Ebays Global Shipping Program

Luis21

This, from what I can see, is a scam. Ebay get the seller to send them your purchase. The sellers gets 2.99 but ebay charge you 10 or more postage. They also handle the purchase and delay it by days, sometimes a week.

The seller doesnt have a choice. This seems to be confined to the USA and UK so beware of daft postage costs and delayed postage when buying on ebay from these countries.

It is stated in the description if this mehod is used.

VincePP

How is it a scam? - Have you read what the program is about?

If the seller is based in USA and someone in Ireland wants to buy the item, the shipping cost is very high because the seller probably does not have a bulk discount. The buyer then has to pay vat & duty and service charge over here.

The shipping program using ebay's volume and gets huge discounts on shipping. All paperwork and customs is also taken care of and everything isnpaid up with zeri surprises for seller or buyer.


The seller pays a $2.99 fee to ebay for this. The seller can add the internal US shipping charge to the price and then ebay charge the international shipping + duties + vat (if applicable) and its all done in one single transaction.

You do realise that this is for international shipments only - eg Shipments for places outside of the country you are based in. If you are un USA and selling to USA, there is ZERO affect/change.

Quite superb actually. And as far from a "scam" as you can possibly get. - Do you actually understand the meaning of the word scam? (I doubt it)

Luis21

Ok lets look at the UK then.

Seller pockets 2.99 for postage. Ebay pockets 9 quid for postage. Buyer pays 11.99

UK to Ireland, 3 days normal post from seller.
UK to Ireland with Global Shipping Program, 7-10 days.

Buyer is 9 quid worse off and waits longer for purchase.

Thats a scam.

Oh and try and be a little more polite.

Xterminator

er no. its a scam if you are tricked.

If you get what you pay for & they are open and upfront about the costs it is a choice; not a scam.

Luis21

Ok I'll drop the scam word then.

Its a set up that allows ebay to make money for an unnecessary additional postage step. Well in the UK anyway.

Either way, the buyer has to foot the bill. The seller has no choice but to agree with ebay. Hardly seems fair does it ?

Cabaal

So its not a consumer issue and its more you feel ripped off because you decided to proceed with an order after learning the charges and now you feel ripped off. There's no issue here.

next time just shop around more or use forwarding services like parcel motel for UK sellers

Ruxjit

How do you enroll in the global shipping program ebay.ie? It's not there in the Postage and packaging preferences section.

I've seen videos on youtube showing on ebay.com the option is in Shipping preferences which is called Postage and packaging preferences on ebay.ie

wonga77

Can anyone help me with an actual phone number to ring ebay? Their stupid contact me page just has me going around in circles and getting nowhere as is their online customer support. I bought something a few weeks back for about €400, the seller has confirmed that it was signed for at the global shipping company but they seem to have lost it. They advised the seller to tell me contact them to resolve it but I cant seem to get through

joujoujou

Don't ring them. Claim with paypal (item not received).

satguy

It is a scam,, I stopped using ebay because of it,,, And don't start about this Pitney Bowes gang of gangsters that add VAT and customs duty on stuff that does not carry duty here in Ireland ...

wonga77

Yeah the global shipping seems to be a farce. Got my money back through paypal and the buyer got to keep the money I paid him. Some b0ll0x at ebay has made off with a perfectly good laptop, I wont be caught again

NewsMeQuick

I totally agree with the OP, and for some people it is a scam.

I've read about that programme from top to bottom and having used it several times for my usage, I think it's generally not worth it.

In my case, my most recent purchase, eBay shipping - 6-7 days from UK. That's into the second week past my purhcase date, considering weekends. Pricey too. From the UK? I'm not moving a house. What is that? I had enough of that service so for this purchase I contacted the seller *before paying, because otherwise it's too late, the shipping fee goes to Pitney Bowes for postage*, and I asked if they'd consider direct postage with DHL/FEDEX or Royal Mail. Yep. Within 13 hours it had already left the UK. I'm looking at 1 day, maximum 2 to get to me now.

