johng

There was recent correspondence on this subject in another thread with particular reference to Amazon.

Despite what was said and with which I disagreed at the time I have put the matter to further test tonight by ordering some DVDs from Amazon.com.

As before you get right through to the checkout and then up comes a message telling you that DVds cannot be supplied to an address in the United Kingdom.

So for those who said that they have bought DVDs from Amazon. com perhaps they might enlighten us as to howI purchase to this country.


Amazon.uk or their Market Traders unfortunately do not have the item I want.

DB7

I've just checked my Amazon.com account and the only warning to appear was:
I didn't complete the transaction as I'm not after any of their titles currently.

Steve Crook

Are you buying from Amazon.com themselves or from their marketplace?
Which item are you buying?

Steve

batman

How are you paying? Amazon.com appears not to accept debit card payments from UK banks, only visa and mastercard, but the message comes up that they don't supply to the UK.

Don't miss out on a chance to win a rare film in Bat-Quiz 13 closing date - 31/8/8.

mrs_emma_peel

I’ve bought several Region 1/0 DVDs, and books, from Amazon.com by credit card with no problems at all shipping to the UK.
However, Amazon.com marketplace sellers usually only ship to the UK if they specifically state that they offer the option of international shipping - otherwise the message comes up saying Amazon.com are unable to supply the order to the UK.
Where international shipping is not offered – and the DVD is not available anywhere else - it can be worth sending an speculative email to the seller asking if they would make an exception and ship to the UK – I’ve been fortunate with some US Amazon.com marketplace sellers who have agreed to ship to the UK – on a one-off basis

Mrs Emma Peel

Steve Crook

I've done the same on eBay. Some American sellers automatically select that they'll ship to the US only. But quite often, a polite enquiry will reveal that they're perfectly willing to send things to the UK as well.

When they won't I still buy them, but have the items sent to American friends who then forward them to me

Steve

johng

DB7 - Yes you may get up the message warning you about region Codes, however it is when you go to the final checkout and select the destination from the list of countries that you get the message telling you that the item cannot be shipped to the UK.

Steve - It was from one of Amazon market traders and it indicated that International shipping was available but it is Amazon who are blocking the sale not the trader!

The item was the complete series of The Man from UNCLE which was released by Time Life last year before finding its way onto the market in the Autumn.

Time Life in America decline to forward the item to the UK and Time Life in the UK do not list it.

I can only conclude that Time Life have only obtained a licence to enable them to sell the item in America but that seems strange since the programme appeared on British TV.

Bearing in mind that the rights are held by Warners all this does not surprise me since past experience has shown that they are a very difficult and awkward crowd to deal with when it comes rto the release and distribution of material.

I could write to the trader direct but there is a fair amount involved and without Amazons backing you do not have the same security if paying by Credit card.

I could go to a friend in the States to purchase it for you but I have no connections withanyone across the pond.

Steve Crook

There are 9 sellers offering it in the marketplace and only two of them explicitly says they'll send it internationally.

Most of them say "Expedited shipping available See shipping rates" and those shipping rates include international shipping, but they don't explicitly say they'll ship internationally.

The last two in the list say "Expedited shipping available International shipping available See shipping rates"

Sadly the two that do say they will ship it internationally are the two most expensive ones, offering it at $429.99 & $449.99

When I tried any of the cheaper ones I got the message about it not shipping internationally. When I tried either of the two more expensive ones then it went all the way through to asking for my card details, getting past the point where the others had given me the warning and stopped.

So, how much do you want it?

Steve

narabdela

I'm puzzled by this. I've been buying from amazon.com (not their marketplace) for years, without any problems. To check this, I've just been on their website and pre-ordered "How The West Was Won" Ultimate Edition (August Release). The transaction went through as usual without any problem. I never get those region warnings either btw.

johng

Steve

Not as much as the prices you quote. It is a bit of a con since the list price from Time Life is only somewhere around $250'

I think I'll wait until it reaches these shores - ever hopeful.

There are various unofficial editions of it available in the States but past experience dictates that one should keep clear of these at all costs.

Thanks for the interest shown everyone.

Steve Crook

It seems to be only when you buy from sellers in the Amazon marketplace, not from Amazon itself. And then only when the sellers decide they won't sell internationally.

Steve

Edward G

Folks,
As a seasoned buyer from Amazon.com (as opposed to .uk) I also regularly experience the warnings about DVD regional code compatibility and some marketplace traders who will not ship internationally. I have emailed one or two in the past asking if they would consider shipping internationally and they were happy to change to shipping internationally on the item entry and also to quote a shipping cost up front.

Be aware that as you are not paying VAT on anything shipped from the US into the UK you may incurr a customs duty and handling charge if the goods value on the Amazon invoice is over a certain limit and the post office choose to exercise their right to levy these fees.

Here in Ireland I regularly order from Amazon.com as the choice is wider and the weakening dollar value (versus the Euro) trounces the prices from Amazon.uk every time, even with the higher shipping cost from the States. I have been nailed twice by our postal service who are known to target Amazon.com shipments over the value of $80 or so. The parcel is imponded en route and awhen delivered you are asked to pay the VAT and a handling fee by cheque (cash is not accepted).

Does anyone in the UK have xperience of Amazon.com shipments being targeted for vAT and handling charges?

I'm as mad as hell and I'm not gonna take it anymore!

Steve Crook

I haven't noticed parcels from Amazon being particularly targeted. I buy quite a lot from abroad, not just the US but from lots of countries. And not just from Amazon.com when I'm buying from the US.

Most of them have the correct amount on the customs declaration and I would think that about 1 in 10 that are eligible actually get charged. My local parcels delivery office lets me pay by cash, cheque, credit card, whatever I like.

There are also some that are inspected by customs and you have to pay for the privilege of them doing that. But that's not as expensive as paying the full rate of duty.

BTW if you can, buy from Canada rather than the USA.
For some reason the postage costs for a similar parcel from Canada to the UK are about half what they are from the US to the UK

Steve

Edward G

Thanks for the Canada tip, Steve

I'm as mad as hell and I'm not gonna take it anymore!