Does Ebay International Shipping use Canada Post to deliver items shipped from US?

[fergua3]

I live in the GTA if that makes a difference, which it might....

[marnotom!]

Thanks for that update, @nboo1.  Way back before the GSP was a thing, I used to live in a remote location on Vancouver Island that didn't have courier service, and anything that someone was foolish enough to send me by courier was also handed off to Canada Post to be boated down to my hamlet's post office.

I just tried Googling the physical address I had and Google mislocated it by about half a kilometre.  I don't know if that would be enough to mess up the eBay Powers that Be, but I did find that it was able to pinpoint my workplace correctly.  Would using your (or somebody's) workplace address for your eBay shipments be a workable solution for you?

[nboo1]

Thanks for your thoughts @marnotom!  I'm in the same neck of the woods as you used to be on the BC Coast (Sointula). In my case the Google Map provided by eBay correctly locates the house though they say the location can't be found. This is why the thoughts go more towards the eIS provider doesn't want to turn over to Canada Post anymore. I'll just go to the sidelines and wait for the forces of goodness to prevail  (yes, it will likely be a long while) . It is rather ironic that in the year 2023 eBay's eIS has, by apparent design and service provider selection, created far more friction between Buyers and Sellers than existed back in the 1990's ... you know when we stuffed cash into envelopes and sent them off to the US and then received our items (to both a  PO Box and a physical address that has existed for the 25 years of eBay + another 55 years beyond that).  It will be interesting to see how the experience of the community shows this evolve.    

[fergua3]

i'm speechless........nice giant step backwards by Ebay.   It's no longer the tech giant it once was....now it's more like a ma and pa store.

[fergua3]

so now that it seems Canada Post is not used for final delivery in Canada, i'm back to my original question:  Who does final delivery in Canada when using EIS from the US?

[lotzofuniquegoodies]

@fergua3 

“That's classified. See, I could tell you. But then I'd have to kill you.” —Tom Cruise as Maverick, in Top Gun (1986).

-Lotz

[marnotom!]

Thanks again for posting, @nboo1.  Sointula looks lovely and I'd like to visit there someday.  It's sort of like where I lived, except with a few more amenities.  Sorry you lost your credit union branch, though.

I, too, would like to know who handled the eIS items you received in addition to Canada Post.  Do you recall what information to that effect was on your packages?

[theoldestfart]

I made the stupid mistake of purchasing from a US seller who for the first time is using eBay Internation Shipping. I should never have purchased the item since the carrier of record for the delivery was never spelt out in the shipping. 

I paid $28 USD for shipping a small item up to Canada. The seller sent me a tracking # for UPS and I screamed when I saw it was UPS which is dreaded by Canadians for cross-border shipments. At the time I found it kinda strange that the delivery by date was 3 weeks from when I purchased it and it was being shipped to a place in Illinois. I contacted the seller who informed me that the UPS was just the first leg of the journey. Just like GSP.  I have no idea if some fly-by-night courier company that is using contracted workers using their own vehicles will be responsible for delivering the item in Canada. 

[marnotom!]

DHL and Asendia are the only carriers that get a specific mention in the terms and conditions you agreed to by purchasing from a listing where eBay International Shipping is being used.

Although the T&C leave open the possibility of other carriers being used, I suspect we'd have heard by now if UPS or "some fly-by-night courier company" are part of the mix.

Please keep us posted on your experience, @theoldestfart.

[theoldestfart]

I mentioned that I paid $28USD for shipping this item. The seller has indicated that they are shown that I paid $13.27 USD for shipping. I believe eIS does not include taxes/duties at the time of purchase. Where then did the remaining $ 14.73 USD go? Is it used to ship the item from the Illinois depot to Canada? 

[marnotom!]

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@theoldestfart wrote:

I mentioned that I paid $28USD for shipping this item. The seller has indicated that they are shown that I paid $13.27 USD for shipping. I believe eIS does not include taxes/duties at the time of purchase. Where then did the remaining $ 14.73 USD go? Is it used to ship the item from the Illinois depot to Canada? 

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Yes.  US$13.27 is the seller's charge for shipping to the eIS hub in Illinois, and US$14.73 is eIS's charge to get it from the hub to you.

If you didn't see anything in your invoice for taxes, duties, or other import-related charges, then you weren't charged them by eIS.

