Working for the Yankee Dollar - US Chandlery prices

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Ravi

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Does anyone know why the US chandlery prices are so much lower than UK prices?
I often get Google search results and observe that this site ... www.defender.com ... is often half the price of the cheapest UK supplier.

I am looking for an electronic thingamajig and it is £280 on this site and £430 at the cheapest outlet in the UK.

I am aware that anything shipped from the US can have customs duty slapped on it so buying from across the pond is a game of roulette. I would also be wary about the problems with warranties etc.

But we are meant to have "free trade" so it does seem strange that the prices over there can be so much lower, though. It has occurred to me that a start of season shopping spree could justify the expense of a flight to New York + the cost of an empty suitcase!

Are we just being ripped off in Europe or is there some other explanation?

Rav
 
Ravi said:
Does anyone know why the US chandlery prices are so much lower than UK prices?
I often get Google search results and observe that this site ... www.defender.com ... is often half the price of the cheapest UK supplier.
I am looking for an electronic thingamajig and it is £280 on this site and £430 at the cheapest outlet in the UK.
I am aware that anything shipped from the US can have customs duty slapped on it so buying from across the pond is a game of roulette. I would also be wary about the problems with warranties etc.
But we are meant to have "free trade" so it does seem strange that the prices over there can be so much lower, though. It has occurred to me that a start of season shopping spree could justify the expense of a flight to New York + the cost of an empty suitcase!

Are we just being ripped off in Europe or is there some other explanation?
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Well covered elsewhere. For example, see here: http://www.ybw.com/forums/showthread.php?383106-Marine-electronics-unreasonably-expensive
 
Just a note for anyone interested in my recent experience with small packages from overseas:
In the past I've found that such packages often escape VAT/duty when delivered by Royal Mail, but that taxes are always levied if delivery is made by an independent carrier.
The other day I received a Royal Mail package from the far east containing a small electrical item value around £4: no taxes were levied, despite the fact that it had been opened and, presumably, examined.
I know that it had been opened because inside was a notice about another package, from the US, value around £20, which was retained until charges were paid. The charges were £4.26 VAT plus an £8 handling fee. It was well worth paying this since so far as I know the item is unavailable in the UK at any price.

Not exactly a significant sample, I know, but maybe helpful to be aware of.
 
With some equipment, there are certification issues. Anything that transmits a radio signal (e.g. VHF, AIS transponder) may actually not be legal to use in the UK if bought from the USA. I don't suppose you'd be likely to be challenged, but it's worth bearing in mind.
 
Ravi said:
But we are meant to have "free trade" so it does seem strange that the prices over there can be so much lower, though. It has occurred to me that a start of season shopping spree could justify the expense of a flight to New York + the cost of an empty suitcase!

Are we just being ripped off in Europe or is there some other explanation?

Rav
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Prices in the US are always cheaper. A decade or two ago, the Japanese public raised an outcry because Japanese cameras were much, much cheaper (in the US) than the Japanese could by them for at home. For my part I think the most disgusting example is with regional coding of digital media, to allow the largely US media companies to sell to the rest of the world at a higher price. DVD rippers unite!
 
Ravi said:
Does anyone know why the US chandlery prices are so much lower than UK prices?
I often get Google search results and observe that this site ... www.defender.com ... is often half the price of the cheapest UK supplier.

I am looking for an electronic thingamajig and it is £280 on this site and £430 at the cheapest outlet in the UK.

I am aware that anything shipped from the US can have customs duty slapped on it so buying from across the pond is a game of roulette. I would also be wary about the problems with warranties etc.

But we are meant to have "free trade" so it does seem strange that the prices over there can be so much lower, though. It has occurred to me that a start of season shopping spree could justify the expense of a flight to New York + the cost of an empty suitcase!

Are we just being ripped off in Europe or is there some other explanation?

Rav
Click to expand...

Here's a thought, couldn't you get it shipped to somone in the Channel Islands and pop over there to pick the stuff up? It's VAT free there so, surely tax free? I guess this is a bit smugly, but imagine the thrill of walking in those footsteps.

Thinking there might be something in this now....there are loads of offshore trust bods facing issues since our government started forcing them to inform on their clients (bye bye confidentiality, hello police state).
 
I've bought from Defender in the past, and got stuck with a VAT bill when it arrived, but as it was half UK price in the first place, it was still a deal worth doing. Incidentally the delivery was very quick and not expensive compared with some UK mail order suppliers who, I suspect, quote low item prices then try and catch some profit on P&P.
 
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Free trade? not from outside of the EU. We have to pay some fairly steep duty rates for anything entering Europe, same for shipping from US you will pay duty and of course vat as well as shipping and clearance fee to meet with all the legal requirements. Sometimes you might get away with not paying, but the customs declaration on the package should mean it gets picked up. I still buy some items from the US (sails) as even with all the charges they are cheaper.
 
