£stretcher refusing to pass on vat discount

3XsAlady

I purchased some toys in £stretcher yesterday expecting the vat to be discounted at the till & was told we are no longer passing it on, I was fuming, is this legal?

Freddie_Snowbits

So am I doing portraits, even though customers seem to think they want £2 off a print.

fiscalfreckles

Of course it's legal, a retailer can charge what they like. Or a portrait provider.

Ask before you buy, if it bothers you.

Freddie_Snowbits

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: I heard that the CHAVs and NEDs wanted the VAT of their baked beans at ASDA

tazical

The VAT cut was designed to boost the economy- it's entirely up to the retailers if they want to pass it on or not. If it comes down to passing the VAT cut onto the customer to save a few pence on their shopping, or letting companies keep it so that they don't have to lay off staff and push up the unemployment rate with the result of trashing the economy further, then I know which I'd prefer.

Bear in mind that most cost prices for retailers have skyrocketed over the last year with the rising cost of minimum wage, rising Chinese labour costs, fuel, rent and gas/electricity, and yet product prices have continued to drop. An extra 2.5% may make the difference between a company staying afloat and going bust. And if companies go bust then that means less competition on the high street, and that means that prices will go up because there will be less competition and I expect the same people will be complaining then as they are now.

It's all a balancing game, and I'm afraid that the bigger picture is much, much bigger than if someone can save a few pence on their toys.

Butlers1982

They can charge what they want for items!
I know of companies that are benefiting from the "reduction" for example, the item was orignally £8 and they paid 17.5% vat, its now £8 and they pay 15% vat!
So thanks to this businesses are saving an extra 2.5% in VAT payments!

RobertoMoir

3XsAlady wrote: »

I purchased some toys in £stretcher yesterday expecting the vat to be discounted at the till & was told we are no longer passing it on, I was fuming, is this legal?

Why would it be illegal for them to put the price up by the exact amount of the VAT reduction. They have the choice to do that and you have the choice to decide it's a bad deal and go elsewhere.

little_teapot

I think it's funny how people think that retailers have to reduce all their prices because of the VAT drop and forget that companies can charge whatever they like. The VAT change is more of a benefit for the company rather than the consumer.

Daytona_nev

little_teapot wrote: »

I think it's funny how people think that retailers have to reduce all their prices because of the VAT drop and forget that companies can charge whatever they like. The VAT change is more of a benefit for the company rather than the consumer.

Agreed, though that certainly wasn't the government's intention. Passing on the 2.5% was always going to be hit & miss. Alot of small retailers won't bother. Especially the cut price chav emporiums like £stretcher whose profit margins are probably very small.

SPANIEL36

tesco aren't doing it off their clothes today either

SPANIEL36

or b&m................