Why does is the eBay Buyer Premium constantly wrong?

[ennisellis]

Does anyone know why the eBay Buyer premium constantly changes at the last minute? I bid on an item - £41.93 + postage of £7.90 and it clearly states "includes £1.93 for Buyer Protection". I win the auction unchallenged. But when I go to pay, the item (before postage) has suddenly jumped to £42.32 and now "includes £2.32 for Buyer Protection". This isn't an isolated case, it happens almost every time. I think I know what I'm paying for Buy It Now, agree to the amount, then it goes up at check out because the Buyer Protection has suddenly increased for no reason.

Any suggestions as to why I keep experiencing this? It's annoying to suddenly find I'm paying more than I thought, especially as, in the example above, I thought I was keeping things under £50, and now I've gone slightly over at the last second!

[ennisellis]

Contacted Customer Support. Apparently it cannot calculate VAT until you confirm the address at checkout which considering it's a UK address buying from a UK seller on a UK site seems... odd... It's a bit like going into a shop, picking up something for £10, then getting charged £12. Which, if you only have £10 on you, is annoying.

But there you go - it goes up because it's adding VAT to the Buyer Premium at the last second. No solution, nothing I can alter in my settings so I actually know what I am paying, just got to put up with it or try and calculate if myself before buying anything.