Remotely buying a computer in the UK from Canada

November 29, 2009 1:40 PM

My parents (in Canada) are trying to buy a PC for their family in the UK, but they're having trouble finding a store that will take their money. Apparently they won't accept foreign credit cards, or even money orders. He's tried Dell, PC World, Curry's, and a few others. Any ideas?
posted by krunk to Shopping (13 answers total)

I've heard something said about amazon gift cards being bought and then redeemed at a different amazon site, but I'm not entirely sure it works. That said, maybe something along the lines of that?

Sorry I can't be of more help...
posted by R a c h e l at 1:49 PM on November 29, 2009

The problem is probably that the UK shipping address doesn't match the address on the Canadian credit card, which can seem iffy and IIRC is against Visa's security rules.

Money order?
posted by Sys Rq at 1:53 PM on November 29, 2009

Uh, nix the money order suggestion...oops.
posted by Sys Rq at 1:54 PM on November 29, 2009

Marks and Spencers are happy to take my Canadian credit card, and have a small selection of computers.
posted by kmennie at 1:59 PM on November 29, 2009

This American has used his American credit card in both Canada and the UK with no problem. Are your parents certain that their credit cards have not somehow been reported stolen? Have they called the bank that issues the credit card to ask them (the bank) why the card is being declined?
posted by dfriedman at 2:18 PM on November 29, 2009

You might have some luck with John Lewis. They have computers and I'm pretty sure I bought gifts online from them for relatives here in the UK while I was living in NYC.
posted by sueinnyc at 2:21 PM on November 29, 2009

The easiest thing to do is have your dad hop online, change his credit card address to your UK address, make the purchase, and then change it back. (If you can't do it online, you can do it by phone.)

This is not an unusual solution to this problem - there used to be stuff on Amazon you could only buy with a US cc, but could actually ship to the UK, so loads of us periodically moved into 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, etc. It just has to be a valid address.
posted by DarlingBri at 2:30 PM on November 29, 2009

Best answer: I've bought lots of gifts for friends in the UK on the UK Amazon site with my American credit card. Have you tried amazon.co.uk? The shipping address does not have to match the billing address (I use Visa and Master Card).
posted by bluefly at 2:35 PM on November 29, 2009

I've got an Amazon UK account which is linked to my Canadian CC - never any problems.
posted by Neiltupper at 3:28 PM on November 29, 2009

I have also frequently used amazon.co.uk to buy stuff with my USA CC and ship to an address in the UK.
posted by Long Way To Go at 3:36 PM on November 29, 2009

I never had a problem using my Canadian credit card in person for a year in London. Is there someone they could give a duplicate card so they could shop in person? Of course, it would have to be someone you trust quite a bit to give them a card on your account.
posted by tiamat at 4:18 PM on November 29, 2009

nthing Amazon.co.uk, which now also offers the option of billing orders in the currency of the card, potentially saving you transaction fees.
posted by holgate at 4:42 PM on November 29, 2009

Response by poster: Apparently they've had luck with Amazon.co.uk in the past, but for things like books and CDs, never tried with computers. I'll have them give it a whirl. Thanks for the help!
posted by krunk at 6:43 PM on November 29, 2009