eBay

kalvin@ebay.com · ‎09-26-2013

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,

~Kalvin
eBay.ca Community Manager

kalvin@ebay.com

pierrelebel · ‎01-28-2014

Ben -

" your payment of the GSP Item price and quoted Program Fees during checkout represents the total amount of Shipping and Import charges for a GSP Item to be purchased, shipped to the delivery address specified by you, cleared by customs, and delivered to (or made available for pickup at) the delivery address that you specify."

Somehow, eBay and/or PayPal and/or Pitney Bowes at one time add up all these charges to come up to the "total amount".

Once again, as requested by so many members so often, why can't eBay and/or Paypal provide Canadian (and other foreign) buyers with an actual breakdown of the amount they are being charged with:

1) shipping from PB warehouse to destination

2) consumption taxes (GST/HST/PST)

3) duty (if applicable)

4) Pitney Bowes fees to provide such service.

What is so difficult about it?

When I get my gas bill every month, it is properly itemized:

1) Gas used

2) Transportation to gas company (pipeline)

3) Storage

4) Delivery to my house

5) Monthly fee to maintain account

6) All applicable taxes (GST/HST)

The same thing with my hydro bill. It is fully itemized.

Why can't eBay/PayPal provide the same detailed information since Pitney Bowes already has it?

Why?

grinnandbarrett · ‎01-29-2014

The program is a disaster as far as shipping to Canada goes.

1) Call that "trackable" ? What a joke. All I know is that my item is "in transit". This is far less information than I get from USPS.

2) Charges for duties and brokerage fees for items made in the USA. Here is a news flash. There are few if any duties left for items made in the USA. Therefore the charges are, IMO, gouging, plain and simple.

If the seller uses the program and will not mail the item, I look elsewhere. Period.

pierrelebel · ‎01-29-2014

"There are few if any duties left for items made in the USA."

That is basically correct.

"Therefore the charges are, IMO, gouging, plain and simple."

That conclusion is incorrect. If you take the time to read a few of the earlier posts on this thread, you will quickly understand that "import charges" reflect mostly consumption taxes (GST/HST/PST) which are payable on taxable items and a relatively small handling fee ($4/$5).

If the taxable items were imported by mail directly from the seller instead of using GSP, the following would apply:

http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/import/postal-postale/duty-droits-eng.html

"If the item is worth more than CAN$20, you must pay the applicable duty, the GST or HST, and any PST on the item’s full value."

highland.2112 · ‎01-30-2014

I do not wish to have any dealings with US sellers that attempt to claim up to 50 percent more for an item, than those who don't. In fact I do not understand why ebay allows the Global Shipping Program to occur in their jurisdiction.

I just want to find honest, straight-up sellers that are not trying to scam me.

How do I search for these hone

st sellers?

chode82 · ‎01-30-2014

Hear, hear!! I have the same problem from Canada (as close as can be with the US). I've paid up to 100% more for vintage fabric. Vintage fabric - which is certainly not a competitive staple of our economies. To be fair, I don't think it's the sellers scamming anyone - I think it's an Ebay scam to try and make as much money as possible. It's really detrimental to "good business". I've talked to a lot of sellers who don't realise what the Global Shipping Program actually is and after agreeing that it seems way too much to pay, they've spent hours on the phone with Ebay reps who eventually relent and change the listed shipping price for us. It's a really big mistake on the part of Ebay. I'm sorry I can't help with your question but I wanted to show my support for your idea - and hopefully Ebay will realise that some of their best customers are leaving them and going to other sites like Etsy, etc.

femmefan1946 · ‎01-30-2014

Look for this:

Customs services and international tracking provided

in Search

That indicates that the seller is using the Global Shipping Program.

You should also be aware that if the seller uses a courier like UPS or FedEx you will be charged the same duty and sales tax (which go to the Canadian Government) that you pay upfront through GPS, as well as a 'customs brokerage fee' which will run four or five times higher than the GPS $5 service fee. The courier will not release your parcel until this is paid.

If the seller is shipping directly by USPS shipping charges will be higher if he uses Global Priority Parcel, which gives him Delivery Confirmation and insurance. You may also be charged the same duty and sales tax plus the $10 Canada Post service fee. Canada Post will not release your parcel until this is paid.