Twister_Ken said:
I've bought from Defender in the past, and got stuck with a VAT bill when it arrived, but as it was half UK price in the first place, it was still a deal worth doing. Incidentally the delivery was very quick and not expensive compared with some UK mail order suppliers who, I suspect, quote low item prices then try and catch some profit on P&P.
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When I needed the sea rails and pan clamps kit for my Spinflo Nelson cooker, I found it was cheaper to order from New Zealand and pay the postage and VAT than it was to pay the UK price. :confused:
 
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By way of clarification, tax/duty on import by post varies with value:

£0.01 to £15: No customs duty; no Import VAT.

£15.01 to £135: No customs duty ; import VAT due.

£135.01 and greater: Customs duty due, but waived if the amount calculated due is less than £9; import VAT due.

This does not apply to alcohol, tobacco products, perfumes and toilet waters.

Customs duty is quite distinct from excise duty payable on alcohol, tobacco, etc; the percentage charged varies depending on the type of goods and their country of origin.

Further info at: http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/customs/post/buying.htm
 
MacD.

Thanks for the info and very helpful link.

Using a handy calculator for Customs tax (http://www.dutycalculator.com/new-import-duty-and-tax-calculation/) I have worked out that the bit of kit (£275 in USD) that I want is still cheaper to import with duty / vat added (£386) than to buy in the UK (£450).
It is debatable whether the £65 saving (after shipping and VAT) is worth the hassle but, if you were buying a bit more kit, it might be worth getting a cheap £250 flight across the pond and bringing it back in a suitcase.
 
I bought quite a lot of stuff over the years either in person or by mail order, usually from West marine and never got stuck with duty or VAT bills. Not everything is cheaper in the USA mind, because since moving there I have had several things shipped over from the UK, not least being a new in-mast furling mainsail from Crusader sails, delivered in just 4 weeks and 100% better quality and 30% better cheaper than the the local cost I was quoted by an optimistic bandit here who has just presented me a bill for $325 (In his dreams!) simply for diagnosing the old sail needed to be replaced. not just the UV patch. Well he just learned a few more anglo saxon expressions in lieu of payment....
 
Robin said:
I bought quite a lot of stuff over the years either in person or by mail order, usually from West marine and never got stuck with duty or VAT bills. .
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In that case, it may be worth me gambling and ordering from the US (Defender.com). It is an autotiller, though, so it is bigger than a standard package and might attract the beady eye of customs. I wonder if selecting the seller's option to have it shipped by the US postal service, rather than one of the couriers like UPS, will make it less likely to come to the UK customs attention.
 
Ravi said:
In that case, it may be worth me gambling and ordering from the US (Defender.com). It is an autotiller, though, so it is bigger than a standard package and might attract the beady eye of customs. I wonder if selecting the seller's option to have it shipped by the US postal service, rather than one of the couriers like UPS, will make it less likely to come to the UK customs attention.
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I think USPS is a better option than UPS, WE once had 'gifts' sent to UK from USA family that UPS IN The UK charged for customs clearance and VAT on, cost more than the gift was worth. We send 'gifts' by usps frequently to the UK and as far as I know nobody yet has got charged on receipt but they were always listed as gifts and given low or even $0 value put on the customs declaration label. I sent $100 worth of marine bits to my son for an outboard via USPS ( post not UPS) and he wasn't charged. Luck of the draw maybe applies, Caveat emptor.
 
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If you use USPS their UK delivery service is Parcelforce who are quite useless but they will certainly charge you VAT and duty and a fee for the priviledge. The only way you will avoid these charges is to bring it in yourself and hope it's under your personal allowance. I get a lot of stuff shipped from the States and, as a rough guide, I usually regard the amount in UD $ as the same amount in GB£ after costs.
 
Swanrad2 said:
Here's a thought, couldn't you get it shipped to somone in the Channel Islands and pop over there to pick the stuff up? It's VAT free there so, surely tax free? I guess this is a bit smugly, but imagine the thrill of walking in those footsteps.

Thinking there might be something in this now....there are loads of offshore trust bods facing issues since our government started forcing them to inform on their clients (bye bye confidentiality, hello police state).
Click to expand...

How about Gib ?
 
Twister_Ken said:
I'd be grateful if you could point me at £250 airfares to the USA and back.
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Did a very quick check and the cheapest I can find is £299. Still pretty good. If you want less, phoning around the bucket shops is your best chance of getting something.


Kuwait Airways

6th Feb : Depart flight15:30 LHR–18:30 JFK Direct 8h
Return flight
21:00 JFK–09:00LHRDirect 7h (+1)
Total price
£299
 
Now this has got me thinking.

25931 said:
How about Gib ?
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Not sure - but the CI's don't do VAT. I was thinking of all those South Coast sailors ordering their lovely US gadgets, sailing to Guernsey stapling them onto their boats and sailing home again. As I said a whiff of smuggler, maybe, but cheap stuff and a nice trip thrown in - just that last niggling doubt it feels a bit, erm, illegal?

Would just need a bloke on Jersey who would take delivery and meet you at the Quayside.
 
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