Again, to be clear, I'm not saying for every person for every purchase ever it will not be worth it. But in many cases for me I find it is. Customs handling is mostly useful for importing from OUTSIDE the EU I think, but generally useless while INSIDE the EU. Just another middleman.

As for Piteny Bowes, eBay's customs/shipping partner:

1. First email for a previous purchase long ago, no reply
2. Second email, new purchase, a little helpful
3 Thrid email, follow-up, rude as hell.

I've just never had that BS in all the years from couriers. Delighted with them and Royal Mail.

Ruxjit

How do you enroll in the Global Shipping Program?

Luis21

Finally go my purchase. 8 days from the UK. 8 days !!!!! Postage cost ? 11.99 Sterling

Its a joke.

markc2951

I'll tell you what the scam is..seller sells me an item for 40 euro plus 10 euro for postage through this programme and pitney bowes..doesn't arrive on time..pitney bowes has no record of it..seller says he sent it..then I had to get paypal involved for a full refund Inc shipping amount.

Moral of the story is seller sold me something he never physically had

wonga77

That happened to me too, pitney bowes said no, never came here. Until the seller produced signed proof it had been delivered, they werent long changing their tune then

Kenny Logins

I haven't come across it from a UK seller, but found it great when buying from the US - postage cost was reasonable and delivery fast, and I paid the total including all taxes up front. I wish more US seller were using it.

You can see the cost before committing to buy, so where's the problem?

Luis21

Update.

Parcel from UK with Global Shipping Nonsense - 9 Days
Parcel from Germany without it - 6 days

Kenny Logins

Luis21 wrote: »

Update.

Parcel from UK with Global Shipping Nonsense - 9 Days
Parcel from Germany without it - 6 days

Don't use it from the UK...

my3cents

Kenny Logins wrote: »

Don't use it from the UK...

Only option is not to buy from anyone in the UK that uses the Global Shipping Program. After getting one item through it I won't buy from anyone that uses it.

Kenny Logins

my3cents wrote: »

Only option is not to buy from anyone in the UK that uses the Global Shipping Program. After getting one item through it I won't buy from anyone that uses it.

Parcel Motel, Parcel Wizard, the AnPost thing.. Plenty of options.

my3cents

Kenny Logins wrote: »

Parcel Motel, Parcel Wizard, the AnPost thing.. Plenty of options.

And how do those options work when the seller will only post to the buyers PayPal account?

The Global Shipping Program is there for sellers, not buyers, so its made to be very easy for the seller and removes a massive chunk of their liability so of course sellers are going to use it rather than mess around and post to an address that increases their liability.

Kenny Logins

my3cents wrote: »

And how do those options work when the seller will only post to the buyers PayPal account?

The Global Shipping Program is there for sellers, not buyers, so its made to be very easy for the seller and removes a massive chunk of their liability so of course sellers are going to use it rather than mess around and post to an address that increases their liability.

I have never once encountered an eBay seller that only ships to the PayPal address.

my3cents

Kenny Logins wrote: »

I have never once encountered an eBay seller that only ships to the PayPal address.

Lucky you.

Kenny Logins

my3cents wrote: »

Lucky you.

OP thinks he's being forced into a scam, you think it's somehow something to do with luck... This thread is a bit odd. :pac:

my3cents

Kenny Logins wrote: »

OP thinks he's being forced into a scam, you think it's somehow something to do with luck... This thread is a bit odd. :pac:

You are the lucky one always being able to dictate to ebay sellers what address to send to and what method they use to send stuff out to you.

Luis21

Kenny Logins wrote: »

OP thinks he's being forced into a scam, you think it's somehow something to do with luck... This thread is a bit odd. :pac:

Great reply.

firestarter51

my3cents wrote: »

You are the lucky one always being able to dictate to ebay sellers what address to send to and what method they use to send stuff out to you.

add the parcel motel address to ebay and select it as main address and any item will be sent there
i have parcel motel, address pal and parcel wizard all added and never had a problem

wonga77

as an aside, what do any of ye use to post an item if you are selling?

firestarter51

wonga77 wrote: »

as an aside, what do any of ye use to post an item if you are selling?

