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,

[marnotom!]

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@dmil8030 wrote:

Perhaps your wife will have no problems when she buys fragile porcelain pieces and as one of the GSP's greatest 

proponents I have no doubt that we will hear all about your wife's successful GSP purchases.

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The only people who seem to regard people such as myself, AF or Pierre as "proponents" of the GSP are ones who grab hold of the wrong end of the stick when reading our posts.

[sylviebee]

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@marnotom! wrote:

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@dmil8030 wrote:

Perhaps your wife will have no problems when she buys fragile porcelain pieces and as one of the GSP's greatest 

proponents I have no doubt that we will hear all about your wife's successful GSP purchases.

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The only people who seem to regard people such as myself, AF or Pierre as "proponents" of the GSP are ones who grab hold of the wrong end of the stick when reading our posts.

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No one has put you and afantiques in the same sand box as Pierre.  

On the other hand, not that it matters:  It's never quite clear that you and afantiques aren't the same person.

[marnotom!]

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@sylviebee wrote:

No one has put you and afantiques in the same sand box as Pierre.  

On the other hand, not that it matters:  It's never quite clear that you and afantiques aren't the same person.

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How nice to know that you*re-still-here.

[afantiques]

They do in fact repackage most items.

They do inspect many items, then close the packaging.

Is this repackaging? 

[afantiques]

Why would anyone visit the GSP hub unless they're part of the program?  Seems like an odd way to spend one's free time.

I posted a lot on the UK boards on GSP related topics. I tried to keep my answers factual. I assume they invited me as some sort of user's voice and I  am retired so I have heaps of spare time. They  wanted to know as much from me as I wanted to know from them. I did get my travel expenses, a cake and a drink, but I do not think this makes me part of the program.

Also why would anyone (afantiques and marnotom!) spend countless hours and several years here trying to sell the program to Canadians unless they are part of the program?  Why the denial?  It's just a job.

It's not a job, it's a hobby, like butterfly collecting or raising goats.

Not one post passes that one, the other, or both fail to comment on it, usually one agreeing with the other and vice versa ;  Working in tandem.  No one else agrees, only afantiques and marnotom support each other.

The hours put into defending the program must be a full time job for afantiques and marnotom, yet both deny being part of the program.

Neither of us support the GSP, I think we both think it is a pretty poor idea, misconceived and badly implemented, then used by sellers and buyers who are clueless about what they are doing and how to do it.

BUT, there are many matters of fact on which many posters agree. Therefore these matters of fact will be brought up quite often and the substantive answers will be the same. Personally, I try to balance angry rants from posters with more measured answers that try to explain why whatever the rant is about is not some form of crime. This is not a conspiracy, in the same way as asking two people what colour grass is will not reveal a hidden cabal if they both say 'green'.

It should be obvious to anybody who has encountered much ebay-speak that neither of us, nor any other poster is tainted with this horrible corporate double talk that seems to be compulsory for ebay staff.

[sylviebee]

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@afantiques wrote:

 I assume they invited me as some sort of user's voice and I  am retired so I have heaps of spare time. They  wanted to know as much from me as I wanted to know from them. I did get my travel expenses, a cake and a drink, but I do not think this makes me part of the program.

It's not a job, it's a hobby, like butterfly collecting or raising goats.

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So it's an unpaid volunteer position.  Even the folks at the GSP get it.  Why don't you?

[cf_queens]

I have just recently started using ebay again (it's been almost 10 years since I used it last) so I'm not sure how the shipping system works. I'm in Canada (Toronto, specifically) and won a bid from something in the US (California). If you're paying over $20 for shipping (plus $8 on customs) on an small item that costs less than $20 then you should expect fast shipping, right? When I pay for international priority on retailer sites I get things in less than 48 hours usually but this item has taken over 7 business days and it's still not here. Is the shipping always this slow or is it likely just this buyer? And Is it even worth it to purchase things from the US on here if you're not spending a lot of money on an item? It seems like every item, no matter the cost, from the US has $20 shipping. I apologize if this is not the right place to post these questions. 

[marnotom!]

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@cf_queens wrote:

I have just recently started using ebay again (it's been almost 10 years since I used it last) so I'm not sure how the shipping system works. I'm in Canada (Toronto, specifically) and won a bid from something in the US (California). If you're paying over $20 for shipping (plus $8 on customs) on an small item that costs less than $20 then you should expect fast shipping, right? When I pay for international priority on retailer sites I get things in less than 48 hours usually but this item has taken over 7 business days and it's still not here. Is the shipping always this slow or is it likely just this buyer? And Is it even worth it to purchase things from the US on here if you're not spending a lot of money on an item? It seems like every item, no matter the cost, from the US has $20 shipping. I apologize if this is not the right place to post these questions. 

