shipping and import fees

[therockinrocket]

I'm writing this to warn Canadians about the additional charges being levied by FedEx and other companies that handle your purchases.  I recently purchased jeans that attractred numerous charges:

     Jeans                                               $48.96

     Postage                                             36.00

Delieved by FedEx

who then invoiced          Canada HST      6.69

                                 Advancement Fee  10.00

               HST on the advancement fee    1.30

Total purchase  $102.95

Nice grab FedEx.  The postal service whould have been $.00

Not impressed.  In fact I will not purchase from buyers who insist on sticking it to the Canadian consumer.

Mil S

[toby_le_pue]

The postal service whould have been $.00

The postal service would have been

$6.69 HST and $9.95 Customs fees.

That is in addition to what the seller charges

for shipping fees.

[valve37]

I've been buying my lithium batteries from HK. Not anymore as only way currently is by Fedex. Air cargo has had lithium battey fires so now the shutdown. How long will Fedex ship  lithium by air? Maybe til they have the problem. Remember Boeing's dreamliner problem with lithium batteries! USPS will not ship lithium batteries by air to Canada.

Changes to Hong Kong mail regulations may cause delayed shipments
Recently the Hong Kong Post announced that all items shipping by air are now subject to x-ray screening for regulated materials. This additional screening may cause delayed shipment due to no fault of the seller, so if you purchased an item from a seller in Hong Kong, please allow extra time for delivery—at least a week more than the seller’s stated delivery time. Also note that items containing the regulated materials are being returned to sellers and not delivered. These items may include: · Items with lithium batteries such as video cameras, walkie talkies/2-way radios, GPS devices, radio-controlled toys, Bluetooth headsets, smartphones/mobiles, laptop computers, shavers, power drills, tablets and portable DVD players · Liquid beauty products, including fragrances, colognes, lotions, and toner · Items with “eliquids” such as electronic cigarettes and lighters
If you don’t receive your item after waiting the additional week, please contact your seller. If your item was returned, you should receive a refund. If you encounter any issue with a refund, you can file an eBay Buyer Protection case. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.”

[reallynicestamps]

The postal service whould have been $.00

Well, no.

The HST and duty would have been exactly the same.

Canada Post's service fee is $9.95.

 You paid a whole nickel more.

Your error is thinking that Canada Post parcels do not attract the attention of CBSA. The high number of parcels entering Canada has led to the practice of letting "most" but not all low value parcels pass uninspected and without these costs being levied.

Private companies can't do this. Hmm, I guess we should note that the couriers (like every other business that collects and remits taxes) does get a small amount as remuneration for their work.

[noozeum]

I totally agree that HST and customs duty would be the same... if the packet were caught by Canada Post. 

But here is my gripe.  I buy snapshots and postcards. There is no customs duty on old snapshots and used postcards.   On average, I pay US$2.99 an item, or less.  So I don't worry about customs a.k.a. import duties or HST.   The shipping service offered by Pitney-Bowes which many American dealers are now using charges me on average $16.00 per envelope containing one snapshot.  That's SIXTEEN dollars OR MORE for one snapshot!!!!

There is no way to select another service such as plain old U.S. post on the listing once Pitney-Bowes is involved, even if the dealer thinks he is offering a choice.  One cannot "click" on it.

There is no way to ask the dealer to relist the item without Pitney-Bowes, as those e-mails are declined by e-Bay, which construes them as attempts to buy items under the table.

After two horrible experiences in which, despite willing and eager sellers,  I ended up paying US$16.00 in shipping for a single snapshot, I have now made it my practice that I will not buy or bid from any American listing with this shipping service. 

[cervotel]

Why shipping charges are so high?

To whomever is implicated

I have heard and have experience the extra cost charged by FEDEX and UPS for handling packages through Customs qualified as Import Charges.  This is a real sham. Not one of the forms are from Canada Customs and Revenue Agency.

These extra costs started recently and are requested at delivery at the door of your home while any customs and duty cost collected by Canada Customs and Revenue Agency are collected through the mail some days after receiving your package. If these costs are real why were they not collected before.

Transportation costs by FEDEX and UPS, you would think are high enough, for any company to be satisfied. My recent example was for a watch which cost $38.00. Transportation cost was $24.95 and when the watch was delivered by UPS they requested this additional cost of $13.46 for Import Charges. A $38 watch costs me $76.41 delivered, highway robbery.

If these kinds of transportation and handling charges continue they will kill all business transactions for goods between the USA and Canada if not the world. For myself, even though I knew about these charges, having been forewarned by my peers, I no longer doubt it.  I will no longer use FEDEX and UPS and I will specify the United States Postal Service is used for shipping anything I buy in the USA. Until now I have not been charged for Customs handling by them and even if the service is slow you can depend on it.

cervotel@videotron.ca

[stone*circles]

---

cervotel wrote:

Why shipping charges are so high?

 I will no longer use FEDEX and UPS and I will specify the United States Postal Service is used for shipping anything I buy in the USA.

cervotel@videotron.ca

If the listing says UPS or Global (GPS) or other courier, make sure you get the agreement from the seller before bidding or buying.   Judging by what was said above, the seller might have to set up a separate auction or adjust the current auction to reflect the change in shipping options.

---

[noozeum]

Re. shipping and import duties (Pitney-Bowes service)   You recommend negotiating with the seller about shipping fees before bidding.  But just try to do this.  e-Bay will decline all your messages, claiming that you are attempting to buy off-list.   This is a relatively new situtation.  I have tried re-wording my e-mails "six ways from Sunday" and they still get declined. 

The only way to avoid the awful shipping fees on tiny items imposed by Pitney-Bowes is for the seller to take down the item and relist it without this service.  Otherwise, buyers from outside the United States are stuck.  One can't select ordinary surface mail.  Evidently, U.S. customers can still select surface mail when Pitney-Bowes is involved, but we can't. 

Some of my regular sellers have lost all my business because they have subscribed to the new shipping feature and I have no way to tell them why.

Please note that this is a new and different situation from the old one in which Canadians were presented with a menu of shipping options such as U.S. surface mail, expedited US Post,  or Fed Ex and could choose.

Archivist in Canada

[hawbbs416]

I no longer bid on items connected to Pitney Bowes either. They sold a bill of goods to sellers who have unfortunately been burned by shad;y international buyers. Not only are they(P.B.) extorting money from unwary buyers they are adding an average of four days to the shipping time because they insist the seller ship the item to them and then they 'process' it and  ship it to the buyer. Twice I received items that had been marked as checked by P.B. then the box is resealed with a skinny twisted piece of eBay logo-ed tape still partially open. I was surprised to see the item still in the box.

Robbery!!!

Karen

[hawbbs416]

I agree! I will not buy anything that is not shipped through USPS.  Always arrives sooner than expected and undamaged. Only once did I have to pay duty and taxes and that was because the item value was over $100.

Love those mail carriers!!

Karen

[kh-leslie]

Please post all comments about the GSP here: Comments about the Global Shipping Program

Please post all questions about the GSP here: Questions about the Global Shipping Program