Paul Cooper

Thank you for the replies. Just to clarify, we purchased two cushions from a UK based online retailer that does state that deliveries from overseas may incur customs duties. We got a VAT receipt from the retailer that shows the following: subtotal for x2 cushions = £168.12, discount -£16.82, VAT (20%) £29.38, shipping £24.95, with a total cost of £176.25. This was paid. We then received a bill from Royal Mail for customs duties (including admin fee) of £45.21. The retailer’s website does state in their T’s & C’s that the customer may be liable for payment of taxes for items imported. I completely understand why Royal Mail has requested payment. My question is, should the online retailer have charged VAT? Should I go back to them and request the VAT to be refunded? Thanks so much for your help on this, it is really appreciated and sorry if I didn’t completely follow your last response. Paul

Can I ask a follow on question regarding this. We purchased two cushions from a UK online retailer. At the point of sale we were charged VAT of £29.38 (yes the cushions were expensive!). We didn’t realise that the company we purchased the items from was going to have the products shipped directly to us from overseas. We have now been asked to pay import taxes and fees of £45.21 from Royal Mail before they will deliver the items. I know goods over the £135 threshold will attract the charges but my question is should the retailer have charged us VAT at the point of sale for the items too? They are a UK VAT registered company based in the UK.