SIZE?/JD Sports charging VAT to non-EU members, but where does it go?

The story starts as I am perusing the sales section of SIZE?s online shop. I find a pair of shoes I want, and initiate the checkout process. As I progress I notice that they unlike 99% of all UK webshops do NOT zero VAT items for shipping outside the EU. I send them an email asking them why not, and receive this answer:
Good Afternoon, For customers residing in the Chanel Islands or outside the EU, any items purchased from the JD website are inclusive of VAT. This is a UK registered website and we have no legal obligation to supply items with zero VAT. All queries relating to VAT should be made to the HM Customs on 0845 010 9000.

Two points with which I have serious issue. So I decide to take them up on their last statement. I DO call HMRC. And they tell me some very interesting stuff which does not go well with the statement from JD Sports. So I take this back to customer services by mail. A week goes by. No response. Allright, so I take it to their Facebook page (the whole conversation can be viewed here: http://on.fb.me/Ao2BcR). They respond!

continues

Or, to date, they do for a while, but apparently need time-outs to choose their wording. Yes, inexplicable as it may seem, these are the statements they came up with after asking time to prepare them:
For customers residing in the Chanel Islands or outside the EU, any items purchased from the JD website are inclusive of VAT. This is a UK registered website and we have no legal obligation to supply items with zero VAT.

and
All products we sell to consumers residing and shopping outside of the EC are VAT zero-rated. size? does not deduct VAT from any online orders and instead re-invests in our commitment to an extensive range of quality products and maintaining low price delivery charges for all our non-UK customers.

Not only stating just once they charge non-EU customers VAT, but repeating it and re-enforcing it with not only do they not zero VAT, but they keep it and reinvest it in their extensive range of quality products, NOT transferring it to Her Majestys Revenue & Customs as legally required with any UK VAT charge according to the good people at HMRC. As can be seen from my screenshots the people of HMRC say there would be no point for them not to remove UK VAT, as they regardless would be legally required to transfer that money to HMRC, and notice 703 (http://bit.ly/o89v9L ) says:
1. The Channel Islands are part of the Customs territory of the EC, but are outside the EC, including the UK, for fiscal (VAT) purposes. Supplies of goods sent to the Channel Islands are regarded as exports for VAT purposes and may be zero-rated if the conditions set out in paragraph 3.3 or 3.4 are met. 2. VAT is a tax levied on goods and services consumed in the EC. When goods are exported they are "consumed" outside the EC and to impose VAT on such goods would be contrary to the purpose of the tax.

In short the conditions in paragraph 3.3 and 3.4 are to the effect that the goods need to be shipped straight out of the UK. A fella from Jersey, or Norway, cant walk in and say oh, Im leaving straight away, so just you deduct the VAT. This is why I, when visiting the UK need to get that mile-long receipt for VAT refund which I then put in the accompanying envelope and drop in the correct mailbox at the airport to be refunded in arrears. Because the shop has no guarantee Ill export them directly when I leave the shop. Not so when they ship it overseas directly themselves. There is no warning on the site that they will not deduct VAT, or prices are higher for non-EU customers. In fact, SIZE?/JD have eliminated the whole problem by not specifying VAT at any point in their checkout process. Whether it be overseas or UK customers. The difference of course being we know UK customers pay VAT on their products, whereas for the rest of us not-so-important customers, theyve created an excuse for themselves. This is the cost of an item on the site: (scroll down, eh)

This is the total, excluding p&p to an address in York, Yorkshire, England, UK:

And this last one is the total, excluding p&p, for a non-EU based customer:

Anyone else noticing the sum 55 as a recurring figure? We know the UK based customers pay 55 including VAT. But what are JD Sports international customers paying for?

Whether or not HMRC are interested in this (and I fail to see why they would not, really), this still begs the question how SIZE?/JD Sports view their international customers!? To me this speaks of their professionalism when compared to the likes of Hanon, End Clothing and others. And really, SIZE?, it would have been so much easier to just deduct my 8 worth of VAT. Wouldnt it?

Thanks to the people running SIZE?s facebook page for actually trying to respond, whereas I suggest a lengthy holiday for Adam of JD customer services

Warm regards from Norway!