B+W Filters - Why so slow?

[MartinNeedham]

I ordered a B+W 77mm ND110 Filter in April, and according to Amazon where I bought it from, it's not due to be delivered until mid-July!? I had originally wondered if this was a problem being solely experienced by Amazon, but having been in contact with Warehouse Express amongst others, it seems that it's a large number of camera retailers rather than just the one having problems with getting B+W filters in stock.

Has anyone else experienced similar lengths of time between ordering and receiving items such as the above?

Cheers,
Martin

[ianpinion]

Yes Martin. I waited almost 12 weeks to receive a Hoya ND8 filter from Jessops once. I think the reason it can take so long is that the filters are made in South East Asia and are sent over to the UK on container ships, rather than by air. From ordering it can take 6 - 8 weeks before they are loaded on to the ship and up to a further 4 weeks for the ship to dock in the UK. It then has to clear customs before the consignment goes to a distribution warehouse for it to be split down and moved on to the retailers who have placed orders for them. Then they have to get your filter to you.