Send everything with anpost with tracking and gets delivered in 3 days
Actually gets to the uk the next morning but takes then a while to process it

wonga77

Yeah, ive used anpost in the past too, registered post seems to be as good as any. Is there any discount if you were going to be sending a good few small parcels through an post do you know?

firestarter51

wonga77 wrote: »

Yeah, ive used anpost in the past too, registered post seems to be as good as any. Is there any discount if you were going to be sending a good few small parcels through an post do you know?

no such thing as far as I know
Have you tried parcel motel maybe
I've sent a few heavy things with them and they were €16 instead of €30 with an post

NewsMeQuick

my3cents wrote: »

Only option is not to buy from anyone in the UK that uses the Global Shipping Program. After getting one item through it I won't buy from anyone that uses it.

Nope, you can get around it. For my next purchase, before paying for the item, I asked the seller if they would be open to other delivery services e.g. directly with a courier like DHL, UPS etc. Yep, he said sure, I quoted him a price and he did it. Tracking and all. And just like Luis pointed out, several days shorter without Global Thieving Robbing Lying Programme.

Lots of interesting and sadly unfortunate shopping stories here. I'll keep these scenarios in mind before choosing delivery and especially if something goes wrong.

firestarter51

NewsMeQuick wrote: »

Nope, you can get around it. For my next purchase, before paying for the item, I asked the seller if they would be open to other delivery services e.g. directly with a courier like DHL, UPS etc. Yep, he said sure, I quoted him a price and he did it. Tracking and all. And just like Luis pointed out, several days shorter without Global Thieving Robbing Lying Programme.

Lots of interesting and sadly unfortunate shopping stories here. I'll keep these scenarios in mind before choosing delivery and especially if something goes wrong.

But if you use a company that have a uk address and set that as main address you won't have to do this.
I never come across gsp and I'm reading on eBay on a daily basis either buying or selling
Most items from the uk are free post or very cheap and then just a few quid to get it to the door or local post office or motel locker in 3 days normally

satguy

I got caught by this Pitney Bowes scam shower,, They will be the death of ebay. They add duty or vat on to things that don't have duty or vat here, they are the reason I don't use ebay now..

Noddywood

Looks like I was caught by this as well. Bought an item on eBay in the UK on 28th July for £10 then had to pay nearly £15 more for shipping which was added on after purchase.
Now advised it is being shipped by gsp and can take up to another 2 weeks to arrive.
I have purchased over 150 items from eBay over the years and this is a first.
I have an addresspal account but didn't realise of the extra gsp charge until I made the purchase.
I reckon I'll just have to make sure it's not gsp in future or it's gonna be Amazon.

Luis21

Quick update.

Saw something I wanted on ebay. The seller was using the GSP nonsense and delivery was quoted at £10.81. I contacted vthe seller and asked if they had to use the GSP. They didnt know they didnt have to.

So I asked how much to send to me in Ireland using the normal post. They said a fiver.

I won the auction. Then went into the details on ebay, clicked on the number of bids made. They clicked on mine (the winning bid) and went to other options and asked the seller for an invoice.

They obliged and I only paid £5 postage instead of £10 and it arrived in TWO DAYS.

iguana

Sorry to hijack the thread but I ordered an item from the US via the GSP. The shipping plus customs was quoted as costing $50, I won the item for $35. I thought the shipping charge was quite high but the item is on the large side and the total $85 dollar cost was still cheaper than I could buy it for from Europe. However, I've gotten an email from GSP saying the item costing $60 has now cleared customs and on it's way. Have I been over charged for shipping and customs or is there a reasonable explanation for this?

