3D Blu-ray importing and delivery thread (Amazon, Zavvi, Jpc, tariffs etc.)

[mars5l]

Ive ordered quite a few items from Rahul with no issues. if you look at his current feedback rating for negatives its all related to antman and wasp 3d. I wonder if Ebay suspended his account for the time being due to a lot of negative feedback

[Paul H]

Originally Posted by mars5l

Ive ordered quite a few items from Rahul with no issues. if you look at his current feedback rating for negatives its all related to antman and wasp 3d. I wonder if Ebay suspended his account for the time being due to a lot of negative feedback

It's kind of Mind boggling.

The last response Rahul & I sent me stated:
"If you would like to cancel this order, PLEASE START A RETURN. We will refund your money right away."

That was in response to a request I already sent him to cancel Antman and the Wasp 3D.

No communication since then.

I'm asking him now just to see if there is any life on ebay: How do you START A RETURN before you receive the item?

[the13thman]

I have to say that as angry as I am with Amazon for continuing to sit on my order of Skyscraper and Incredibles 2 (both stuck at "dispatching soon" stage) their customer service is second-to-none.

If you are unhappy with their service, it's always worth complaining.

Originally Posted by Paul H

It's kind of Mind boggling.

The last response Rahul & I sent me stated:
"If you would like to cancel this order, PLEASE START A RETURN. We will refund your money right away."

I'm asking him now... How do you START A RETURN before you receive the item?

I guess if you get a full refund as soon as you start the return then it doesn't matter that you haven't received the item, but if you can't start the return without having received the item, then that's a problem. eBay are very good with refunds though, as a buyer you are very well protected.

Oh how I miss the days of just going to the shops and buying movies myself - now even if I take a special trip into the city there's no guarantee I'll even find what I want.

[Joe D.]

Originally Posted by the13thman

Amazon.co.uk are absolutely abysmal at the moment, I need my head examined for continuing to place pre-orders that can't then be cancelled as they are "preparing for dispatch" but never seem to get dispatched.

Hi 13,

That's why I don't order from Zavvi. Ten minutes after placing an order on what would be around two am on a Monday your time, I could not cancel a duplicate order for the same reason. Cost me $20 in return postage to save the remaining seven dollars of the order.

[the13thman]

Originally Posted by Joe D.

Hi 13,

That's why I don't order from Zavvi. Ten minutes after placing an order on what would be around two am on a Monday your time, I could not cancel a duplicate order for the same reason. Cost me $20 in return postage to save the remaining seven dollars of the order.

I stopped using Zavvi when they sent me a scratched disc and then a replacement that was also scratched. I also figured I was throwing money away buying steelbooks.

[Damon1281]

I only import from a few places; Amazon UK(DE,IT,FR,CA), DDDhouse, indirectly with Ebay, and a place in Australia. I've had Royal Mail misplace a package once but when I complained it was on my doorstep in under a week. I never pre-order and I never will.

[GreatGreg]

I pre-order from all of the above including Zavvi and HMV and Best Buy US and Canada.

Largely no issues, but Zavvi probably has the best packaging, especially for SteelBooks.

I occasionally have a problem with Zavvi for damage, but they have remedied it quickly so it is nothing serious.

I get more damaged goods from Amazon.it and Amazon.fr including incomplete packages. However Amazon being Amazon, they have fixed the situation every time.

[Paul H]

Wonder if this is related to Rahul's difficulty with Disney's Sony DADC distribution in third-world countries:

Originally Posted by PVictor

I'm sad to inform that Disney Brazil informed that The Incredibles 2 is it's last 3D Bluray released here in Brazil. This also includes Marvel and Lucasfilm releases.
I was so shocked about the news that I had to inquire them why they took this decision.
They were swift to respond and said that this decision, like all of their decisions, come from the Disney headquarters in the US. And it not only affect us here in Brazil. They said that Disney ordered the termination of 3D bluray distribution in ALL OF LATIN AMERICA.
I'm very sad about it cause now I'll have to start importing like most of us already do.
Let's just hope that the UK keep the 3D bluray rolling for all of us.

[Joe D.]

Originally Posted by Paul H

Wonder if this is related to Rahul's difficulty with Disney's Sony DADC distribution in third-world countries:

Maybe. But he is sending incredible 2 out, though I told him to forget it in my case.

[BigPudge]

Originally Posted by ryanmcv

I'm seeing a date of February 28 for the Indian release. Spanish release is January 25.

Even if the Indian release were earlier, it's now very difficult for US residents to import discs from India. You'd likely have to order from Amazon.in with and use a mail forwarding service. I've done it before and it was rather difficult and confusing.

Not saying I miss Rahul. He's probably living large somewhere with all of the money he fleeced from innocent customers.

Rahul&i.com

he is still operating.

Im not sure if he "fleeced" people... i ordered from him pry 20 or more times and always received my stuff, both from ebay and his website. Only thing he did was put incorrect release dates, but i would ALWAYS receive my stuff when it became available.

