Buyer from Tel Aviv but shipment to Hamilton Ontario

[loml888]

I just sold an item and in my email it state the buyer shipping address is in Tel Aviv.  When I go to my ebay it want me to ship to an address in Hamilton.  I know I'm not a newbie, but this has never happened before and not sure is I should ship it to the hamilton address or what.

Any help would be greatly appreciated

Thanks

[block36]

I would not worry about it.

I often buy items as gifts to my friends in other countries and therefore items are shipped directly there.

May it is a gift as well?

Or may be the person will visit Canada soon or the person from Hamilton will visit Israel?

This shipment will save them money on shipping cost at least... May be even on custom duties.

I recommend to send the item as parcel, so you will have a tracking number and I would add the option to have the recipient's signature on delivery ($1.50 extra)

[rose-dee]

I've had this happen a couple of times as well - one was a US eBay/Paypal address but a Canadian-registered buyer who asked me to ship to Ontario.  It turned out that he had a PO Box over the border for his US purchases to save money on duty presumably.  As mine was a Cdn. to Cdn. transaction, he had me ship directly to his home in Ontario. 

It's a good idea to use a tracked parcel service with signature confirmation and insurance in these cases if you can afford it (depends on the item value).  If the item value is fairly low, and you can send it lettermail, print off a duplicate address label on regular paper (or photocopy/scan the front of the envelope on your home printer), and have your postal clerk stamp it when you take it to the P.O.  This will at least be proof you have sent the item to the address indicated by the buyer.  And print out the buyer's email with their request -- if you get an INR case, it could help. 

I'd rather not have these requests, but when they happen, I don't think it's too much to worry about.  They are probably for legitimate reasons.  My only concern with these situations, especially with an item of some value, is that the buyer may be forfeiting Paypal protection by having a parcel sent to an address other than his/her address on Paypal or on eBay.  Hopefully they are aware of that.

[mr.elmwood]

Israel can be problematic as it is declared a "war zone" at different times. I tried to send some money to a customer a year ago and Paypal refused to forward it.

So, they can't always gte parcels and Paypal will not forward money. If you were an Israeli buying something, what would you do? You would do as this buyer is doing.

Sometimes it is the buyer doing everything they can to make sure they get their parcel and it is not a scam needing every possible safeguard and verification process, that only protects the seller.

[rose-dee]

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@mr.elmwood wrote:

Sometimes it is the buyer doing everything they can to make sure they get their parcel and it is not a scam needing every possible safeguard and verification process, that only protects the seller.

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No, not likely a scam in these instances, I agree, but certainly somewhat more risky for the seller and buyer.  Certain precautions (tracking & insurance) in these cases are just good business sense, especially if you're shipping a valuable item. 

And of course these steps protect the seller.  A seller could use the "cross-your-fingers, knock on wood" approach which costs nothing but does nothing either.  At least the possibility of some recourse for loss is better than a total loss.  Again, it really depends on the item's value and the seller's risk tolerance.     

If there is no direct link between the address and the buyer, the buyer is obviously relying on someone else to pick up/receive and deal with the parcel, which means another possible risk for buyer and seller. 

In addition, if the item is actually lost or stolen during shipping, both the seller and the buyer may find themselves at loose ends if there is no insurance.  And, as I said, the buyer likely would have no Paypal coverage, and the seller no proof of the buyer's address, which to me says the seller should do his CYA due diligence. 

[loml888]

Thanks everyone for answering me...that really helps alot and puts my mind at ease. 

[ricarmic]

This probably goes without saying but you have to charge taxes as though you sold it to someone in Ontario right.....because that is where it is addressed....