Buying on Amazon

[laserblazer]

A lot of items on Amazon have free delivery to Europe if the value is over £25. I just ordered an HD Freesat box at £119.97 but when I changed the delivery address to Portugal, it upped the VAT to 23%.

[maccasa]

And you were surprised? If it had been sweden they would havemade it 26% (or is it even more now?)

[laserblazer]

Having thought about it, it makes sense. I just wasn't expecting the price to be different when I did the deal and had to resort to a calculator to work ot why.

[R.Wethereyet]

I queried this with them a few months ago, and was informed that Amazon have registered an Lda here in Portugal. so if you need a 'Factura' for tax reasons, it is acceptable.

[shanagarry]

I buy a lot of stuff from Amazon and am delighted at the speed at which the goods arrive - using the standard delivery service - not the expensive 'express' alternative.

Amazon's pricing and speed of delivery must be a worry for the high street and I suspect we will see increasing numbers of 'Amazons' emerge and the like as base prices need to be reduced to compensate for soaring taxes.

Vat/Iva/Mvt or whatever name it's given is an unavoidable cost and it's only a matter of time before it becomes a standard amount across the EU.

[laserblazer]

Having just had a distance seller increase the distance by doing a runner leaving us without our furniture, we are now much more wary about bying online and would never pay with anything other than a Visa credit card or PayPal. We have bought the furniture in Portugal (at a cost) but have got what we wanted.

We will probably buy the TV over here as well because of the warranty.

[shanagarry]

Tend to agree LB - I have used Amazon for many years and know they are a credible outfit. I would be very wary of using any 'Johnny Come Lately' to buy anything online - including ebay

[Sandy]

I can also say that I've bought a bunch of stuff from Amazon, using free delivery to Portugal, and its been terrific.

[ditzy]

And the DVD box sets were fab for Christmas presents!