USPS International Shipping

[sdot10]

I dont do alot of international shipping but have a guy from sweeden i believe. Just wondering how do you ship international. I know the USPS is the cheapest but ive also heard some bad things like you only get a tracking number that shows it left the US and nothing more. Anyone shipped with USPS internationally before? How does it work with paypal. is the 21 day holding period extended or anything since sometimes if youre not doing overnight it may take longer for the package to get there. Any help would be greatly appreaciated

[thakid212]

Yes I have lost many paypal chargebacks because of the USPS international shipping...the tracking infomation never updates so you have no way of knowing if the package ever got there and that can leave you open to be scammed...all the buyer has to do is say that he/she never recieved their package and the buyer will win and since the tracking infomation never updates & you can't prove it was shipped/delivered

[gurusgrafx]

thats why I stopped shipping international. until someone comes up with an affordable way with working tracking I refuse to do it. It really bothers me stuff coming into the US can still be tracked but stuff leaving cannot. whats up with that? The only other options you have are very expensive so its either be ready to except the loss or stop.

[philly387]

I don't ship many international packages but I have shipped probably 50 or so and have NEVER had a problem using USPS. I don't like USPS because they do not handle the packages very well but they get the packages at the locations.

[gurusgrafx]

it depends on the country but on average I was losing 25% of the shipments so I'd lose product and the shipping costs. that adds up to be a lot. some countries it was almost 50% loss. I'm sure a lot was due to fraud.

I've shipped many international packages. Used priority international for years with no problems. Sometimes using the customs number to track the package works, most of the time it doesn't. About 2 years ago, I had a delivery go bad and the tracking was incomplete. Stopped doing international for a while.

Now, I send the package Registered. Costs several bucks, but requires a signature - Tracking is complete from start to end. Wouldn't suggest it for low priced items, but on high-dollar goods, it's worth the money.

[Lyda]

Yes, that is the only way to send Internationally. I recently sent package to Australia that cost me only $10 more for registered mail and you can track this number.

[gibsonton]

I ship internationally all the time ..usually 10-20 a week .. my items weigh less than a pond cost around $6-7 to ship and i charge $12 ..my success rate is around 99% and if i do lose one the $5 overage i charge more than covers it .

[bend_over_ebay]

Originally Posted by gibsonton

I ship internationally all the time ..usually 10-20 a week .. my items weigh less than a pond cost around $6-7 to ship and i charge $12 ..my success rate is around 99% and if i do lose one the $5 overage i charge more than covers it .

i do that much volume and have a similar system in place and 99% of the time the customs ticket number WILL show delivery confirmation. If you need insurance on the item, priority international will cover it but you have to declare the actual sale value if you want to be covered for that much.

For first class shipments I usually move the decimal back a notch so there are no unhappy customers getting taxed on their shipment. if I sell for $75 I'll claim a 7.50 value on the package. I also state in my auction and invoice if they want insurance it must go priority or i'm not liable.

have had no problems using this system for about 10 years now. on the rare case i have one lost or damaged i usually replace or refund anyway but that's rare. i consider that the cost of doing business overseas and builds customer trust and repeat business, worth of mouth recommendation. definitely worth it in the long run. that one $25 or $100 sale you eat may lead to a profit of hundreds or more over the next few years.

[sdot10]

Do they still do the 21 day hold on international payments?

[bend_over_ebay]

Originally Posted by sdot10

Do they still do the 21 day hold on international payments?

yes, they do...