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.