This is a weird one Cakey.
You've been asked to pay DHL a further £15.68 - am I right?
The supplier has put the value down at £27.51 with a further £47.79 for freight value. Then there's a "VAT Value Adjustment", what is that all about?
In total, you're being asked to pay VAT on a total of £82.49 which is £14.43 plus then DHL's handling charge.
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Q. - why do they put down a low value? What is valued at £27.51?
They do say in their terms and conditions
" VAT and Import Duty
All customers are by law responsible to pay duties and VAT in their respective country of residence."
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So why quote that they have included VAT @ £33.78 already (which is a correct calculation). These people are based in Brighton, have you been in contact with them to ask what it's all about?
Porta Gadgets Europe
4, Franklin Street,
Brighton
East Sussex, BN2 3AL
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The BIG question is, would the lens have cost you more than the £15.69 had you bought it elsewhere?
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Seems like dodgy dealings in some respects, unless that charge is just based on the freight charge, which isn't made clear or did you pay VAT on the freight as well through the supplier?
LESSON IS - Caveat Emptor always! Perhaps don't deal with Porta Gadgets ever again, but why not drop them a line and tell them you'll post the detail of the transaction on a photography website and let everyone else know what the REAL deal is?
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I used to buy in £££thousands of stock from the US and never was charged VAT on the shipping charges, I'm sure. I used to pay 6% if the company listed a dongle with the software and for that I got hammered, but otherwise, there was no duty on pure software, not even the disks and manuals.
