Questions about the Global Shipping Program

[kalvin@ebay.com]

Do you have questions about the Global Shipping Program? Please post here & I'll do my best to track those answers down for you!

If you have any comments about the program, use this forum instead.

Thanks,

[pierrelebel]

" Anyone knows where I can get this information? from eBay, Pitney Bowes or seller?"

That information is not available.

[afantiques]

You can work it out roughly since the PB charge is about $5.

But it would do you no good since technically you are not the importer.

[marnotom!]

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@minsplaceca wrote:

I recently purchased few items from US sellers who using GSP program. However there is no detail on eBay or Paypal stating what consist of the import charge (i.e. a breakdown for  taxes, duties, admin fees and etc.). There is no information in the packages as well. Anyone knows where I can get this information? from eBay, Pitney Bowes or seller?

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You won't get a breakdown from anyone.

The GSP buyer terms and conditions page states what generally goes into the import charges, but that's about as much detail as you're going to get.

Part of the problem is that the import charges are calculated based on the information (or more likely, lack thereof) that the seller provides in the listing.  When PitneyBowes or a contractor checks the item through and does the number crunching, the charge breakdown is likely going to be different.

[dst195711]

Hi, I recently y placed an order that seems to be stalled at the Global Assist depot. I have tried to find a way to contact them to ask them about it but I can see no way to contact them through eBay.

How should I proceed to follow up on my shipment?

Thank you!

[marnotom!]

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@dst195711 wrote:

Hi, I recently placed an order that seems to be stalled at the Global Assist depot. I have tried to find a way to contact them to ask them about it but I can see no way to contact them through eBay.

How should I proceed to follow up on my shipment?

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Just because you have no further tracking information doesn't necessarily mean that the item is "stalled."  It could mean that it's on its way to you with no further tracking information available.

Having said that, how long has it been since you paid for the item and the seller shipped it out to Kentucky?  I wouldn't start worrying unless more than three weeks have past since the seller's shipping date.

[emerald9961]

Hi, after endless emails of complains and nagging to the Pitney Bowes team, my tracking information finally started updating as there were totally no updates from 29 october until 5 november for me. However the information displayed shows that after delays, my parcel is deem undeliverable. I still have not receive any emails from them and is still wondering what had happened. Tried googling it and shows that the item might be restricted or oversize but what I bought was a Huawei Watch (smart watch)which makes no sense for it to be oversize and I tried buying 2 mobiles phones from USA and there were no problems. Can anyone assist me? And if I will get a refund, how long will the process takes?

Tracking for Parcel Number: UPAAB000000125660006 Date/Time (UTC) City Event Carrier Link

2015-11-05 21:33:08TZ	Erlanger, US	Exception: Undeliverable	-
2015-11-02 16:11:54TZ	Erlanger, US	Delay at the Global Shipping Center	-
2015-10-30 20:50:12TZ	Erlanger, US	Delay at the Global Shipping Center	-
2015-10-29 14:36:17TZ	Erlanger, US	Delay at the Global Shipping Center	-
2015-10-29 12:21:44TZ	Erlanger, US	Processing at the Global Shipping Center	-
2015-10-29 07:24:00TZ	ERLANGER, KY,	Arrived at the Global Shipping Center	-
2015-10-28 22:08:00TZ	CINCINNATI, OH,	In Transit	-
2015-10-28 21:08:00TZ	CINCINNATI, OH,	In Transit	-
2015-10-28 20:00:00TZ	CINCINNATI, OH,	In Transit	-
2015-10-27 22:23:00TZ	ATLANTA, GA,	In Transit	-
2015-10-27 18:33:00TZ	RIVERDALE, GA,	In Transit	-
2015-10-27 17:42:00TZ	RIVERDALE, GA,	In Transit	-

[marnotom!]

Smart watches are classified as being in a "restricted category" by the Global Shipping Program.

http://pages.ebay.com/help/sell/shipping-globally.html#restricted

I suggest filing for a refund ASAP.   Someone else posted on this board that they quickly received a refund for an item damaged by poor repacking by the Global Shipping Center, but I have no idea how typical this is.  I think they spoke to a customer service rep on the phone, so that may have greased the wheels a bit.

