’s biggest airline is in an escalating war of words with Elon Musk over Starlink.

Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary isn’t convinced by Starlink, Musk’s satellite internet provider, which is becoming more popular among airlines.

For example, Lufthansa — the German flag carrier which runs the continent’s second-largest airline group — announced on Tuesday that it would introduce the service. The following day, Scandinavian Airlines operated its first flight with Starlink.

However, as a budget airline, Ryanair is known for its no-frills offering.

“We don’t think ‍our ⁠passengers are willing to pay for WiFi for an average ⁠one-hour flight,” O’Leary told Reuters on Wednesday.

His comments sparked a debate on X. Musk said in a post: “They [Ryanair] will lose customers to airlines that do have internet.”

In a subsequent interview on Irish radio on Thursday, the outspoken Ryanair boss said adding Starlink would cost the airline between $200 million and $250 million a year.

“In other words, about an extra dollar for every passenger we fly, and the reality for us is we can’t afford those costs,” he told Newstalk.

“Passengers won’t pay for internet usage; if it’s free, they’ll use it — but they won’t pay one euro each to use the internet.”

He then hit back at Musk, saying people should “pay no attention whatsoever to Elon Musk.”

“He’s an idiot. Very wealthy, but he’s still an idiot,” O’Leary added.

Ryanair and its subsidiaries operate a fleet of 643 airplanes, which handled 206 million passengers last year. 2024’s statistics showed that it was the world’s third-largest airline group, behind American Airlines and Delta Air Lines.

The Irish airline’s low-cost business model allows it to offer tickets as low as 15 euros, or about $17.40. It focuses on quick turnarounds between flights, charging for add-ons like sitting next to your friends, and on-board sales, including scratchcards and duty-free cigarettes.

Every airline that’s announced Starlink deals so far has included free in-flight internet for everyone on board. So, even if O’Leary changed his mind, it seems unlikely that Musk’s company would let him charge Ryanair passengers to use Starlink.

SpaceX executives also took umbrage at what they said was incorrect information about the fuel costs incurred by installing Starlink.

“You need to put [an] antenna on [the] fuselage — it comes with a 2% fuel ⁠penalty because of ​the weight and ​drag,” O’Leary told Reuters.

Michael Nicolls, the VP of Starlink engineering, said in an X post that Starlink terminals have a more fuel-efficient profile than other airplane internet providers. He added that SpaceX’s analysis showed a Starlink terminal instead increased fuel costs by 0.3% on a Boeing 737-800, the model that makes up the bulk of Ryanair’s fleet.

“Hmm, must be a way to get that down under 0.1%,” Musk replied to him.

Ryanair declined to comment on Musk’s and Nicolls’ remarks when contacted by Business Insider. SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

While US budget airlines have recently pivoted to offer more premium options under intense financial pressures, Ryanair has little reason to do so. Adding an amenity like Starlink would be at odds with its business model, especially if it were free for passengers.

Post-pandemic, more American travellers have been paying extra for more luxurious flights. Budget airlines have also struggled to compete on price with legacy carriers.

But on the other side of the Atlantic, Ryanair has managed to balance a spartan approach with financial success.

In its latest quarterly earnings, Ryanair posted after-tax profits of 1.72 billion euros, about $2 billion — a 20% increase from a year earlier. Southwest Airlines’ latest quarterly earnings were down nearly 20% year-over-year to $54 million.




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Elon Musk’s Starlink is adding 20,000 new users a day as it hits 9 million customers

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Moving at superspeed isn’t limited to SpaceX’s rockets.

Elon Musk’s satellite and rocket company has secured one million new customers for its Starlink internet in under seven weeks and is now active in 155 markets, the company wrote in a post on X on Monday evening.

“Starlink is connecting more than 9M active customers with high-speed internet across 155 countries, territories, and many other markets,” the company said.

