Global Shipping Program

[Anonymous]

I live in Canada and I have recently bought an item that costs exactly 20 dollars - when I was paying for it, an additional charge of 9 dollars popped up - for import duties from the US to Canada because the seller is using the Global Shipping Program. Initially it wasn't on the listing and I don't think it's the sellers fault, its the Ebay that's charging it so that you don't have to pay duties upon delivery...BUT when I go to the Canada Border Agency's website it says "Under the provisions of the Postal Imports Remission Order, if someone mails you an item worth CAN$20 or less, you don’t have to..." Why the hell am I being charged then??? I know that Amazon has something like that but then they just refund the amount of import charges if they were not applicable but I really doubt that Ebay is going to pay me back!

[403*ironhorse]

From now on, before purchasing anything, I am going to require confirmation from the seller that they do not use the EBAY Global Shipping Program. A total rip off, adding one more place for your parcel to get lost.
The person that put this system into EBay shoud be fired, there are a lot smarter people out there looking for work.

[saskatoon1994]

hi i feel the same way and beleive this is a money grab,there is no need to have a third party involved as the sellar charges s/h and then we pay it to gobal ,so it needs to stop ,i have done a lot of buying and i am not paying gobal.

[4928lawrence]

Never have I seen such an unresearched, blatant money making scheme as GSP.
For Canadians it is a totally un-needed service.
USPS and Canada Customs do the job just fine and I will not deal with any US Seller that uses GSP.

[Anonymous]

Will Ebay ever get the message that this Global Shipping is unnecessary **bleep**. I will never buy from a seller using this system. Tracking is the **bleep**s, and shipping time is no faster, I wonder if the sellers ever get these comments?

[pottery100]

me too!!!! agree that the GSP is a money grab.

[fletcher256]

I also noticed this GSP fiasco on a few items I was watching. Did a search on the web and found these comments here on the community forum. One item I am watching is selling for $189. Shipping to Canada is $23.73, and the import charge? A whopping $68.71. Just over 36% of the purchase price. So much for finding deals on ebay...

Ebay owes an offical explanation to the community, augmented with a detailed breakdown of what the charges apply to and exactly how they are calculated. In the absence of any such explanation in any business or retail environment, well, in modern terms, we normally call this a scam.

[theotherguyscanada]

Question - how the heck do you track an item --- I have a tracking number but it is worthless because it says 'multiple shippers' - so here I am, 10 days later wondering a) where the item is and b) is that a real tracking number or was I given a fake one?

[parthanon69]

I had this problem as well with someone using a third party to do all their shipping. It ended up costing me 40 to ship something that could have gone letter mail. Stupid system. Canada Post is as bad going the other way though, as I also sell and have seen my sales take a massive dump since I had to change all my postage over to their new "less expensive rate". And if you call anyone they always say it's the other guy's fault...Posties blame e-bay and vice versa. Frankly almost to the point I am waiting for someone up here to make a Canadian selling site that isn't ridiculous and frustrating.

[taramialee]

Anyone supporting this program is clearly not an experienced Canadian buyer, or IS NOT CANADIAN. EXPERIENCE alone is enough to know these charges are HUGE and NOT what Canadians normally would pay. Who the heck is commenting in favor of this here? An American seller?

[eevil-4530]

I would by far rather not buy from any seller using ebay & pitney bowes global shipping program.  They are charging, they claim for brokerage, duty, etc. All of these charges on used & antique items (which I buy) were abolished when free trade came into effect years ago. This sounds like a huge cash grab from the buyers pocket. It may be easier for the seller to ship to one location, but what good will it  do for the seller when no one wants to purchase from them because of the rediculous shipping costs.  If ebay can entice a seller to join a shipping (in my opinion) rip off.  Then as a buyer we should have the option of choosing not to use it.

[johnnyhaggis]

Does anyone know what carrier is used in Canada when you buy something that ships the Global Scam/Shipping Program?

I's gotten t othe point where almost every US seller is now enrolled in it so you can't boycott it anymore. Now what I do is ask the seller to opt out of it for the item I want to bid on, and I explain why it's a pain in the ass and I also send them the instructions on how to opt out, I basically copy and pasted and send this every time I want to buy something.

[nudibranch4569]

maybe if we boycot all sellers using gsp, they will get the message and cancel it.

[mrnickca]