[emerald9961]

Contacted paypal and pitney bowes. I just hope that I will get a favorable answer soon. Guess I will just have to spend a few more dollars buying from local sellers.

[emerald9961]

Full refund received, should finish processing in less than 2 days. Was told that it was due to damage in transit instead of restricted item.

[janice12121959]

Could you please tell me....I have won a bid on ebay for a ring that is being shipped to me in Ontario Canada.  Do I have to pay a duty fee at my end! Thank you!

[pierrelebel]

Where does the ring come from and what is the value (price you paid).

Is it coming by mail or through a courier (UPS, Fed-Ex, etc...)?

Or did you buy it through the Global Shipping Program (as your title suggest)?  If so, you have already paid for taxes etc...

[dmil8030]

Hello 'janice...',

<<  Do I have to pay a duty fee at my end?>>

The answer to that depends on how much you paid and where the item comes from.  Canada has an import 

limit of $20 (these days that's about $15 US) after which items are subject to duty and taxes.  

An expensive piece of jewelry will almost certainly incur charges.  Cheap costume jewelry bought from China, 

not likely (depending on the cost, of course).

If you would like to find out more about importing items into Canada, the following link might be useful:

http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/import/postal-postale/duty-droits-eng.html

There are all sorts of related links on the page to click on.  

Often when lower-priced items come via the postal system, they just arrive at your door without charges.  

But if you are assessed, pay the charges graciously.  It is the cost of being Canadian.  In addition to the import  

charges, there is a small processing fee.  Canada Post's fee is about 10 bucks, but couriers charge more, 

and UPS rates are really high.  That is why most people avoid items shipped by UPS.

But for most inexpensive day-to-day items, you will not get charged very often.

[s_petroff]

How does one complain to Pitney Bowes about they way they mishandle deliveries? Once again I have an item sitting in Kentucky which never gets forwarded on to Canada. Soon I'll have no choice but to open a refund request, but the seller did send the parcel off in good faith. If it works the same way that it has in the past, I'll get a refund, the seller will get screwed and he'll just stop shipping internationally. I've been tracking items of this type for 5 months and of the 7-8 that have come on the market over that time, this is the first one who has been willing to ship outside the US. I can't even blame the sellers for refusing to ship internationally, the system is stacked against them. The real problem is Pitney Bowes.

[pierrelebel]

"Soon I'll have no choice but to open a refund request:"

Do it now.

The funds for the refund come from Pitney Bowes, not the seller.  The seller is fully protected against claims when using the program

[techadjutant]

it seems that this is just another way to rip off internet buyers.  i definetly wont purchase from any displsaying gsp

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@lacemaker3 wrote:

Unfortunately, no.

"Import fees" are only charged if the seller is using the Global Shipping Program on eBay.com.If you read the fine print in the Buyer's User Agreement for GSP, there is this under paragraph 3:

i. Exclusions. You alone are responsible for any customs duties, taxes, surcharges, fines, penalties, or other charges which may be imposed on you by customs or tax officials after a GSP Item has successfully cleared customs and been delivered to (or made available for pickup at) the delivery address specified by you.

http://pages.ebay.com/shipping/globalshipping/buyer-tnc.html

My interpretation of that, is that if there are any additional charges, the buyer is responsible for paying them, even though you were not informed about them in advance.

Personally, I would not use the GSP, for this and other reasons. Your only alternative is not to purchase items that show Import Fees on the shipping and handling tab. Unfortunately, this is not a very good solution.

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@lacemaker3 wrote:

Unfortunately, no.

"Import fees" are only charged if the seller is using the Global Shipping Program on eBay.com.If you read the fine print in the Buyer's User Agreement for GSP, there is this under paragraph 3:

i. Exclusions. You alone are responsible for any customs duties, taxes, surcharges, fines, penalties, or other charges which may be imposed on you by customs or tax officials after a GSP Item has successfully cleared customs and been delivered to (or made available for pickup at) the delivery address specified by you.

http://pages.ebay.com/shipping/globalshipping/buyer-tnc.html

My interpretation of that, is that if there are any additional charges, the buyer is responsible for paying them, even though you were not informed about them in advance.

