Questions about the Global Shipping Program

[kalvin@ebay.com]

Do you have questions about the Global Shipping Program? Please post here & I'll do my best to track those answers down for you!

If you have any comments about the program, use this forum instead.

Thanks,

[pjcdn2005]

You still have to pay gst / hst even if the item was made in Canada. The reminder of the import fee is a service charge that goes to Pitney Bowes.

[mwc1942]

"Non payers should get unpaid item strikes and be added to block bidders lists. Period."

Was under the impression all items were to be paid prior to shipping, that way the problem would self correct.  That said, why settle for "strikes or added to block bidders list", a complete ban of such bidders would be more effective.  

[reallynicestamps]

I disagree -- and I speak as a seller.

People make mistakes,

Sometimes the mistake is by the buyer, thinking the item she bids on is what she needs and only realizing later that it is not.

Yes that can be the always annoying Buyer's Remorse, but it could also be the seller's error, for example, agreeing to a different shipping service/price and then reneging on the deal or describing something as New when it is Used. (This came up recently when a buyer, after purchase, was informed that New included "Only Worn Once.' )

While a  Mutual Cancellation might work, the seller always has the worry that the buyer might leave negative feedback and trash his DSRs. So an Unpaid Item Dispute may be the safer choice.

Remember that thousands of sellers have an automatic Block on bidders with Unpaid Item Strikes and that eBay has said they will remove bidders with 'too many' Strikes.

[mwc1942]

"Remember that thousands of sellers have an automatic Block on bidders with Unpaid Item Strikes and that eBay has said they will remove bidders with 'too many' Strikes.

Is there a definition for that?

You are right, only after everything else has failed and should be the last resort.  

[9966frenchy]

I live out in the countryside and don't have a street address. I have a Postal Box at our local Post Office. Couriers are forever getting lost and I am not getting my purchases. Can't sellers just put purchases in the good old fashion MAIL? I have never lost a package that way.

[pierrelebel]

Most sellers do ship by mail.

However, some sellers do not and there is no point in fighting it and a few will not ship to PO boxes. 

Deal with sellers offering you postal service.

[afantiques]

Do purchases I make on ebay have to go through the Global Shipping Program?

No, just look for sellers that don't use it. They are likely to be the more competent ones anyway.

[femmefan1946]

The GPS sometimes uses couriers and sometimes uses Canada Post for the final stage of delivery. But the buyer has no control over; this.

In the USA, many sellers use couriers for all their deliveries, since costs are similar and tracking and insurance are reportedly better than with USPS. However, couriers cannot deliver to PO boxes (the postal employees will not and cannot sign for the delivery) so those US sellers refuse PO box addresses.

Afantiques has the best response. Ask the seller if he will ship by USPS (and let him know that First Class International to Canada is now Delivery Confirmed, he may not know that). If he won't, move on.

[edramareck]

Hello

If seller listed the item under GSP, can I (as a buyer) choose to not use it and decide to pay taxes by myself ? (GSP seem to charge way too high money). Or if seller has an GSP turned on, then, as a buyer, I just have to pay taxes via GSP ?

Thanks,

Michael.

[afantiques]

As a buyer you have no choice except to simply pass the seller by, or ask them to remove the GSP option. They may not even know the item is listed with GSP. Sellers do not see what you see.

[edramareck]

Thank You !

[knight2565mike]

I will not buy anything that as global shipping I live in Canada and shipping is way out of control ex shirt I wanted is 9.99 but what 29.00 shipping on a used shirt for a total of 40.00 the shipping is 3 time what the shirt is. I pass now on all global shipping action that seller as them it will hurt sell and buyers a like . global shipping will hurt all who is not in the usa but what funny is the shipping in Canada to Canada  is not any better at this point since global shipping came in sorry but I have been buying at a other auction I still by from ebay but 85% less now

mike 

[Anonymous]

When I used to have a PO Box address and I was able to sign them, so I don't see why it should be problems and as to why the sellers won't ship to any PO Box addresses.

As for GSP, I often asked the sellers if they would opt out of GSP so I can purchase them and nearly all of them were willing to do so.  They can ship them by USPS lettermail or First Class Mail with an additional $1.00 for tracking number.  If they are able to do so like they did for me which were so often, so why the heck should we have to pay the hefty insane shipping costs with GSP?!!

