Comments about the Global Shipping Program

[kalvin@ebay.com]

Feel free to share your thoughts about the Global Shipping Program here. 

A few questions to get the ball rolling:

• What has worked well for you with the Global Shipping Program?
• Any ideas to help improve the experience for Canadian buyers?
• What has deterred you from buying items offered using the Global Shipping Program?
• How have you managed to search for items outside the program?

Please try & keep the comments constructive 🙂

If you have any questions about the program, please post them here.

[respiraterry]

The GSP is such a complete joke it's not even funny. So, 2 exact same items are listed one bidding is at $606 and the duty and customs is listed at $34 and the other bidding is at $601 and the duty and customs is at $51? How can a lower bid have $20 more in customs fees, which is based on price? What a joke.

[pierrelebel]

"customs fees, which is based on price..."

Not so.

"the duty and customs is listed at.... "

There is a misconception that the amount shown for "import charges" only represent "duty and taxes" based on the same information going to the same location.

Not so.

The "import charges" levied by Pitney Bowes, shown on eBay and paid through PayPal represent what PB wants from the buyer to cover its cost of importing the item into Canada, paying the duty if applicable and GST/HST/PST based on the province of the buyer and its own handling fee.

However, to properly determine the amount of duty and tax applicable, it relies on information supplied by the seller.

So if two sellers offering similar items priced equally but offer different information on the country of manufacture, eBay buyers will see two totally different results.

It is not a GSP thing. The same thing would apply if the goods were shipped directly by USPS and cleared by Canada Customs prior to delivery by Canada Post.  Canada Customs levies duty (if applicable) and taxes based on the information supplied by the exporter (seller).

If two sellers supply different information on the same item, duty and taxes may be different.  For example one may state that the goods were made in (x country) while the other seller enters USA since he is shipping from the USA.

[dasia143]

Quoting 4ashbury's post and afantiques' reply,

"

This however is inconvenient to the buyer because Fed Ex only has one pick up location in the Greater Toronto Area as opposed to the post office which has hundreds, usually within walking distance. It is a 50 kilometer drive for me to pick up my package at Federal Express on New Toronto Street in South Etobicoke and I live in Scarborough. Then 50 kilometers to drive back. On top of what I've been gouged for, that is the **bleep**-off icing on the cake!

The answer to this is an item not received claim. You are not obliged to pick the item up, they are supposed to get it to you."

--Do you know this for sure, afantiques? Could they not say they attempted to deliver it and left you the notice to pick it up? I wish PB/eBay would make clear how these kinds of details are handled, but no one from eBay seems to come here any more.

[dasia143]

This however is inconvenient to the buyer because Fed Ex only has one pick up location in the Greater Toronto Area as opposed to the post office which has hundreds, usually within walking distance. It is a 50 kilometer drive for me to pick up my package at Federal Express on New Toronto Street in South Etobicoke and I live in Scarborough. Then 50 kilometers to drive back. On top of what I've been gouged for, that is the **bleep**-off icing on the cake!

The answer to this is an item not received claim. You are not obliged to pick the item up, they are supposed to get it to you."

--Do you know this for sure, afantiques? Could they not say they attempted to deliver it and left you the notice to pick it up? I wish PB/eBay would make clear how these kinds of details are handled, but no one from eBay seems to come here any more.

[anglia51]

Why r u people still using eBay? Close your  account & move on. That's what i did. I refuse to be robbed my eBay/Pitney Bowes It is clear that they aren't going to do anything about this mess so it's up to the members that this gsp effects the most. Up can all moan & groan & complain about it all you want. but until you take action on your own nothing is going to change. CANCEL YOUR ACCOUNT that is the only way that they understand.  

[ianc148s]

Is anyone as annoyed about Global Shipping as I am? I wanted to bid on an item at $20, but shipping was quoted at $46 with Global. I asked the seller if he'd ship USPS, he answered "Sure. $12." I won the item for $30 but guess what? EBay wouldn't let him ship USPS. $30 item, $46 shipping. Weight? About 8 oz.

[ciny2k]

If you wanted to buy the item without using the GSP,  the seller would have to change the listing first. Once it's done, it's done. I can understand why you'd be upset, thinking you're getting USPS after contacting the seller about it, but unless you *see* USPS in the listing, you're going to get shafted. 

