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Hi,
I live in Morrisville and the Zip is 27560. I have been charged a sales tax of 6.75% on all of my in store purchases and online purchases in stores like Staples and Best Buy, which is normal. I ordered few items in Tigerdirect.com and I have been charged a sales tax of 7.5%. I contacted Tigerdirect Customer service and I got a reply saying that all internet orders will be charged a 7.5% of tax.
Just need info on why do I get charged a 7.5% tax on Tigerdirect.com and 6.75% on all other stores which do business locally.
Just need info on why do I get charged a 7.5% tax on Tigerdirect.com and 6.75% on all other stores which do business locally.
I suspect that TigerDirect is too lazy or too greedy to update their sales tax tables in their order software. I read about someone in Illinois being charged 35% sales tax, here: http://www.complaintsboard.com/compl...s-c372948.html .
I would report them to the North Carolina Department of Revenue which is responsible for collecting sales tax. You can find TigerDirect's business info through Google. They are in Miami. Here's the complaint form: Report Tax Fraud
In NC there is both a state portion of the sales tax and a county, so how much you pay can vary based on where you shop. An online merchant will assess sales tax based on your address. So if your in-store purchases are in a county different than the one you live in, that could explain the difference. I believe the rate in Durham and Orange Counties is 7.5%, while in Wake it's 6.75%
An online merchant will assess sales tax based on your address. So if your in-store purchases are in a county different than the one you live in, that could explain the difference. I believe the rate in Durham and Orange Counties is 7.5%, while in Wake it's 6.75%
If that is true, then there is no fraud, and no basis for a complaint. Morrisville is primarily in Wake, but parts are in Durham County.
Yeah, part of the 27560 zip in in Durham County (Keystone Crossing and maybe some of Kitts Creek as well as some random houses) so it looks like they are paying the higher rate on everything. I'll bet they are also paying all the taxes to Durham Co as well so they are screwing up as way more of that zip is in Wake. I wonder if a call to the Wake revenue dept pointing this out might get some action.
Of course this exact scenario is why companies argue that they shouldn't have to collect sales tax for Internet purchases.
In NC there is both a state portion of the sales tax and a county, so how much you pay can vary based on where you shop. An online merchant will assess sales tax based on your address. So if your in-store purchases are in a county different than the one you live in, that could explain the difference. I believe the rate in Durham and Orange Counties is 7.5%, while in Wake it's 6.75%
My house comes under Wake County.. Can I make a complaint to North Carolina Department of Revenue?
My house comes under Wake County.. Can I make a complaint to North Carolina Department of Revenue?
You can try, but I would also notify TigerDirect that you are complaining. Their software may simply be unable to distinguish which parts of the zip code are in which county.
That's just the way it is. I do sales tax for a living. TigerDirect probably uses a zip code software to assign tax jurisdictions. There is different methodology in situsing a customer where the zip code overlaps jurisdictional boundaries. They could use the geographical center of the zip code to determine the jurisdiction or a population figure. My guess is that they used the population figure. When they fill out their sales tax returns that tax collected would be allocated to Durham.
TigerDirect is not "lazy" or "greedy" as has been assumed above. There are limitations to internet/mail order and the requirement is not there to map out every house in every city/town across the entire United States. I'm not sure what the overcharge amount and it is up to you if it is worth your time pursuing with TigerDirect and/or the State of North Carolina.
Edited to add...Although it sounds like a pain, the reason for this is that TigerDirect is covering themselves in the case of audit. If a majority of the population of your zip code lives in Durham and TigerDirect gets audited, they are on the hook for the tax, penalty and interest for all the deliveries to Durham proper. Populations are changing and believe it or not so are jurisdictional boundaries.
TigerDirect is not "lazy" or "greedy" as has been assumed above. There are limitations to internet/mail order and the requirement is not there to map out every house in every city/town across the entire United States.
Thanks. I probably over-reacted based on the OP's report of the Customer Service person's explanation.
I understand software enough to know that it is probably not cost effective to map out every house to a county within a zip code.
Actually, the suggestion to return the item is good. Maybe they would take it back at the Raleigh store.
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