I have received a Copeland Low D and a package of the Whistleshop this year and have just seen the customs invoice for both (including duty).
Boy, that blew me away.
For receiving/buying my Copeland I had to pay an additional of 130 euro (total amount of package was $400). The package from the Whistle Shop with a total amount of $180 has cost me an additional 60 euro.
So $580 in total or 635 euro has cost me 190 euro (= $170)!!! What’s the percentage on that?
I don’t even want to think about how many whistles that amount would equal.
I won’t order anything from outside the EU from now on.
The Canadians will probably understand how I feel, but what about other Europeans on this board? Am I the only one? Are there things I could have done to prevent this? Maybe I can object to the invoice or something.
Advice very welcome!
Ilana
(BTW, this has made me like the Copeland less for some reason)
[ This Message was edited by: Curlyblue on 2002-05-06 09:45 ]
I know how you feel, although I’ve never been hit that badly. I had to pay about $100 Cdn on a couple of whistles from Colin Goldie last year. Didn’t make me like them less, though!
On stuff that come from the States we usually escape customs duty but have to pay the Canadian equivalent of VAT.
Luckily there are great whistle makers in the UK and Germany. I’ve decided that the one or two Overtons I’d like to order can wait for my next trip to Europe.
But look at it this way: anything that cures you of WhOA is worth the price!
On 2002-05-06 09:24, Curlyblue wrote:
I have received a Copeland Low D and a package of the Whistleshop this year and have just seen the customs invoice for both (including duty). Boy, that blew me away.
[…]
Advice very welcome!
I orderer a Hoover Narrow earlier this year from the Whistle Shop. Same experience. I can’t remember the exact numbers but it made me look for an EU alternative to the Whistle Shop.
Ordering from Shanna Quay was a breeze! Service was perfect, s&h was negligible. So, SQ is my first stop whenever I’m thinking about new whistles or CDs.
Another address, of course, as StevieJ mentioned, are Overton Whistles. I don’t know where you are located in the Netherlands but I’m sure you can almost drive over to Colin Goldie and pick it up yourself!
[ This Message was edited by: ChrisB on 2002-05-06 10:07 ]
Ronduit klote!
I’m afraid that counts for all of Europe when importing from outside the EU.
I’ve had a few occasions like that which realy bit my budget. I will be very careful with ordering outside the EU as well.
At some point I would want to buy a quality wooden flute - no way I’ll have customs put their greedy hands on that one.
The only possible solution is when you can strike a deal with the sender to mark it as a “Gift”.
Sometimes this will not be possible for them and can put their company in danger.
Of course, you won’t have these problems buying whistles second hand from other C&Fplers across the Atlantic.
I on this continent we’d better stick with Colin Goldie, Bernard Overton, Tony Dixon and Fred Rose.
Fate could be worse
Ilana’s comment raises an important point. As an attorney who exploits…I mean specializes, in whistle litigation, I have observed that the customs issues raised in her post have caused a recent and unfortunate rise in International Whistle Smuggling.
Having represented many Whistle Mules, those hapless victims of WhOA who courier high end USA made whistles across international borders to support their need to acquire a set of Abells, Tullys or Copelands, I have and continue to lobby the Bush administration to work to ease such trade restrictions on the export of whistles for the Public Health and Welfare, and I encourage everyone to do the same.
Oh, and the rumor that several of my former clients are on parol and looking for work and can be contacted through my office is pure rubbish…
The extras costs for buying for me here in Sweden is 25%, when shipped from outside EU.
This is EVEN for gifts if the value is $50 ( or about 50 Euro), so you cant shipp a $1000 wooden flute as a gift because then you are not able to insure it for more than what the package says it´s worth.
I have considered Overtones instead of Copelands several times, but I will not let this extra costs stop me from getting what I believe is the product that will suit me best.
I have two Copeland + two Abells ordered… mucho $$$$$$
It doesnt stop there, I have been looking for recording mic´s for several years and finaly when I find something that actually is capable of capturing the reality, well… of course it is American mic´s. Earthworks matched pair for $2000, that´s an extra $500 for me here is Sweden.
Hey, you even have to pay tax on the SHIPPING COSTS AND INSURANCE, (AT LEAST FOR INSURANCE). Aaargh!
It gets even worse… I traded a used soundcard-mic-measurement sytem (clio) for a “used” high quality recording sound card (Mia) with a guy in the States, it was a “bad” deal for me from the beginning, and of course I ended up with having to pay an additional $50 in tax.
HEY… I already did pay tax on my gear that I traded for his… “%&)?#”&%&?. Just the way it is the person at the “tax-office” told me.
If that is not sick… I don´t know what.
If I would buy my two Copelands + two Abells + a pair of microphones in the states, I could use the tax money for a flight-ticket and still have money over!!!