Personally, I would not use the GSP, for this and other reasons. Your only alternative is not to purchase items that show Import Fees on the shipping and handling tab. Unfortunately, this is not a very good solution.

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this seems to be just another way to rip off internet purchasers. i will definitely NOT buy from anyone displaying gsp.

[oc4445]

Out of curiosity

whats the general handling time from when a package arrives at Pitney Bowes in KY and the time it leaves?

Thank you 
Oc4445

[dmil8030]

Hello 's_petroff',

<<Once again I have an item sitting in Kentucky . . .  If it works the same way that it has in the past, . . .  he'll just stop

shipping internationally. . .   this is the first one who has been willing to ship outside the US. I can't even blame the sellers

for refusing to ship internationally. . .>>

I'm not sure if you are really grasping the whole GSP thing.  Sellers using the GSP are generally those who 

do NOT wish to sell internationally.  Sometimes they do not even know they are enrolled in the plan, having set

their listings for US-only shipping.  

Others choose not to sell outside the US, but with the GSP they simply mail the items to Kentucky and then wash 

their hands of it.  So those sellers using the GSP already do not want to ship outside the US.

It's just that there's so gosh darn many of those listings showing up now that it sometimes seems like that's all there is.

Sellers who are willing to ship outside the US -- and they seem to be rather thin in the ground -- have opted out of the

GSP and set up their listings to include international shipping options and costs for those countries on their 'acceptable' 

list.

If you are having such difficulty with GSP sellers, I don't know why you continue to buy from them.  Most shoppers in

Canada see that pale grey warning line which announces a GSP item:

Customs Services and International Tracking Provided

and run for dear life. 

It takes a bit of sifting to find sellers who are happy to sell internationally (or to Canada, anyway) but it is well worth

the effort to deal with a competent and agreeable seller.

<< The real problem is Pitney Bowes.>>

No argument here. 

[femmefan1946]

whats the general handling time from when a package arrives at Pitney Bowes in KY and the time it leaves?

Within the plant?

Seems to be about 24 hours or less, depending on the time of day it arrives and the day of the week.

Getting the stuff in and out as quickly as possible-- just like we all do with our orders. Because if it hangs around, it gets lost or damaged.

Some things might take longer if they require special handling-- like items that cannot legally be imported into Canada.

That being said, I allow 20 days from payment to arrival when I order anything from North America no matter who the seller (eBay, AZ, etsy, LL Bean). Thirty days for Asia.

I ordered 4 items through AZ on Oct 26. The first arrived on Oct 28 and one has not yet arrived. The third arrived this week-- from a seller in my own city.

[afantiques]

The British plant aims to have non problem packages in and out in 12 hours.  About 20% of items have problems, usually no transaction identifier, but also poor packing, unshippable items, etc, and these take longer, although they do try to get them on the way, if possible, within one day.

The same general manager runs both the Kentucky and UK depots, but this does not mean the standards have to be the same of course.

[westcoastmw]

As a Canadian I would like to know how much duty Pitney Bowes/eBay submits to the Canadian government. I would not be surprised if it is zero and the funds taken as "duties" are never paid, but just become more profit.

Items I purchase (vinyl records and music memorabilia) sent through USPS never have duty collected.

When I see items I might want but are shipped through GSP I email the seller explaining that because of the GSP I am not buying or bidding on their items and encourage them to drop out of GSP . I encourage everyone to do this. Just create a brief paragraph explaining the "rip-of" that the GSP is and paste it into an email to the seller.      

ebay obviously makes additional profits from the GSP otherwise they could easily make it an option for the buyer to go with GSP or the regular postal system.

I have only purchased one item through the GSP. The shipping time is much longer than the regular USPS.

Out there somewhere, someone is working on a better than eBay system......Can't wait.