Problems with eBay's Global Shipping Program?
 

Anyone else have problems with eBay's Global Shipping Program that many sellers seem to be implementing?

I'm not 100% sure on how it works, but from my understanding, the seller sends the items in to a mailing centre and they are then handled there. First of all, I'm not sure why a middle man (who overcharges for lacklustre shipping) is necessary. Second of all, I'm not sure why this middle man MUST open every package and then poorly repackage it.

I'll post two photos of what I received today. The seller himself did not package the photo well, but I don't understand why the people over at Pitney Bowes felt the need to open the package carelessly, and then repackage it as if nothing happened. You can clearly see the tear on the envelope matches the tear on the photo.

So please, those of you that offer shipping to Canada and other countries, opt to ship it yourself :)

Hey Mike,

I couldn't agree more with you. I recently had to pay an extra 38$, this is on top of just over the regular 30$ postage for the item. Its ridiculous.
Additionally, when I bought 2 items from one seller, there was no combined shipping. Pitney Bowes expected me to pay full shipping for both items, (despite being packaged together) plus their add on.
AMERICAN SELLERS ON EBAY... please ship directly!

That's my peace.

Regards,
Brent

Yep, totally forgot about combined shipping. Why must I pay $18 3 times for 3 8x10 photos from the same seller that will be sent together?

I agree. It's outrageous. I have stopped purchasing from sellers that don't ship direct. I was dinged for $16 extra for a $5 ticket stub that I also paid $5 to ship.

I use the global shipping program on items that I expect will sell for more than $50...I'm getting tired of losing my item AND my money when it doesn't show up....and it was becoming epidemic. If an item in the Global Shipping Program gets lost then ebay covers it. It used to be no problem when ebay/paypal had a seller protection plan, but they ditched it, and I'm guessing they did so so they could make money as a middle man with this program.

What really pisses me off though is when ebay kicks an item out of the Global Shipping Program AFTER the auction ends because they don't want to be responsible for it. Has happened to me twice now. I just no longer ship to Italy or China...I've found both of those countries to be the absolute worst when it comes to "lost" packages.

Before the program, did you use tracking on your items?

Yes, always. I track all of my packages.

+1. International items getting "lost" was becoming bad. Ebay assumes all the risks should a buyer claim foul. I am totally in favor of the global shipping program.

Never used it, and won't. I have several repeat customers who have thanked me repeatedly for not using the Global Shipping program, and I am certain they continue to be customers as a direct result of opting out of the program. I'd rather they spend their money on more stuff I have for sale than on paying eBay to ensure they don't take advantage of me.

Wait until you get $900 worth of stamps "lost" in Italy...you may change your tune.

I used to be enrolled in the program but recently opted out. I got tired of being cussed out by buyers saying the global shipping prices were to high. I agreed with them but I told them I was unable to change those charges and that eBay controlled the global shipping costs. I didn't even know how much they were charging as I don't believe there is a way to see their charges? After a few buyers thinking I was being dishonest and overcharging for shipping I opted out.

lol!!! +1

Twice I have let a foreign buyer back out of a sale that was in the GSP, and then I set up a BIN for them so I could send an item directly. I don't like the GSP any more than foreign buyers do, if ebay/paypal ever reinstates their old seller protection plan I'll ditch the GSP in a heartbeat.

I have a hard time seeing how packages would get lost when you have tracking on them. I have yet to have a single issue with shipping a tracked item outside of Canada, and 95% of what I sell is international (although most does go to the U.S.).

Well, uh...good for you. I haven't been so lucky. Packages with tracking get lost all the time.

I use the program but have been torn regarding opting out once. Pitney opened my package that I carefully packed, removed the bubble wrap, and repackaged it. When it arrived to canada, it was a framed autograph, the glass was broken of course. The buyer thought I had packed it that way, and was furious after what they had paid in shipping. On the other hand,I have had a couple things lost in foreign countries at customs (or the buyer was untruthful) and it does remove some of that stress and dealing with any special customs forms.

