Any way to block international buyers who have forwarding from USA?

[pullulate93.123]

I've had a few international based buyers make offers on items, even though it says explicitly in my auctions that I don't ship outside the lower 48 and I put all the preferences into ebay to block international sales etc. When we had paypal we could go there and block buyers who try to pay in foreign currencies but we don't have that now with managed payments, only shipping address. They obviously have people here who accept the package then forward it overseas to them. This sounds like a huge pain to deal with. I mean I could cancel the sale, but would I still have to pay fvf? Are there any esoteric ways in the settings beyond opting out of global shipping, who have addresses to which I don't ship, etc?

[1tuna]

..........general reply..........

basically sellers who do not want to sell to foreign buyers have a very weak excuse as far as the money paid.

refusing to pay 1.65 percent on out of the USA money is just not forward thinking.

looking at in the obverse its like saying I will not take the offer of $98.35  on my hundred dollar item.

are sellers really that stingy that they cant cut some one a break for $1.65 out of a hundred.

a huge pain to deal with a small discount........what is the pain............a simple customs form.

sorry for not answering the original quaestion but you are stuck with the settings for now

[ittybitnot]

.what is the pain............a simple customs form.

Customs forms are not necessary when shipping to a US forwarder address.  I don't think that, nor the 1.6%,  is the problem. 

[chpgts]

I had many items shipped thru a freight forwarder and never had any problems. Once it is received and you have proof of delivery (tracking) it is the freight forwarder's responsibility. 

[ittybitnot]

 Once it is received and you have proof of delivery (tracking) it is the freight forwarder's responsibility. 

Not exactly correct anymore.  Buyers that use these services  are allowed to file SNADs and do chargebacks. The use of a freight forwarder address no longer voids the ebay MBG.  I have always agreed that the use of a forwader was not necessarily cause for concern.  However, recently they seem to be becoming more problematic. 

[powell-memorabilia]

Of course, you can have whatever concerns that you like, but I find shipping to forwarders zero hassle.  It actually provides even better seller protection.  Yes, I have an extra fee for foreign currency, but I find that opening up sales to the world is worth the extra expense.

[pburn]

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@ittybitnot wrote:

Not exactly correct anymore.  Buyers that use these services  are allowed to file SNADs and do chargebacks. The use of a freight forwarder address no longer voids the ebay MBG.  I have always agreed that the use of a forwader was not necessarily cause for concern.  However, recently they seem to be becoming more problematic. 

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Do you have newer information than that provided by Trinton in this thread from February of 2020? I like to keep current on this topic and would appreciate any sources you could link so I could bookmark them for future reference. TIA.

Freight forwarders 

"

 I must clear up a potential misunderstanding - I did not state anything that should be seen as a disagreement on my part with @pburn's comment about a buyer losing protection when they forward a package. I have specifically clarified multiple times on the boards that an item is not eligible for protection if it has been forwarded. The thread you have linked to is an example of one of my responses that clarifies this policy. 

I will reiterate here, a buyer is no longer protected if there is evidence that they have forwarded an item beyond it's original destination address. You are welcome to contact Customer Service if you have any questions or concerns about a specific transaction."

[soh.maryl]

Just noticed that you inadvertently addressed your reply to me.

I am NOT the original poster about this issue and I am not "stuck with the settings for now".

I understand about international buyers who use freight forwarders based in the US and I have no issue whatsoever with those buyers.  

[pburn]

@1tuna 

I think what @soh.maryl is trying to say in her post above (Message #22) is that your post (Message #16) was not a "general reply." It was a very specific reply to the OP's situation. It should have been posted as a reply directly to the OP, not the last person who posted in the thread--especially if that person's post has nothing to do with your reply.

I've noticed you post in that fashion a lot--replying to the last poster in the thread and starting the post with "general reply" when it isn't. People don't always take kindly to having a reply posted to them when they've not had anything to do with what your comment is addressing.

Just a friendly suggestion, but if you are replying to a specific person's post, use the "Reply" button on their post, not someone else's. And don't start a post with a "general reply" when it isn't. 

These are just ideas about things I've observed. You, of course, may post in any way you'd like.

[ittybitnot]

@pburn  

I will reiterate here, a buyer is no longer protected if there is evidence that they have forwarded an item beyond it's original destination address.

The problem has been obtaining that "eveidence" thus MBG cases are allowed.  Even communication from the reshipper stating that the parcel has indeed been forwarded apparently is not good enough to void the MBG since (I am just guessing here) that those communications can be faked and eBay is not about to do any time consuming investigation on their own. 

Thus (Phony) SNAD claims are allowed and processed as any other domestic sale.  The buyer does not need to use the return label provided by ebay or the seller, and as a result we are seeing more cases of some erroneous item being sent to the seller to satisfy "deliver confirmation" of a return.  The seller is subsequently "thrown under the bus" simply due to the fact an item shows "delivered".  There is some eveidence here of ebay "stepping up" and helping the seller who is a victim of this, but it is a long and frustrating process to get a CS rep that can look beyond the delivery status, and see a parcel was sent from Amazon to the seller, and not a true return. 

eBay's stance has always been "faulty returns are part of doing business on the net" and I have been surprised by reports from a few sellers that say they have been monetarily compensated.  As the ruse becomes more popular, I doubt eBay will continue to do that. 

Though the "text me" and "change the address" scammers use reshipper addresses, cases like this seem to be a whole lot more dangerous because these people have the 'front money' to actually pay before the SNAD claim is made.  

[pburn]

@ittybitnot 

So, no change in the eBay policy I posted concerning seller protections in regard to freight forwarders. Thanks for confirming that.

[ittybitnot]

So, no change in the eBay policy I posted concerning seller protections in regard to freight forwarders..

I believe there is no change.  Personally, if I had an expensive item going to New Castle, Delaware I might just risk taking the cancellation hit at this point, especially if I was in MP.  This is not a recommendation, of course, just my personal opinion. 

[yuzuha]

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@pullulate93.123 wrote:

This sounds like a huge pain to deal with.

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It's not. Since I sell a lot of collectibles, I ship to reshippers all the time and I haven't had a problem yet. I love my international buyers; they're willing to pay top dollar for things they can't get in their own countries/get shipped to them from USA websites.

[fmwsells]

In 14 years I haven't had any issues with international buyers that use mail forwarders. As long as the tracking information shows that the package was delivered to the local US address you are fine.

[redline_auto_llc]

I love those buyers. They aren't covered by eBay money back guarantee, they're practically guaranteed not to return anything, and any reasonable payment processor will close any case in your favor once they see that a freight forwarder was used. It's the closest thing to a guaranteed sale you can get.

[fab_finds4u]

My address is a PO Box. It the safest way to receive a package because it can't be stolen off my porch or from the mailbox located across the street from my driveway,  Anyone can riffle a mail box. And they do.  My mail box can't be seen from my house and the road is not well traveled.. it's sitting by the side of the road like a theft magnet. That's why I have a  PO Box. 

USPS ships to my PO box for the same cost to ship to my street address. Can you please explain the logic behind blocking PO Boxes?  And the contiguous states? They have a US zip code.

Whoever suggested to cancel using a problem with the address makes you a lying seller. There's no problem with their address. A PROBLEM with their address is the USPS  says it's not a valid address, no street by that name. 

You are 100% covered by not received claims if you send it with tracking  to the shipping  address that comes with their payment. If they claim it's  not as described it's handled just like any other claim. eBay provides a shipping label from their shipping address.  They would have to pay return shipping to their freight forwarder. And it has to get there fast because they have a timeline to return it.