In a similar post from November 5, SpaceX said Starlink had 8 million customers, meaning that its customer base has expanded at a rate of more than 20,000 per day since that date.

SpaceX, which uses a constellation of more than 9,000 low-orbit satellites to provide its Starlink internet connection, including to remote areas, is reportedly planning to go public next year at a valuation of $1.5 trillion.

Elon Musk, who founded the company in 2002, said this month that the satellite network was “by far” the largest driver of SpaceX’s revenue.

The numbers close an explosive year of growth for SpaceX. In a December 2024 progress report, SpaceX said Starlink had 4.6 million customers, and by August 2025, the number was up to 7 million.

Global web traffic from users on SpaceX’s satellite-based internet service more than doubled in 2025, according to data from Cloudflare, a cybersecurity company that handles tens of millions of requests between users and websites every second.

Around two dozen airlines have also announced plans to use Starlink to offer high-speed WiFi on their planes, and SpaceX has signalled it could soon launch its own mobile carrier service powered by the satellite network.

SpaceX has successfully commercialized reusable rockets, a feat previously thought impossible by many within the space industry, and now launches more cargo into orbit than any other company.

It has also capitalized on opportunities that emerged as NASA and the Pentagon moved away from government-only spaceflight, and filled a massive unmet demand in global connectivity.

Led by Musk, who is the CEO and founder, SpaceX is also known for its intense, efficiency-driven culture.

SpaceX ultimately plans to fulfill its billionaire founder’s ambitious visions of colonizing Mars and putting data centers in space with its giant Starship rocket.

SpaceX did not immediately respond to Business Insider’s request for comment.




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Watchdog sounds the alarm that PJM’s approval of data centers could leave other customers in the dark

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The nation’s largest grid operator is facing a choice — between serving more data centers or keeping the lights on for all its existing customers.

In a complaint filed on November 25 with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Monitoring Analytics, LLC, an independent market monitor for PJM, requested that the regulator mandate that the energy wholesaler only add large data centers to its system if all customers can be reliably served.

“PJM is currently proposing to allow the interconnection of large new data center loads that it cannot serve reliably and that will require load curtailments (black outs) of the data centers or of other customers at times,” the complaint read.

“That result is not consistent with the basic responsibility of PJM to maintain a reliable grid and is therefore not just and reasonable,” the complaint added.

PJM serves over 65 million people, including households and other consumers, across all or parts of 13 states and the District of Columbia. While it is not a utility provider, it helps move electricity across a service area of about 369,000 square miles.

According to the complaint, large data centers are responsible for higher transmission costs, as well as energy and capacity prices. Monitoring Analytics added that existing and expected data center loads already increased PJM’s capacity revenues in its last two capacity auctions by $16.6 billion, and the figure would only “continue to grow.”

The complaint also described a “Critical Issues” meeting among PJM’s Board of Managers to address the issue of data centers, but the board ultimately could not come to an agreement since “most stakeholders simply assume that PJM must agree to add large loads to the system.”

The purpose of the complaint, wrote Monitoring Analytics, is to make the board’s job “significantly more manageable” if a regulator could clarify that PJM does have the authority to “require that the loads can be served reliably before allowing the loads to be added to the system.”

A spokesperson of PJM told Business Insider that the company is still “going through the complaint” and would not comment at this time. The spokesperson added that the Board of Managers is “expected to act on the large load issues raised” in the meeting and “should provide an indication of its next steps over the next few weeks.”

Large data centers have been driving up utility costs nationwide, particularly in states like Virginia, where the “data center alley” is located. The North American Electric Reliability Corporation wrote in a November report that data centers are one of the leading causes of a rise in energy demand this winter, which increases the risk of blackouts.

The Trump administration plans to invest $500 billion to build AI infrastructure in collaboration with OpenAI, Oracle, and Softbank. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman told the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy in a letter in October that the US should add 100 gigawatts of new power capacity annually to stay competitive in the AI race.




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