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A warning about cheating on Canada Post weight
 

I'm sure most of you have noticed you can cheat a bit on weight when you use the PayPal shipping tool to ship via Canada Post. I have been cutting the weight by 20-25% for months with no problems... 100s of packages.

Party is over

About a month ago a couple packages were sent back to me for lack of correct postage. Figured I may have gone just a bit too light. Last couple weeks they started to roll back by the dozens. Today I got 2 packages back that were 2.3 kg and they were rejected because they were 100 grams off. 100 GRAMS! Thats a bloody envelope.... Absurd

So one of two things has happened:
My mail has been flagged as an abuser or something and they are rejecting it for any error at all.
OR
They are getting abused too much via PayPal and have adopted a zero tolerance on postage.

When you buy posted on the site with credit card and its off, they charge card. But with PayPal they can not do that. So it seems, with me now anyway, they are rejecting packages that have the wrong weight.

I have had more packages returned in the last 4 weeks then I have in 10 years total.

So I have had to pay for dozens of packages to rush back out, or worse, refunds. And a ton of cranky buyers...

Just a word of caution, be careful on package weight with the PayPal shipping tool and Canada Post

Hi. I know this is the Canadian section, but my post/question has a little relevance.

I use pp to post. I dont cheat the weight to get cheaper prices, but as a lazy fella, I put in the approx. weight.

I do this because I know the item is less than 100g and anything less than 100g costs 61p. My form filler fills the same weight all the time (lazy me) - I pay correct price, just the weight is not correct.

Think this would cause problems?

It will vary from Country to country.

I'm talking about packages that are 2-10 KG. Not letter mail. But if you are short postage it may come back or may be ok. Best to check in the UK area

Hey there pod,

I had this happen to me but at the retail outlet. Few items BARELY squeezed through as normal media in their "plastic" measurement template.

Saved me about 5-6 dollars but these packages came back and left some buyers complaining.

Yes, can't risk skimping with the da*n Canada Post which KILLS me with their rates to the U.S.

PM me with your "card" endeavours ha

I know when you do it in person or on their site they are brutal. I've had shipments that were $40+ and later got a charge on card for an extra $1.20... No wiggle room with those clowns

But with PP they dont have the option to add extra. So it was working great for months. But looks like they clued into that little game. All the money I saved, and it was a ton, ended up coming back and biting me in the end with all these latest returns anyway. I have to guess I wasnt the only one playing this game and they are now just rejecting them....

PM on the way

From my experience, cheating the weight by a hundred grams or two are perfectly acceptable as the price does not change at all.

Depends if it bumps to a higher rate. If 500 grams is higher then 400 they may sting you. But I'm not talking about small stuff. They may be more forgiving on the little ones. I was taking packages that were 3.2kg and tagging them 2.9 for example. Adds up at about 10 bucks a package... But as noted, that went out the window in the end

I hear you - the cutoff weights like 500 grams and 1 kg are critical for me.

I used to do the same when shipping from USA to puerto rico. 30lb Box I would ship for $20 via USPS Pritory Mail. Never got caught as I always dropped the items at the back of the post office and they directly went into the Bins. Saved lots of $$$

USPS may be better. I got away with it for months, no prob. Canada Post is onto it now for me. Not sure where it gets checked and returned but it seems to be well into the journey because it doesn't get turned around until almost at, or at the boarder. So not only does it get bounced back, but its 3 weeks until i get it back so extra screwed. And tracking doesn't show its coming back, so none the wiser until its at my door.

My first post. yay me.
I've been eyeballing the package weight for as long as I can remember. Nearly everything within canada goes 15x15x2 at 0.1KG...unless it is bigger than a big cereal box...then I just adjust the weight to 0.5-1.2kg. Usually never an issue in Canada.
I have even sent 6kg monitor arms across the U.S. using light packet....that's right $2.67. Lately I've seen those come back so I'm biting the bullet on those. My experience with returned packages has had more to do with anal postal workers at the outlet than anything else.

Canada Sux Dix