Why we stopped using "eBay International Standard Delivery"

[toyshnip]

eBay International Standard Delivery is a service for international shipping. The label comes out of ebay with 2 tracking numbers, one that goes to the ebay center, and one that goes from ebay to the international destination.

At first I was skeptical. We do a lot of international shipping, so why do we need a middle man. The savings were not that amazing. But we decided to offer it and see if customers want it.
We did get here and there customers that wanted ebay's service, so we worked with it.

Until we started to get issues. Customers would contact me asking for customs information. We don't know what ebay put in their customs forms. ebay told the customers to contact us.
Then customers complained that they didn't get the item. They started to open cases. Since we didn't do the international shipment, we don't know why there were issues. It is very hard to find the 2nd tracking number as what is listed on the sale is just the tracking info going to the ebay center, and not international info.

eBay puts in their help page that there ebay will cover up to $100. All we need to do is issue a refund to the customer or win the case and then put a claim with ebay.
But here is the catch. eBay will only cover the value of the item. So lets say someone orders a $20 item that cost $25 to ship (yes, sometimes shipping is more expensive then the item). The customer paid a total of $45. We paid $25 to purchase the label. When we refund (as the item is lost), we refund $45. eBay claims only cover the value of the items - $20. So we are short $25 and don't have the item and an unsatisfied customer.
Just not worth it.

[donsdetour]

Sorry to read your experience. Thanks for posting it.

[nathanbonstein]

just sent item to denmark,all my other items went to carson,ca and then to customer

this item marked ebay international shipping is diverted to kentucky(ebay global site) so item will now be rerouted and customer will have to pay another shipping charge to get his item from ebay

this is wrong,just wrong 

[nathanbonstein]

sorry it should have read ebay international standard shipping,

also will not ship this way ,ebay is just ruining ebay

[dbfolks166mt]

The International shipping center is the one thing about eBay that I have had positive results with. Since the shipping center sends the invoice to the buyer they add in, I am assuming both the cost of the domestic leg of the shipping, which in my case is from Virginia to Kentucky, as well as the international leg. Once the customer has paid I receive the normal notification from eBay that the customer has paid for the item and I purchase the domestic shipping and print the label through the eBay interfaces. I receive notification when eBay has processed the item through the center and they update the sales record with the international shipping information which also has a tracking number that I am able to click on and check the routing status. I also receive a note from the shipping center when the item has been delivered. Usually something similar to the following. 

SUCCESS!!

We are writing to confirm that your transaction through the Global Shipping Program has been successfully delivered by the carrier. 

This is a courtesy email only, and no further action is needed.

     Granted there is a small delay in delivery routing it through the shipping center but it is usually minor. I have never had a buyer contact me directly about an international shipment, I am unsure if they have ever contacted the shipping center. I have shipped quite a few items overseas, Europe, Russia, Japan, New Zealand..... and have never had a package lost nor an INR issue. Prior to using the shipping center I was having a number of issues with tracking since USPS does not deliver the package across the entire leg. That was when I was having issues with not having tracking numbers. 

[nkmipgolf]

I'm in Canada and eBay's rates are too high.  Canada's  duty free rate is now $150.  GSP still charges duty even on $20 items.  I look for sellers that just use good old USPS.

[toyshnip]

I am not talking about "Global Shipping Program" but "eBay International Standard Delivery".

2 very different services.

[toyshnip]

That is GSP. A different program.
In this program, the customer pays the full shipping and that includes the stop at ebay center and international shipping.

[glasser]

I wrote a whole big post on  this service https://community.ebay.com/t5/Member-To-Member-Support/Problems-with-eBay-International-Standard-Shi...)

Very problematic program brutally slow. My post does have some advice.

[ads.ink]

from what i see the item i just paid 21.00 to ship with ebays standard delivery is sent to kentucky the same as the global shipping program

Had i been able to use paypal to ship the item the cost would have been 11.00

of course ebay didn't bother telling sellers this, so i had charge the buyer another 9.00 to ship the ad.

I have now changed business policies to say i no longer ship internationally.

big loss to me and to buyers.

ebay is just genius at screwing sellers one move at a time.

[ads.ink]

how is it different? both methods send packages to kentucky 

[ads.ink]

and how do buyers know before purchase how much shipping will actually be? My guess they don't.

[toyshnip]

Great post. You put in your post to use ship24. So I put a tracking number in there, and it showed that the company ebay uses is easyship not DHL.

We just lost a case as we couldn't prove that the item was delivered (it was delivered to ebay, not to Mexico). So if I know to look at Ship24, I would see that the item is actually still on its way. So now the customer will get the item, we lost a case (so a defect against us), we lost the money (unless we get back the value of the item from ebay then we "just" lost shipping cost). 
When the customer escalated the case to ebay, ebay should have noticed it was their service and update the tracking info. But it was easier for them to just close and give the money to the customer.

Yup. Not worth it.

[dbfolks166mt]

I have never purchase internationally through eBay but I have through several other sites and their shipping calculators tell you what the international shipping will be before you purchase the item. I would assume, maybe a bad choice, that the shipping calculator in eBay does the same thing when you are looking at an item. 

[dbfolks166mt]

Sorry my mistake. I only use the GSP.