So i’ve just brought a new frame on the cheap and had it shipped it to a family friends place in Florida. (They wont ship Yetis out the country) Now all I need to do is get it back here.

It will need to be picked up from their home. Anyone else done this? What are the options beyond FedEx and UPS? Any tips?

You will need to watch you don’t get stung for Import tax coming back into the UK, it might not work out so cheap if you do.

If they send it to you and value it as a gift and £36 and below it will be free of import duty 😉

I have a lot sent to me from the US and have found that UPS is really good. usually about a 10 day turn round.

If they send it to you and value it as a gift and £36 and below it will be free of import duty tax evasion / fraud

I do hope you’ve never complained about Starbucks or Amazon not paying their tax, twoniner.

Its £620, £1000 less than RRP here. I wonder what the duty would be then? Will investigate and report back.

I should have added that the stuff I get sent I have paid import duty on (still get a good deal), I wouldn’t take the risk but a few I know do!

Not arsed what Starbucks and Amazon do TBH, I wish I could get away with paying tax!

I have Diecast models sent sometimes, its about 4.7% import tax and 20%VAT.

So it looks like its 10% Customs Duty + Standard 20% VAT. So £186 in this case + Shipping. Not brilliant but still, massively less than here.

I think you’ll be looking at about 25% (20% VAT + ~%5 customs duty) + handling fee. IT’s based on total cost IIRC, so postage counts towards the value.

As long as its not in its original Yeti box you probably stand a good chance of getting away with it..

I’d remove any sign from the bike that its factory fresh & then get hold of an old bike box & ship it in that.

I think they would find it quite hard for them to prove that its brand spank me new & you were liable for the duty..

Cheers for the info twoniner.

HMRC say “There are around 14,000 different classifications. The duty rate percentage for each may vary according to the country the goods come from. The average percentage is between 5 and 9 per cent, but it can be as low as 0 per cent or as high as 85 per cent.”

But theres no link to the classifications! So I guess i’ll find out when it gets here… 4.7% would be great. Fingers crossed.

mrlebowski – doesn’t matter if it’s brand new or not, it’s the first time to market in the EU so you’re liable for the duty.

http://www.dutycalculator.com/ is useful BTW

https://www.gov.uk/trade-tariff/commodities/8714911019

BTW I got that by googling “tariff”, selected https://www.gov.uk/trade-tariff from the results and worked down from there.

Oh I suppose it could instead be:
https://www.gov.uk/trade-tariff/commodities/8714911090 – but the rate is the same.

mrlebowski – doesn’t matter if it’s brand new or not, it’s the first time to market in the EU so you’re liable for the duty

I never paid duty on my Santa Cruz when I bought it back, which I purchased in the US..

Tacky re-spray and APOLLO stickers would be my choice of fraud … 😆

Its only worth what what they see it as, an tacky Apollo would be seen as a tacky Apollo – Fraud ??

Nahhh …

I never paid duty on my Santa Cruz when I bought it back, which I purchased in the US

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have though, you just got lucky 🙂

Cheers guys. This thread might be useful info for anyone planning something similar in future.

That duty calculator is great. So the rate for Painted & Anodised frames is 4.7%.

Cost £620 – Landed cost £874 not too shabby. And legit 🙂

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have though, you just got lucky

V true, doesnt mean its not worth trying though..

V true, doesnt mean its not worth trying though..

Got any tips on evading income tax?

I cant say I have skip..

Got any tips on evading income tax?

become “unemployed”

I’d try shipbikes.com or bikeflights.com. They are quite a bit cheaper than dealing with FedEx or UPS direct but use FedEx. Drop off as normal at a FedEx store.
Used them to ship internally in the US but very happy with the shipping.
STL