OK, too many things here to quote each one, but I have learned something...
Camera was not liable for import duty - so 'Duty Paid' could be taken whichever way you want.
Studying my invoice, it tells me exactly what each bit costs etc, but has no details of the sellers address, or company status
As LensFettish says, it is me who should have paid VAT (before receiving the goods, but after they landed in the country apparently). This is the thing that really surprises me - everything you buy from the internet you are liable for VAT ( and possibly duty) on. If the seller wasn't in the EU or VAT registered, then it is the buyers responsibility. The duty is waived if it is less than £9 I think (so roughly £50 items are liable).
Now forgetting all the other crap in this thread, how many people know that? And just in case you think "well they are hardly going to search my house" I was once stopped by customs coming back into the uK with some ex-rental skis. Worth about £20, But since they stopped me they went to town on everything they could find - including asking me for the receipt for some 3-year old skiboots I took out with me, and trying to charge me duty on them when I couldn't prove I had paid it.
Now put that in context of a shiny new camera you take on holiday - when you return you need to prove you had it when you went out, and that requires the receipt - which doesn't show duty paid.....
So in answer to the OP who wanted to know whether to buy from SLRHut, MY opinion is now this:-
Service was good, price was good, item was good. Stress was bad, price was not so good if I stumped up the VAT, and feeling guilty everytime you go through customs is not good. Lucky this was a present and it won't be me carrying it abroad!
Camera was not liable for import duty - so 'Duty Paid' could be taken whichever way you want.
Studying my invoice, it tells me exactly what each bit costs etc, but has no details of the sellers address, or company status
As LensFettish says, it is me who should have paid VAT (before receiving the goods, but after they landed in the country apparently). This is the thing that really surprises me - everything you buy from the internet you are liable for VAT ( and possibly duty) on. If the seller wasn't in the EU or VAT registered, then it is the buyers responsibility. The duty is waived if it is less than £9 I think (so roughly £50 items are liable).
Now forgetting all the other crap in this thread, how many people know that? And just in case you think "well they are hardly going to search my house" I was once stopped by customs coming back into the uK with some ex-rental skis. Worth about £20, But since they stopped me they went to town on everything they could find - including asking me for the receipt for some 3-year old skiboots I took out with me, and trying to charge me duty on them when I couldn't prove I had paid it.
Now put that in context of a shiny new camera you take on holiday - when you return you need to prove you had it when you went out, and that requires the receipt - which doesn't show duty paid.....
So in answer to the OP who wanted to know whether to buy from SLRHut, MY opinion is now this:-
Service was good, price was good, item was good. Stress was bad, price was not so good if I stumped up the VAT, and feeling guilty everytime you go through customs is not good. Lucky this was a present and it won't be me carrying it abroad!