On another note, I was asked to participate in an ebay survey yesterday. From Christoper Payne, Sr. Vice President of ebay marketplaces NA. Hopefully my input truly is "valued" and they "appreciate" it.  Because I think ebay is great  - with the exception of the GSP! And now Mr. Payne knows this too, and knows that not only do I refuse to use it, I also warn others away from it. 

[anglia51]

You can banter this back & forth all you want but it isn't going to change a thing. eBay is not listening & nor do they care. All that concerns them is the bottom line. Until that is effected nothing is going to change. If you want change you need to do something that will effect there bottom line. CANCEL YOUR ACCOUNT that will get there attention & then something will be do about the GSP 

[anglia51]

the seller has no idea what the GSP is they don't see how much is being charged. It is two separate transactions on your paypal account.I if you don't like paying that then cancel your eBay account that is the only way we will see any change to the GSP

[pierrelebel]

"CANCEL YOUR ACCOUNT that will get there attention & then something will be do about the GSP "

???

Why would I do that?

I do not like GSP.  From my Canadian perspective, it is a badly conceived program, misused by most American sellers.

What do do:  Ignore listings requiring GSP  It is that simple.

Cancelling one's membership to eBay is meaningless.  Over one million users a year cancel their membership.  Who cares?  For every member leaving, two or three new members come along.

What eBay really cares about is profit.  Profit is basically generated from two sources: transactions on the site and payments through PayPal.  Reality is that the number of cross border transactions is growing faster than domestic transactions on eBay. More transactions result in more profit for eBay. 

Yes, it is quite possible, even probable that Canadians buy less from American sellers on eBay due to GSP.  So what?  We are such a small fraction of the marketplace that it is not noticed in San Jose. The extra cross border transactions generated in Europe and Asia more  than make up for it.

[ciny2k]

Exactly, why would I cancel my account? I love shopping on ebay. There's nowhere else I can have all these items right at my fingertips, in the comfort of my own home. It's so easy to avoid the GSP, using the list view. And it's not terribly inconvenient to contact a seller and ask them to switch to USPS in the event that I want their item. If they don't want to switch, then I don't want to give them my money - no biggie. 

[anglia51]

I enjoyed shopping on eBay as well. I am a collector & what I buy is unavailable here in Canada. But I refuse to be ripped off  on shipping & so called duty & taxes. I have no problems paying the extra $$$ upon delivery. In 99% of the time there are no extra charges. But if all you are willing to do is sit at your computer & **bleep** & moan about how unfair how expensive how whatever your beef is with the GSP then nothing will change. buy cancelling your account you are sending a loud & clear message that your not going to put up with the GSP & if you think that contacting the sell to have him switch to USPS you are not going to be very happy with the out come you will still be paying the GSP rate. So you just continue along with your head in the sand attitude & your 243 purchases worth of experience & be a part of the problem rather than be a part of the solution.      

[ciny2k]

I still don't see your point. Cancelling my account would indicate my discontent with ebay, whereas choosing which shipping method I prefer is a no-brainer. In the olden days, I had to be wary of UPS and now it's GSP. What's the difference? I just received an item today that I paid $7 to ship, and it was originally listed through the GSP with shipping costing $30. After contacting the seller, and having the listing changed to USPS, I bought it. There's no way in hades I could have found it here, and if I did it would have cost me 5 times as much (vintage sterling silver charm) so WHY should I cancel my account??? 

You don't pay GSP rates when the item is shipped via USPS unless the listing hasn't been altered prior to purchase. If the seller agrees to opt out of the GSP, it has to be reflected in the actual listing, not just in a friendly message. 

[anglia51]

SIGH!!! Your right it is a no brainer & you don't seem to get it. eBay & Pitney Bowes are one in the same. I don't care if you cancel your eBay account or not. I would rather stand for what I think is right rather than complain about something & do nothing. Like I said earlier I want to be a part of the solution not a part of the problem. I do have one question was your package opened & resealed when you received it? 