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For items being shipped (a more accurate term is "forwarded") through the Global Shipping Program, there are two main stages the item has to go through in shipping.  The first stage is the seller's responsibility: getting it from where they are to Kentucky, where the Global Shipping Center is located.  The second stage is getting the item from Kentucky to where the buyer is located, which would be T-dot in your case.

If the seller takes his/her time in getting the item out to Kentucky, that's going to cause a delay.  The seller's location in relation to Erlanger, Kentucky may also affect overall shipping time.  Two to three weeks seems to be the general timeframe for a GSP item to reach its destination.  (Not too much different for me on the west coast for items sent directly by mail, for what it's worth.)

The overall shipping charge is also a combination of the seller's charge for shipping the item to Kentucky plus the Global Shipping Program's charge for shipping the item to you.  If a seller offers "free" shipping within the United States, that could well reduce the overall shipping charge for you considerably.

So, long story short, the shipping charge has no bearing on the item's transit time to you.  The item may have "priority" over a regular freight shipment (GSP items are shipped by freight from Kentucky to the Canadian receiving hub), but "priority" doesn't mean "faster".  In fact, the term is pretty meaningless in the context of shipping, in my opinion.  "Priority" is used by FedEx and the US Postal Service as well as the GSP.  USPS's "Priority International" category is basically regular parcel post.  The expected delivery timeframe for a postcard sent from the US to Canada as a parcel isn't significantly different than one sent by letter mail (First Class International) but letter mail is, of course, a lot less expensive.

As for your question about whether it's worth buying stuff from the US on eBay, that's ultimately for you to decide.  Most small to medium-volume sellers don't have access to the same sort of shipping services and discounts as large volume (r)etailers.  I find that eBay is a great place to find unusual items that large volume/mass-market sellers can't or won't touch, but this can and does come at a price.  It really depends on what sort of items you're seeking, I think.

And do bear in mind that there are still US (and UK) sellers who will ship directly to Canada without the use of the Global Shipping Program.  However, depending on what you're looking for, you may need to put in a fair bit of legwork to dig them out of your search results.

[terrwerne0]

I ordered am item from Russia and the seller used this GSP . Item arrived in Canada and was cleared by customs and made it's way here to Edmonton and was proscced only to be sent back to the other side of Canada ? what gives with this ? The ebay tracking sucks and I can't track my item let alone find out what is going on with this shippment .

[00nevermind00]

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@terrwerne0 wrote:
I ordered am item from Russia and the seller used this GSP . Item arrived in Canada and was cleared by customs and made it's way here to Edmonton and was proscced only to be sent back to the other side of Canada ? what gives with this ? The ebay tracking sucks and I can't track my item let alone find out what is going on with this shippment .

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The GSP is not available to Russian sellers. Only sellers in the US and the UK can use it. What's the item number?

[terrwerne0]

The item number is 291651045478 Tracking number is RA 665309013RU . Tracking number doesn't work on the Canada Post web site , so where is this tracking info coming from ? When I called ebay about this I was told that the seller is the one who loads this info . So if Canada Post is able to scan this item as it moves back and forth across the country ...why can't I track this myself instead of relaying on ebay for what I believe to false info .

[hacksca]

Hi,

I had an item shipped to Toronto,Canada from Geneva Unites States. I was charged for shipping and handling and import charges.

A bill came in the mail for a Fed-ex bill. Then my bank statement had a number of paypal withdrawals that were unfamiliar. I checked out my paypal statement history and there was a Pitney Bowes  withdrawal of funds for shipping this item.

I called the seller and he wasn't sure about the charge,but that he had to ship it to Kentucky.

So he charged me for shipping to where exactly and import charge to where exactly?

If the selling had to pay Pitney Bowes to ship item shouldn't that be on the statement?

How can Pitney Bowes get payed without me knowing about the charge?

Did I miss something in the info when I was paying for this purchase?

If he payed for it why was I charged?

Please let me know,

Thanks.

Jane

[00nevermind00]

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@terrwerne0 wrote:
The item number is 291651045478 Tracking number is RA 665309013RU . Tracking number doesn't work on the Canada Post web site , so where is this tracking info coming from ? When I called ebay about this I was told that the seller is the one who loads this info . So if Canada Post is able to scan this item as it moves back and forth across the country ...why can't I track this myself instead of relaying on ebay for what I believe to false info .

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That is not a GSP transaction. Depending on the shipping service used by the seller, the item may or may not be trackable.

Maybe you could have your post office hold the package for you when it arrives until you are able to go and pick it up?

[00nevermind00]

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@hacksca wrote:

I had an item shipped to Toronto,Canada from Geneva Unites States. I was charged for shipping and handling and import charges.

A bill came in the mail for a Fed-ex bill. Then my bank statement had a number of paypal withdrawals that were unfamiliar. I checked out my paypal statement history and there was a Pitney Bowes  withdrawal of funds for shipping this item.

