International shipping woes!

tundratrader

tundratrader

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Like others here I am reluctant to send items internationally. The cost and hassle isn't worth it. I refuse to be liable for sending items worth more than the claimed value as "used camping tools" Sending items this way offers no protection for anyone. Most folks here have a disclaimer in sales posts that buyers are responsible once item is shipped. I have had two international sales go horribly wrong and I am done with it. People don't want to pay customs fees and extra cost for real tracking and insurance. Yet you are expected to reimburse for items. I contacted PayPal about this and they said that for buyer protection you need to send items registered with some form of signature upon receipt. They also said that the USPS is not responsible for items once they leave the country. When items are sent first class mail with a value of $40 dollars and labeled as a used camping tool you have no way of knowing if the person actually receives the item. USPS has also informed me that they have no way of assuring what foreign post systems do once they get a package. It may say signature confirmation but they have no way of assuring it is signed for. Sorry for the rant.
Zach
 
I hear you.
I have been burnt too.
Some international buyer takes advanage of E-bay/Paypal and USPS Tracking System (Deliverly Confirmation) loop hole.
When an international buyer claims "item not received", E-bay/Paypal decides the case solely based on the tracking information
(which is useless for international shipping) and buyer gets full refund and keeps the item for free.
 
I'm done with international shipping myself. There seems to be an increase in the holding up of packages by the customs agents in foreign lands.
 
Yes, exactly what happened to me. No way of knowing and PayPal sides with buyer. It really is a way to scam system. I was even more surprised when USPS said they have no way of guaranteeing what foreign customs and post systems do. PayPal said anything over 250 needs a signature.

I have had numerous customs slipped not scanned in. They only track in US to begin with but when they see something labeled used camping tool with a value of 40 dollars i think that gets a fairly low
Priority.
 
Be careful for shipment to Hawaii too.
USPS tracking to Hawaii is often less than adequate.
If it does not get scanned your buyer will win the case with full refund and free item courtresy of E-bay/Paypal.
 
When seller us Express mail international (EMS) it is fully tracked from seller hands to buyer sign when he receive package. I doubt paypal would do full refund for buyer when EMS is used to ship package, doesn't matter how it was declared and with how value.
 
For international orders I always insist on PP gift and vacation of responsibility once the package leaves the US. To be honest, its mostly not worth the hassle so I don't mind insisting on extremely favorable terms for the sale. I don't see how I have any recourse if some dude in Europe (or wherever) decides to screw me on a sale.
 
There does not need to be an issue with International sales if you follow a few basic rules without deviation.

Ship USPS Express Mail International Insured. The system is fully tracked and the delivery protocols are at a far higher standard.

Value and Insure the item at the actual sales price.

Describe the item truthfully.......Here are some of my typical descriptions........
Fixed Blade Knife
Folding Blade Knife
Pocket Knife

Do not ship Auto's, Bali's, or Gravity knives as a matter of policy.

I often pay with PayPal Personal (Not the gift option, I always pay my fees) and I have NEVER had a problem.
I work on reputation and trust and with several hundred BF purchases from various sellers to date I have never been disappointed.

It is also important to understand what is illegal in various countries. The UK and Australia now both have very onerous knife laws, so understand that even a Spyderco Military can cause customs problems.

If your buyer wants you to bend the above rules.........refuse to continue with the transaction as you are essentially opening yourself up to major conflict.
 
Sunby said:
Be careful for shipment to Hawaii too.
USPS tracking to Hawaii is often less than adequate.
If it does not get scanned your buyer will win the case with full refund and free item courtresy of E-bay/Paypal.
Click to expand...

This is the first time I heard this. Flat rate boxes go to and from here just fine and insurance and delivery confirmation are also fully functional. Site some evidence of "often" please. I have bought and sold countless things so far and never had a problem myself.
 
Hawaii isn't some third world country, the postal service there is the same as any other state. When I've shipped packages there they were scanned delivered same as any other state does.
 