All he had to do to save his ebay store was put Release Date: TBD and actually reply to a message once in a while.

Did people ACTUALLY never get their stuff or did the release date that rahul listed come and go and they didnt get it on that date and they posted negative reviews (which i fully understand) but then eventually got their orders?

[ryanmcv]

Originally Posted by BigPudge

Rahul&i.com

he is still operating.

Im not sure if he "fleeced" people... i ordered from him pry 20 or more times and always received my stuff, both from ebay and his website. Only thing he did was put incorrect release dates, but i would ALWAYS receive my stuff when it became available.

All he had to do to save his ebay store was put Release Date: TBD and actually reply to a message once in a while.

Did people ACTUALLY never get their stuff or did the release date that rahul listed come and go and they didnt get it on that date and they posted negative reviews (which i fully understand) but then eventually got their orders?

Apparently you weren't following the drama with his Incredibles 2 and Ant-Man pre-orders. Plenty of people never received their orders from him. Plenty of people (myself included) had to dispute the charges with eBay and PayPal to get refunds because Rahul couldn't be bothered to respond to messages or issue refunds himself. And then, without warning or explanation, he shut down his entire eBay operation. So yes, he certainly "fleeced" several paying customers.

Aside from a handful of titles, is Rahul actually selling anything on his website? There is no "order" or "add to cart" button on most of the product listings. I only see "add to wish list" on major titles like Incredibles 2, Solo, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Black Panther, etc. He appears to be accepting pre-orders for Venom, but I'd be very surprised if those actually ship out.

Glad you're a Rahul loyalist, but most of us aren't.

[tsimon10]

Note the Venom Amazon Spain, German & Italy listed EUR prices drop for the 3D combos when added to cart. For the Spain version it lists for EUR 25.99 but when you add to cart it drops to EUR 21.48 but of course shipping is extra. Perhaps there is a reason but I have not noticed that in the past, only true up price credits after the item shipped.

[dhvsfan]

Originally Posted by tsimon10

Note the Amazon Spain, German & Italy listed EUR prices drop for the 3D combos when added to cart. For the Spain version it lists for EUR 25.99 but when you add to cart it drops to EUR 21.48 but of course shipping is extra. Perhaps there is a reason but I have not noticed that in the past, only true up price credits after the item shipped.

Isn't that VAT removal ??

[eselv73]

Originally Posted by tsimon10

Note the Amazon Spain, German & Italy listed EUR prices drop for the 3D combos when added to cart. For the Spain version it lists for EUR 25.99 but when you add to cart it drops to EUR 21.48 but of course shipping is extra. Perhaps there is a reason but I have not noticed that in the past, only true up price credits after the item shipped.

I think that is due to the VAT tax being dropped once you proceed to checkout.

[vinnie97]

That is correct, VAT subtraction at checkout is nothing new. Same occurs at Amazon UK.

[BigPudge]

Originally Posted by ryanmcv

Apparently you weren't following the drama with his Incredibles 2 and Ant-Man pre-orders. Plenty of people never received their orders from him. Plenty of people (myself included) had to dispute the charges with eBay and PayPal to get refunds because Rahul couldn't be bothered to respond to messages or issue refunds himself. And then, without warning or explanation, he shut down his entire eBay operation. So yes, he certainly "fleeced" several paying customers.

Aside from a handful of titles, is Rahul actually selling anything on his website? There is no "order" or "add to cart" button on most of the product listings. I only see "add to wish list" on major titles like Incredibles 2, Solo, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Black Panther, etc. He appears to be accepting pre-orders for Venom, but I'd be very surprised if those actually ship out.

Glad you're a Rahul loyalist, but most of us aren't.

Ah... i did not follow that stuff, i just saw the steels were sold out from him so i just ordered the normal 3d's from amazon uk.

I wouldnt say im a "loyalist"... just can only speak for my own experiences and I never had an issue outside of incorrect release dates and no communication. Always received my stuff.

I cant imagine he just up and decided to ateal money with those 2 titles after having been a solid resource. Something major must have happened behind the scenes, but that is still no excuse for taking money and never shipping an item. Without his ebay store, im not sure I will fully trust his website, no money back guarantee involved.

[tsimon10]

Originally Posted by eselv73

I think that is due to the VAT tax being dropped once you proceed to checkout.

Makes sense. I thought that VAT was adjusted on the back end after shipping and payment charged. I am guessing the price credit after shipping was either an actual change in listed price or a USD conversion update.

[rwc]

Originally Posted by tsimon10

Makes sense. I thought that VAT was adjusted on the back end after shipping and payment charged. I am guessing the price credit after shipping was either an actual change in listed price or a USD conversion update.

Quick tip: multiply the prices that you see on Amazon UK/FR/DE/IT/ES etc. by 0.8333 to get the price without EU VAT. You learn to quickly recognise the usual price points (14.99=12.49, 19.99=16.66, 24.99=20.82, 29.99=24.99, 60=50, etc)...