I called the seller and he wasn't sure about the charge,but that he had to ship it to Kentucky.

So he charged me for shipping to where exactly and import charge to where exactly?

If the selling had to pay Pitney Bowes to ship item shouldn't that be on the statement?

How can Pitney Bowes get payed without me knowing about the charge?

Did I miss something in the info when I was paying for this purchase?

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The seller likely didn't know he/she was using the GSP since eBay has been enrolling sellers without letting them know. So he/she mailed the item directly to you instead of going through the GSP hub.

There is a way to claim back the portion of your payment that went to Pitney Bowes, since the service wasn't used, but you'll have to prepare for a fight. I'm not exactly sure what the best way is to go about this. The weekly chat session is currently on: you could ask Raphael for advice:

http://community.ebay.ca/t5/Weekly-Chat-Session/March-9th-2016-Weekly-Session/m-p/328809#M3703

[saskeya]

Is there anyway we can track an item that is delivered by pitney bowes international? ??

[reallynicestamps]

Eventually they do let you know.

But by then you probably already have your purchase.

Most purchases are delivered by Canada Post. (Some come by CanPar)

If you are not home when the carrier arrives, he will leave a notice telling you where and when you can pick up the parcel.

Usually this is you local PO the next day.

You will need photo ID, but there will be no charges due, since those were covered by the GSP.

The purpose of tracking is to protect the Seller against phoney 'Item Not Delivered' claims.

It takes about 20 days from the seller's doorstep to yours, no matter what the delivery system claims.

Many 'tracking' services are actually Confirmation of Delivery and only show when the parcel has been delivered, not during its journey.

[pjcdn2005]

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@saskeya wrote:
Is there anyway we can track an item that is delivered by pitney bowes international? ??

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There is a link in your purchase history but it is not always updated regularly.

[marnotom!]

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@saskeya wrote:

Is there anyway we can track an item that is delivered by pitney bowes international? ??

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See if the information in this older thread is of any use to you:

https://community.ebay.ca/t5/Buyer-Central/Can-t-really-track-global-shipping-program-Frustrated/td-...

[pjcdn2005]

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@00nevermind00 wrote:

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@hacksca wrote:

I had an item shipped to Toronto,Canada from Geneva Unites States. I was charged for shipping and handling and import charges.

A bill came in the mail for a Fed-ex bill. Then my bank statement had a number of paypal withdrawals that were unfamiliar. I checked out my paypal statement history and there was a Pitney Bowes  withdrawal of funds for shipping this item.

I called the seller and he wasn't sure about the charge,but that he had to ship it to Kentucky.

So he charged me for shipping to where exactly and import charge to where exactly?

If the selling had to pay Pitney Bowes to ship item shouldn't that be on the statement?

How can Pitney Bowes get payed without me knowing about the charge?

Did I miss something in the info when I was paying for this purchase?

---

The seller likely didn't know he/she was using the GSP since eBay has been enrolling sellers without letting them know. So he/she mailed the item directly to you instead of going through the GSP hub.

There is a way to claim back the portion of your payment that went to Pitney Bowes, since the service wasn't used, but you'll have to prepare for a fight. I'm not exactly sure what the best way is to go about this. The weekly chat session is currently on: you could ask Raphael for advice:

http://community.ebay.ca/t5/Weekly-Chat-Session/March-9th-2016-Weekly-Session/m-p/328809#M3703

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The OP mentioned that the seller shipped the item to Kentucky which should mean that it was sent through the gsp.

hacksca - are you saying that you paid import charges and shipping to Pitney Bowes but that the parcel was delivered by FedEx who also charged you for import charges?

If you look at the listings on a pc on the list search mode, you will see 'Customs services and international tracking provided'  which means it will be sent to the PB center before it is sent to you. The import charges and international charges go directly to Pitney Bowes and the funds for the item and any domestic shipping charges go directly to the seller.

[pjcdn2005]

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@terrwerne0 wrote:
The item number is 291651045478 Tracking number is RA 665309013RU . Tracking number doesn't work on the Canada Post web site , so where is this tracking info coming from ? When I called ebay about this I was told that the seller is the one who loads this info . So if Canada Post is able to scan this item as it moves back and forth across the country ...why can't I track this myself instead of relaying on ebay for what I believe to false info .

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When you track it by ebay does it say that the item is currently with Canada Post? I wonder if it was transferred to another carrier for some reason. When I tried tracking it through track-trace.com it gave me the information on the Russian site which I then translated on google translate. According to that info the package was still in Russia on Feb 26 and there are no updates after that and as you mentioned, it isn't tracking on the CP site.

As you said, ebay has to be getting the information from somewhere so this is confusing. I'm not sure what to suggest although if you don't get the package, you can file an item not received claim.