[fergua3]

yes please keep us informed about who does final delivery to your address.   We are all keenly interested.   It doesn't bother me if UPS takes it to the IIlinois depot, so long as they don't bring it across the border......that is when their absurd brokerage fees get charged.

[theoldestfart]

That is what has me worried. Since the eIS is filling out the customs declaration I will wind up paying brokerage fees & taxes upon delivery possibly by Canada Post or some other unknown entity. I had to laugh when I saw "Reduced shipping costs for buyers" in the eIS pro seller spiel. Ya shipping an item that max is 1lb from CO to Canada for $28 USD is a steal.

From a buyer's view, the eIS is GSP less the paying upfront the GST/PST  which was never broken out by the GSP on an invoice. 

[theoldestfart]

Just an update. My eIS package reached the Illinois depot today and I got a DHL tracking # for the shipment I assume into Canada. SIGH can you say brokerage and taxes are due on delivery?

[marnotom!]

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@theoldestfart wrote:

Just an update. My eIS package reached the Illinois depot today and I got a DHL tracking # for the shipment I assume into Canada. SIGH can you say brokerage and taxes are due on delivery?

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The package might be going by DHL's "Global Mail" service which hands items off to Canada Post once they reach Canada.  I once received an item sent that way and had to pick it up at a postal outlet.  I paid a DHL brokerage charge of C$10 along with taxes owing.

[theoldestfart]

I remember another experience years ago with eBay where that happened and where DHL tracking seemed to indicate that the package was not moving for over a week. The more carriers involved the more chance of the package going missing. Sorry to say it isn't the first time I have wished that would have happened with an item that was eBay's responsibility to get here.

[fergua3]

DHL Globa Mail hands off to Canada Post before the package goes through Customs...ie Canada Post takes it through Customs, not DHL Mail.  So the fee you paid was not to DHL but the standard fee charged when any package goes through Customs  and is charged duty or taxes when being delivered by Canada Post.

I consider this good news.  DHL Mail service is usually quick and reliable and the package will probably get delivered by Canada Post, although DHL also delivers directly in Canada, so them handing it over to Canada Post is not a certainty.

If you look the tracking number up on DHL's site it will probably indicate whether the service is DHL's mail or courier.

[theoldestfart]

It says "DHL ECOMMERCE CURRENTLY AWAITING SHIPMENT AND TRACKING WILL BE UPDATED WHEN RECEIVED" the DHL tracking number that begins w EE does not track on DHL eCommerce site yet.  This is the same process that was used years ago on another shipment that eventually got handed over to Canada Post . Canada Post took less time to deliver the item from Vancouver to Manitoba than DHL did tranporting item from CA to BC.

Back then I complained to eBay about how they obfuscate to the buyer which courier is handling purchases up to Canada and the final mile/km. They have not done anything to clearly explain how deliveries to Canada are handled on their numerous shipping plans.

GSP in the past and I believe still uses courier companies who in turn use contracted people in personal vehicles to do their deliveries. Some of these people deliver items to the wrong locations or do not deliver the items at all.  The sellers are insulated from this type of incident and the buyer hopefully gets their money back (although a misdelivery may result in no refunds). Either way, the buyer is fed up and will not use the service again.

eBay information on their shipping plans are seller centric and continues to keep the buyers primarily in the dark regarding the process involved in these shipping plans.  eBay twitter support is useless to determine who the final mile carrier is for eIS.

[theoldestfart]

DHL now shows parcel destination is Winnipeg and the service level is DHL Parcel Intl Standard. Also shows a tracking # under "Delivery by USPS Int'l" whose tracking number starts with LVS

[reallynicestamps]

@theoldestfart 

UPS is very cagey about their fees, but here is the USPS rate chart for comparison.

https://postcalc.usps.com/?country=10440

You could play with entering dimensions and weights to see if eIS is more or less expensive than USPS counter rates.

BTW- do you have home delivery or a community mailbox array?

[fergua3]

Does Ebay require a seller to ship an EIS package within a specified time period after the sale?  I ask because the EIS purchase i made on the weekend hasn't been shipped by the seller yet, just a label created a few hours after i purchased.  Given all the delays that seem to be associated with EIS, it seems that time's a wasting...