Over charged shipping fee

[ttdnn]

Hi everyone. I really need your help! There was a purse that was up for bidding. I had contacted the seller and she claimed to have a shipping as $7 and she did not know why eBay posted the shipping as $18.98. Henceforth I won the purse and asked her to send me another bill so I can pay for my item. She did not reply to my email and instead, completely ignoring my previous email, sent me an email a few days after asking for payment. I then contacted eBay and they said that she made a mistake and was confused between international shipping and US shipping fees. This made perfect sense so I paid for the purse in full. A few weeks later the item shows up and on the box it states that the shipping costs only $6.80. This is completely different from the $18.98 that was previously stated on the website. I have since then tried to email her asking about it but have had no response. What can I do since I don’t think being tricked, having the shipping prices changed, and overpaying for it is fair?

[femmefan1946]

You liked a purse which had a $7.00 shipping charge.

That sounds low. It costs more than that to ship a paperback from BC to ON.

Was the seller in the USA or the UK?

If so, I think you were caught up in the Global Shipping Program.

The $7 would be shipping from a US address to the GSP plant in Kentucky. There the seller's responsibility for safe delivery ends.

But

The GSP charges foreign (Canadian or overseas) buyers for their country's customs fees and sales taxes plus ~$5USD as a service charge.*

The seller may not know that she was signed up for the GSP, which is a Seller Protection program. She only saw the $7 she was personally charging.

The other $11.98 went to the GSP, who paid Canadian duty** and sales taxes** on it.

What can I do since I don’t think being tricked, having the shipping prices changed, and overpaying for it is fair?

The price including shipping and import fees were stated before you agreed to pay.

No trickery. A misunderstanding.

The seller should be notified that she is signed up for the GSP, and that she may want to remove it.

Politely.

You can contact your MP about the ridiculously low amount Canadians are allowed to import without duty at

YOUR MP

HOUSE OF COMMONS

OTTAWA ON K1A 0A6.

You don't need to stamp the envelope, just write OHMS where a stamp would go.

The GSP is a Seller Protection program and is a useless annoyance to Canadian buyers.

You can avoid sellers who use it by Search in View rather than Gallery.

By looking for these words on the listing: Customs services and international tracking providedand while phone shopping is convenient, that warning does not show on mobile devices. Before committing to buy, check your choice on a laptop or desktop.

*It's more complicated than that, but bear with me.

** If applicable. Some reasons it might not be - NAFTA, used goods. Reasons it would be- valued over $20CDN (~$16USD).

*** Mostly sales tax. Yes, on used goods too. On anything valued over $20CDN.