I have pending case with HI buyer where buyer insisted on parcel to save some money and I've agreed to it.
Tracking show the history only to Richmond, CA (and this is more than a month ago).
I've contacted USPS customer service and they replied "tracking often does not get scanned and updated and that there is
no guarantee".
USPS customer service made sound like HI as 3rd world country.
Perhaps this maybe due to the fact parcel was used where shipping from mainland to HI is via boat but
buyer seemed to know the loop hole.
 
Last edited:
Sunby said:
I have pending case with HI buyer where buyer insisted on parcel to save some money and I've agreed to it.
Tracking show the history only to Richmond, CA (and this is more than a month ago).
I've contacted USPS customer service and they replied "tracking often does not get scanned and updated and that there is
no guarantee".
USPS customer service made sound like HI as 3rd world country.
Perhaps this maybe due to the fact parcel was used where shipping from mainland to HI is via boat but
buyer seemed to know the loop hole.
Click to expand...

Send domestic packages by Priority Mail, insure items for full value, use Delivery Confirmation. Anything less puts you at the mercy of adverse circumstance and dishonest buyers. You pay for all this and for the PayPal fee. Set your price to cover these expenses as well as the amount you want for your knife.

If a buyer insists on paying less and asks you to forego Priority Mail or insurance or Delivery Confirmation, call off the deal. You may be dealing with a scammer. Even if he is honest, if the package goes astray, YOU as the seller bear the cost. Insurance is not a favor to the buyer, it is to protect the seller.
 
I was reviewing some of my past purchases last night and found one Deliverly Confirmation (purchased from CA) that was never scanned but it was delivered to me.
No, I'm not going to take an advantage of it
 
Esav Benyamin said:
Send domestic packages by Priority Mail, insure items for full value, use Delivery Confirmation. Anything less puts you at the mercy of adverse circumstance and dishonest buyers. You pay for all this and for the PayPal fee. Set your price to cover these expenses as well as the amount you want for your knife.

If a buyer insists on paying less and asks you to forego Priority Mail or insurance or Delivery Confirmation, call off the deal. You may be dealing with a scammer. Even if he is honest, if the package goes astray, YOU as the seller bear the cost. Insurance is not a favor to the buyer, it is to protect the seller.
Click to expand...

Thanks for advise.
 
Esav Benyamin said:
Insurance is not a favor to the buyer, it is to protect the seller.
Click to expand...

That's what gets me. When you see sellers here, stating insurance is extra cost to the buyer and they won't be responsible if the buyer doesn't purchase it. The sellers will often say they will pay all shipping but the insurance.
 
These are great rules, but I have never found a buyer who was wiling to absorb the cost of Express Mail International. It's quite expensive, and they always back out. Having had my own share of bad experiences, I won't ship unless the package is fully insured, fully declared and fully trackable.

Alfaholic said:
There does not need to be an issue with International sales if you follow a few basic rules without deviation.

Ship USPS Express Mail International Insured. The system is fully tracked and the delivery protocols are at a far higher standard.

Value and Insure the item at the actual sales price.

Describe the item truthfully.......Here are some of my typical descriptions........
Fixed Blade Knife
Folding Blade Knife
Pocket Knife

Do not ship Auto's, Bali's, or Gravity knives as a matter of policy.

I often pay with PayPal Personal (Not the gift option, I always pay my fees) and I have NEVER had a problem.
I work on reputation and trust and with several hundred BF purchases from various sellers to date I have never been disappointed.

It is also important to understand what is illegal in various countries. The UK and Australia now both have very onerous knife laws, so understand that even a Spyderco Military can cause customs problems.

If your buyer wants you to bend the above rules.........refuse to continue with the transaction as you are essentially opening yourself up to major conflict.
Click to expand...
 
