Charged for importing 1 bottle of NDT

[Alanna012]

Has this happened to anyone else?

I've been charged nearly £50 by Royal Mail for one bottle of Erfa 1 grain!

I got the email from R.M this morning

This has never happened before (I've only ever purchased Erfa once previously some years ago from the same place, and was not charged)

I've not been charged before when buying any other meds from abroad from either USA or Europe.

Is this the norm now? It makes it considerably more expensive. I add a quarter grain NDT to my T3+T4 so it will last a long time, but still....

[london81]

I was paying around £200 if I recall correctly for £600-900 worth of NDT (I am on 4-5 grains per day so was paying about £600 every 6 months for ndt then tax and customs on top). I assume you will be paying a similar percentage of the cost of one bottle? How much did you pay for the bottle?

I’ve ended up seeing a tele Medecine doctor in the uk who prescribes ndt from a uk based pharmacy- it works out about the same although extra cost initially for regular tests and reports ( around £300 a time). The doctor in question is on the thyroid uk list

[Alanna012 in reply to london81]

Thanks london81

So I paid just under £200 by a few quid. The actual price of the item is just over £200, but I got a promo and paid just under.

That's why I'm surprised.

What you're saying makes sense though if you're paying £200🥵 custom fees for £600-£900 worth then it makes sense that I'm paying roughly a quarter of that.

I haven't actual read the justification. I still think it's a big fine.

Thanks!

[london81 in reply to Alanna012]

as I understand it, it’s tax and customs not a fine. Still adds to the excessive costs we are paying just to be well!

[Alanna012 in reply to london81]

Yes Tax and Customs, not a fine, you're right x

[helvella in reply to Alanna012]

It isn't a fine! Although I very much agree it looks and (I assume) feels like one.

There is a VAT element. Which would be towards £40 at standard UK rate.

And a charge for the customs clearance, etc. Which would start at £8.

That makes about £50.

helvella - Personal Importation of Prescription-only Medicines

Details of the legal and cost issues that apply to personal importation of medicines.

helvella.blogspot.com/p/hel...

[Alanna012 in reply to helvella]

Thanks Helvella, I read your blog. Thanks for explaining!

This is what I have from R.M:

Import VAT is applied to commercial goods and gifts over £39 in value, and is charged at the same rate to similar goods sold in the UK.

£39 seems like a low threshold to me.

Yes it does sting like a fine!🫠

I assumed VAT had been added because I've brought more expensive NDT from abroad before without fees and to be fair to myself, from the same vendor previously without fees. The price has clearly very greatly inflated in real terms if my previous batch also included VAT. I ought to have double checked.

Oh well. Lesson learned!😮‍💨

[pennyannie in reply to Alanna012]

Hello Alanna :

Are you aware that you can now arrange a consult with Roseway Pharmacy and I believe even if without a prescription - but with the presentation of a current blood tests the doctor there can prescribe and service your order from within the Uk ?

I haven't used this service myself - just reading around on here - it appears that Roseway are supportive of thyroid patients and they are listed within the Thyroid Uk website as a trusted service - thyroiduk.org

[Alanna012 in reply to pennyannie]

Thank you pennyannie!♥️

I do know about Roseway, but for some reason, until someone else posted about them the other day, I never checked that they offered anything other than Compounded NDT. I've waited nearly 6 weeks for this to arrive!

If they can accept my TSH being below 1 then I'll definitely try them next time. The initial outlay in terms of fees would be worth it in the long run. £50 import fees each time is a bit much to swallow!

[pennyannie in reply to Alanna012]

Yes - no question there - just swallowing the tablets is enough !!

[pennyannie in reply to pennyannie]

wolthebuilder - just for reference :

[helvella in reply to Alanna012]

The wording by HMRC is poor to awful. I've added some emphasis for how it should be read.

Import VAT is applied to [commercial goods] and [gifts over £39 in value], and is charged at the same rate to similar goods sold in the UK.

You cannot get a gift from a company. So that is not even a possible exemption in most cases. It is meant for family and friends sending genuine gifts.

The adding of VAT at time of ordering became quite common across many things - e.g. when things are bought via platforms like Amazon, eBay, or other electronic gateways. But that only works if the gateway/portal is registered with HMRC.

[Alanna012 in reply to helvella]

😄😄😄

The wording is awful. It only makes sense with your brackets are added! I was thinking what gift how now??

I'm going to have to trudge to my local depot. Well at least it arrived I guess!

[RedApple in reply to Alanna012]

There is a facility to pay online if you prefer royalmail.com/receiving-mai...

[RedApple in reply to helvella]

This might be helpful personal.help.royalmail.com...

[AKatieD]

And the reason it has not happened before is just luck. Some parcels they catch and charge you, others they don't

[Ellie-Louise in reply to AKatieD]

Unless it’s because of Brexit, it seems we are to expect rather large price rises altogether now.

[AKatieD in reply to Ellie-Louise]

This is not a price rise, it has always been the case. The only Brexit difference is that there used to be no taxes on stuff imported from Europe but there always was from the rest of the World. It just depends if you are caught or not.

Some overseas suppliers have warnings on their website that you may have to pay for importing to the UK.

[Ellie-Louise in reply to AKatieD]

I know, I didn’t mean that that was a price rise. Maybe I shouldn’t have said any more, or even that. I’ll keep quiet. 🥴

[Flamingo60]

just a thought…are you sure it’s not a scam? I’ve had some very realistic looking scam emails recently 🤔

[helvella in reply to Flamingo60]

There are many scams which are based on asking for payments to release parcels. Never ever pay before checking things out.

However, if it is tracked, if the email genuinely comes from Royal Mail, if you are expecting the package, if the values make sense, then it is much less likely to be a scam. And don't click on links in any such emails! Better to, for example, find the Royal Mail site and then navigate to the bit you need - then enter the identification code.

[Alanna012 in reply to Flamingo60]

Thanks!

This is the one time I wish it was a scam to be honest! Unfortunately it is the bone fide tracked service via Royal Mail and it is sitting in my local depot waiting for me to pay nearly a whole £50 which for me is a lot and could have gone towards some more meds and even paid for my T3😖

[AKatieD]

Was not having a go, but thought you meant price rise.

Agree it is a substantial addition to the cost. I buy smaller amounts more often and dont't get taxed so often now (extra postage vs customs charge). As the difference with paying for private consultation and meds in the uk is not much, I keep importing for the independence so I don't have to rely on someone agreeing to what I need.

[AmberBee in reply to AKatieD]

Are you aware of any other erfa supplies please other than the vu company, noticed some bad reviews recently

[AmberBee]

Thats rubbish adding to the costing, mind if I ask which company supplied the erfa please, find it is the only one that works for me.

[AKatieD in reply to AmberBee]

Sorry I don't use Erfa - was just commenting on postage from overseas

[AmberBee in reply to AKatieD]

👍

[helvella]

What was the value of the NDT?

helvella - Personal Importation of Prescription-only Medicines

Details of the legal and cost issues that apply to personal importation of medicines.

helvella.blogspot.com/p/hel...