NO, using the global shipping program is a very bad idea!  Ebay claims it's a way to ensure that the package arrives safely to Canada. But all it does is force the Canadian purchaser to pay tax and duty on an item that is normally waved by the Canadian customs service because they can no longer handle the volume!  It also redirects the buyers  package to a site in Kentucky where it is then redirected to the person's home address in Canada.  It just causes a huge mailing delay!  Also, if the seller tries to save money by keeping the service's charges on shipping and then deciding to mail the product out on his own it will cause an even bigger delay if not a loss of the product being mailed since their is no longer a tracking number on the item being sent to the alternate site!  For example, I purchased an item for 3.49 and my charge was $15.49 for the global program International Priority Shipping to Canada.  The seller saved money by putting on a couple of stamps and then unwitting sent it to the address in Kentucky instead of my own since that is what Paypal uses as my mailing address when you the seller uses the program.  After a month I received the letter with my item inside with the Kentucky address on it and my correct address written over top by one of the workers from the Kentucky address.  This is my first bad experience with the global shipping program and eBay. FROM NOW ON  I WILL NOT BID OR PURCHASE ANYTHING FROM ANYONE USING THE NEW EBAY GLOBAL SHIPPING PROGRAM!!! LET THAT BE  A WARNING TO ALL YOU USA SELLERS OUT THEIR. AVOID USING IT AT ALL COSTS! IT JUST CAUSES CONFUSION AND DELAYS. I personally believe that eBay made some sort of deal with Canada customs and is getting a cut of the profits generated from the tax and duty charge and that is why they are promoting it and using the ruse that it is a safer way to guarantee the items arrival when it actually potentially has the ability to do the exact opposite!  I have never had a problem receiving an item from the USA.  All items that are small packages are traced regardless of the method of delivery that is shipped except letter mail.  The only difference is that the seller has the choice of not paying the additional cost for insuring it.

[mrnickca]

NO, using the global shipping program is a very bad idea! Ebay claims it's a way to ensure that the package arrives safely to Canada. But all it does is force the Canadian purchaser to pay tax and duty on an item that is normally waved by the Canadian customs service because they can no longer handle the volume! It also redirects the buyers package to a site in Kentucky where it is then redirected to the person's home address in Canada. It just causes a huge mailing delay! Also, if the seller tries to save money by keeping the service's charges on shipping and then deciding to mail the product out on his own it will cause an even bigger delay if not a loss of the product being mailed since their is no longer a tracking number on the item being sent to the alternate site! For example, I purchased an item for 3.49 and my charge was $15.49 for the global program International Priority Shipping to Canada. The seller saved money by putting on a couple of stamps and then unwitting sent it to the address in Kentucky instead of my own since that is what Paypal uses as my mailing address when you the seller uses the program. After a month I received the letter with my item inside with the Kentucky address on it and my correct address written over top by one of the workers from the Kentucky address. This is my first bad experience with the global shipping program and eBay. FROM NOW ON I WILL NOT BID OR PURCHASE ANYTHING FROM ANYONE USING THE NEW EBAY GLOBAL SHIPPING PROGRAM!!! LET THAT BE A WARNING TO ALL YOU USA SELLERS OUT THEIR. AVOID USING IT AT ALL COSTS! IT JUST CAUSES CONFUSION AND DELAYS. I personally believe that eBay made some sort of deal with Canada customs and is getting a cut of the profits generated from the tax and duty charge and that is why they are promoting it and using the ruse that it is a safer way to guarantee the items arrival when it actually potentially has the ability to do the exact opposite! I have never had a problem receiving an item from the USA. All items that are small packages are traced regardless of the method of delivery that is shipped except letter mail. The only difference is that the seller has the choice of not paying the additional cost for insuring it.

[dreamtahiti]

I'm a Canadian buyer & there's more to the story . When I look at listings for a particular category a shipping price is shown as one amount . When I look at a specific item , shipping cost is higher & sometimes there's an added import charge (GSP) . To me , this is dishonest & Ebay has crossed the line !

[chief1981]

I got burnt on this once, never again. What bothers me is that you pay more and it takes longer because it goes to their central hub in Kentucky before it gets shipped out. I think it's easier for the seller. As a buyer I won't order from anything with the GSP again....which means I won't be doing much buying on ebay at all as this seems to be on almost everything from the states

[iceberg_ll]

So it seems everyone here is on the same page. We all understand that Ebay in partnership with a third party is ripping off Canadians and perhaps other international buyers. Most of the shipping charges and especially import duties and fees are greatly exaggerated or even made up. As a customer, I'd rather pay for direct shipping and then take my chances with customs.

Here is another downside of using anyone who's participating in Global Ripping Off Program: should the item be lost or be not as described etc. the seller is unable to refund you the shipping cost and import fees n taxes, because it is a separate transaction that's automatically done through PayPal. Even though we make one single payment when we pay for an item we won, it is actually 2 separate transactions. Just go into your PayPal account and see for yourself.

I doubt we can change Ebay's mind about ripping us off. What we can do is Boycott the program and avoid buying from anyone who participates in it. Also, spread the word. Let Canadians know what's going on. Not everyone caught on just yet.

[gkniss1]

I've shifted from US Sellers to those in the UK when possible.

It used to be that 'Buyer beware' really only applied to the Seller or the goods, but now I have to beware of eBay shenanigans. 😕

[roxyroller1507]

I agree with you all...it infuriates me that they are charging this extra fee. I have been shopping ebay for 8 years and in all that time, I have had to pay extra duty ONCE. From what I understand "duty" is only applicable to NEW items, not used and a lot of things are exempt at the border, but through this global rip off, you get charged anyway. I refuse to buy from anyone who ships through global, unless they are willing to not use if for the item I want...some will, some won't...say custom slips etc. are a nuisance for them, guess they don't really want to sell their stuff....all that can be done through online postage....THE WHOLE THING REALLY MAKES ME ANGRY...postal rates are high enough !