EDITOR, The Tribune.
Some might say that the launch of VAT was a success but there is an enormous amount of total, I mean total, misunderstanding.
My first visit since VAT to the food store got me really confused – I read the price on the shelf but fortunately I do not have dementia and I recalled the prices I read at the shelf but gee-wiz the cashier swiped the price without VAT and my receipt shows a line with the VAT calculation.
Has finance confused us all and even themselves?
Why are they telling the retailers price with VAT in and then exclude VAT when it is put into the register to tell us how much VAT we owe and what is our total purchase?
It is not difficult to calculate roughly the 7.5% so please Mr ‘VAT’, Mr John Rolle save face and darn change it because it is confusing everyone.
What you are in fact doing is indicating to the consumer prices have increased and as a result a $150.00 purchase could be reduced by $15-20.00 because Mr or Ms Consumer thinks they will be going over their budget. I thought you want to collect more VAT?
It is not too late to improve on the programme and give some assurance that prices have not suddenly jumped by 7.5%.
What’s wrong if a retailer wishes to absorb the 7.5% VAT and pay it themselves?
Mr ‘Consumer’ Bowe - boy you must have been horribly frustrated retired - hey man cool it you’re over doing this. No need to haul the TV cameras around you, you need the business man on your side now that’s common sense.
Inclusive pricing is a mess – it is not in favour of the shopper – change it please.
PATRICIA FERGUSON
Nassau,
January 8, 2015.
Comments
chairarranger 9 years, 2 months ago
Consumer prices have increased: by 7.5%.
Pretending otherwise with smoke and mirrors, and by displaying pricetags that are mystifyingly lower than what you are asked for at the cash register, serves no useful purpose to any consumer.
There is indeed enormous misunderstanding.
ohdrap4 9 years, 2 months ago
well way before vat was implemented, i asked that questions and kept getting evasive answers from govt people, like:
-- some economic model tells 5% inflation -- duties will be reduced
i kept pressuring and saying, what about what is in the shop already, where duties have been paid, etc... an accountant -type finally admitted, well, you have to charge 7.5 % on those.
-- the major duties reductions were on stoves and refrigerators, which people only buy every 12-15 years anyway.
Let's take the example of a pair of pants I normally buy for work.
Price in Miami 34.95 + 6.55 sales tax = 37.22
PREVIOUS DUTY RATE: 35%, Local price before VAT :$49.99
The price has not gone up, but with VAT I PAY: 53.73.
i do not know what the whole sale price of the pants are, but given the size of the population, it is likely not a real bargain, and the savings per peice on one container will be minimum, like 0.5 %. the duty rate has gone down to 20%..
Before VAT, CIF value: 100 plus 35% duty = 135.00
after VAT, FOB value: 99.5 + 20% duty + 7.5% vat= $128.35
the percentage change, as they taught in the 9th grade is 5%
Aha, that is where they get their 5% from, reduce the landed cost by 5%, hope and pray the mercahnt will not markup on the VAT, then add 7.5% and you expect the rise in price to be 2.5%.
Now when i got to the doctor, he just charges an extra 7.5%, that when averaged with the 2.5% at the dry goods or grocery stores, turns out to be 5%.
that is all there in the economics books, penned by them new zealand fellers. but we every day feel that the inflation is much more than 5%.
This is like the tsunami and the nuclear disaster. the book said the sea water was going to cool down the reactor, it never did. the professors were just talking crap.
chairarranger 9 years, 2 months ago
Remember Y2K.
ohdrap4 9 years, 2 months ago
i do remember y2k.
my bosses said it was an evil plot to make people buy computers, so, come y2k, there were serious issues because the software booked appointments and issued bills for the year 1901.
both the software an hardware only had 2 digits.
the company lost money, having to rush to get new computers, new software upgrades, and we were late sendong bils, paying bills and collecting money.
the comparison is not valid anyway. the govt was not going to fine us and take away passports if we did not upgrade computers.
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