Luis21

iguana wrote: »

Sorry to hijack the thread but I ordered an item from the US via the GSP. The shipping plus customs was quoted as costing $50, I won the item for $35. I thought the shipping charge was quite high but the item is on the large side and the total $85 dollar cost was still cheaper than I could buy it for from Europe. However, I've gotten an email from GSP saying the item costing $60 has now cleared customs and on it's way. Have I been over charged for shipping and customs or is there a reasonable explanation for this?

So its a total of $95 ?

iguana

Luis21 wrote: »

So its a total of $95 ?

No still a total of $85 dollars but I'm wondering if the seller is claiming I paid $61, instead of $35, for the item and that means the shipping and customs fee was $24. I've overpaid on the GSP before and have received a refund for the difference very quickly. I was expecting some sort of refund for this transaction as the item I bought had a GSP charge based on a Buy It Now price and I paid less, so much so that I don't think I owed any customs on it as it was going to my husband's address in the UK.

TresGats

Having same problem after buying an item that I won , a branded top for £40. I won it on the 29th October, and was thinking it odd that it had not arrived from the UK by Thursday, and THEN I discovered "eBays Global Shipping" crapola. When I checked back Thurs I saw the top was due for delivery 11th November- which is bad from the UK, now its gone back to the 18th November.
I am a relatively new ebayer, haven't sold anything yet, so when I purchased an item from the UK, I 'assumed' It would take less than a week, at most. But 3 weeks?

This morning I wrote a polite letter to the seller explaining the pitfalls of Pitney Bowes when sending packages to Ireland (and saying I knew it wasn't her fault) . Its not like she is a very high volume seller, right now she has no items up. I have gotten items from Australia quicker. I guess I'm just disappointed about the time frame.

I had to send PB 4euro something and the seller £9 for postage. I'm not bitching about that as I got a deal on the top. It's specific sportswear for a hobby of mine and I wanted it for classes I am starting Tue. I will be staying away from auctions with this as the ONLY option.

I have gotten over 10 similar weight items from UK sellers, actual p&p is less than £4.50 with RM.

I have a tracking number too, it doesn't work. At all, just leads me to a blank page with ebayjapan dot something something. PB are

Luis21

Update.

Postage from UK to Ireland. £12 for a book. Took 9 days.

Ten Pin

seller sells me an item for 40 euro plus 10 euro for postage through this programme and pitney bowes..doesn't arrive on time..pitney bowes has no record of it..seller says he sent it..then I had to get paypal involved for a full refund Inc shipping amount.

In a similar situation, do you have to raise separate PayPal refund requests with seller and Pitney Bowes? Invoice has separate amounts for item and GSP.

NewsMeQuick

Ten Pin wrote: »

In a similar situation, do you have to raise separate PayPal refund requests with seller and Pitney Bowes? Invoice has separate amounts for item and GSP.

No, thankfully Paypal recognizes immediately if Pitney Bowes is involved and claims for both. All good.

Discodog

The danger with this is that, as it's a great money earner, it will become the norm. I contacted a seller & said that I wouldn't be bidding as the quoted postage was 5 times the actual cost. They agreed to make a exception.

We all know that many deliveries don't get caught by customs.

my3cents

In my hurry to get a bargain to day I missed the dreaded words Global Shipping after swearing I'd never use it again

Does anyone know who they use for the last leg to the customer to deliver in Ireland? So I know who to look out for?

Carne

my3cents wrote: »

In my hurry to get a bargain to day I missed the dreaded words Global Shipping after swearing I'd never use it again

Does anyone know who they use for the last leg to the customer to deliver in Ireland? So I know who to look out for?

With me it was An Post, so I got lucky I guess. Still took ages to deliver.

stronglikebull

my3cents wrote: »

In my hurry to get a bargain to day I missed the dreaded words Global Shipping after swearing I'd never use it again

Does anyone know who they use for the last leg to the customer to deliver in Ireland? So I know who to look out for?

It's always been An Post for me, but maybe it depends on the value of the product. You should get a tracking number for it once handed over the An Post.