Something I have been meaning to ask and Is somewhat relevant in this thread. Can someone from canada or another country confirm whether or not some of the charges that are paid for shipping in the GSP program include the custom import taxes based on the selling price, or do those still have to be paid separately?

I'm also curious about the customs charges...the program is a real mystery to even those of us who use it. Sellers can not see any of the communication going on. I get constant emails asking me to send an invoice for items that are in the program...it is impossible for me to do so. I'm having issues now with someone in New Zealand who will not pay because he says my item is a secondhand item and there should be no custom taxes on it. I told him he has to deal with ebay on that, and he says ebay is totally unresponsive. I can't do anything about it.

For me, when I purchase something with the GSP, I pay a shipping price + customs charge. Usually the shipping price starts from $17ish dollar no matter the item. I personally have never been double charged on customs, but have heard of it happening to others.

As mentioned in my OP, I don't understand why they feel the need to look through the contents of every package. They literally do a TERRIBLE job repackaging it. I've had this photo ripped, and many more examples of opened boxes/envelopes with contents exposed.

Here is what the typical GSP looks like for us if you're interested:

Perhaps, but I doubt it. After two lost lots maybe ;)

Seriously though, I don't mean to come down on anybody who does use the program. It's just not for me, and I wanted to show that there is an up side to opting out. When in doubt, or if I can't afford to lose the item, I tack on a few extra bucks for international shipping and send it registered mail, insured, return receipt, etc. The buyer still winds up paying less than they would have through Global Shipping, and I have yet to have anyone to say they didn't get something after hand-signing a card that they could see was being sent back to me.

Thanks for posting this and for the visual example. At one point, I actually spent a few hours trying to research customs duties regarding this program but gave up. I also, have a lot of folks always asking not to report the value on the forms before I started using the GSP, which it did not like. How much is customs duty where you live Mike, if coming from the US? I was always under the assumption it was somewhere around 5-6 percent, at least that appears to be rolled in to the GSP charge. What always bugged me though, is I also thought that items that were considered antiques or collectibles of historical importance, which a lot of baseball collectibles fall into, weren't subject to customs tax.

It depends, sometimes I don't get charged, sometimes I do. I've been charged as low as 13% (our regular tax rate) to as high as 45% (which I was given no explanation for).

This isn't meant to sound snotty, just in case it comes out that way Mike. In your example you posted with the screenshot of the charges for the Mantle item, as the buyer, what part of that do you feel is too much, price wise? The $16 for the shipping or the amount estimated for the import duty? To me it looks like about the cost for priority mail shipping I would assume, if I shipped and insured a $300 item, plus somewhere on the lower end of your estimate of between 13 percent and the ridiculous 45 percent you mentioned. Genuinely, I am really interested in understanding how international buyers feel about this program as I have gone back and forth many times about using it, and this discussion is helping me see it from the buyers side.

I personally have not had much problem in terms of the pricing, as I never said that. What irritates me is the process the GSP goes through. First of all, I can't combine shipping from a seller (which does allude to cost). Next, I am paying for a pretty expensive shipping service that 1) does not provide reliable tracking 2) feels the need to open up all my packages and 3) several times repackage them poorly, or in this case, damage it.

I suppose they have to open each package to insure that the item is actually in the package since they are now the ones on the hook for it. I had never even thought about that before...I guess I assumed they just took the package and forwarded it on with other packages headed for the same destination.

I could only insure for $500 to Italy via FedEx (same with other carriers I checked on)...have you been able to insure for more than that amount on an international package?

Thanks for clarifying, I think I just assumed you thought the price was too high as everyone seems to complain about that, but you are right :-)

To some degree, I can understand that they do need to know what is in the package since they are responsible for importing it. However, I think it is terrible that they repackage it poorly. The one item I had an issue with was a framed photo, and when it arrived in Canada, it was just thrown in a box loose, all of the packaging I placed inside to protect had been removed (to lighten the package I suppose). I am still on the fence about continuing to use the program, and really appreciate the insight.

