Tracked Packet tracking internationally

[zee-chan]

Hi all,

So I have made my second sale on the Bon~ website and this Germany buyer bought $210 CAD (flat-rated shipping included) worth of books from me. While it's very exciting since that's more than what I've sold on eBay this May lol, I'm debating if I should use Small Packet Air ($38) or Tracked Packet ($50), because I'm still hoping to hear back from the buyer to confirm that the Paypal address is indeed correct. The buyer is new on Bon~, in fact just made her account yesterday probably just to buy from me. 

I would like to hear from sellers who have used Tracked Packet internationally, especially to Germany, to decide if I want to spend the extra $12 for tracking. Does it track all the way to the buyer's house and will a signature be required? Because if I don't hear back from the buyer within 3 days I'll just ship to the Paypal address, but I kind of wanted a peace of mind and the extra $12 might be worth it. 

The reason why I'm feeling a bit paranoid is because of my own experience as a buyer where apparently parcels sent from Japan, despite "being registered" (which I was charged $5 for), does not track all the way to my house (see post here - http://community.ebay.ca/t5/Buyer-Central/Tracking-stopped-showing-progress/m-p/336904) so if I'm paying $12 as a seller, I would like to make sure it's worth it, and that I would be covered under Paypal's seller protection if something does happen to this package... 

Thank you for all your input in advance 

[sylviebee]

I've always believed that Tracked Packet is Canada's version of shipping with delivery confirmation and that's the only scan that really matters.  In this case CPO charges an extra $12 for a scan which takes 2 seconds to execute.

Yes, you are covered via seller protection with Tracked Packet.

You can ship via small packet and insure for an additional US$3.20 with Third Party Insurance @ a total cost of about $42, or ship via Tracked Packet for $50 with insurance only for the fist $100, or (of course) ship for $38 with no insurance or delivery confirmation.

Wether to spend the extra money for delivery confirmation can be a difficult decision which only the seller can make.

[rosscd57]

If it's going to Europe and you don't use tracking - you will likely lose it all.

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[recped]

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@rosscd57 wrote:

If it's going to Europe and you don't use tracking - you will likely lose it all.

.

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Why?

[mr.elmwood]

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@recped wrote:

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@rosscd57 wrote:

If it's going to Europe and you don't use tracking - you will likely lose it all.

.

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Why?

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Yeah, why? Except for Mexico, I have lost one (1) in the last two thousand. I figure I have saved $12,000 (twelve thousand dollars) in the last two years NOT using tracking.

Tracking is only needed in the case of a dispute.

[rosscd57]

Because that's my history and Zee-Chan asked for advice.

And I don't think that it is coincidence that the buyer just open up the account the day before the buy.

I have lost to much money selling to Europe that I now only sell to Canada and the US. My experience is that untracked mail to Europe is not safe.

Granted there are a lot of good honest buyers in Europe and the rest of the world - but that's where most of the scammers are as well.

Even using tracked - too many complications with buyers and too much trouble to satisfy them. Just not worth the time and effort.

[mr.elmwood]

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@rosscd57 wrote:

Because that's my history and Zee-Chan asked for advice.

And I don't think that it is coincidence that the buyer just open up the account the day before the buy.

I have lost to much money selling to Europe that I now only sell to Canada and the US. My experience is that untracked mail to Europe is not safe.

Granted there are a lot of good honest buyers in Europe and the rest of the world - but that's where most of the scammers are as well.

Even using tracked - too many complications with buyers and too much trouble to satisfy them. Just not worth the time and effort.

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you will likely lose it all, TO, a lot of good honest buyers in Europe.

Great advice.

[rosscd57]

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@mr.elmwood wrote:

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@recped wrote:

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@rosscd57 wrote:

If it's going to Europe and you don't use tracking - you will likely lose it all.

.

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Why?

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Yeah, why? Except for Mexico, I have lost one (1) in the last two thousand. I figure I have saved $12,000 (twelve thousand dollars) in the last two years NOT using tracking.

