B12 from Germany

[RiskiestEnd]

Hi Everyone,

Has anyone recently ordered B12. On mycare.de they are now saying they cannot supply to the UK 😭

[Gambit62 Administrator]

yes, just looked at placing an order and can't put in an address in the UK but was just a quick try.

The UK government has been trying to crack down on people sourcing medications from outside the UK so don't know if that is a consequence of that.

[helvella in reply to Gambit62]

Under what law?

Isn't Free movement of goods one of the four freedoms upon which the EU is based?

[Gambit62 Administrator in reply to helvella]

Helvella, I totally agree with you that it is certainly dubious under EU rules and I'm very hazy as to the details of what the UK government was requesting EU states to do and it may be that this is actually nothing to do with that. Belgian was in the position of having a complete ban on importing medications from outside Belgian. It was taken to the European Court in relation to restrictive trading and lost but not sure how much difference it has yet made.

Possibly it is to do with VAT legislation and wanting to avoid the need to register in the UK given that another comment mentions that it is due to going over quotas. Not sure what the limits might be in Germany on this.

[helvella in reply to Gambit62]

I certainly see why VAT (etc.) could be a problem. After all, we are just five months from expiry of Article 50. They might well not wish to be handling VAT with respect to the UK where it goes into the period of extreme uncertainty. That is, they'd want the paperwork finalised well before 29/03/2019.

[wedgewood in reply to Gambit62]

Might be that the pharmacies set their own limits/quotas , and it has nothing to do with the authorities .

[Hidden]

Had no problem getting my supply from here

versandapo.de/vitamin-b12-d...

[wedgewood in reply to Hidden]

The 100 ampoule pack of Rotexmedica is out of stock today , but the 10 ampoule pack is in stock at the moment.

[wedgewood]

I tried to phone mycare.de about this , but you cannot get through to them on that 00800 number they give , it’s only for Germany , although they give the German international code with it . So I got my daughter to phone them as she lives in Germany . They said yes , at the moment they cannot supply B12 ampoules to U.K. , but hope to resume doing so in 2019. My daughter then tried to find out the reason , but they were quite cagey . My daughter said it was possible to get supplies to all the other countries they deal with e.g. Afghanistan etc. Yes , the representative said . but we have “limits” . My daughter then suggested that the “limits” for the U.K. had been reached , and the answer was a reluctant “ yes” . Didn’t like being questioned on the reasons for non - supply . I do believe that perhaps people in the U.K. are getting anxious about what might happen at Brexit , and have been ordering large quantities of B12 ampoules , because they have a long use -by date of 2 1/2 years . I just tried versandapo.de , and they are out of stock of the 100 ampoule pack, but the 10 ampoule pack is available ( still)

I hope that this is the explanation .

[Gambit62 Administrator]

this would have nothing to do with Brexit.

Not really sure what was going on with the proposal and how other governments would react. Others suggest below that it could be more to do with quotas and panic buying.

It looked as if UK is the only country that you can't actually enter as an address when I tried.

[fbirder]

Amazon.de let me get to the final stage of ordering with no problems.

[RiskiestEnd in reply to fbirder]

I ordered from them this morning but it’s now saying they won’t ship to the uk 😫

[wedgewood in reply to RiskiestEnd]

If you order from Amazon .de , some of the pharmacies that supply them never ship to U.K. You have to make sure that you order from one that does . Bodfeld Apotheke does ship to U.K. .but it might not be the one that appears first on the list . So you must check . I just tried it out and sometimes a pharmacy appears first that doesn’t ship to UK , as often the cheapest option appears first . But not always . ! A minefield sometimes ! You should be able to order from Amazon .de .

[fbirder in reply to RiskiestEnd]

I've just tried ordering 10 ampoules.

Just got my confirmatory email.

[RiskiestEnd in reply to fbirder]

Which seller did you buy from please?

[fbirder in reply to RiskiestEnd]

Bodfeld - they were top of the list. I guess I just got lucky.

[wedgewood in reply to fbirder]

I think perhaps if you use the Amazon.de site in English , they recognise that you are in U.K. , and the first pharmacy to come up is one that will ship to U.K. . i.e Bodfeld for example . I sometimes go on Amazon.de in German and then the cheapest pharmacy comes up , that doesn’t ship to U.K. .

[natcap1 in reply to fbirder]

Hi fbirder,

I’m just ordering B12 from Amazon.de. Is standard delivery ok - I thought the B12 required refrigeration? The delivery date is end Nov early Dec.

Thanks

[fbirder in reply to natcap1]

It’s only methylcobalamin that requires refrigeration (although most cowboy suppliers don’t bother). Hydroxocobalamin and cyanocobalamin are OK up to 25° C as long as they’re in the dark.

[natcap1 in reply to fbirder]

Great thanks.

[wedgewood in reply to fbirder]

What I’ve just noticed is that Bodfeld Apotheke in Germany sells the Rotexmedica B12 depot , pack of 10 for €10.15 on Amazon.de , but if you go on their own site it costs €5.57 . I suppose Amazon.de takes a cut from them .

