Shipping a Vinyl Record to Germany - Advice Needed
Summary: davidnach is seeking advice on shipping a valuable vinyl record from the USA to Germany, noting that eBay's international shipping service is unavailable for this item. Several participants, including dryophelia, share concerns about shipping internationally due to Germany's strict import regulations and the risks associated with high-value items. Some suggest that the buyer use a forwarding address in the USA. Ultimately, davidnach appreciates the feedback and decides not to proceed with the international shipment.
I'm looking to ship a Vinyl record (Beatles Yesterday and Today Butcher 2nd State) from the USA to Germany as an interested buyer reached out. I see the eBay international shipping service is not available for records to Germany.
Since this is the case, I wanted to see if anyone has any advice or experience shipping vinyl records from the USA to Germany and can offer some advice on how to best go about it. Everything I'm reading seems to point to this being a very involved process and one that is also subject to the whims of the individual customs officer who reviews my shipment. What can I do to maximize the chances of the record making to the customer as an individual seller? Any best practices to be aware of?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
dbmm-media
·1 week agomy advice...don't do it
davidnach
OP1 week agoI have chosen not to, thanks for the feedback!
1786davycrockett
·1 week ago@davidnach I have had VERY bad luck shipping valuable items to Germany that did not first pass through the eBay International Shipping (EIS) hub.
Too many "item not received" cases, since German delivery confirmation is either loose or non-existent -- and no recourse to having money refunded or goods returned.
If EIS refuses to ship it, consider that a done deal -- sell it locally, if possible.
davidnach
OP1 week agoOk thanks for the input!
kandf_vintage_finds
·1 week agoIf it was me I would NOT ship on my own anywhere internationally. That's just me though......
davidnach
OP1 week agoI appreciate the advice!
shado-x
·1 week agoIn a perfect world, 25 years ago, shipping Internationally was quite easy. Today, it is not. I don't sell Internationally at all. Why doesn't the German buyer have a US Address carrier, from which it is then forwarded to him?
davidnach
OP1 week agoThanks for your input!
dryophelia
·1 week ago@davidnach
There is a reason eBay doesn’t allow this item to ship to Germany. Germany has lots of restrictions and requirements for items brought in.
I would not ship a $900 item internationally on my own. The eBay Money Back Guarantee is too buyer friendly. (I wouldn’t list any item over $150, but that’s because my business model can’t take that financial hit.)
davidnach
OP1 week agoThis makes sense, thanks!