Why does eBay Not Prohibit Freight Forwarding?

[thebricktank]

I do this on the side.  I am not a profession eBayer.  I made the unfortunate mistake of not initially filtering out where I shipped to and quickly rectified that but left Canada open.  Unfortunately, despite using USPS Priority Flat Rate Boxes, which are lightning quick typically in the U.S., once they get to Canada, the good Lord only knows what happens.  So sorry, no more Canada.

I digress.  Real issue is other international buyers get through the filters by using these what I consider to be fraudulent U.S. addresses at freight forwarding / mail forwarding services.  

Had a guy from Northern Europe, and nothing against Northern Europe, but the guy not only seemed to be getting away with this practice but then starts complaining about my shipping fees.  See above re USPS.  I proceed to tell him shipping costs are what they are and moreover I don’t ship to his Country.  He then admits freely (from the poor English it sounded like he was using Google translate, which is strange because I know that people speak and write perfect English in this particular Northern European Country because I’ve been there multiple times), but says he uses a “hotel” address to forward mail on eBay and has been doing same for “many years”.

I immediately canceled the order for using wrong shipping address.  How this pr@ctice of using these third party services is permitted is truly beyond me.  I mean, for OFAC purposes alone, we could be unwittingly violating U.S. Sanctions for all we know.

#Fail.

[luckythewinner]

Why does eBay Not Prohibit Freight Forwarding?

Because there is nothing wrong with it. Anyone is capable of "freight forwarding". I have friends in the UK, Germany, Japan and Australia who do it for me all the time.

moreover I don’t ship to his Country

Exactly. And he did not ask you to ship to his Country.

[albertabrightalberta]

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@kenflynnsports wrote:

Check your fees.  When a seller ships to a FF company you are charged 2.5% for shipping to a non registered 

address.

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There's no fee for shipping to a non-registered address. 

But there may be a currency conversion fee if the payment isn't made in USD.

[maxine*j]

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@thebricktank wrote:

... nternational buyers get through the filters by using these what I consider to be fraudulent U.S. addresses at freight forwarding / mail forwarding services... 

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I have sent many things to customers through the freight forwarders they use.   It is a safe and secure way to do business with international customers, without my having to deal with customs declarations, documentation, fees, duties, regulations, inspections, etc., or be concerned about the reliability of foreign postal systems.

Freight forwarding is an old, reputable, and vital part of commerce.  Thomas Meadow & Co., Ltd., is usualy credited with being the first modern freight forwarder, creating the business model we're familiar with, and they've been operating for 185 years, since 1836. 

So you may consider freight forwarders to be fraudulent, but you are dead wrong.

=

[southern*sweet*tea]

Why does eBay Not Prohibit Freight Forwarding?

Simple.  You can't block a  domestic address unless it is AK, HI or the territories.  Freight forwarders don't use addresses in those areas.

[stainlessenginecovers]

and they shouldn't; it's always worked out for me and what I sell. For those with the obvious high scammed items, I would watch for the 4 locations and probably cancel?

[luckythewinner]

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@kenflynnsports wrote:

Check your fees.  When a seller ships to a FF company you are charged 2.5% for shipping to a non registered address.

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Nonsense. Are you sure you are not confusing this with the international payment processing fee?

[house*of*paws]

Hi @thebricktank 

I think you may be unaware of the purpose of 'shipping blocks'.  It is to block 'Ship to' addresses in countries you don't wish to ship to.  It is NOT to block buyers from countries you don't wish to ship to.

As long as the buyer has a 'Ship to' address in the US ... your blocks are working.  You only have to get the item safely to the US address.  What happens after that is not your responsibility.

What is beyond me is what distubs you about forwarding companies.  That said, it is your  problem ... and NOT eBay's nor the buyer in a 'Northern European Country' who speaks less than perfect English, but did nothing wrong.

[katzrul15]

Never had an issue with a Freight Forwarder order until this year.  All of the chargebacks this year, minus 1 (that would be 6 total we lost) were shipped to a Freight Forwarder address in CA, OR, WA or DE.  4 of those orders dealt with the Russian Federation (which I will not ship to, regardless).  The claims we lost were Buyers who "claimed" they did not recognize the transaction.   It is my understanding from more recent posts on this topic on this board and the payments board, that e-Bay has worked to tidy up issues surrounding their types of chargebacks?

We ship to Doral, FL all the time and to 2 locs in NY that are Freight Forwarders with no issues at all.  

For us it would depend on the end destination (many areas have strict rules on what can and cannot be received thru customs, strict on total amount of the transaction, etc) and the value(s) of the items purchased.

I would prefer to not ship to a FF, but understand why others have not had issues.  NY for us tends to be Asian Buyers and we have had zero issues there.  Canadian buyers sometimes use NY as well.  Doral, FL buyers, for us, tend to buy multiples all at one time.

Good luck.  It is a topic that is often well debated on these forums.  

[reallynicestamps]

There certainly are a lot of international buyers who seem to laugh at high prices for their stuff.

If they could buy it at home, they wouldn't be buying on eBay.

Most of my shipments are international, because the USA is not my country, and I get more problems with shipping to the US than to anywhere else. (There are four countries I won't ship to, though. Two have terrible postal services, two I have strong disagreements with their governance.)

[monroe67]

"Check your fees.  When a seller ships to a FF company you are charged 2.5% for shipping to a non registered 

address."

Non-registered address?   I don't think so.  

I am pretty sure buyers can have more a primary address and more than one alternate address "on file" with eBay.   I have purchased items and had them delivered to my work address, family members, etc., etc. 

[fashunu4eeuh]

”I immediately canceled the order for using wrong shipping address.  How this pr@ctice of using these third party services is permitted is truly beyond me…”

You are free to continue shooting yourself in the foot.

[kensgiftshop]

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@kenflynnsports wrote:

Check your fees.  When a seller ships to a FF company you are charged 2.5% for shipping to a non registered 

address.

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Where did you get that from?

[forward-motion]

I'm glad they don't!! This has been a HUGE boost in my sales with ZERO problems. Bring it on! 

[chapeau-noir]

I'm a fairly fit senior and a lackadaisical seller, and am cool with freight forwarders.  I thought one was supposed to get braver as one got older.

[forward-motion]

@kenflynnsports  

This is bogus! I'm looking at the fee's now. The only thing you are charged additional is the international fee. Furthermore, the shipping address IS their registered address on ebay. I have had no problems with this, and it has contributed to a huge boost in my sales. November was a record month for me and MOST of my sales went to a forward shipping company. I will gladly take the sales if no one else wants them!