eBay

nottoni_0 · ‎11-25-2023

Ebay, customer for years, LOVED YOU, but now have to search elsewhere due to your shipping costs from USA to Canada. From what I read so many, many people feel this way; you will be losting your Canadian people. Sometimes Shipping price is 3-4X's higher than the item! We are already paying item in US$ dollars and now HIGH SHiPPING COST that are totally OUTRAGEOUS! Please consider your Canadian cliential and find a much, much lower company to ship to Canada or you will have NO Canadians anymore. I doubt you will read this, but if you do and there is a change I thank you and so would other Canadians.

reallynicestamps · ‎11-26-2023

The cost of shipping is unrelated to the price of the purchase.

A $10 anvil will cost more to ship than a $50 postcard.

US sellers are working with this::
https://postcalc.usps.com/?country=10440

OTOH, with NAFTA/CUSMA we now have a $150 Cdn duty free allowance and a $40 taxfree allowance , up from $20 a few years ago.

But if you play with that link, you will notice that Americans are shown the most expensive service first and the cheapest First Class International Package last. It can be worthwhile asking BEFORE buying if the seller will consider using FCIP which, and tell the seller this, is a TRACKED service.

The new eIS which replaced the GSP does have more users than the older system. There is still some question whether we are paying import fees with our payment or on the doorstep. It is a Seller Protection service and has little value for buyers.

And again.

The cost of shipping is unrelated to the price of the purchase.

marnotom! · ‎11-26-2023

Since you also posted to this thread, I'm going to assume you're referring to the "eBay International Shipping" service. Since you can go back to that thread and read my post, I'm just going to give you a Reader's Digest summary with some updates:

1. eBay International Shipping is a forwarding service. The amount you see for shipping is the seller's shipping charge for getting the item to a forwarding hub in Illinois plus eBay's shipping charge for getting it from the hub to the buyer.

2. Shipping in the US is getting freakin' expensive. I've seen listings for items where the seller's charge for shipping the item to the hub is more than eBay's charge to get the item to Canada.

3. If sellers screw up or don't bother putting in an item's shipping weight and dimensions, the amount that gets calculated to ship the item from Illinois is going to get messed up and will be likely way too high.

4. eBay's International Shipping's charges are actually quite competitive with those of the US postal service. I recently bought a couple of CDs for a Christmas present for my wife off the band's US-based website. I was charged C$17 to ship each CD--the same price as the CD--no combined shipping here.

5. If you're buying multiple items from the same seller, you do have a point about the shipping being expensive as eIS doesn't combine shipping either. You have to jump through hoops with the seller to get that. Apparently, combined shipping with eIS being worked on, but too late for this holiday season by the looks of things.

6. There may be less expensive forwarding and consolidation services out there, but there are a lot of perks for sellers who use eIS and I suspect that some of what we're paying eBay to have our items forwarded is going towards paying for those perks. See also point 8.

7. Mega-marketplace-sites that can offer cheap or free shipping on their merchandise are often losing money on the shipping and hoping to make it up with the markup on the item.

8. You're free to set up your own forwarding agent to send your items up to Canada if you don't want to use eIS and/or you find a seller unwilling to ship directly to Canada.

Any questions?

mrdutch1001 · ‎11-26-2023

Just as a matter of interest, not everyone who comes to eBay looking for an item, chooses to purchase from a US seller from the getgo.... I NEVER choose USA sellers...I look specifically for a seller in Canada for anything and everything...and if I cannot find a Canadian seller, then yes I will go to Amazon because I will not order a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g from the USA! I will indeed find that item somewhere in Canada!...and perchance not, well then I just wait and/or keep looking until i find said item within Canada...or simply do without...life is too short to worry about it...

lotzofuniquegoodies · ‎11-26-2023

It's too bad seeing that US sellers DO have discounted rates to Canada with USPS etc if those rates are even close to beating the eIS rates.

Sample rates for 2 lb package from USA to Canada with discounts. US Funds.

https://www.ebay.com/shp/Calculator

Unfortunately none of those rates compare to what we get from Canada to the USA with the current (temporary) tracked discount.

For comparison Calgary to 90210. 2 lb package. Rates in Canadian dollars. Note difference in variety of Canadian options. (Expedited/Xpresspost are missing from the special eBay calculator but will show on your listing if you offer). Note 2. Canadian rates also factor in distance(Expedited & Xpresspost only). It appears USA to Canada distance is NOT in play. As Canadian buyers we have NO idea what US sellers are actually being charged for shipping to Canada or if any discounted rates are being applied to when we check an item.

https://www.ebay.ca/shp/Calculator

-Lotz