Has anyone every...

[boney]

Just a quick question here regarding LeisurePro.
I posting it on the OFWF section as I want to know if anyone in Ontario has ordered items online from LeisurePro and if they arrived in good condition, etc... Are there things I should be aware of, to watch out for, blah, blah blah...

Thanks!!!

 

[Groundhog246]

I've never bought from Leisurepro, but have purchased items from the US. Be aware that many couriers charge a brokerage fee on cross border shipments. UPS for example charges a minimum of $25.00 plus any duties and GST (the charge is for calculating, collecting and submitting import duties and GST). I think that covers up to about $150, then the fee goes up. Most other couriers are similar. So a $25US item, with shipping (say $10US) plus the exchange $1.40 would be $49.00CAN so $3.43 GST due plus $25 brokerage, your $25US item cost you $77.43CAN total.
Canada Post is better, especially for small items, no brokerage fee, but they collect PST as well as GST.
I had a friend "save" $20 (after shipping) on a battery switch from a US company. By the time he paid the brokerage fee, he could have bought locally cheaper.

 

[boney]

Thanks Groundhog!
I was actually looking at their tank prices which seemed fairly decent but after I factor in all the things you mentioned - I doubt it will be any cheaper and I would end up waiting a couple of weeks before I get it. And I have no way of ensuring that it arrives safely...

 

[tektom]

boney once bubbled...
Thanks Groundhog!
I was actually looking at their tank prices which seemed fairly decent but after I factor in all the things you mentioned - I doubt it will be any cheaper and I would end up waiting a couple of weeks before I get it. And I have no way of ensuring that it arrives safely...

Not only that, but the tank will likely be shipped unpressurized, if not with the valve off. You'll have to find a store to VIP & fill it for you on top of that, and pay for the privilege, while buying a tank at a store will come VIPd and filled (if you're lucky, filled with the mix of your choice ). Mail order scuba cylinders from the US are not worth it. Within Canada, however, especially if you can get it shipped via Greyhound/Voyageur..........

 

[Groundhog246]

Around here the LDS are selling cylinders pretty much at cost. My main LDS has a once a year "skid sale", early summer. They announce it about a month ahead. You order tanks. The more tanks ordered (usually several skids, there are 3 stores involved) the better the price. usually about $20 below the "regular" price.

I can't see how, by the time you ship a tank (and shipping regulations require it be non-pressurized, then get a visual and fill, you'd save any $$ buying from the US. One "hidden" cost here in Canada, that most don't factor in, is the Canadian Distributer. For example, Diversico in Cambridge are a (the?) Canadian Distributer for Sherwood and Catalina (maybe others). Their price on a Catalina cylinder is probably the same (if purchased in the same qty) as LP pays in the US and then they have to add a markup to cover they're costs. The alternative is for your LDS to be buying from Catalina in small quantities, paying a higher price per due to the small quantity and the shipping all the way from the mfg., plus brokerage fees, etc.
Also in most cases, the distributor assumes responsibility for providing warranties (at least the labour portion of repairs done locally and shipping if it has to go to the US) and has to have enough markup to cover those costs. Fair? Maybe not, but that's the way it works. In many cases, they record the s/n for items they've imported. Anything imported directly, they won't cover the warranty.