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Buying shoes from US, extra costs?

Jamie2007Jamie2007 Posts: 31
edited June 2014 in Road buying advice
Hi,

looking for some help from the experienced buyers here. Has anyone done this?

Can you tell me if there is further tax to pay on ordered road shoes that are being bought from the US of A.

I have found a good price for a pair but am unsure what the extra cost might be? (if any?)

These are ordered the Jenson USA. All advice, help gratefully received!

Posts

  • wishitwasallflatwishitwasallflat Posts: 2,927
    Buying anything from overseas you can get hit with customs and tax charges. AFAIK though there is no way to know if you will or not in advance as it depends on if the Customs and Post Office pick up on it. So far I've been lucky with bike stuff - shoes from Bont that were ordered from the US but were sent to me from China or Malaysia (I think), a jersey from the US and lights from China have all arrived with no extra charges at all. I once ordered a CD from the US though and got hit with about £5 from the PO before they would deliver it!
  • Jamie2007Jamie2007 Posts: 31
    Thanks wishitwasallflat, I thought that it might be a bit random, I was hoping that more often you might get away with it!
  • rolf_frolf_f Posts: 16,015
    If they cost $50 assume you'll end up paying £50. If that's OK then go for it and if you pay less it's a bonus. Otherwise source more locally.
    Faster than a tent.......
  • Jamie2007Jamie2007 Posts: 31
    Rolf, thanks for the reply.
    So if I paid $150 for the shoes plus $25 shipping, I could end up paying £175?

    Yikes! I might cancel the order!
  • thegreatdividethegreatdivide Posts: 5,799
    It used to be hit and miss but they’re much more on the ball now and last year I was stung by Royal Mail, UPS and FedEx – so I’ve given up on buying items from the US because it’s just not worth it any more. It’s not only tax and duty you get charged – some couriers even charge you an admin fee!
  • rafletcherrafletcher Posts: 1,235
    Jamie2007 wrote:
    Rolf, thanks for the reply.
    So if I paid $150 for the shoes plus $25 shipping, I could end up paying £175?

    Yikes! I might cancel the order!

    Nope. Add customs duty (don't know the rate) plus VAT at 20% on top of the combined value and sometimes an additional charge from the PO for collecting the duty. IME you never make much of a saving and have no guarantee at all.
  • rolf_frolf_f Posts: 16,015
    Jamie2007 wrote:
    Rolf, thanks for the reply.
    So if I paid $150 for the shoes plus $25 shipping, I could end up paying £175?

    Yikes! I might cancel the order!

    I once bought a Lancia grille badge from the states. It cost about £40 inc postage (as quoted) - by the time I'd paid the charges (tax, VAT, a 'handling charge'), it cost me about £70! Never again! What irked me the most was of course that the badge was a European made product in the first place!

    And the badge turned out too big for the car! It's a very nice ornament for the windowsill though :lol:
    Faster than a tent.......
  • Jamie2007Jamie2007 Posts: 31
    OOOffft. That's it cancelling now, not worth the punt.
  • adamfoadamfo Posts: 763
    What shoes are you after ?
  • Jamie2007Jamie2007 Posts: 31
    adamfo wrote:
    What shoes are you after ?

    Adamfo, it was the Giro Prolight SLX black 44 Euro size
  • jack_flapjack_flap Posts: 40
    I was just wondering if the labelling system allows anyone to buy e-vouchers then use these to reduce the order value below the minimum customs threshold, and pay the remaining few $ with paypal etc?

    Or is it based on the current retail price?
  • cattytowncattytown Posts: 647
    See viewtopic.php?f=40042&t=12970208&p=18885266#p18885266 for a worked example on a bike. The Taric code will be different leading to potentially a different duty rate.

    The value is the important point - though price paid may be taken as an indicator. If vouchers used I would expect them to be taken as part of the value, but potentially hacking off whoever is doing the maths for you for making their job more difficult.

    Gift labeling just ups the threshold at which duty/vat is paid.

    Beware declaring the wrong value. $150 shoes, label as $50 and they go missing, guess what insurance will pay?

    The price in dollars looked at in pounds is a reasonable guide to what you can expect.

    Paul.
    Giant Defy 2
    Large bloke getting smaller :-)
  • jack_flapjack_flap Posts: 40
    Yes the insurance cover is a good point.

    If buying from a retailer such as Jenson USA then they are responsible for the correct labelling/declarations, etc - they wouldn't label as a gift but a normal purchase.

    It was really a case of noticing that when I have made orders from Wiggle using gift vouchers (for UK delivery) the order value has not included the value of the voucher eg a £150 order has an order value of £25 when £125 vouchers are used. The Jenson site states "We list the actual value of the order's contents by product type" which is slightly ambiguous, if you are using gift vouchers (or even discount codes) then they may as well be using the RRP as the order value - which would also be incorrect.

    As has been said before I guess the best option is to make sure that you are happy with the price including the potential charges. A $120 order seems to work out as around £100 + £8 Royal Mail admin fee landed using an online calculator.
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