Tracking is only needed in the case of a dispute.

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Well I can't see your listings so I don't know what your items sell for but mine average $200 up to $500 CND and they are big and bulky -  so send one to Europe with a huge dollar amount to ship it with tracking is likely well over $100.

So If I take a hit - I'm out big bucks. Two hits really big bucks. Plus all the labour and time restoring the item.

.

[ricarmic]

I think the thing we sometimes forget is that a lot depends on what you are selling.

I think from Zee's past threads that her stuff is a bit more "dangerous" to send than perhaps is the case for others.

I generally do not have problems to Europe, but I sell stamps. I wouldn't want to be shipping iphones to Europe!

Sounds like Ross's stuff is also prone to problems, perhaps for other reasons than Zee's.

I think it comes down to how much peace of mind does Zee want and how easily can she afford the loss if it goes astray. Those are the considerations I would use.

Based on Zees bit of concern already (I believe in my own "spider senses"!!!) $12 extra off a $210 sale may not be that bad a thing to do.

[rosscd57]

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@mr.elmwood wrote:

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you will likely lose it all, TO, a lot of good honest buyers in Europe.

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Ya know that is just duplicitous, misleading, manipulative and pretty much along Trumps tactics.

I'm out of here.

.

[femmefan1946]

Sounds like Ross's stuff is also prone to problems, perhaps for other reasons than Zee's.

Demographics.

I suspect that both are selling to a 'type' that has little respect for contracts, whether they are flibbertigibbets or outright scammers.

Mind you, I'm also wary of doll collectors, motorcycle enthusiasts, and numismatists.

Dang millenials!  Get off my lawn!

zee -  The main thing you want is Delivery Confirmation. Insurance is fine, but go for the cheapest since it is unlikely to be needed. The third party insurer would be the best price.

Also-- a sale on the Ranch! That's impressive!

[mr.elmwood]

That didn't come out the way I wanted it to.

Keeping in mind that Customs for Germany tends to be slower and strict. Buyer should be paying what ever duties, taxes, et al, that Germany levies.

[zee-chan]

Thank you for all your replies 

I think my original post sounded a bit too complicated since I got a bit paranoid about this sale. Bottom line is, I want to know:

If I use Tracked Packet international to Germany, does it track all the way to the buyer's door? I think it does have Delivery Confirmation, but since I have never used TP international before, I just wanted to double check if I'm fully covered by Paypal's (and Bon~'s) Seller Protection if I buy the TP label via the Paypal payment itself? 

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@ricarmic wrote:

Based on Zees bit of concern already (I believe in my own "spider senses"!!!) $12 extra off a $210 sale may not be that bad a thing to do.

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Yes, that's what I was thinking. $12 isn't a lot considering the sale amount. I actually haven't had much problems selling to European sellers from my end, and I have shipped $150 worth of books to UK / Germany / France before with just Small Packet Air and they were fine (either I never heard back or I got positives). These buyers usually do have a lot of feedback and they were all good (they didn't leave negatives or didn't say anything about missing parcels) and I'm fine shipping Small Packet Air to experienced buyers. I don't consider what I sell a high-risk category either.

With this sale I was a bit more concerned because I can't look up buyer history as she's new on Bon~, I don't have a phone number that I could include with my parcel (putting buyer's number on my parcels do give me a peace of mind), and I still haven't heard back from the buyer confirming her address. What's with people not responding to e-mails / messages nowadays? I even sent it within an hour of the sale  If she could just reply to my e-mail confirming her address as correct I'd send it with just Small Packet Air. 

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@femmefan1946 wrote:

zee -  The main thing you want is Delivery Confirmation. Insurance is fine, but go for the cheapest since it is unlikely to be needed. The third party insurer would be the best price.

Also-- a sale on the Ranch! That's impressive!

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I don't plan on buying extra insurance. It's the Tracking / Delivery Confirmation I wanted with this sale just to cover my rear, so it seems TP international would be the safest bet. 