They're literally not allowed to charge EU VAT at any point if the order isn't subject to EU VAT. Nor are they themselves allowed to change any costs after your order due merely to conversion rate fluctuations. Retailers (like Zavvi) are of course allowed to make you pay the same tax-inclusive price as Europeans (though this makes them less competitive as an exporter), but they're not allowed to mark any part of such prices as VAT on a non-EU customer's invoice because that amount is going into their own pockets.

So I doubt you've ever had VAT actually reimbursed; however, Amazon (all sites) do refund some "Import fees" that you may have paid in advance as part of Amazon Global Shipping, if they overestimated the fees that would apply at customs. (If it turns out at customs that they underestimated the Import fees upon your checkout, they pay the difference themselves which is a great deal.)

Another possibility is of course the Pre-order price guarantee which leads to a post-dispatch refund when the price of your pre-order has gone down shortly before or on release day. If the price has gone down early enough before the release date, they will actually adjust your debit amount before dispatch, and after dispatch simply inform you by mail of what you 'saved'.

It's always worth checking your Order confirmation before a pre-order is dispatched to see what they're about to charge you; sometimes it's less than what you ordered AND less than the release day price, because there was a price dip in the meantime that you didn't notice.

Other things to consider: Amazon US does not deduct VAT for non-US customers because US law prohibits VAT-free retail exports as I understand it.
Meanwhile, increasingly countries are starting to pass laws that force major international internet retailers to add that country's VAT upon checkout. For example, due to a new Swiss law targeting large-cap online retailers, a Swiss customer ordering from Amazon UK in 2019 will have UK VAT deducted but then 7.7% Swiss VAT added to their import directly upon checkout.
These various tax laws around the world have recently led to Amazon US ceasing their business for certain countries; for example, because Australian and Swiss customers would see both US and Swiss/Aussie VAT forced upon their orders on Amazon US, the site has decided that their prices cannot be competitive enough to continue selling in those countries.

[Robbie The Robot]

Originally Posted by rwc

Quick tip: multiply the prices that you see on Amazon UK/FR/DE/IT/ES etc. by 0.8333 to get the price without EU VAT. You learn to quickly recognise the usual price points (14.99=12.49, 19.99=16.66, 24.99=20.82, 29.99=24.99, 60=50, etc)...

They're literally not allowed to charge EU VAT at any point if the order isn't subject to EU VAT. Nor are they themselves allowed to change any costs after your order due merely to conversion rate fluctuations. Retailers (like Zavvi) are of course allowed to make you pay the same tax-inclusive price as Europeans (though this makes them less competitive as an exporter), but they're not allowed to mark any part of such prices as VAT on a non-EU customer's invoice because that amount is going into their own pockets.

So I doubt you've ever had VAT actually reimbursed; however, Amazon (all sites) do refund some "Import fees" that you may have paid in advance as part of Amazon Global Shipping, if they overestimated the fees that would apply at customs. (If it turns out at customs that they underestimated the Import fees upon your checkout, they pay the difference themselves which is a great deal.)

Another possibility is of course the Pre-order price guarantee which leads to a post-dispatch refund when the price of your pre-order has gone down shortly before or on release day. If the price has gone down early enough before the release date, they will actually adjust your debit amount before dispatch, and after dispatch simply inform you by mail of what you 'saved'.

It's always worth checking your Order confirmation before a pre-order is dispatched to see what they're about to charge you; sometimes it's less than what you ordered AND less than the release day price, because there was a price dip in the meantime that you didn't notice.

Other things to consider: Amazon US does not deduct VAT for non-US customers because US law prohibits VAT-free retail exports as I understand it.
Meanwhile, increasingly countries are starting to pass laws that force major international internet retailers to add that country's VAT upon checkout. For example, due to a new Swiss law targeting large-cap online retailers, a Swiss customer ordering from Amazon UK in 2019 will have UK VAT deducted but then 7.7% Swiss VAT added to their import directly upon checkout.
These various tax laws around the world have recently led to Amazon US ceasing their business for certain countries; for example, because Australian and Swiss customers would see both US and Swiss/Aussie VAT forced upon their orders on Amazon US, the site has decided that their prices cannot be competitive enough to continue selling in those countries.

Amazon recently lifted their embargo on Australia. But only for Amazon listed products and not for third party sellers. I think they realised how easy it was for Australians to purchase US products from other American on line retailers who were not as challenged with adding 10% tax to the product.

[Mobe1969]

Originally Posted by Robbie The Robot

Amazon recently lifted their embargo on Australia. But only for Amazon listed products and not for third party sellers. I think they realised how easy it was for Australians to purchase US products from other American on line retailers who were not as challenged with adding 10% tax to the product.

Unfortunately they haven't dropped the embargo for the other Amazons yet. So I still can't order stuff form DE, FR, UK, Ja.