Thats a fair and smart assumption, but it isn't the case.

It just seems more efficient to me for the seller to ship directly to the buyer, without the middle man.

I understand the whole liability/responsibility of the package issue here, but I feel like that packages shipped internationally with tracking shouldn't be much of an issue. I am biased in the sense though that I've never had any problems with tracking international shipping.

Just for fun, I calculated how much it would be if I were to send the Mantle photo in the example to canada. If I sent it the cheapest method available on usps.com, it would be $19.50, and that would be a flat rate priority international envelope with no insurance. So, their $16.91 shipping fee (not including the import part) is cheaper than I could get, that's interesting.

Strange, but I typically never get charged that high. Most people charge me up to $10 for an 8x10 and that includes tracking. I once received a poster in a tube (with tracking) and the price paid was $5 and a few cents.

I have when using stamps.com (insurance purchased through them) and shipping via USPS. I forget what the USPS insurance tops out at (something less than $900 IIRC), but the stamps.com insurance appears to have an upper limit of $100k (at a cost of $1052.28 for that $100k), though I can't recall ever using it for anything more than $1000 or so. And I've never had a case where an expensive insured package was the one that actually went missing, so I can't speak to how hard it would be to collect on the stamps.com insurance in that case.

I have had a $50ish shipment to Italy go missing, and finally turn up back in my mailbox about 6 months later, long after I refunded the buyer. For whatever reason, Italy seems to be on a lot of folks no-no list. I've probably shipped a dozen or so packages there over the years with that being the lone issue, though I guess that percentage is still pretty awful.

International shipping is not as cheap as everyone thinks it is. To do it PROPERLY with tracking and signature (which is what PayPal requires) is $30 and up, depending on the weight of the item.

I have been selling on ebay now for 20+ years and stopped shipping international many years ago. I had items lost, I ended up paying custom charges and in general no sale was stress less. With ebay's new system I don't have to worry because they protect me. I have shipped once since they initiated the program and the customer was happy and I was too.

Well, I've had 5 that I can recall just this year that didn't make it to their destination or didn't get scanned in when delivered and an unscrupulous buyer took advantage of me. 3 of them to China. The tracking usually just shows "arrived at customs" or some similar message...and then nothing. Only one lost package in the US out of thousands and it only had to go from Lincoln, Nebraska to Sutton, Nebraska. I probably had 100-150 international packages.

This was posted to ebay's community forums today.

http://community.ebay.com/t5/Shippin...4503#U23194503

This is exactly why I use the Global Shipping Program.

This seems weird to me, and if it is problem for you guys I do agree that the program does benefit you greatly. I ship from Canada using Canada Post, and no matter the country, I've always had the tracking go straight to delivery and not stop at processing.

Her issue was that the tracking didn't show "delivered" with the final scan due to the type of shipping she chose. This has long been a problem with defending claims when shipping internationally as ebay will automatically rule in the buyers favor unless you have a tracking that can be checked online and shows "delivered" for that final scan. When shipping to Canada now, as well as a number of other countries, the USPS tracking now tracks all the way to final delivery. This is a relatively recent development for USPS shipping though, and still does not apply for every country.

Good to know, hopefully it becomes universal and there will be no need to use ebay's GSP.

Found this list of the current countries for which international tracking is available. Guess it's not surprising that Italy is one of the countries for which the service is currently suspended...

Surprised France and Denmark has suspended that service. Never had a problem with those countries.

Italy and Brazil I'm not surprised. They have been problem countries for me to. I have those countries blocked but will make an exception for a reliable customer who is aware of the customs issues in their countries.

China and Mexico are also blocked. Mexico, mostly because it seems to take at least a month for anything to get anywhere.