Comments about the Global Shipping Program

[kalvin@ebay.com]

Feel free to share your thoughts about the Global Shipping Program here. 

A few questions to get the ball rolling:

• What has worked well for you with the Global Shipping Program?
• Any ideas to help improve the experience for Canadian buyers?
• What has deterred you from buying items offered using the Global Shipping Program?
• How have you managed to search for items outside the program?

Please try & keep the comments constructive 🙂

If you have any questions about the program, please post them here.

[femmefan1946]

A sensible seller would do that, but:

The average IQ is 100, which means that half the population is below that.

Keep this in mind. It explains a lot.

[marnotom!]

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@typhoonchef wrote:

it will be sent as a letter its a nes game box that will be sent flat in an envelope

how can it be possible that it costs 18 bucks?  

i buy these all the time......

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It will not be sent as a "letter" as far as the GSP is concerned.  Try telling a postal clerk that you want to send a letter to your relative on the other side of the country as a parcel.  They'll likely do it, but it's not going to be nearly as cheap as a letter.

[jessicalex2004]

That's what I've been doing . As soon as I see that "export" rip off charge , exit . I'm surprised it's still going on as I heard that in fact it could be illegal . 

[dasia143]

Hello, I’m new to posting on these boards but not to eBay. I’ve been a happy buyer for several years now, specializing in vintage and occasionally new textiles such as crocheted doilies. This GSP is seriously threatening my hobby, because it adds so much uncertainty--not to speak of extra cost--to what should be an enjoyable process. Typically, I paid $10-15 for an auction item, a bit more for a BIN, and shipping by USPS on these light items rarely exceeded $7.00. Now with the GSP, the prices for the items remain the same but shipping has doubled or tripled, and there are extra “import” charges.

Given that these handicrafts are made in North America, there should not be duty. But with one listing for two new doilies starting at $30 or $40 BIN, the import fee is $17.34! The listing says the doilies were made by the seller’s elderly sister, who I assume also lives in the USA. GST should be about $6.00 for the $40 BIN. Where does the extra $11.00 come in?

I am not going to be writing to sellers and begging them to change their shipping methods. Nor will I bid without knowing clearly what the final cost will be. It’s a shame that corporate greed has inserted itself into what should be a simple transaction between ordinary folks. And I note that the Grinch who is taking home delivery away from Canadians came from Pitney Bowes. Not a fan of that company!

Well, it was fun while it lasted!

[i*m-still-here]

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@femmefan1946 wrote:

The average IQ is 100, which means that half the population is below that.

Keep this in mind. It explains a lot.

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That hit it right on.

EBay sellers are all over the board in terms of personally characteristics and abilities.

Some days when I'm walking yet another seller through the GSP I'd swear I'm dealing wit a 12 year old.

[stitchwitch911]

The Global shipping program is a boon and a bane as far as I've experienced.  It's limited me from purchasing from some sellers of small ticket items because the item isn't worth the extra shipping costs and I think in the long run it will have a negative impact on US sellers. Now on the other hand, I was recently in the market for a kiln: the cost for the most basic model from a supplier in Canada would have come in at just under $1200 Canadian (inc. taxes and shipping).  I found a new one, top of the model line on eBay which ended up costing me just under $800 Canadian, including the seller's shipping and the Global Shipping Program shipping.   The seller was very transparent with their shipping costs as well as the Global Shipping so even in anticipation of having to pay twice for shipping, it was a no brainer for me.  If I buy in Canada, the retailer has to add the cost of shipping to the overall cost of the item and when I purchase that item from a Canadian retailer, I have to pay to have it shipped to my address, so I'm still paying twice for shipping.  For larger ticket items, I think Canadian buyers can often be further ahead buying across the border even with the stronger US dollar and the added expense of the Global Shipping and that US sellers can benefit from this as well.  Believe me, Canadians are quite used to being gouged by the Canadian government for taxes and if all US seller must use the GSP, then this smacks of the Canadian government trying to get its cut on the taxes which would normally slip under the radar if an item is shipped via USPS. 

[i*m-still-here]

stitch;  There is perhaps a handful of items for which the GSP "works" (if you want to call it that.).

For you the kiln seemed to work out.

Large Heavy Brand New Unused items: .............. these are few on eBay.

However, it does not follow that these items shipped the normal way wouldn't be more cost efficient.

It only means that if it's the GSP or nothing, then perhaps the GSP is the better option.

The GSP is rarely the better option.

For expensive items the problems are almost always amplified.

The GSP people rummage around in our packages with their sausage fingers and manhandle delicate antiques as they were pieces of trash.

It's all the same to them.

A heavy kiln is probably immune to the manhandling

[afantiques]

The GSP people rummage around in our packages with their sausage fingers and manhandle delicate antiques as they were pieces of trash.

It's all the same to them.

By the time any sausage fingers get involved, the GSP shippers are responsible for the package contents, and will have to pay if they are damaged.

The best thing people can do is to be strict about making claims for each and every item damaged in transit. Remember, an item damaged between Kentucky and the destination will not have to be returned to the seller, and it would not have been shipped if it was already damaged.

If there really is all that much repacking and subsequent damage a flood of claims will either make the shipping center improve standards, or render the whole business unprofitable.

Remember, a damage claim gets you a free (but damaged ) item.

[kitvit]

I hate GSP and don't will bid on any action which have this shipping options.

[fathomsbelow]

I just purchased a watch and was dinged an xtra $60 for this dam Pitney Bowes **bleep**. I swear to god if i get charged import tax /duty i'm giving the seller a negetive feed back because it's his auction and he did not mention or discose Pitney Bowes xtra cost. I f enough buyers give there sellers negetive feed back the complaints to Feebay will esciliate and maybe than they will make this feature an option for the buyer.

