Stung by Customs

It's not Popmarket's fault.

They prolly have in their T&C's that any locals taxes are not included in their cost.

I believe that any item coming from outside the EU with a value (inc shipping cost) of over £15 will most likely attract an import duty and VAT charge.  Depending on how it's sent, it may also attract a handling fee by the courier/post.  There are a few handy sites that will work out for you what the total cost will be for any item you purchase outside the EU.  Note though that any handling charge is extra (IIRC it's around £8-10 for RM).  Add in the weak pound (all set to get much weaker if the new Governor of the BofE gets his way with £ devaluation) and purchases from the US are not looking so attractive these days.

Also be careful not to get caught out by so-called UK sites that actually ship from overseas.  There are a number that look like legitimate UK businesses that actually ship from Hong Kong or mainland China direct to you.  As such, you are responsible for the Duty, VAT and handling charge on import.

Thanks for the replies. However, I have bought from them before, quite large items similar in size and weight to this one and have never experienced this before. Oh well, take it on the chin, the money saved by buying it on the 24 hr 35% reduction has proved to be no saving at all really.

I guess you got lucky. I do note that HMC&E seem to be cracking down. 

My last Amazon (UK) purchase (Yes - Tormato) took the rainforest connection a bit far as it came from Argentina.

I used to purchase vinyl from a company called Red Trumpet based in the States. It was pretty random whether I was charged customs duty and handling charges. Cost didn't seem to effect it either. One time I spent about £400 and paid nothing another time about £150 and got stung with the taxes!!

I don't bother now and just buy from UK sellers.

There you go - protectionism working at its best. 

That said, I didn't find import duties in Britain that unfair when I lived there. A completely different situation from where I am now, unfortunately.

Had to pay the same amount for this item , also it's the first time I have been charged with an item from pop market. If I,m buying from someone on eBay I tell them to put the value as £10 on the customs form. 

The way i understand it is:

they only include import tax on the postage if it's special delivery (signed for registered).

Ordinary postage or economy class is not included.

Debs

The value of goods for the purposes of import duty and VAT should include freight (and where applicable insurance) to get them to the place of import to the UK.  

MDS 

Was caught purchasing Keiko Lee Jazz albums from Japan at an already high price. When I saw the Tax addition I refused delivery and sent them back for refund. Seems in the past has been hit and miss whether you are charged or not

. I had a good experience buying from 'All Your Music' in the USA via Amazon. Purchased the superb 50 CD 'The Decca Sound' box collection at a very good £77.00 compared with £89 via Amazon themselves. Customs then added £20.00 to the bill. I contacted All Your Music to see if they would contribute to the customs bill to the extent of matching the Amazon price and to my surprise the credited me with the whole tax charge of "£20 as a goodwill gesture. Needless to say they have received my custom many times since. 

HMCE can and will do what they like. Not to me messed with. You'll get some through and others will get hammered. Downloads have reduced my music import volume but over the last 20 or so years I think they've been pretty kind to me. Sometimes assisted by overseas retailers and sometimes not. For the most part, interception seems random.

It maybe random now, but mail sorting practises are changing rapidly [modernisation] with scanning bar codes coming on all packets which will automatically process all items for import revenue surcharge.

This is not so much a crack-down, it’s simply a business opportunity to make more money for greedy privatisation racketeering. It demands a service that is beneficial to big profits for greedy boardroom directors, and will create a worse and more expensive public service.

Scanning the mail is [in theory] more secure so an existing well established and experienced staff can be replaced by low paid part time staff who maybe far less secure but will be non-union, non-pensionable and very cheap labour, and contracted to be hired and fired at will.

But biger salaries, pensions, and huge bonuses for the top boys in the club…

We're all in it together!

Debs

Welcome to the 1980s.

Again.

Can't complain on balance with the charges I've been hit by to date. Plenty have got through. And my imports are way down nowadays and decreasing.

I regularly used to buy various collectables from the US and got hit now and again with what I regarded as totally unreasonable charges. The worst case was a model soldier, list price 30 bucks. I ended up paying about 60 pounds in charges, largely because the vendor had used UPS without being asked, and HMRC decided quite arbitrarily that it was worth more than the declared price. I was raging and started to appeal but I saw early on I was hitting my head against a wall so put it down to experience. I posted at the time and got a load of abuse for some reason.

Since then I've found it useful to develop a relationship with a couple of reputable dealers in the Far East and rarely incur extra charges now.

i have found it to be hit and miss too. I find i go through periods when most things get 'caught' and then periods when most deliveries arrive without import tax. I tend to buy stuff that i can't find here rather than because it might be cheaper.

I don't really object to the import tax, (well i do a little but death and taxes and all that!), but what really gets me is the PO handling payment. I had to recently contest a charge. The person doing it had decided a 4 was a 9 and charged me tax on $90 rather than $40. The correct value was very clearly on the document on the package. It was a real pain and a long time sending it off with the special downloaded form etc etc. I thought that if the PO were charging this handling charge then surely i could just take the package and documentation into the sorting office but no....So i feel the handling charge is just a legal scam to make money. The delivery is included in the postage, the handling charge is just the taking of your money. 

j

Hi Debs, I am a postie and you have hit the nail right on the head. Royal Mail will be privatised and will only benefit a few top executives. Everybody else will be screwed.

I don't see it like that. Much as it hurts, we should all be paying the appropriate tax on imports from outside the EU. The fact that previously most stuff I imported, and a significant percentage of all such imports, avoided this tax points to an absurd level of inefficiency from Customs and Excise. I see nothing wrong in them improving their performance.