Canada charges duty and sales tax on imports valued over $20. While CBSA and Canada Post let a lot of items priced under $100 and fairly small, any of these could be assessed at any moment.

barry111316 · ‎01-31-2014

I live in Canada and I purchased an item from a seller who used the Global Shipping Program and the item arrived damaged. Having reviewed the policy regarding the Global Shipping Program it indicates that once the item is processed thru the Pitney Bowes sorting facility it is no longer the responsibility of the Seller for any damage incurred. Could someone plse advise how I submit a refund request from Pitney Bowes and not the seller of the item? Thks in advance.

DMH

afantiques · ‎01-31-2014

For a damaged item, start an Item not as described claim immediately. Go through all the stages. It is the only way to get your money back including money paid to PB for shipping and taxes, and you should not have to return the item, nor will the seller be charged or penalised.

The only negative for the seller is that his money in Paypal will be be tied up for a week or two.,

bennett4612 · ‎01-31-2014

Hi DMH.

Your assessment of the Program is correct -- your seller is responsible for getting the item to the US Shipping Center, and we take it from there.

afantiques is also correct. File a claim right away, as this will "make it official" and notify eBay/PayPal/etc. This will also set the process in motion as far as refunds.

Feel free to reach out, either here or via Private Message, if you have any further questions.

---Bennett

pierrelebel · ‎01-31-2014

Ben - did you have a chance to look at post #574 ?

Any comment?

dasia143 · ‎01-31-2014

I have basically stopped buying on eBay since I noticed more and more of what I wanted to bid on was in the GSP. I won't take the leap until I fully understand this confusing program (well it is to me at least!). I would very much appreciate answers to the following questions:

If an item costs less than $20 Canadian, are there brokerage charges? As I understand it parcels under this value do not attract duty or GST. There shouldn't be costs for administering what shouldn't be charged. (Hope that's clear.)

If one buys an item from a seller using the GSP, what method of shipping is used to send the item from Kentucky to Canada? If UPS is used, would one have to pay their brokerage charge on top of the shipping and import fees already paid to Pitney Bowes?

Is there a mechanism for cancelling a purchase if the final price is much higher than expected due to extra administration charges? When I've paid duties at the border they've usually been from 6 to 15%, plus GST, but the import charges I've seen on some listings are much higher, especially in the case of items made in the USA that should only attract GST. It makes me wonder if whoever is assessing the duties really understands NAFTA. Also I have read online comments from Canadian eBay buyers that charges were added in the final stages of payment. It bothers me that there could be substantial amounts added on after one has "committed to buy." I've never not followed through on an agreement to purchase and certainly wouldn't want to, but neither do I want to feel I'm being ripped off!

marnotom! · ‎01-31-2014

@dasia143 wrote:

Is there a mechanism for cancelling a purchase if the final price is much higher than expected due to extra administration charges? When I've paid duties at the border they've usually been from 6 to 15%, plus GST, but the import charges I've seen on some listings are much higher, especially in the case of items made in the USA that should only attract GST. It makes me wonder if whoever is assessing the duties really understands NAFTA. Also I have read online comments from Canadian eBay buyers that charges were added in the final stages of payment. It bothers me that there could be substantial amounts added on after one has "committed to buy." I've never not followed through on an agreement to purchase and certainly wouldn't want to, but neither do I want to feel I'm being ripped off!

The calculation of taxes and especially duty on a GSP item is only as good as the information the seller provides eBay. A big problem seems to be that sellers aren't stating the country of origin of an item in the "item specifics" section of their listing, so the big bad GSP bot has to take a "worst case scenario" into consideration when calculating the amount owed to the feds and provinces.

The bigger overriding problem is that many sellers with GSP listings aren't even aware that they're enrolled in the program in the first place, so of course they're not going to configure their listings to conform with the GSP terms and conditions.

I haven't purchased a GSP listing yet, but I seem to recall that when I tested it with a U.S. seller, I was given a full summary of the shipping and import charges (or at least as full as you're going to get) on a second page before I hit the "commit to buy" button.

pjcdn2005 · ‎02-01-2014

If an item costs less than $20 Canadian, are there brokerage charges? As I understand it parcels under this value do not attract duty or GST. There shouldn't be costs for administering what shouldn't be charged.

There is still a $3 -$5 handling/service charge included in the shipping price since the item is shipped through PB's center. If the item is more than $20 and shows import charges, that handling/service fee will be included in the import charges rather than in the shipping charges.

