Warning to international customers about Amazon.com (1 Viewer)

[Anthony Neilson]

I ordered two Blu-ray discs in the recent Buy One Get One Free campaign. Despite the fact that the amount I paid came to below the UK threshold of £18, Amazon chose to display the full price of the discs on the packaging and I was charged nearly £14 in customs fees. When I complained about this, I was sent a dismissive e-mail which contained the following statement:

If you used any promotional discounts on an order, please be aware
that while the promotion reduces the actual amount that you pay
Amazon.com it does not change the value of the item itself. We are
required to declare the actual value of the items in your shipment.

So essentially, any International customer that expects to avoid customs by using one of their sales had better think again. Amazon will declare the FULL price of your purchase BEFORE reductions. This has certainly come as a surprise to me and I, for one, will not be using them again.

 

[Marko Berg]

I've had the same happen to me, i.e. Amazon displayed the full price on the package itself.

However, I don't think you should have had to pay duty on the goods. Is it possible for you to print out the Amazon invoice page and show that to the customs agent, or open the package in front of them and pull out the sheet included in the shipment which shows exactly how much you paid? Over here, the legislation regarding duties (which is based on EU legislation and various agreements) states that the amount from which any duty and taxes are calculated must be the actual value paid for the goods. (Also, if the duty and taxes amount to less than €10, e.g. €9.95, you are not charged for them.)

 

[alan halvorson]

Geez, I love the good ol' USA where I have never paid customs charges even once, despite ordering items valued up to $2,000.

 

[Tory]

Neither have I. Are we suppose to?