Learned Lesson with USPS Global Shipping Program

[bobbyw8469]

The beauty of the GSP is you aren't responsible. All you have to do is get it to Kentucky (or wherever your nearest hub is). Once Ebay takes over, it is out of your hands.

[byrone]

I’m in Canada

The GSP “shipping” charges are often very outrageous, so yes, your $5 shipping fee can turn into a crazy amount on the buyers side

I don’t recommend it

[RL]

If you shipped through GSP your responsibility ends once Pitney Bowes receives the package at their facility. This will not be your problem.

[Throttlesteer]

Thanks guys. At least this one isnt going to burn me.

[buymycards]

This is from the GSP FAQ's on eBay.

Although you're responsible for getting the package safely to the Global Shipping Center, in general you won't be responsible if the item is damaged or lost during international shipping. For additional information, see the Global Shipping Program policies and FAQs. Undeliverable items may not be returned to you.

eBay will remove any negative feedback in regard to the GSP.

I wouldn't worry about the Priority package to Canada. There is no guaranteed delivery date, and the system is really backed up right now. It may be held up in customs. From what I understand, every package entering Canada is being inspected because of the large amount of drugs that are entering the country through the mail.

[samosa4u]

Originally Posted by bobbyw8469

The beauty of the GSP is you aren't responsible. All you have to do is get it to Kentucky (or wherever your nearest hub is). Once Ebay takes over, it is out of your hands.

This is a hundred percent false. I have a buddy in British Columbia who purchased a card from some guy down in Florida. This guy was using the GSP, so my buddy paid the ridiculous shipping fee and the tax charge. He waited many weeks and the card never arrived. He opened up an eBay case and won.

When you use the GSP, the parcels don't get handed to Canada Post. Some other small company delivers them.

Anyhow, I've said it many times before that USPS First Class Mail is the way to go. The parcels get handed over to Canada Post and you can even track it on the Canada Post website using the same USPS tracking number.

And yes, if you are an American seller, you can opt out of the GSP. I've had many guys do this and ship to me directly themselves - zero problems so far.

Happy holidays

[bobbyw8469]

Originally Posted by samosa4u

This is a hundred percent false. I have a buddy in British Columbia who purchased a card from some guy down in Florida. This guy was using the GSP, so my buddy paid the ridiculous shipping fee and the tax charge. He waited many weeks and the card never arrived. He opened up an eBay case and won.

When you use the GSP, the parcels don't get handed to Canada Post. Some other small company delivers them.

Anyhow, I've said it many times before that USPS First Class Mail is the way to go. The parcels get handed over to Canada Post and you can even track it on the Canada Post website using the same USPS tracking number.

And yes, if you are an American seller, you can opt out of the GSP. I've had many guys do this and ship to me directly themselves - zero problems so far.

Happy holidays

I have not uttered one false statement. If you used the GSP, then if there is a problem EBAY is on the hook, NOT the seller. I have had more problems BEFORE I used it, due to the fact that International buyers don't wish to pay for tracking (which can be quite expensive) and are quick to file claims when items are late.

[alaskapaul3]

Had a guy in Russia with 100% feedback with 500 + transactions buy a coin that I sold using GSP. You as the seller cannot see that the shipping to a country for particular items is prohibited. The guy buys the coin and then cannot check out. I contact Ebay who are vague about why they won't ship. Major PITA and not worth your time as a seller.

[thecatspajamas]

Originally Posted by samosa4u

Anyhow, I've said it many times before that USPS First Class Mail is the way to go. The parcels get handed over to Canada Post and you can even track it on the Canada Post website using the same USPS tracking number.

And yes, if you are an American seller, you can opt out of the GSP. I've had many guys do this and ship to me directly themselves - zero problems so far.

Happy holidays

This is true for Canada, as well as most other major countries as far as being able to track the package all the way through to delivery. When GSP was introduced, the inability to show a "Delivered" scan on the tracking for international shipments to dispute "item not received" claims was the big stick being used to coerce sellers into using the program. If you can't enter a tracking number online and have it come up with a result of "Delivered," the seller will lose the dispute every time. Once upon a time, USPS tracking only followed a package to the international airport it flew out of, and then showed no further updates due to the disconnect between the USPS system and the systems of the international mail carriers. Nowadays though, USPS has arrangements, similar to the one with Canada Post quoted above, with the mail carriers in most (perhaps all?) countries that I ship to, and I can think of only 1 instance in the last couple of years where an international shipment truly went missing so that I wound up refunding it. That's 1 in hundreds of international shipments (because I deal with a lot of entertainment photos, about 15-20% of what I sell goes overseas), which is comparable to the loss rate on domestic shipments. It is worth noting that about the time the international tracking went into effect, the rates jumped drastically as well, so that there are no "cheap" international shipping options any longer. No doubt that has led to some of the unpaid items I have had when international buyers did not check the shipping price before bidding, but again, the rate of unpaid items is no more than on my domestic sales. In general, I have not found international buyers to be any more likely to be fraudulent than domestic buyers.

I have a number of repeat customers overseas who I feel certain would have been one-and-done buyers, or never bought in the first place, had I used GSP to deliver their purchases. I know some sellers are scared to ship internationally, but I find that the process is identical for me to pack, print labels (using stamps.com), and ship a package myself to Norway as it is to Nashville. Add in that the loss rates have proven to be no worse than domestic shipments, and I now have the same tracking ability to back "item not received" disputes as I have with domestic shipments, and there is zero incentive for me to enter into a program where I have no ability to set reasonable charges or predictable delivery times for my buyers.

[Jim65]

I wonder why more international bidders don't use US reshippers? Gives them an American address to ship to. Its good for the seller because once them is delivered to the reshipper, the seller is off the hook with Ebay and PayPal.

I have a regular buyer in Saudi Arabia who buys from me and he uses a shipper in Baltimore. Works great for me.

[Stampsfan]

Originally Posted by Jim65

I wonder why more international bidders don't use US reshippers? Gives them an American address to ship to. Its good for the seller because once them is delivered to the reshipper, the seller is off the hook with Ebay and PayPal.

I have a regular buyer in Saudi Arabia who buys from me and he uses a shipper in Baltimore. Works great for me.

So... excuse my ignorance but what is a “US reshipper”?

I can guess but I’d like to hear more about your first hand experiences. Maybe that’s the answer.

[Jim65]

Originally Posted by Stampsfan

So... excuse my ignorance but what is a “US reshipper”?

I can guess but I’d like to hear more about your first hand experiences. Maybe that’s the answer.

Basically a company in the US that receives packages and re-sends to international customers. I know some will open the package and send pics of contents for customers to ok before re-shipping the item. I've had people tell me its cheaper than Ebay's Global Shipping.

[swarmee]

COMC's mailbox is one of them:
https://www.comc.com/mailbox
Instant US mailing address.