If one buys an item from a seller using the GSP, what method of shipping is used to send the item from Kentucky to Canada? If UPS is used, would one have to pay their brokerage charge on top of the shipping and import fees already paid to Pitney Bowes?

No, you shouldn't have to pay double brokerage charges. The only time that might happen is if the seller wasn't familiar with how the program worked and sent the item directly to you via UPS etc. rather than through the Kentucky depot. I'm not sure how items are normally sent from Kentucky to Canada but it seems that they arrive at a depot in Canada and then are often sent the rest of the way with Canada Post.

larissa4500 · ‎02-01-2014

These are additional fees that I've not seen before I am very hesitant to do pay this fee to the seller. Where did this idea come from? I have always looked after any of these fees when notified by the appropriate parties. I'm curious to know how these fees are decided and allocated and am unaware of how these fees are submitted through the proper channels.

I have heard these same concerns from other parties. I'm afraid that if Ebay continues with this policy that you will find not only Canadian but also all out of country sales will diminish,

I look forward to your early response to this matter which is of very serious consequence to me.

Sincerely yours,

Larissa 4500

Any comments from anyone appreciated.

karl*katz · ‎02-01-2014

You can read about it here

http://pages.ebay.ca/help/buy/shipping-globally.html

BTW the moderators will probably move this thread to one of the two pinned threads on the subject that can be found at the top of The Buyer Central Board board.

http://community.ebay.ca/t5/Buyer-Central/bd-p/23003

dasia143 · ‎02-01-2014

@marnotom! wrote:
A big problem seems to be that sellers aren't stating the country of origin of an item in the "item specifics" section of their listing, so the big bad GSP bot has to take a "worst case scenario" into consideration when calculating the amount owed to the feds and provinces.

The bigger overriding problem is that many sellers with GSP listings aren't even aware that they're enrolled in the program in the first place, so of course they're not going to configure their listings to conform with the GSP terms and conditions.

I haven't purchased a GSP listing yet, but I seem to recall that when I tested it with a U.S. seller, I was given a full summary of the shipping and import charges (or at least as full as you're going to get) on a second page before I hit the "commit to buy" button.

Thank you for your reply, marnotom! That is a plausible reason why items made in the USA are attracting duty when they shouldn't. I feel that this program is just too much out of the hands of both seller and buyer to put my confidence in it.

It's that "or at least as full as you're going to get" that worries me.

dasia143 · ‎02-01-2014

@pjcdn2005 wrote:

There is still a $3 -$5 handling/service charge included in the shipping price since the item is shipped through PB's center. If the item is more than $20 and shows import charges, that handling/service fee will be included in the import charges rather than in the shipping charges.

--So there are handling charges in addition to shipping. Not good news in the sense that shipping will now be so expensive as to make it impractical to buy from the States in most cases.

No, you shouldn't have to pay double brokerage charges. The only time that might happen is if the seller wasn't familiar with how the program worked and sent the item directly to you via UPS etc. rather than through the Kentucky depot. I'm not sure how items are normally sent from Kentucky to Canada but it seems that they arrive at a depot in Canada and then are often sent the rest of the way with Canada Post.

--That at least is reassuring. 🙂 I do appreciate your taking the time to answer my questions.

pjcdn2005 · ‎02-01-2014

So there are handling charges in addition to shipping. Not good news in the sense that shipping will now be so expensive as to make it impractical to buy from the States in most cases.

Well many sellers have a handling charge as well. Just to clarify.... there is not a handling charge AND an import charge. It seems to be that there is one or other. With that being said, PB does not give a breakdown of what each charge is for.

ace_4420 · ‎02-01-2014

Hello! I have not sold or purchased on eBay since 2009 due to my husbands sudden passing on Feb 22, 2010. I recently purchased a Mac os Maveric computer. I would like to sell again but not to sure where to start. Also, I tried to purchase some Fire King jadeite dinner plates from a US seller. The seller only sends via this Global shipping. I've read up on it and don't understand. 95% of my purchases were from USA sellers and never had a problem. I live on a 10 acre farm and the closest town ( 1 mile south from me) does not have a shipping drop off. Their postal office does not have a courier drop off either. The town that does accept is 50 miles west of me. Not a good buying experience. Any advise would help..Thanks Kindly,Ace