Long Delivery Times

[foreverabohemianflowerchild]

I apologize if I am re-stating this but I have mentioned this to eBay several times over the years and it is so frustrating to me. I am hoping someone can explain why and 🤞 that this situation gets fixed: I do not understand why sellers are allowed 3 months (sometimes longer) to deliver a parcel. I have been buying on eBay every single month from China and India since 2012 with the exception of a couple of months since C19. I have NEVER seen a parcel arrive after 6 weeks. EVER! Why is this allowed? It has gotten better lately with sellers using Speedpak but many times I would get a fake tracking number, it wouldn't arrive and I'd have to wait 3 months to get my money back. They are obviously not sending the items. It's gotten to the point where I've noticed a lot of sellers in China not shipping to Canada. I'm on disability and trying to get a jewelry business going my only option is to buy from China. Thankfully some sellers are using speedpak which seems to be better but that further negates the necessity of 3 months for delivery. I've had several eBay reps agree with me. Is there a legitimate reason for this or is it just a matter of laziness on the part of eBay not fixing what is definitely broke?

[reallynicestamps]

The cheapest  shipping service is Surface, which from China means by boat.

At the best of times, the boat would not set sail until it was filled-- and since we are talking containers this :

 And that is a small container ship.  It takes a relatively long time to complete the cargo.

So your Surface Shipped product first waits until the container is filled (fairly fast given the number of small purchases mailed on any given day from China), then until the ship has sufficient containers to make the trip economical, then spends a week or two sailing across the Pacific.

Then it docks* in San Diego(?) New York(?) Hamburg(?) and the container goes to the post office where it transfers to the mail stream.

The slowdown is at the dock in China.

So the first point is one you have already discovered:  Don't buy from a Chinese seller who gives only the slow Surface shipping option.

Pay extra for Air Mail (SpeedPak, DHL).

many times I would get a fake tracking number,

Tracking is for the benefit of the seller. It protects us against fake claims that the purchase was not delivered.

If the purchase is not delivered within the delivery window, go to eBay's Resolution Centre at the bottom of this page, and open an Item Not Received (INR) dispute.

If the seller cannot prove Delivery (not shipping, delivery) you will be refunded.

If the window has not yet closed, but you are sure that nothing has been sent, go instead to Paypal, which covers you for 180 days (six months) from Payment.

If the seller cannot prove Delivery (not shipping, delivery) you will be refunded.

You are also protected against INRs by the chargeback provisions of your credit card if you purchased directly.

But there are legitimate Chinese sellers (hmm- most Chinese sellers are as legitimate as anywhere else), who keep their costs down by using the cheapest possible shipping.

And there are buyers who keep their costs down by accepting slow shipping.

Another picture for 1000 words:

 

*To confuse things further, the container ship may drop off and pick up more containers as it wends its way to North America. Slooooowly.