On returns, eBay does not refund imports costs

[coxengines]

Just a heads up that when a Canadian buyer purchases an item from a USA seller, and the seller uses eBay shipping, if the item is returned because it is not as described, the buyer gets stuck with the duty, Canadian taxes and Canada Post handling fees - all non refundable.

Basically, the "eBay Money Back Guarantee" is not really acurate.

[lotzofuniquegoodies]

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@coxengines wrote:

Just a heads up that when a Canadian buyer purchases an item from a USA seller, and the seller uses eBay shipping, if the item is returned because it is not as described, the buyer gets stuck with the duty, Canadian taxes and Canada Post handling fees - all non refundable.

Basically, the "eBay Money Back Guarantee" is not really acurate.

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devon@ebay  Could you clarify the policy on this for @coxengines please. Because there is no actual invoice (to my knowledge) for customs duty and taxes there are major hoops to claim back from the Canada Revenue. There appears to be nothing in help for these types of situations.

-Lotzofuniquegoodies

[marnotom!]

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@coxengines wrote:

Just a heads up that when a Canadian buyer purchases an item from a USA seller, and the seller uses eBay shipping. . .

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What do you mean by "eBay Shipping"?  There are two systems eBay has for handling internationally shipped items from the US.  The first is eBay International Standard Delivery, which actually should have been phased out by now but it still seems to be twitching for some sellers.  The other is eBay International Shipping (Great name, eh?), which has more involvement in the returns process than the other system.

Which system did your seller use?  eBay International Standard is more of a mail consolidation service and if your item arrived through the mail that way, there should be a form on the back of the Canada Border Services documentation you can fill out to get your duty/taxes and handling fee back.  More info here:

https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/import/courier/crp-prio-eng.html

If your item was sent by eBay International Shipping, the same may be true if you had to pay Canada Post upon delivery of the item.  If you paid them in advance (This doesn't sound likely), you should have been refunded them through eBay if eBay gave you the refund and the seller didn't mess up by issuing the refund themselves.

[marnotom!]

In a nutshell, eBay does not refund import-related charges it did not levy. It sounds as though Canada Border Services and Canada Post charged you the import-related charges, so you have to go through them to get them refunded.

[pjcdn2005]

As @marnotom! mentioned eBay does refund the fees if they received those fees. But since you paid them to Canada Post who then passed them on to Canada customs, you have to file with Canada customs to get them back.  You may not get back the processing fee from Canada Post but I'm not certain of that. EBay can only refund the amount that you paid to the seller.

[pjcdn2005]

@lotzofuniquegoodies 

The op said that he paid CP a processing fee so there would have been a Canada custom invoice with the package.

[coxinternational]

Thanks to everyone that replied to our post.

The shipping service that the seller subscribed to is “eBay International Shipping”.

We are seasoned importers and are well-aware that there would be the GST (for which we file returns on a monthly basis – so no big deal) and the CPC $9.95 service charge for collecting and remitting the GST.

As resellers, we are PST exempt.

The duty was unexpected, as the model engine was entirely manufactured in the USA. But whatever, it was mis-declared lol.

Our gripe was that, if an item is returned because it is defective / broken / not as described, we get stuck with the duty and CPC fee, and there is zero point in wasting any time trying to get those two charges back ($15 in total).  Banging your head against the wall is probably more productive 😉

It was more end-of-day venting, and to make others, that did not know this (such as us) aware of how this works.

[coxinternational]

Not sure why our reply switched us to an eBay account that we rarely use but I guess it doesen't matter, we are still the OP ers.

[marnotom!]

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@coxinternational wrote:

We are seasoned importers and are well-aware that there would be the GST (for which we file returns on a monthly basis – so no big deal) and the CPC $9.95 service charge for collecting and remitting the GST.

As resellers, we are PST exempt.

The duty was unexpected, as the model engine was entirely manufactured in the USA. But whatever, it was mis-declared lol.

Our gripe was that, if an item is returned because it is defective / broken / not as described, we get stuck with the duty and CPC fee, and there is zero point in wasting any time trying to get those two charges back ($15 in total).  Banging your head against the wall is probably more productive 😉

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I think most of us are making the point that there is a mechanism for getting your duty and taxes back if you want to pursue it, @coxinternational.  It's just not through eBay, is all.  You wouldn't give somebody a refund for a car part they purchased themselves at NAPA or Lordco.  eBay won't give you a refund for taxes and duties that somebody else collected.

For what it's worth, the "unexpected" duty you paid was probably the result of the seller not noting the item's country of origin/manufacture in the listing's Item Specifics.

cc: @coxengines 

[coxinternational]

Yes, we are aware of the mechanisms for refunds and had to go that route on several occasions over the years for when PST was charged. Just a PITA and 3-4 months before CBSA mails you a cheque lol.

