@dark_phoenix9273 wrote:
Because if the buyer does decide to defraud me I am out allot of money, whereas they get to set in security knowing they are completely protected.
That isn't a reason to assume the buyer is a criminal. Your logic at this point basically boils down to "but it could happen!". Ask yourself if that is a logical reason to get into a panic at this stage. Remember, regardless of whether your funds were held or not, your liability is the same and hasn't changed. If you want to shut down your account and do a runner just because something *might* happen, consider the implications carefully.
And what is so wrong with being an international seller? It greatly increases the chance that my items will sell. Selling domestically may be more secure but I have very little chance that my items will sell in that case.
And not that I ever asked your opinion on my shipping policies, but my shipping options are set up fine, If anything I'll have to start charging more in shipping now, which I don't really want to do.
Nothing is wrong with shipping internationally. What is wrong however are the countries you have chosen to ship to and the rates you have setup. Many of the countries you have specified are high risk countries for fraud or have much higher incidences of item not received cases due to well documented customs issues within some of these countries. Some of these countries insurer's won't even allow insurance for due to the rate of package loss. You also can't provide tracking to many of these countries. Furthermore some of them have customs restrictions that directly effect the category of items you sell.
Expedited international shipping does not cost $15-30 (the range you currently show), but that is what you are showing. In fact it costs more than the average selling price of your items and that amount combined. The shipping service you specify is important because there are ETA dates associated with that service. Those eta dates are visibly displayed to the customer to inform them of when to expect their package, and they are also used as a part of a metric to assign defects to seller accounts for late shipments.
Unless you are very familiar with shipping rates to all countries, flat rate shipping can cause huge problems. It also means you are charging too much for Canadian customers geographically closer to you, and not enough for those in rural areas or those who are geographically further away from you and outside of major centers. I would recommend you review the Canada Post price lists and setup calculated shipping, using the appropriate matching ebay shipping service option.
As currently setup, you have two options 1) you get to the post office and realize expedited international shipping costs far more and you eat the cost and lose money on the transaction as well as another transaction or two, or 2) you use a lower cost service. This is important as the slower tracked packet services start at $40-50 range for locations outside of North America. Or you can opt for an untracked service. Currently you are quoting estimated delivery in 2-4 business days for many international locations, with a 1 day handling time. Even with Xpress Post that can be a tight squeeze. With other services it's not going to arrive that soon. That leaves you exposed to item not received cases as you've set unrealistic expectations for your buyers, and it leaves you open to late shipment defects. You have inadvertently created a situation where you are far more likely to get hit with item not received cases than to experience any actual fraud.
And as I explained to you, if someone is going to be a scammer, then the current system only delays it, it doesn't prevent it. It just gives the illusion of preventing it. And by putting sellers at risk, your increasing the chances that they will turn into scammers, because as most people will tell you, once a person is scammed, they generally turn to doing it themselves because they figure "hey, I got ripped off, so why shouldnt I do it now?"
I sell in a somewhat high risk category that appeals to younger buyers. I have had less than 10 out of 11,000+ transactions over the last few years that could theoretically involve a possibly fraudulent buyer. Of those I was out of money on one. Having your listings setup properly is a big part in mitigating risk.
I like being an honest seller, so far I've had no complaints. I had one package mistakenly sent back to me, so I sent it back out with tracking at my own expense to be sure.
And I don't want to make my buyers wait 21 days, I honestly hate the idea, but if it the only way to protect myself, then it's my only choice, because as a seller, if something goes wrong, paypal has told me, neither them nor ebay are guaranteed to be there to help, so I literally have no other choice.
If you make your buyers wait 21 days you won't have an account here for long. Honesty is a two way street. Unless you have reason to suspect a dishonest buyer, then your best bet is to follow best practices to mitigate your risk. As the saying goes, don't sell what you can afford to lose on here.
