eBay

regineb_b · ‎04-12-2015

Hi,

According to the new returns process (my first), I need to provide the buyer with a return shipping label (the item arrived damaged). The buyer is in USA and after 2 calls to eBay customer support, browsing the forums and the web, I still haven't found a way to buy a return label from USA to Canada (I'm in Montreal).

I tried USPS (cannot pay for label from Canada), tried switching my address and buyer's on eBay.com and use their USPS service, did not work, tried stamps.com, again not for Canadians. I cannot believe there is no way to do this.

The buyer insisted on me providing the label since they were told by eBay customer support that this was the proper way to do it.

Any ideas? Thank you.

recped · ‎04-12-2015

eBay only offers the return shipping label for domestic transactions (US that is).

You'll just have to promise the buyer to compensate them later or send them the money via PayPal now and have them print a label or pay at the post office.

First, you could try paypal.com/shipnow and see if you can produce a label that way using the buyers address as the sending address.

If that seems to be possible you can print to a pdf file and send it to the buyer via eMail or copy the "reprint" link and send them that (only works fr 24 hours).

"What else could I do? I had no trade so I became a peddler" - Lazarus Greenberg 1915
- answering Trolls is voluntary, my policy is not to participate.

View solution in original post

mr.elmwood · ‎04-12-2015

You cannot buy US postage from Canada.

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recped · ‎04-12-2015

eBay only offers the return shipping label for domestic transactions (US that is).

You'll just have to promise the buyer to compensate them later or send them the money via PayPal now and have them print a label or pay at the post office.

First, you could try paypal.com/shipnow and see if you can produce a label that way using the buyers address as the sending address.

If that seems to be possible you can print to a pdf file and send it to the buyer via eMail or copy the "reprint" link and send them that (only works fr 24 hours).

"What else could I do? I had no trade so I became a peddler" - Lazarus Greenberg 1915
- answering Trolls is voluntary, my policy is not to participate.

reallynicestamps · ‎04-13-2015

they were told by eBay customer support that this was the proper way to do it.

And you have a copy of that message? Or did the buyer just tell you that?

If the buyer does not return the item, you do not owe a refund.

And if the buyer loses the case, he cannot leave feedback.

Or possibly it is just late, and I am feeling grouchy and cynical.

Customer support, particularly the clerks in the USA, have problems with complicated concepts like, "Canada".

rose-dee · ‎04-13-2015

@reallynicestamps wrote:
they were told by eBay customer support that this was the proper way to do it.

And you have a copy of that message? Or did the buyer just tell you that?
If the buyer does not return the item, you do not owe a refund.

The U.S. buyer may have been told by eBay what applies on .com, i.e. that the Hassle Free Returns policy (seller pays return shipping) would apply in the situation where the item arrived damaged (SNAD). I seem to recall it now does. The question is whether a U.S. buyer, buying on .com, is covered by that programme if the seller is Canadian. Regardless, I think the buyer would probably be expecting that to be the case.

I agree with 'recped's' suggestion of offering to reimburse the buyer's return shipping. If the OP feels this buyer is being honest about the damage, I'd probably even send him/her the money for the shipping via Paypal, as 'recped' mentioned.

I'm not so sure about "tweaking" the Paypal label -- it's a good idea on the face of it but could backfire if the label didn't work at the buyer's end (i.e. past the 24 hr limit). The buyer might then lose confidence in the seller and things could escalate.

regineb_b · ‎04-13-2015

Thank you all for replies. I did offer the buyer to reimburse the return shipping cost via PayPal even before she ships the item. She just wanted to follow the return procedure. I told her there was nothing else I could do, so she finally shipped the item without the label.

The worst part is that the eBay clerk I spoke to did not know that printing the return label via eBay would be impossible in my case. The clerk made me try staff that did not work and finally, she just told me to go to my local shipping carrier and purchase the return label from them. I don't think it would be possible to buy postage from USA to Canada at the Canada Post office, right?

recped · ‎04-14-2015

I don't think it would be possible to buy postage from USA to Canada at the Canada Post office, right?

No of course not!

I haven't called eBay very often, when I have I've either spoken to someone who immediately knew I was a Canadian seller and understood the different or someone who had no clue I was from Canada and probably would not have know that it's not part of the USA (and that might even be a rep in Utah!).

Could you tell if you were speaking with USA support or the Philippines?

"What else could I do? I had no trade so I became a peddler" - Lazarus Greenberg 1915
- answering Trolls is voluntary, my policy is not to participate.

reallynicestamps · ‎04-14-2015

The Phillippina rep probably has a cousin working as a nanny in Canada . That's how my Phillippina niece came here.

Spoiler

It may also be possible if there is a stamp dealer near you to purchase mint US postage at face or less. Stamp dealers tend to end up with a lot of postage that cannot be sold to collectors (too common) and will blow it out however they can.

This is also useful to know if you have to include a return envelope for foreign invitees to the next family wedding.

recped · ‎04-14-2015

It''s hard to send postage stamps via email. I don't think the buyer will want to wait 1 - 2 weeks for a snail mail envelope to arrive!

"What else could I do? I had no trade so I became a peddler" - Lazarus Greenberg 1915
- answering Trolls is voluntary, my policy is not to participate.

247techworks · ‎03-27-2017

http://www.endicia.com/canada/returns

Stand Out in the Canadian eCommerce Market

New Feature! Endicia customers can now take advantage of the benefits of using Endicia and Canada Post for their Canadian returns.

Endicia is now integrated with Canada Post to allow easy returns from Canada to the US. Endicia Premium, Endicia Professional, Endicia Platinum Shipper, and Endicia Label Server service plan account holders can now access this service at no additional charge (except for postage) and benefit from the following features: