Shipping Calculator - Does It Work Well?

[daveroo]

I'm in the US and am going to list some things open to limited international shipping.

I know how to block countries/areas I won't ship to (unless eBay changed that from years ago).

My concern is how good the Shipping Calculator is these days.

Or even whether to use it.

Many items I sell will be like this:

An envelope weighing 2 ounces that is non-machinable.

-- In the US I want to charge 99¢ for S&H.

-- To Canada I want to charge $1.50 for S&H.

-- To the rest of the world I want to charge $2.50 for S&H.

Can the Shipping Calculator handle that?

If not, can I include those statements in my TOS?

And if I have to include that info in my TOS, what do I put in the S&H area of the selling form?

I do not intend to print shipping labels for just letters.

[lintbrush*]

The calculator works fine, but it sounds like you want to list with a fixed rate charge.

I'm not sure what your last sentence means, but you are aware that merchandise cannot be shipped internationally as First Class Mail  (as of Jan 2018), correct?

[pjcdn2005]

You don’t need to use  calculated shipping if you are using first class letter rates.  In both your domestic and international shipping section you would use Flat: Same rate to all buyers and then enter the actual dollar amount.

In the international section specify your  first rate as Ship to Canada and enter service and rate.  The next international shipping section would be for ‘worldwide’

As the other poster mentioned you aren’t supposed to use that method (first class) for international ‘goods’.  I do know that many sellers still use it for items that are flat and basically look like a letter but if you want to stay within the rules you would have to use first class package.

[daveroo]

What I would be shipping is a philatelic item (postage stamp).

With low value items (<$10) it would be ridiculous to ship internationally by any method other than First Class Letter since the S&H would be more than the value of the item.

Yes, by not using tracking I'm taking a chance of an INR but that has never happened to me in the US and the few foreign items I've sold..

Stamp and coin collectors are VERY honest.

[berserkerplanet]

https://about.usps.com/postal-bulletin/2017/pb22482/html/updt_006.htm

[impalajohnny]

It would be madness to ship stamps as a package.  Way more expensive and stamp collectors abroad love getting a stamped envelope from the united states.

The way to do it is to set up flat rate shipping for the US, Canada, and Worldwide. The shipping calculator has glitched over the years so don't use it if you don't need it.

An added bonus is that letters do not go through customs which causes all the international delays. I've shipped coins in a letter from NYC to London and had them arrive the next day. But the norm worldwide is less than a week. 

Also the non machinable surcharge is a waste. The days of "hand stamp" are over. Your letter will be machined regardless so make sure your letter can survive machining without damage and don't waste money on the surcharge.

You can look it up in the DMM. But I think it needs to flex around an 11" pulley under a belt tension of 30lbs.  Or something very similar to that. If it meets that standard it is machinable, if not it will be destroyed in the machines even if you pay the surcharge and mark it non machinable.

[impalajohnny]

See physical standards for letters in link below and machinable criteria.

https://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/101.htm#ep1047495

Note that while coins are listed as something that can cause a letter to be non machinable the reason is uneven thickness. You can even out the thickness by sandwiching coins between card stock. And with multiple coins you arrange them in columns so the letter easily flexes lengthwise around the pulley/belt.

Correction to my previous post it's 40lbs of belt tension around a 11" pulley/turn. As you can see in the link above. I said 30lbs/11in which ain't bad posting from memory. 🙂

[berserkerplanet]

>>It would be madness to ship stamps as a package. Way more expensive and stamp collectors abroad
>>love getting a stamped envelope from the united states.

Except that it is technically prohibited. First Class Mail International Letters also fall under the merchandise prohibition according to https://about.usps.com/postal-bulletin/2017/pb22482/html/updt_006.htm (not just flats)

"In this price change, conforming to the requirements of the Universal Postal Convention, we are limiting the contents of First-Class Mail International postcard, letter, and large envelope (flats) mail to personal correspondence and nondutiable documents. Merchandise that was formerly carried in First-Class Mail International service will instead be eligible to be enclosed in First-Class Package International Service® (FCPIS®) pieces or another available service"

Whether it would be a problem in actual practice is unknown.

[impalajohnny]

I'd suggest checking the official definition of merchandise as it pertains to import/export before deciding that something you sell on ebay falls under it. 

But for practical purposes I'd be more concerned about not jay walking on the way to mail a letter in the blue box. It's prohibited to cross a street outside a crosswalk or against the traffic light. 

[berserkerplanet]

I'd suggest you check.

If it isn't non-dutiable documents it is merchandise as far as USPS, US Customs, and the UPU are concerned.

Anything sold on eBay (or any other venue or sold period) is merchandise/goods for USPS, FedEx, UPS, US Customs declaration, and UPU classification purposes. It isn't a gift, it isn't commercial samples, and there is no $ threshold that makes it not merchandise/goods.

Stamps sold on eBay are not documents or gifts. Anything sold is dutiable, and considered "merchandise".


>>But for practical purposes I'd be more concerned about not jay walking on the way to mail a letter in the blue box.
>>It's prohibited to cross a street outside a crosswalk or against the traffic light.

Probably. But OP needs to be aware of the rules (and appears to not be), and decide for himself if he is going to "jaywalk".

[daveroo]

Thanks for all the replies.

I'll probably stick with what I've done the few times I've mailed internationally in the past.

Under $10 - First Class Letter

Over $20 - Flat Package

$10 to $20 - Depends on how I feel abut the stamp.