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I've started to get into online ordering, but am wondering about 2 things:
1) How do I determine where the item is being shipped from when ordering from ebay and amazon? The seller details usually don't show that info.
2) What's up with that $30.00 border charge that some have posted about, and how does one avoid that?
1) eBay is really easy. Under the price, it'll look something like this
Shipping: FREE Economy International Shipping | See details
International items may be subject to customs processing and additional charges.
Item location: Pakkred, Nonthaburi, Thailand
Ships to: Worldwide
2) Amazon is a little trickier but you can click on seller details or sold by details and sometimes that will help. Or you can google the Sold By/Seller details and it will tell you where they ship from.
Also, congrats on online ordering. I didn't know there was any other way!:poosie:
Thanks!
I've Googled the seller on Amazon orders when I needed to. That works fine unless the seller is generic such as "e-world".
Yes, I'm late to the online ordering game, but then again, I still use a flip phone:)
Just found a search location filter in the left column on ebay.
wait, is this thread from 1993?! :devil:Quote:
Originally posted by Seth1968
Thanks!
I've Googled the seller on Amazon orders when I needed to. That works fine unless the seller is generic such as "e-world".
Yes, I'm late to the online ordering game, but then again, I still use a flip phone:)
good luck
lol.
That would be a good thread: "I love my old school..."
Anyone got suggestions on that border fee thingy?
not sure what you're talking about as far as the border fee, incoming shipments may be subject to brokerage, duty and taxes, i assume you mean the brokerage, basically couriers (fedex UPS and DHL etc..) will bend you over, but if the seller uses usps or any other "post" (china post, singapore post, etc...) its normally $8 brokerage fee plus taxes on big stuff, normally anything under $100 they will let go for freeQuote:
Originally posted by Seth1968
lol.
That would be a good thread: "I love my old school..."
Anyone got suggestions on that border fee thingy?
^ Ah yes, it was those fedex, etc, carriers.
Thanks for that.
Look on Amazon.ca first. Item will give shipping time. If it's "weeks" you know it's coming from overseas. Usually, though it's from within Canada, and it will be days. I will hunt for an item to find it within Canada, otherwise by the time you pay for an item in USD, pay for the shipping (even most "free shipping" adverts only apply to the US) and then brokerage and border fees, you're pretty much guaranteed to double the original cost of the item.Quote:
Originally posted by Seth1968
lol.
That would be a good thread: "I love my old school..."
Anyone got suggestions on that border fee thingy?
I stopped buying from ebay years ago. ebay=dollar store. Either it's crap quality, or it's a knock-off.
Ya, I've been finding that out Dave. Thanks.
Unless I absolutely have to, I won't order from the US, let alone China (given the wait times from China).
Anything that ships from amazon.ca and sold by amazon.ca or fulfilled by amazon.ca is guaranteed no duties or extra charges, even if they are pulling it from their USA warehouse (it will say sold by amazon.com.ca if that's the case). When it comes from the USA through amazon, you will pay any extra charges at the time of purchase and it's all very clear and up-front. If you are still charged something, that is a mistake and amazon has incredible customer service, so that would be very easy to get refunded.
Additionally, anything eligible for Amazon Prime is guaranteed no duties, and 9/10 times originates in Canada. The odd Prime item will ship from the USA but you don't pay anything extra at all (it will say ships from and sold by amazon.com.ca rather than just amazon.ca).
Amazon builds in all the charges, so anytime you see something with an absurd price is is probably from a non-amazon merchant in the USA or overseas in the UK or similar. That isn't too common though, and they are upfront about it.
I've bought literally hundreds and hundreds of things off amazon, with shipping origins of Canada, USA, China, and the UK and I have never in my life paid a penny more than the upfront cost. I do 90% of my non-grocery shopping on amazon as well. Any minor issues are easily handled with a 5 minute chat with their customer service reps who have quite a bit of power in terms of refunds and credits.
Also something some people may not know is that Prime memberships can be shared by a seemingly unlimited number of people. You can simply add any number of addresses and credit cards to your amazon "wallet" and you can order stuff for people to get free 2-day shipping without even having to worry about them paying you back. Amazon doesn't care.
Quote:
Originally posted by Seth1968
Ya, I've been finding that out Dave. Thanks.
Unless I absolutely have to, I won't order from the US, let alone China (given the wait times from China).
If you order from sites like Amazon USA and Bhphoto USA, they take care of duties. You prepay them
Works out really nicely
I usually avoid ebay for big ticket items. It's ok for cheap stuff like phone cases. For expensive items make sure you're buying from a trusted seller. Make sure the seller rating is 99.5% or higher. It's also a good idea to read feedback.
Chinese stuff is slow to ship and Canada border/customs is also very very slow. I prefer Hong Kong sellers, they ship faster and usually by Air.
Usually for expensive electronics like cameras, phones, etc I prefer Amazon.ca, Bhphoto or amazon.com
When shopping from amazon make sure the seller is not 3rd party. They usually ship from overseas. If it is fullfilled by amazon or sold by amazon, you are ok.
Third party sellers can be fine. They have a rating, a price, and a clear price for shipping. If they are reputable and the shipping is reasonable, often times it's cheaper than the item sold by amazon where the price might be increased to cover prime shipping customers. I've ordered from them a lot with zero issues.Quote:
Originally posted by Escape
When shopping from amazon make sure the seller is not 3rd party. They usually ship from overseas. If it is fullfilled by amazon or sold by amazon, you are ok.
On top of that, amazon has the A-Z Guarantee, which protects you from anything you buy from anyone through their website. If you can't quickly resolve the issue directly with the seller, Amazon simply refunds you.
I can answer this based on the hundreds of Transformers I've ordered from eBay. Next to the shipping details it will state if the item is being shipped via the Global Shipping Program or not, here's how that works.
If the seller is using this program, and chances are they are because eBay automatically enrolled all sellers in it last year, then you pay a higher shipping cost because it has this additional broker fee worked into it. When the seller ships their item, they don't ship it to you, they ship it to Pittney Bowes and Pittney Bowes forwards it to you. You incur no additional import fees from the Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA), you only pay the shipping cost you've already paid. Also if Pittney Bowes determines too much packaging has been used to protect the product, they'll open it up, remove all that extra protection, throw the item into the cheapest shit envelope possible and send it on. It's a total scam and most sellers don't even know they're enrolled.
If the seller does not use the Global Shipping Program it means they have actively opted out of it. This means you pay a lower shipping cost because it's the actual shipping price but when your item arrives you pay a 5% fee to CBSA for import charges (GST) and also a $10 fee for them to charge you the fee. I'm not kidding, I ordered a $100 item, got charged $5 GST and had to pay $15 because of this.
That's the $30 fee people are telling you about, it's not always $30.
Again, thanks for all the tips.
Since starting the thread I've ordered about a dozen things. I'm loving online ordering and wish I got into it much sooner.
I'm still keeping my flip phone though! :)
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B616guGIUAE2PmP.jpgQuote:
Originally posted by Seth1968
Again, thanks for all the tips.
Since starting the thread I've ordered about a dozen things. I'm loving online ordering and wish I got into it much sooner.
I'm still keeping my flip phone though! :)
Ebay kind of went off the tracks for a while.
If I'm buying cheap stuff, or Chinese made cheap stuff that is hard to find I usually take a risk on Aliexpress.