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Troutfisher710

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Seen this website and their prices are very competitive but wondered about them being in HK. Then looked on the trader section and they have their own thread, I take it they are reliable and trustworthy.
Just being very cautious.:(
Gary:)
 
Have a search through a few threads here. I recall only one customer who complained and it was sorted. Have also been tempted to buy through them but holding out for the 70D at the mo.
 
They have a quite popular channel on YouTube with camera reviews etc, so they are a company into cameras, not just a "I want to sell cameras" type of business.

Personally I wouldn't mind buying a DSLR from them.
 
Probably spent close to £5k with them over the years, I can vouch for them. Quick delivery, they understand english and are good to help. A lot of people of a bit miffed with them as they don't declare customs values so Brits basically save on import VAT etc.
 
They are popular, but seem to practice UK tax / duty avoidance, so there's an ethical issue for those who care. As far as I can tell it's based on mis-declaring item identity and under-declaring item value on the packaging, and relying on non-discovery of that by UK customs.

A grey area that I feel taints this forum & made me hesitate to sign up.
 
droj said:
They are popular, but seem to practice UK tax / duty avoidance, so there's an ethical issue for those who care. As far as I can tell it's based on mis-declaring item identity and under-declaring item value on the packaging, and relying on non-discovery of that by UK customs.

A grey area that I feel taints this forum & made me hesitate to sign up.
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I'm not sure that's true actually, there is nothing shady or underhand about them.
Very good experience when I bought a compact there, impeccable tracking at every stage and it was here within four days.
There was no 'mis-information' about what the package contained.

Wouldn't the courier - DHL or whoever - be liable for collecting any tax?
That's what happens if you buy anything from the US.
 
4wd said:
I'm not sure that's true actually, there is nothing shady or underhand about them.
Very good experience when I bought a compact there, impeccable tracking at every stage and it was here within four days.
There was no 'mis-information' about what the package contained.

Wouldn't the courier - DHL or whoever - be liable for collecting any tax?
That's what happens if you buy anything from the US.
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I'm not sure what your definition of shady or underhand is, but its a bit different to mine.

For anything coming to the UK from a source outside the European Union, customs charge import duty based on the declaration made by the vendor. DHL (etc) pay the amount for you and recover it from you at or shortly after delivery.

However, the HK importers generally falsely declare the value of the goods, eg actual value £ 700 and declare it as a camera or a toy, or a broken item valued £ 40 or so, just under the threshold for UK duty (which could be up to 5%) and VAT (20%)- depriving HMRC of revenue and this is one of the reasons why UK sellers and exporters with more of a moral conscience can't compete on price, before you consider the aspect of warranties and so on.

It relies on Customs either not noticing the packages of suspiciously low value coming in, and not having the resources to investigate further without causing backlogs and a lot of work. It is also importers responsibility to ensure correct monies are paid.

So I think there is a degree of shadiness and underhandedness about the process.
 
andrewc said:
However, the HK importers generally falsely declare the value of the goods, eg actual value £ 700 and declare it as a camera or a toy, or a broken item valued £ 40 or so, just under the threshold for UK duty (which could be up to 5%) and VAT (20%)- depriving HMRC of revenue and this is one of the reasons why UK sellers and exporters with more of a moral conscience can't compete on price, before you consider the aspect of warranties and so on.

So I think there is a degree of shadiness and underhandedness about the process.
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Well there would be if that is what they did. What have you bought from them and did it have false declaration?
 
I bought my Mrs a 60D from them, DHL provided us with a import VAT request which was around £30 which we paid - I must also add that DHL don't add inflated false rates unlike royal mail, I've lost count of the £10 orders from an avionics company in HK that Royal mail have charged me £36 for, all that I ordered were some caps and resistors :(
 
4wd said:
Very good experience when I bought a compact there, impeccable tracking at every stage and it was here within four days.
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The issue here is not their SERVICE, but why they are cheaper and if it is unethical or fraudulent.

4wd said:
There was no 'mis-information' about what the package contained.
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So the customs label showed the true price, the price you paid?

Their modus operandi is not undocumented if you search the web ...
 
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There wasn't any customs label, it was just a package like any other from a UK address but it was from Hong Kong.
They must send out hundreds of items daily, I struggle to see how they could get away with avoiding customs charges on that scale.
 
I bought my 7D and associated kit from them, outstanding.. In fact, i can say that they shipped from HK to UK in a day from the order being placed, the parcel then sat with the UK delivery service for two days hahaha. Will be buying again.
 
I've only used them once and I wasn't charged anything for importing it and frankly I would have felt hard done by as the item wasn't at the time available in the UK.

I'm all for buying from UK suppliers but I'll buy from the rest of the world if what I want isn't available in the UK.

I've had items from HK, Thailand and the USA and have only been charged for import once, for the item from the USA.
 
Personally I don't really care about the "ethical" side of not paying VAT/Duty.

When government and the people in it start spending the money I pay in taxes wisely, then I will care, until then...
 
SLRUser said:
Personally I don't really care about the "ethical" side of not paying VAT/Duty.

When government and the people in it start spending the money I pay in taxes wisely, then I will care, until then...
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Hmmmm. Democracy doesn't quote work like that.

The concept is about as risible as 'The Freemen of the Land'.
 
andrewc said:
I bought a 50D from them and paid import duty and VAT.

I more recently bought a 7D from them and it was declared as a camera, value £ 46.

I've sent it back.
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Steve Smith said:
Why?


Steve.
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I was wondering the same thing?

Were the reasons of 'mislabelling' stated for the refund?
 
as a professional i would not but a camera as i would need it fix in record time if it went wrong. Having said that i did buy two flash guns from the them and the service was first class.
 
I think I'm going to order my 6d from them, looking at the prices I'd save over £400. I can see why pro's would want a full canon backed UK warranty but for a hobbyist like me, I'll shop where both the price and service are good.

Touch wood, I've not yet had an issue where I've had to utilise the warranty, though I've probably cursed that now.
 
odd jim said:
I was wondering the same thing?

Were the reasons of 'mislabelling' stated for the refund?
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The camera was faulty, so it was sent back to them for a refund (which eventually came).

I had bought a camera previously from Digital Rev which DHL collected the correct amount of duty on.
 
Just had superb service from Digitalrev. Ordered a 85mm f1.4 Nikkor on Sunday last at midday. Delivered an hour ago (Central Scotland). £40 less than I could find it in the UK
 
I've never used them but I know plenty of people that swear by them and have never had a single problem.

Besides, they have a massive reputation that I'm sure they wish to keep intact :)
 
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