Too many sellers in USA don't realize that they can ship them to Canada at much cheaper mail service like charging an additional $1.00 for tracking number for each package which I have received so many packages from USA weekly.

GSP is just a bogus scam for someone to make lots of $$$ that way and also too often include taxes which I never have been charged for the so-called import charges/taxes for many packages/parcels even heavier ones.  So why the heck should we be forced to pay those so-called import charges/taxes by eBay.  I prefer to take risks at Canada Border which never happened (knock on wood three times!!!).

If US sellers choose not to opt out of GSP, then they are losing lots of regular customers and also many potential buyers.  I was told by some of them that by using GSP really hurt their businesses and that their sales were down like never before and they opt out of GSP and got good sales since then.

GSP may be good for very, very, very expensive items but not for regular items like 8x10 photos, magazines, small kitchen stuffs, etc. that can be shipped at much cheaper mail service with an additional $1.00 for tracking number.

US sellers need to do more homework and figure out which mail service that they can live with like an additional $1.00 for tracking number without having to lose some sleep.

With GSP, I received ALL (I mean all!!) packages damaged, bended, etc.  Apparently whoever at the eBay hub re-opened and re-packaged them so poorly.  I was told by the sellers that they DID packed very well and were shocked to learn that I told them one of them came with no peanuts as promised by the seller.  It seems that someone at the eBay hub removed them and may have shipped them at much cheaper mail service.

I always received packages with an additional $1.00 for tracking number and I see that all of them were slapped with XpressPost stickers on while through GSP I don't see any XpressPost stickers on at all.  Very fishy with GSP!!

[pierrelebel]

"so I don't see why it should be problems and as to why the sellers won't ship to any PO Box addresses."

Many sellers use carriers other than the postal service.  UPS, Fed-Ex, etc are not allowed to deliver to post office boxes.

[mathsz]

Category
hs code :

8471.30.0000

Ipads, electronic tablet and such. 

duties on this are 0$, 0.00%. Nothing.

There is a 25$ import fee on the selling price of 369$

What exactly is that 25$ going towards?

http://www.usitc.gov/TATA/HTS/BYCHAPTER/INDEX.HTM

http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/trade-commerce/tariff-tarif/2013/01-99/01-99-t2013-02-eng.pdf

Thank you

[pierrelebel]

"What exactly is that 25$ going towards?"

Tax (GST or HST depending on your province)

There is no duty

A service charge of about $4/$5 may be included in the "import charge".  That is cheaper than Canada Post $9.95.

[dragonboy99223]

Pittney Bowes opens up every package and remove the bubble wrap in order to save weight. I think that is fraud. The items will most likely be broken!

[pierrelebel]

'Pittney Bowes opens up every package and remove the bubble wrap in order to save weight."

Urban Legend. There is no truth in that statement although it keeps being repeated over and over.

eBay employees have already answered that question several times: some (a small percentage) of parcels are opened at the PB distribution centre because the seller had failed to provide some required information or, at times, the package required repacking for safe forwarding.

Anyone who knows anything about the high costs of handling parcels will quickly realize PB would be out of business if all parcels had to be opened.

[afantiques]

Pitney Bowes opens up every package and remove the bubble wrap in order to save weight. I think that is fraud. The items will most likely be broken!

A moment's thought will reveal the idiocy of this. A huge roll of bubble wrap the size of a barrel weighs only a few pounds. You'd probably not get an ounce of bubble in an average package.

At the point where someone might remove packing protection, the item is the responsibility of PB as far as safe delivery is concerned, and any damage is a dead loss to PB, not the seller.

Why on earth would they want to increase their losses due to damaged items? At the cost of extra labour and for no effective benefit.

Truly is it written that a lie will run round the world before the truth has its boots on.

[furtova]

Hello, there is 68 pages of answers and don't have time to read them all.

My question is for an item purchased from the US, I am located in Canada it was $32.00 (+ $17.42 shipping) + the Import Charge which was $8.11. Total 57.53.

For the Import Fee of $8.11 (which says Estimated), how do I know what the actual Customs Charge/Import Fee was for my item?

Does PitneyBowes just voluntarily send money to Canada Customs based on the sale price of the item to pay for the Canadian duty/import charge?

I feel like I should get a receipt or some paperwork along with my package stating that I paid duty to our government on the item. When it says estimated, what does that mean? Was the cost $6, $7, $8?

I just want to know exactly where the Import Charge goes.