As a Canadian, I have the experience of being on the receiving end of international shipments, and it's not any more pleasant from this angle. Many vendors will only ship UPS or FedEx, and both charge a hefty 'brokerage' fee, on top of whatever duties etc. are due. I've had items arrive with, surprise or surprises, double the value of the item in these fees, duties, and shipping fees.

Generally speaking, one reason for purchasing from US suppliers is the lower ticket price, but more often, the products I am seeking are apparently not available here. With a population 1/10 that of the US, we're just not an attractive enough market for some companies to set up a distributor here.
Now, I don't ask for 'favours' from the seller, like undervaluing the shipment, etc. I'd rather pay a little extra and know that if a shipment does go astray, which does happen, that both the seller and myself will be protected.

Sellers that use USPS to ship to me can offer me an awfully good idea of the total price of the shipping & insurance, and I have had excellent success receiving from USPS. Sometimes there is an additional duty charge at the post office when I collect my shipment, but it is usually low, and certainly not the hefty fee UPS charges (apparently unbeknownst to the shipper).

So, ship to me USPS, disclose insurance & shipping costs beforehand; I'll pay using PayPal, and we'll both win...except, of course, that's a lot more running around for you, so maybe tack on a couple of bucks to cover your time. If I know the price going into a deal, I can make a better decision as to whether to proceed or not, and we can both have a better experience.

Also, I'm trying to help defend your northern border against the zombie apocalypse, so you have a vested interest in helping me get properly equipped :D
 
Alfaholic said:
There does not need to be an issue with International sales if you follow a few basic rules without deviation.

Ship USPS Express Mail International Insured. The system is fully tracked and the delivery protocols are at a far higher standard.

Value and Insure the item at the actual sales price.

Describe the item truthfully.......Here are some of my typical descriptions........
Fixed Blade Knife
Folding Blade Knife
Pocket Knife

Do not ship Auto's, Bali's, or Gravity knives as a matter of policy.

I often pay with PayPal Personal (Not the gift option, I always pay my fees) and I have NEVER had a problem.
I work on reputation and trust and with several hundred BF purchases from various sellers to date I have never been disappointed.

It is also important to understand what is illegal in various countries. The UK and Australia now both have very onerous knife laws, so understand that even a Spyderco Military can cause customs problems.

If your buyer wants you to bend the above rules.........refuse to continue with the transaction as you are essentially opening yourself up to major conflict.
Click to expand...

This is generally how I comport myself on international sales. The reason that I ask to be absolved of responsibility after something leaves the US is for the UK/Oz/etc customs issues mentioned above. There is literally nothing a US based seller can do about a UK customs agents who insists on taking your property.

Esav Benyamin said:
Send domestic packages by Priority Mail, insure items for full value, use Delivery Confirmation. Anything less puts you at the mercy of adverse circumstance and dishonest buyers. You pay for all this and for the PayPal fee. Set your price to cover these expenses as well as the amount you want for your knife.

If a buyer insists on paying less and asks you to forego Priority Mail or insurance or Delivery Confirmation, call off the deal. You may be dealing with a scammer. Even if he is honest, if the package goes astray, YOU as the seller bear the cost. Insurance is not a favor to the buyer, it is to protect the seller.
Click to expand...

Yep. Its all about personal responsibility. In other words, domestically, the Seller is responsible for getting the buyer his purchase. The way I do this is to buy insurance (on items above a certain amount) or simply "self insure" (on cheaper items). That is to say, if something doesn't get there I will make the buyer whole (provided I believe that it actually didn't get there.)

JNewell said:
These are great rules, but I have never found a buyer who was wiling to absorb the cost of Express Mail International. It's quite expensive, and they always back out. Having had my own share of bad experiences, I won't ship unless the package is fully insured, fully declared and fully trackable.
Click to expand...

I've had relatively good experience with International buyers absorbing the shipping costs. I am willing to leave it up to them with regard to the shipping they use but will not responsible for customs theft or a package that cannot be tracked (because the buyer insisted on using the cheapest method possible for shipping.) Its unfortunate but its also a reality.
 
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