[karl*katz]

The Pitney Bowes information should have been in the top part of the listing.

[karl*katz]

[marnotom!]

This thread will likely get merged with the "Comments about the Global Shipping Program" thread.

In the meantime, I had a look at the listing page and I see mention of the Global Shipping Program, import fees, a mention that some of your payment will go to Pitney Bowes, and couple of links to pages with further information.

What do you see when you view the listing page?

[dasia143]

Stitchwitch, thank you for posting, it was interesting to read how the GSP worked for you. It doesn't for me though since most of what I buy is the opposite of heavy and expensive. I recently searched for a DVD and was disappointed to see that virtually all the sellers offering it were in the GSP, with shipping charges more than twice what I would have paid in pre-GSP days. (Obviously because it's being shipped twice.) No Canadian seller is has it listed.

I am a lady not in her first youth and this reminds me of the old days when you'd see "offer not available in Canada" on everything you might want to order from an ad in a magazine. This program is effectively doing the same thing, making much, though not absolutely all, of what's for sale by American eBayers effectively off-limits to Canadians.

[marnotom!]

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@dasia143 wrote:

Stitchwitch, thank you for posting, it was interesting to read how the GSP worked for you. It doesn't for me though since most of what I buy is the opposite of heavy and expensive. I recently searched for a DVD and was disappointed to see that virtually all the sellers offering it were in the GSP, with shipping charges more than twice what I would have paid in pre-GSP days. (Obviously because it's being shipped twice.) No Canadian seller is has it listed.

I am a lady not in her first youth and this reminds me of the old days when you'd see "offer not available in Canada" on everything you might want to order from an ad in a magazine. This program is effectively doing the same thing, making much, though not absolutely all, of what's for sale by American eBayers effectively off-limits to Canadians.

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I'd argue that most sellers using the GSP haven't switched over from the traditional "ship directly to the buyer through the mail" method but, in fact, haven't had much if any experience selling internationally.  In fact, I bet that many of those sellers are unaware that they're enrolled in the GSP.

In other words, those listings that you found with the GSP would likely be ones that wouldn't offer shipping to Canada if there was a GSP-less world.

[i*m-still-here]

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@marnotom! wrote:

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In other words, those listings that you found with the GSP would likely be ones that wouldn't offer shipping to Canada if there was a GSP-less world.

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Once Again, marnotom!:  You are simply guessing.

Your response is far from reality and clearly not based on experience.

When asked, almost all sellers who have listed via the GSP are more than happy to ship to Canada the normal way.

What they have trouble with is figuring out to bill us to get around the GSP.

EBay has intentionally made that difficult for them to do.

[marnotom!]

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@i*m-still-here wrote:

Once Again, marnotom!:  You are simply guessing.

Your response is far from reality and clearly not based on experience.

When asked, almost all sellers who have listed via the GSP are more than happy to ship to Canada the normal way.

What they have trouble with is figuring out to bill us to get around the GSP.

EBay has intentionally made that difficult for them to do.

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Once again, i*m, you're misreading and/or misunderstanding a post of mine.

I still maintain that if these sellers weren't using the GSP, odds are that they wouldn't be offering "shipping to Canada the normal way" in their listings.  That is, those listings would not be set up with shipping rates and methods to Canada in the first place, and you'd still have to ask them if they'd consider shipping to Canada.

Sellers using the GSP may be happy to to ship to Canada through the mail if you ask them, but that doesn't mean that without the GSP their listings would state that international shipping was offered.

And I don't see why sellers should have difficulty figuring out getting around the GSP to send the buyer an invoice when the buyer is quite capable of coaching them through the process, just as my wife and I have had to coach U.S. sellers on occasion on how to send an item through the mail to Canada.

[i*m-still-here]

marmotom!:  There is nothing anyone can say that will help you understand what's really happening "Out There."

By now that's clear.  It's also clear that you don't buy much here.

You just have to get out and start buying and emailing sellers several times a day for a month or so and that will enlighten you as to what is really going on.

[dasia143]

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I'd argue that most sellers using the GSP haven't switched over from the traditional "ship directly to the buyer through the mail" method but, in fact, haven't had much if any experience selling internationally.  In fact, I bet that many of those sellers are unaware that they're enrolled in the GSP.

In other words, those listings that you found with the GSP would likely be ones that wouldn't offer shipping to Canada if there was a GSP-less world.

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Maybe some of them are not aware, but that's not much help to me. However I'm sure that I'm not seeing a whole lot of listings I wouldn't have seen before. It's just not possible that suddenly there are virtually NO sellers offering this DVD except via the GSP. Before that program came in I would have seen at least 25 sellers offering that DVD who would ship to Canada. I say that based on previous experience of searching similar Star Trek DVDs in the past. The situation is not as dire in the vintage textile market, but the number of non-GSP offerings is falling there too.

[pjcdn2005]

I do believe that there are many sellers who would not be shipping internationally without the gsp, but  there are also many sellers who used to ship internationally but refused to send first class...only priority or express. Now that first class international has tracking you would think that more of them would use that instead of the gsp. But because U.S. sellers don't depend upon international buyers business as much as Canadian sellers do, some of them do have the attitude that they will only use the gsp because there is no risk to the seller regarding an item not received and no risk to their feedback and DSR's. 

While on one hand it really annoys me that the buyers may end up paying more so that the sellers have less of a 'risk' but on the other hand, they are simply taking advantage of a program offered by ebay. It is human nature to use something that has benefits.