Is this particualr case, the $5 duty is not worth the hassle and the CPC fee is definitely non-refundable, as CPC did their job of collecting and remitting the GST.

No, eBay will not refund 3rd party charges but felt the need to vent because we took a hit for something that was of the seller's doing.

Yeah, the duty was likely charged because of the reason that you stated.

Cheers

Bernie

[aurumday]

So instead of refunding the buyer fully and getting money back from customs ebay chooses to screw the buyer, correct?

[aurumday]

Why keep using the ebay, then, if you cannot get money back for junk sold?

[marnotom!]

I think you should re-read this thread, @aurumday.  The OP received a refund for the item and shipping, but chose not to pursue a refund for the duty they had to pay upon receipt of their widget.

[samamitc-7544]

I am in this situation now. The seller misrepresented an item (possibly by mistake, I can give them the benefit) and they feel they're doing the right thing but offering a refund if I return it.

1. Their refund amount is not what I paid, so i'm not sure what their math is doing here. 

2. I've had to pay border charges.

So if I ship it back, i'm out $with nothing to show for it, but the seller is the one who misrepresented the item. I even offered to accept some sort of a partial refund (I didn't state a dollar value that I wanted, hoping they would offer up what they deemed fair as an apology for the mistake and hassel) but no, they refused because 'then they would be losing money'. Well hello- now i'm losing money and its YOUR fault! 

It's a real drag that Ebays policies don't say anything about making a seller refund ALL expenses incurred if they are at fault. I have photographic proof and everything.

[coxengines]

That is unfortunately how it works.

In defence of a seller who made an honest mistake, their resposibility ends after refunding the purchase price and original shipping costs, as well as the return shipping costs. The rest is between you, the federal goverment, the provincial government and the carrier.

As a business, we don't have to pay the PST and claim the GST / HST back on our purchases on a monthly basis; whereas the fee for collecting and remitting the taxes (Canada Post for instance) is non-refundable.

Technically, you could claim the PST back with CBSA but, unless it's a large amount, hardly worth it with all the paperwork required.

We have simply learned to "suck it up" as a cost of doing business 😉

Bernie

[pjcdn2005]

@samamitc-7544 

A couple of questions.  You said the refund would not be what you paid, was it the seller who told you the amount?   If the item was sent through the eBay international shipping program  (EIS) then the seller did not receive the whole amount you paid as eBay received some of it.   If it was sent through EIS and you open a return, eBay will be the one who refunds you in full once the item is returned. 

Did you pay the border charges to eBay when you made the purchase or did you pay when the item was delivered?  If they were paid to eBay they will also be refunded.  If they were paid when you received the item you can claim ant duty or taxes back from Canada border services.

[coxengines]

This is how it works, and there are a couple of scenarios:

Regardless of the scenario, you always pay eBay the purchase price + applicable shipping + applicable taxes. The seller receives an amount equal to the purchase price of the item + shipping costs listed on the item, less eBay's "commission" (generally in the 15% - 16% range).

In scenario #1 (seller ships via USPS or similar) eBay remits the sales tax to the relevant government. In a refund scenario, eBay refunds everything that you paid, including taxes, shipping costs, and the buyer pays for return shipping costs.

In scenario # 2 (EIS) eBay does not always (or never?) collect the Canadian taxes. Those are collected at time of delivery from CPC (Canada Post Corporation), together with a CPC fee (generally $9.95). In a refund situation, eBay refunds the purchase price paid + shipping costs and sends you a return shipping label. You are stuck with the CPC fee and any taxes that you paid. This is outlined in writing in eBay's terms and conditions.

It is correct that you can claim back the PST from CBSA (Canada Border Services Agency) but really not worth it unless it is for a large amount.

There is no "duty" within the USMCA (United States Mexico Canada) framework.

Needless to say, we no longer permit shipments to us via EIS, preferring instead to have the items shipped to our USA-based competitor; who bundles and re-ships to us on a recurring basis.

[pjcdn2005]

A couple of comments..

If the seller is in the US and is shipping directly to Canada, ebay does NOT collect taxes. They only collect taxes if both seller and buyer are in Canada and package is being shipped to Canada.  Of course if you are having your items sent to a US location then they would collect taxe (if there any) for that location.

If the EIS is used ebay does collect custom fees etc on some listings.  In some cases the buyer had the choice to pay slightly more for shipping and prepay those taxes. I haven't seen a lot of those listings but they are around.  If  customs charges are paid at the time of delivery and the package is returned, the buyer does have to collect those charges on their own as ebay cannot force a seller to pay the buyer more than what they originally received.

There is duty when you purchase from the US on some items IF they are not made in the US, Mexico or in another country that has an agreement with duty regarding duties paid.

[coxengines]

You are correct in what you state in all three of your paragraphs. This mostly corresponds to my answers but you did a better job of explaing it, and thanks for that 🙂

Bernie