Is Bon~'s nickname the Ranch? Didn't know that. I was surprised by the sale but I have a feeling this particular buyer also saw my books on eBay (half of the sold books got watchers), but my Bon~ webstore offers 20% off on orders over $150 USD, and I think that's why this buyer made a big order. 

And trust me, if it was only a $30 order it'd have been out the door on Small Packet Air this morning already lol. 

[zee-chan]

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@zee-chan wrote:

I actually haven't had much problems selling to European sellers from my end

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Oops that should've been "buyers". 

I know I have complained about a few INRs / late defects to Europe before too, but that all happened after the Paris incident, and those books were all shipped unregistered SAL from Japan (around $15~$40 each). With books that are shipped from my end (via Light Packet or Small Packet Air), not a single INR / late defect so far.

[femmefan1946]

Is Bon~'s nickname the Ranch? Didn't know that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IsypUGOyhz4

[nationalmoparts]

I never ship anything without a tracking # ...it's cheap insurance. I had a customer leave me negative feedback saying that I had shipped an incorrect item. He left the feedback 3 days before the parcel was delivered. Even ebay did nothing...that was my first negative ...very frustrating.

[recped]

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@nationalmoparts wrote:

I never ship anything without a tracking # ...it's cheap insurance. I had a customer leave me negative feedback saying that I had shipped an incorrect item. He left the feedback 3 days before the parcel was delivered. Even ebay did nothing...that was my first negative ...very frustrating.

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Define "cheap" because often the additional cost for tracked mail generally makes it extremely expensive "insurance" especially as it doesn't do anything for you unless you have a fraudulent buyer.

In this particular case we are talking about a $12 difference on a $200 order. That's a premium rate of 6%, one would need to have 1 in 33 buyers planning to fraudulently claim non-receipt just to break even. You can easily buy "real" insurance for less than 6 points, even Canada Post only charge 2.25%, third-party insurance is even cheaper.

[pjcdn2005]

I'm not sure if your question did get answered so yes...Tracked Packet International does have delivery confirmation just like it does to the U.S. and it is handled by Paypal and eBay in the same way.  In some cases the scan will only show up on that destination country's website so you have to phone eBay/Paypal and direct them to that site.

I think what a couple of posters are suggesting is that it is less expensive to get insurance rather than pay for delivery confirmation and in some ways, it is the better way to go.

If an item is scanned showing delivery, you would win an inr claim.  But delivery confirmation doesn't guarantee that an item will be delivered so if it gets lost, you would be out the money. If you have insurance and an item gets lost, the insurance company compensates you regardless if you used a service with del. confirmation. Insurance companies usually require proof of shipping though so its important to know what they accept as proof ahead of time.

I'm tired...I hope that all makes sense. 🙂

[zee-chan]

Pj, thanks for the detailed explanation. 

I messaged the buyer again today (via the Ranch and e-mail), which is about 45 hours post-sale, and she replied with her full address (same as Paypal) and also gave me her phone number as requested.

I think I'm good with sending it just Small Packet Air now, and I'll use Paypal shipping because I like how SP Air labels now has a barcode on it with that "no delivery scan" thing that looks like a tracking number lol. Kinda panicked for nothing there yesterday  Thank you all.

The thing about getting third party insurance is, I can't prove that these books are worth $210. That's how much I sold them for, but I don't have the original receipts for these books for when I acquired them (at a lower cost). Would third party insurer pay out the amount simply based on what my sale invoice says?

[pjcdn2005]

Would third party insurer pay out the amount simply based on what my sale invoice says?

They should pay out the amount that you just sold the item for. I haven't ever had to put in a claim but that's the way that I have heard it works based on other posters comments. I remember one poster commenting quite a while ago that they ( I think that it was Canada Post) asked for the original invoice until the poster told them that he had bought the items years ago and paid quite a bit more than what he just received.  They decided to accept the claim based on the amount the buyer just paid.