[RiskiestEnd in reply to wedgewood]

Thanks Wedgewood. When I placed the order it didn’t say anything about not being able to ship to the uk and the seller was listed as andgrafen Apotheke. When I click the product now (from my order info) it takes me to the same product, says it cannot be sent to the UK but the seller is now apo-discounter Online Apotheke. So confusing.

[wedgewood in reply to RiskiestEnd]

Yes several pharmacies supply Amazon.de . with Rotexmedica B12 depot . If you can find Bodfeld , they do supply to U.K. . If you can read German or you have the translation app , you can go onto their own site , and buy it cheaper ! I think there is a run on people buying B12 ampoules from Germany , because of Brexit looming . That’s causing a short-fall . The laboratories that produce the ampoules are only small enterprises —the “big boys” do not want to bother — no big profits . I think it will resolve itself eventually .

[Curlygal in reply to wedgewood]

Just ordered successfully from Bodfeld and my phone automatically translated 😀

[wedgewood in reply to RiskiestEnd]

Yes , you don’t find out that they don’t ship to U.K. till the end . That hasn’t just happened , it was always like that .Make sure it’s Bodfeld that you order with (better still get the ampoules from them direct at bodfeld-apotheke.de if you can read German )

[Cali25 in reply to wedgewood]

Hi I’ve just ordered 100 ( 10x10 packs) from bodfeld @ 47 Euro including p&p as I was having trouble with versandapo who I usually order with. It wouldn’t let me finish with PayPal 😀

[fbirder in reply to wedgewood]

Strange. They charge €5.57 for 10 ampoules and €63.98 for 100?

[wedgewood in reply to fbirder]

Yes , it’s strange alright , and if you order 10 of the 10 packets , 100 cost €55.70 . I just tried it out !

[carer999]

Have you tried versandapo.de which is showing packs of 100 available for €48.19. They were shipping to UK in the summer and you still can pick UK from the drop down list when entering your address when you try to create an account.

[wedgewood in reply to carer999]

Yes , this is the pharmacy where I buy my B12 ampoules . ( Rotexmedica ) They are the cheapest if you buy 100 pack . And the courier only costs €9.00 They have the 100 packs on sale today at €48.17;, which is a bargain ..Only drawback is that they don’t have their site in English . But you can get a translation facility .

[carer999 in reply to wedgewood]

I used the translate function in the chrome browser and also used the translate in Google for words on the web site that chrome didn't translate and text in the emails I received from versandapo.

[hotcherry]

Used to order from goldpharma

[merlinthecob in reply to hotcherry]

I was just about to mention Goldpharma - used with no issue, the only thing they stipulate is that you need to put funds into their account first, think it was around £75 - No problems with the posting of b12 either to UK? My daughter flies back and forth to Spain a couple of times a year and she has bought back packs of B12 for me no problem (10+ in her hand luggage) maybe try a Spanish supplier??

[engels in reply to merlinthecob]

I've been buying from Goldpharma for 8 years and have never had to put funds into an account. I just pay by credit card.

[Coachlady11]

I ordered from versandapo last week and mt b12 arrived as promptly as ever x

[wedgewood in reply to Coachlady11]

Yes , but that was last week The 100 pack is out of stock today .

[Coachlady11 in reply to wedgewood]

I ordered 2 boxes of 10

I didn’t order 100 x

[wedgewood]

Yes I know , but I mentioned the 100 pack because so many people order the 100 pack as it’s so economical ( it’s use by date is for 2 1/2 years );

[Hidden]

Hello this is the reply I got today from my care about B12 .😏

Thank you for contacting mycare.de and for your interest in purchasing from us.

At the moment we are not allowed to supply to United Kingdom. This rule is valid until the end of the year.

Thank you for your understanding.

We expect to be able to supply you again next year. We hope you will stay with us as a loyal customer.

We wish you a nice evening.

If you have any questions do not hesitate to contact us.

With kind regards

[helvella in reply to Hidden]

Quite how de we find out what rule, issued by whom and under what authority?

One of those really frustrating answers that doesn't really answer anything.

[Hidden in reply to helvella]

I'm not looking for that answer, what couId I do with it. I take their reply from them to move fast and stock up from some place else before I get the same answers else where.

[wedgewood in reply to helvella]

Any retailer can refuse to sell to you ( I worked in retail in a former life .! ) They don’t need to give a reason .

[helvella in reply to wedgewood]

I agree, they are free to make their own decisions - but when they say they are not allowed it makes me want to know why!

If it is an internal thing, then perhaps it will only affect that one pharmacy. If it is imposed by some external body, it might affect every pharmacy.

[wedgewood in reply to helvella]

I’m sure that’s not the case . My daughter spoke to someone at the my care.de pharmacy in German . It became apparent that they had been overwhelmed with orders from U.K.and had decided to impose quotas . The person who responded by email was responding in English , and I think didn’t know how to choose the exactly correct wording . Anyhow they will ship to U.K. again in the New Year . I’m sure this is just a blip .

Amazon.de list about 14 different pharmacies who supply them with b12 ampoules ..Only about 4 of them ship to U.K. But all of them can be contacted directly . Bodfeld-Apotheke is certainly cheaper when you buy from them directly.I suppose that Amazon .de take a cut . Best wishes .

[JenMartins]

I get mine from VitaminB12Online.com without any issues. I get monthly orders from them.