Alarm Bells going off!

[sea_coastr]

Hello!

I just sold an amber necklace. The listing stated that international buyers had to accept shipping via Canada Post Expresspost International with insurance. About C$80. to Asia.

Buyer (in China) selected Expedited Parcel USA for C$22. (why is that even an option?) And sent total through Paypal which is being held in escrow pending customer receipt and approval. Buyer doesn't think they should pay for insurance as they've "bought lots of high priced items with no problem"

After the auction ended, we were packing the item and noticed a small defect and decided to send pictures to the buyer to see if they wanted to cancel or negotiate a discount or just didn't care. This was before they paid. Buyer has not acknowledged pictures or item condition and only wants item shipped ASAP without insurance or tracking or delivery confirmation.

Comments? Thanks!

[maggiebvintage2010 · Accepted solution]

The Expedited USA option is available because you do not have your shipping options set up correctly.  You should review each listing from the buyer's viewpoint, check what it shows for shipping to various locations, and make adjustments until the listing is correct.  You are better off if you have only one shipping service available for each shipping location - the buyer should not be able to choose.  Are you familiar with the Canada Post website and services, as well as their restrictions?

You have some listings set up for Canada and US only, and others for the entire world.  Expresspost International is not available for all international locations.  For example, you have that service showing for Bangladesh, whereas your real options for that country are International Parcel - Air with no delivery or signature confirmation, or Priority Worldwide pak with both confirmations, at a cost of $180.75.  Also, are you aware of the import restrictions and required documentation for Bangladesh and other countries?  See this link:

https://www.canadapost.ca/tools/pg/manual/PGIntDestDetails-e.asp?table=tblCountry&txtLetter=BD

By the way, many countries prohibit the import of used clothing and accessories including shoes, or of leather goods (Italy, to protect it's leather industry, for example)

Insurance costs should not be added separately, they should be included in the shipping cost shown in your listing  - see this link:

I agree that alarm bells should be going off, and they should lead you to reviewing your listings and thinking about exactly where you would feel comfortable shipping expensive items.  Articles of value go "missing" at the Customs or Delivery level in many countries, and the level of service that we pay for at Canada Post is simply not available in some countries.  For example, DHL International courier hands off to the postal service in Algeria, and your expensively shipped item may end up being delivered weeks later by a local postal employee on a bicycle.  And I haven't even mentioned anything about the chances of being scammed by dishonest buyers.

If you have not sent this yet, think about cancelling the sale.

[maggiebvintage2010]

  

The link I included for insurance charges does not work, so I included the excerpt - Sorry!

    Here's what we found for "A seller may be overcharging for shipping costs"

If you think an item's shipping cost seems excessive, try to find a better deal. You can also use our Shipping Calculator to research shipping rates.

It's against our rules to have unreasonable shipping charges in a listing, or to provide unclear or misleading shipping information. Learn more about our selling practices policy.

• Sellers are allowed to:
  • Charge actual shipping costs.
  • Include the cost of packaging materials, insurance, and delivery.
  • Include delivery confirmation or extra services in the handling cost.
• Sellers aren't allowed to:
  • Charge more than the maximum shipping costs in categories with shipping caps.
  • Charge a separate fee for insurance.
  • Charge for business-related fees such as employee wages or gas mileage.
  • Include contradictory or confusing shipping terms in your listing. 

[pjcdn2005]

Any sale (item + shipping) that is over $850 Cdn needs to have a signature in order to qualify for seller protection. Your transaction is under that however I would only send something that expensive with a signature and many countries do not have a signature option available or even if they do, the service isn't reliable.

As maggie mentioned your shipping is not set up properly which is why the buyer had the option of choosing expedited USA. You are not allowed to charge more in shipping than what is listed in the shipping tab and you can not add insurance after a sale. The insurance has to be included in the shipping cost or not at all. Keep in mind that the insurance protects you, not the buyer since you are responsible for the item until the buyer receives it in the advertised condition.

If you cancel the transaction you will get a defect although a defect is probably better than losing the item. I would hesitate on selling something this expensive on ebay and if I did list it, it would be for the U.S. and Canada only.

[femmefan1946]

Buyer (in China) selected Expedited Parcel USA for C$22. (why is that even an option?)....

Buyer doesn't think they should pay for insurance as they've "bought lots of high priced items with no problem"

Then you are only required to send to a USA address.

Remember than many Asian and South American buyers use Freight Forwarding shippers based in the USA.

If you do not have a US address and the buyer does not supply a US address , DO NOT SHIP.

Worst case, the buyer opens a case of Item Not Received.

You get a defect and possibly a negative feedback.

On the other hand, you keep your $850 necklace.

Which is most valuable to you?

Both of the bolded statements lead me to think this is a scammer. DO NOT SHIP.

Try to refund the money. DO NOT SHIP.

Don't t worry about the Hold. You are almost exactly where you were before the sale. You have your item and you do not have your payment. DO NOT SHIP.

[sea_coastr]

Thank you very much for this!

[pjcdn2005]

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@femmefan1946 wrote:

Buyer (in China) selected Expedited Parcel USA for C$22. (why is that even an option?)....

Buyer doesn't think they should pay for insurance as they've "bought lots of high priced items with no problem"

Then you are only required to send to a USA address.

Remember than many Asian and South American buyers use Freight Forwarding shippers based in the USA.

If you do not have a US address and the buyer does not supply a US address , DO NOT SHIP.

Worst case, the buyer opens a case of Item Not Received.

You get a defect and possibly a negative feedback.

On the other hand, you keep your $850 necklace.

Which is most valuable to you?

Both of the bolded statements lead me to think this is a scammer. DO NOT SHIP.

Try to refund the money. DO NOT SHIP.

Don't t worry about the Hold. You are almost exactly where you were before the sale. You have your item and you do not have your payment. DO NOT SHIP.

---

The buyer doesn't need to specify a U.S. address as the seller does ship to their country.  The seller used the wrong shipping service but technically, they are still required to send the item. However, I would probably cancel and accept the defect in this case.

[sea_coastr]

Thank you for all the comments and good advice.

I have sent a message to the buyer and cancelled the sale. Buyer never did respond to our concerns about the items condition after the auction closed. I found this very curious.

Several good lessons learned here!

Best wishes!