Last week Cotic informed their customers that they were temporarily suspending EU deliveries of bikes and frames until they could sort out exactly how much it was going to cost to send bikes across the new trade border between the EU & UK. It definitely sparked a good deal of debate in the comments.
This week, Cotic owner Cy Turner has been in touch to tell us he’s got it all sorted out now and they are ready to resume orders to the EU, albeit with some important changes regarding the costs to the end user.
Here’s what he sent us…
UK Made Frames:
UK made frame only orders attract Zero duty when shipped to the EU. This is regardless of the damper specified, and can also stretch to include headset and BB and certain other items usually associated with “frame only” orders, mainly because in the vast majority of cases it involves UK made Hope parts.
Taiwan Made Frames:
All Taiwan made frame only orders will attract 4.7% import duty, and the associated handling fees for customs. As an example, we have calculated that a customer in the EU with a BFeMAX frame ordered will pay EUR40-50 more now.
Complete Bikes:
All Cotic bicycles attract 14% import duty. This means that with handling fees our bikes have become EUR350-600 more expensive depending on specification.
All purchases made by EU customers are now charged without 20% UK VAT. This means the price you pay Cotic will be much lower initially, but you will have VAT and the import duty and fees applied in transit, which will be payable by the customer to the courier when the frame or bike arrives.
Please remember that this is Cotic specific. We have a particular implementation because of our UK made frames and also because we sell predominantly mountain bikes. This means our bikes generally have very high value suspension bolted to them (the same, if not more than the frame cost sometimes) which is what stops us qualifying for tariff free trade on bicycles in all cases regardless of the origin of the base frame. Some other companies will have different tariff applications, because of their supply and bike spec situation.
Cheers,
Oh and I suppose the container costs have rocketed due everything coming in to Rotterdam and then being reshipped, hence paperwork.
>> container costs have rocketed
Container shipping costs have rocketed globally. My understanding is lots of disruption to everything due to COVID with mass shipping of PPE. Stuff sitting in containers not getting moved from docks. Containers used to have no economic value once they hit the US – now people being charged rental for the time they hold them.
I don’t think any of the tube-sets one historically associates with UK manufacturing are actually still made in the UK. Happy to be corrected on that by Cy, Dan etc…..
Everything Reynolds that isn’t 725 or 525 is still made in Birmingam. All the 853 we use in UK made.
Haven’t loads of EU shops stopped shipping to the UK as they now have to collect VAT at the checkout and then pay HMRC directly. Does this not also work the other way around. Cotic would have to pay say French custom directly? I hope for there sake not, or they would have to register with every EU countries customs service.
@woody74 those are the rules for items under £135 / EUR150. We are in the process of having to register for VAT in the EU and have all the VAT rates of the other 27 EU countries in the shop system for the changes that come into place on 30th June 2021. The British government introduced them in our direction on 1st January 2021 hence EU shops needing to register for UK VAT. It’s actually much more straightforward for stuff over the threshold, because you don’t charge VAT and the tariff, fee and VAT all get added at the other end for the customer to pay separately.