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Posted: Sun May 31, 2009 11:39 am
by Jeremy
Not a bad idea, getting them shipped to a friend in the US, one that I tried a few years ago for some aircraft parts. The only problem I found with this approach was that I ended up getting hit for extra tax, as state sales tax in the US got charged on the internal US transaction, and then I got hit for import duty and VAT as well!

Might still be cheaper, though, so worth thinking about. In my experience, it's pot luck if you get charged import duty and VAT on goods over the £18 or so threshold value. I've found that 9 times out of ten I get charged the full whack on US or Canadian imports, but very rarely get charged on far Eastern imports. I've no idea why it's so hit and miss!

My big Mars motor and Alltrax controller came from the US and were charged full duty, VAT etc, whereas a large consignment of big LiFePO4 cells from China didn't. As our US cousins might say, "go figure!".

Jeremy