Importing DC800 Pro from US to UK, duty/taxes?

[outpost31]

Hi,

After much searching and deliberation i've finally decided on buying the DC800 Pro kit to take with me to Fiji in Dec. In the UK this will cost me about £580 ($1135) but ordering off US sites like Scubatoys.com i can get it for about £370 [10% disc for scubaboard] ($720) but i don't know how much i'm going to get stung for when it arrives due to import duty and VAT (delivery will be about £45/$88).

Has anyone in the UK bought one, or a camera of equal cost, and had to pay import tax on it? With about £150 difference before tax I'm curious as to how much it would be, can anyone tell me please?

many thanks
Outpost31

 

[Nemrod]

What if you had a friend here purchase it and then mail it to you? Just a thought, not sure on postal fees etc might make it impractical. N

 

[Madmanx-Diver]

I have been considering the same thing, I think the duty level is £350 but I am not sure

 

[outpost31]

Madmanx: Do you mean only cameras over £350 get stung for Duty tax? (thanks)

Basically, if all the duty and VAT comes anywhere near £150 i might as well buy it here, at least then if there are any problems it won't be costly to send it back, etc.

I guess my options are: get a US resident to buy it and send it on to me (but it could still be taxed), buy it myself and pay all the taxes (if it's cheaper) or just buy it in the uk. I tried putting in the details on the HMCustoms website but it didn't calculate the price so i don't know what the likely tax would be, even just a rough figure would help me decide.

Anyone?.....Anyone?.......Bueller?.....Fry?...

 

[Madmanx-Diver]

Madmanx: Do you mean only cameras over £350 get stung for Duty tax? (thanks)

Yes that what I meant, but finding out for sure is difficult
I have seen the DC800 on US EBay quoting shipping to the UK but I am always sceptical of these deals

I am off to London at the weekend and if I get the chance I am going to go to Cameras Underwater, I often find you can get a better deal with a bit of face to face haggling
If I get a barging I will post here

 

[Nemrod]

Let me figure on this, let me get this straight, say X bought you the camera and then put it in a box and sent it to you and you PayPaled X the money and X put the value at 50 bucks how much tax do you pay? This is like a word problem you know. I am just being hypothetical but since I figure the government lies first and only tells the truth when forced to we ought to be able to "adjust" on the value of the, uh, item. N

 

[Madmanx-Diver]

The down side of your hypothetical augment is that if the camera was lost in the post then you are screwed as there would be no insurance
And you would have to trust X and them you
The other downside to buying from overseas market is the issue of the warranty

 

[300bar]

Maybe this helps.
HM Revenue & Customs

 

[outpost31]

Thanks 300bar but i did try customs website, selected the item as a digital camera, price and date but i couldn't get a final figure, maybe my fault, i don't know.

Has anyone out there bought a £400 camera and had to pay duty and Vat? If so, how much extra did it cost you?

Any help would be appreciated! Thanks.

 

[SkipperJohn]

I have a friend in the UK I regularly exchange cigars with (poor sap can only get Cubans and enjoys the cigars form Nicaragua). I send him cigars and label them as repair parts. Insured too (when the value if high enough).
One time I sent him around $90 value in cigars and labeled it as such. He had to pay close to 40 pounds duty. A lesson learned.