/Peter
[ This Message was edited by: Pan on 2002-05-06 10:50 ]
That’s an interesting idea. If several people in the EU all want to get stuff from USA shops, they could pool the money that would go to tax and send a sales rep to the states
avanutria wrote:
That’s an interesting idea. If several people in the EU all want to get stuff from USA shops, they could pool the money that would go to tax and send a sales rep to the states >
Or… an enterprising young student can pay her way to visit Europe.
Melvin, I must say if it wasn’t for your former clients…
So I guess European import guidelines are to blame for our empty wallets (although there are more coins with this euro).
Oh no, another sickening thread!
It’s not a punishment to focus on European whistlemakers for a while (although I only have a Hoover NB and a Copeland as US whistles).
There are:
Fred Rose (hopefully I will receive word soon that I’m on the waiting list),
Burke (let’s not forget Mick O’Brien that takes care of European Burke lovers),
Overton, Dixon, Silkstone …
My new career might be European representative of all American whistlemakers! Or that student can bring lots of whistles!
It will be at least a couple of weeks before I start to think of another whistle, but…
any Europeans that have whistles they want to sell, let me know!
(the healing has started, although my wallet hasn’t)
Oh I don’t, I still feel funny.
[ This Message was edited by: Curlyblue on 2002-05-06 13:36 ]
[ This Message was edited by: Curlyblue on 2002-05-06 13:38 ]
Hmmm, next time I travel to Europe… I wonder if it would be suspicious going through security here after 9-11 with a bunch of metal tubing looking stuff in my carryon. Maybe I could cut a deal with the Celtic music shop here in Estes Park Colorado. I guess smuggling is an honest living, sort of.
There have been previous threads about bringing whistles on flights…I imagine if you had all your whistles accessible so security could look through them and see that they do make notes, it would be alright. Kind of like turning on your cell phone or having your film handy.
You might want to call ahead to the airport to find out if they prefer items like that checked or carried on.
In March when I flew to Ireland, I waited in the security line next to a guy who plays his Low D for a living in San Francisco. He was leaving for a month in Eire so he took his whistle, putting it in his carry-on so the airline wouldn’t lose it when it lost his luggage. He was worried that it would be confiscated when x-rayed because the security guys wouldn’t know what it was. He needn’t have worried. The guard looked at it on x-ray, didn’t ask what that thing was in the bag that looked like a gun barrel, and let him go right through, while practically strip searching me, x-raying my shoes and even looking all through my wallet. It made me wonder how many other gun-like things got through.
On 2002-05-06 22:31, avanutria wrote:
There have been previous threads about bringing whistles on flights…I imagine if you had all your whistles accessible so security could look through them and see that they do make notes, it would be alright. Kind of like turning on your cell phone or having your film handy.
You might want to call ahead to the airport to find out if they prefer items like that checked or carried on.
Yes but with my level of playing ability demonstrating it may be considered a terrorist act, lol. My wife thinks it’s terrorism when I practice anyway.
Seems like airport security varies a lot from airport to airport. The Xray station in Tampa confiscated my cigar cutter…this is the small, double blade guillotine-style type. If I was a terrorist the only harm I could have done would have been to convince someone to put their finger in the thing so i could try to chop it off…but they took it nonetheless and put in in a box along with all the other nail clippers & etc.
True, I havent tried to take a concial whistle through airport security yet, but if they confiscated a useless cigar cutter, its not a stretch to think they would have a problem with my SweeTone (which probably could do some serious damage to someone if one actually tried to employ it to a nefarious purpose). Ive wondered how CTL and others deal with this issue since they travle so much, but maybe professional musicians just have that well-travelled look that dispels all suspicions.
Sorry, I didnt mean to go OT with this, but I was led to the previous threads on airport security/whistles by this thread and was surprised to see how little trouble people have had. Well, I’m travelling next week so I guess I’ll see how it goes…
I’m sorry to hear that the C&F’ers outside the US get hit so hard. In an indirect way, we whistlesmiths pay also…whistles occasionally get lost in shipment, and you can’t insure outside the US unless you send by UPS, which is hideously expensive.
You can ship via USPS Global Express Dave, costs about $20 (to England or Germany) including insurance up to $500 as I recall. I just shipped some whistles this way in the last month. The cost was more than twice the standard airmail rate, but worth it for the insurance.
Kevin,
If my experience is any indication, you needn’t worry about going through TIA, or airports in general, with you whistles. This winter I flew out of TIA for a round trip and had no problems going though security at any of the airports. I was toting a backpack with several metal whistles and never got stopped at the xray machine for single search of my pack. I did however have to take off my hiking boots for inspection and x-ray on several occasions.
Does make one wonder what sort of stuff is getting by the security checks