[mickeypowpow]

Complaining to ebay, on the forums, on facebook, and any blogs one might own, all that IS doing something. It's just not doing what you think is right. ONE person, or even a ton of people cancelling their accounts, without complaining, is not really going to tell ebay WHY it is happening. They need to know they are wrong, and if they get mentioned in negative posts enough, they might do something about it. What about we all complain to the BBB about it? I bet that would help too!

The Customs fees, well, those are what they are, but the inflated shipping, reprocessing, and have someone else manhandle my items, the increased shipping time, are all what I have a problem with the most. Once upon a time, I could count on getting something from the US within a week or 10 days, now, it sometimes takes 3 weeks. A week to get to Erlanger, a week or more while they mess around with the product, and then a week or more to get it where I am. NOT COOL!

[ciny2k]

No, my package wasn't opened. Why would it be, when the contents were clearly listed? Or, if for some reason it raised some concern and it was opened, why would I care? It was a charm, not a taser, lmao. 

I'd see your point, and agree with you, if ebay insisted that US sellers have no shipping options, and they could only use the GSP for their Canadian buyers. But this isn't the case, so why are you bellyaching about it? Obviously we don't like the GSP, but nobody's forcing it on us. So what if we have to overlook some awesome listings? Tough luck, it's the seller's prerogative how they want to ship - and who they'll consider shipping to. For some US sellers, the GSP is a dream come true: yay, no responsibility!

[rkoschnick]

Shipping has become much more expensive in some cases. I buy comics here and the import tax on printed items in Germany is only 7%. Yet if the calculated tax amount is below €5, you don't have to pay anything at all. This means that any transaction that stays below $_87_ (item incl. shipping costs) isn't taxable and I would only have to pay the shipping costs.

Somehow everything seems to get taxed the same though which makes eBay even less interesting since the shipping costs are high enough already at $25 and more. 

I have read that people still had to pay import tax for their packages because customs doesn't acknowledge the taxes already paid to eBay.

[afantiques]

Shipping has become much more expensive in some cases. I buy comics here and the import tax on printed items in Germany is only 7%. Yet if the calculated tax amount is below €5, you don't have to pay anything at all. This means that any transaction that stays below $_87_ (item incl. shipping costs) isn't taxable and I would only have to pay the shipping costs.

GSP items from US to Germany are imported into the EU through England, and British import VAT rates and practices are charged and applied. If the comics are listed in the Books category they should be import VAT free but in any other category they will be taxed at the basic rate, 20% on anything over 18 Euros.

Somehow everything seems to get taxed the same though which makes eBay even less interesting since the shipping costs are high enough already at $25 and more. 

See above for the reason

I have read that people still had to pay import tax for their packages because customs doesn't acknowledge the taxes already paid to eBay.

The only way this can happen is if the seller sends direct by post to the buyer despite the buyer paying for GSP charges. In the circumstances the import is treated as a normal postal import.

Because people do not understand how the shipping of GSP items works, they do not understand what is happening when the postal delivery triggers a tax payment, and start posting all over the boards with fantastical theories.

It is possible, but not at all easy, to obtain a refund of GSP charges where the GSP is paid for but not used.  It seems every case is dealt with on an ad hoc basis, and depends on the persistence of the buyer.

The whole scheme is misconcieved, hatched from the egg of a cockerel incubated in a dungheap, and so badly designed that it would disgrace a first year systems analysis student, but let's keep the criticisms factual.

[donvker]

GSP is a farce.

There is no meaningfull tracking provided. No location, no carrier, no time stamps, and therefore no tracking. I am paying for a placebo.

In the future whenever I see GSP, I will also avoid like the plague. They are completely ineffective, by reducing the visibility, increasing cost and increasing delivery time.

GSP means fewer sales.

[mater721]

"I would rather stand for what I think is right rather than complain about something & do nothing. Like I said earlier I want to be a part of the solution not a part of the problem."

I'm not sure why you think someone needs to cancel their account in order "protest" GSP?

If I avoid GSP listings, am I not "protesting" it?.

[mater721]

"The whole scheme is misconcieved, hatched from the egg of a cockerel incubated in a dungheap, and so badly designed that it would disgrace a first year systems analysis student, but let's keep the criticisms factual."

Almost spit out my coffee over my keyboard.