Re: B&H in NYC to England - OK???

In message <85idnZhUg9oA5orVnZ2dnUVZ8v2vnZ2d@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>, Tony B 
<tony@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> writes
>Chris H wrote:
>
>> In short you will not escape the VAT, import charges etc.
>
>yebbut, sometimes one gets lucky..

Not any more we will be round to see you later today.... :-)

>in fact, I've only ever had to pay once so I'm well in front... I think 
>if it's less that some nominally low figure they prolly can't be 
>bothered.

Possibly. However I don't think 800 GBP of camera kit will be below that 
figure...

>> It comes as a surprise to many in this day of easy international 
>>shopping with credit cards and web sites.
>
>indeed, a bit of a gamble without a doubt.
>
>however on reflection I have decided that the potential savings don't 
>outweigh the arse of it all; if I get caught for UK tax I save about a 
>hundred quid in all.

But have all the hassle for warranty and you might get caught on any 
shipment back and forth.

>If I get off scoot free, I save £250 - but on this sort of value I 
>reckon the customs alarm will be ringing.

You bet they will  :-(


>Plut the warranty angle of course..
>I'll save a bit of cash anyway, I've decied to forego the Nikkor 12-24 
>and wait for a Tokina 11-16 that should hopefully be loads cheaper in 
>any case.

You could get the Tokina  cheaper still in the US.... :-)


OTOH.... you could look at buying several things from the US and if the 
money saved is large enough to cover the flight and hotel go and pick 
them up yourself.

A friend of mine once ordered several items  from the US and paid for 
them from the UK. He did not pay shipping but said his nominated carrier 
would pick them up from the shipping dept of the US company.  I think he 
even emailed them a PDF of the shipping label to use.

He flew over, picked up the sealed boxes from the US company and shipped 
them to the UK himself I am unsure how he did this... Any suggestion 
that he unpacked the boxes and put the contents in his personal luggage 
to evade tax would be pure speculation.

You would not save money but you would have a "free" holiday in the US. 
Also you could try out the camera and lenses before leaving the area of 
the store/city.

I once went out with empty bags and bought all the clothes I needed out 
there (jeans were typically half price or more)  Also some other kit as 
well.

May be worth considering.

-- 
\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
\/\/\/\/\ Chris Hills  Staffs  England     /\/\/\/\/
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