seller falsifying international shipping documents

[brogreg62]

received an e-mail from a seller saying they were falsifying the international shipping documents sending the item as a gift and putting a lower value on the documents than what i paid and if my government caught it at the border it was my problem and not his
first off this is a federal offense in either Country Canada or the USA and i am refusing to receive anything
that was sent this way
i have requested my money back and the seller has refused unless i accept the item and ship it back
if i recieve the item knowing that the documents are false i will be  committing a federal offense 

i will be contacting

USPS, Canada post the FBI and R.C.M.P as well as the Canadian border services agency and the US customs and border protection

[tobyshitzu]

can you imagine if people were being "investigated and charged with fraud" because their ebay seller or similar lowered the value.  You could mess with people you were out to get.  Ah, theres the guy that dinged my dsrs buying again, Ill show him and lower the value, see if I can get him in trouble!!

[bb_cool_stuff]

Good Gawd No.

Never ship a two hundred gold ring without tracking & never falsify a shipping document.

Way too risky.

[Anonymous]

For toby. I would ship it by XpressPost with a value of $1,000.  Any packages by XpressPost with high values usually stopped at the custom department for inspection without fail.  So ding this guy with the custom/duty fees.  I bet this guy will never forget this ring forever after paying the hefty fees.  LOL  ]:)  Although I wouldn't do that unless it is true for some expensive items, it usually stopped at the custom department. 

[rose-dee]

If you sell a $200 Gold Ring to someone in the States and have decided to ship without insurance and via light packets .............

Do you think there's anything wrong with filling out the custom's forms to say it's a toy ring valued at $5?

Well, it's still falsifying value, so the risk you take is that it could be opened by US customs, and they may attempt to valuate it, or will simply seize it.  At best, if they think it's worth enough, your buyer will get charged duty on their estimated valuation, plus whatever processing fees apply, and you may get flagged (there's been some debate about the existence of flagging and "blacklisting" here, but personally I'd assume it's a possibility).

As I've said previously, its a big roulette wheel, and although the odds are in your favour you won't get found out, the potential downside if you do isn't worth the risk.  In the end, you have to decide whether or not to play the odds.  I've decided to always be accurate and truthful, so I never have to be concerned about it.  I also don't have to be worried about my buyers getting a nasty surprise as a result of my actions. 

[tee_bee_ay]

It does not make sense to say he 'stopped the item before it actually shipped', since the seller could have changed the item from 'gift' status before sending it, if that was the case.  It reads to me that the buyer got an email from the seller either as, or after, the item was shipped, telling the buyer it was being sent marked 'gift'.

Me, I do not care if it's a small item, as it would go through Canada Post very likely for free if it's below $20 value, and very often triple that amount.

If it was a pricey item, I would not be keen for it to be marked gift for fear of it being taken.  I have never requested an item be marked 'gift' either, I consider duty and tax as part of the purchase.

[afantiques]

Zombie thread/

[tyler@ebay]

Hey everyone,

Due to the length of time that has passed since this thread began I have locked it from future replies. If this is still an issue that warrants discussion, don't hesitate to begin a new thread!