Paying More in the UK

[ukbobboy]

Dear Forum Members (especially those that understand economics)

I'm looking to buy the following:

2 x WD Red 4TB NAS Hard Disk Drive, which cost £132.95 each in the UK (from Amazon.co.uk) 

However, the same drives cost £103.42 each in the US ($149.99 from Amazon.com)

How can something, which is made of exactly the same materials and made in the same factories, cost almost £30.00 more in the UK than it does in the US.

I know we've always had to pay more for things in the UK than our American cousins but some price differentials are just ridiculous.

UK Bob

[Anonymous User]

Sales Tax. If the US it's not included in the list price as it varies between states and sometimes doesn't need to be paid if you live in one but buy from another. As it's one scheme for the whole of the UK retailers are forced to list with VAT when selling to consumers.

On top of that basic supply and demand. It's the same reason why womens health and beauty products cost more, they are willing to pay it.

[ukbobboy]

@Anonymous User

You know, US sales tax I understand, although I did not know it was not displayed as part of the overall price of an item, and I understand the laws of supply and demand plus there seems to be more consumer competition in the US than in the UK.

However, that in itself cannot explain an almost £30 price hike between UK and US prices.

But I can accept that we in the UK have always been prepared to pay more for the same goods than our US counterparts.

Thinking about it, I naively thought that in the 21st century we were leaving this "stupidly paying more" mentality behind us but it seems not because the big companies continue to milk us for all they can get.

UK Bob

[Anonymous User]

---

@ukbobboy wrote:

However, that in itself cannot explain an almost £30 price hike between UK and US prices.

---

VAT would work out at £20, so the difference is only a tenner.  You'd pay that just to Royal Mail for them to handle the tax and duty if it was imported.

[SeeMoreDigital]

---

@ukbobboy wrote:

I know we've always had to pay more for things in the UK than our American cousins but some price differentials are just ridiculous.

---

Indeed, just about everything we're able to buy over here in the UK is cheaper over there in the US. And as Artesea has already mentioned UK import tax and VAT hikes up the price for most things at our end.

What I often find more surprising are the price differences between the UK and Euro EU countries 

Cheers

[ukbobboy]

@SeeMoreDigital

Well, SMD

I see that VAT, in the EU, varies from country to country, from 0% on some goods and services to 27% on others.

I guess you get what you vote for.

UK Bob

[SeeMoreDigital]

The good thing about buying products within the majority of EU countries is you only have to pay for postage (you don't get whacked with an import tax and VAT bill at the UK end). And some EU countries are a lot cheaper than others.

Admittedly it can take longer to find your products due to the number of languages spoken across the EU. But the savings are there  

EDIT: For anyone wishing to go-down the EU (Euro) purchasing route, I recommend you use PayPal...

[Anonymous User]

 The answer is simply to get a US shipping address (under £10/year) and purchase these items from US etailers, having them dellivered to your us shipping address and then shipped into the UK. Many, many UK citizens do this, and save a lot of money, even when factoring in the costs involved.

[ukbobboy]

@Anonymous User

You know, that is a good way to save money but you also take the risk that if anything goes wrong with your good you have no enforceable consumer rights.

UK Bob