Shipped it twice... Never showed... NOW WHAT!?!?

[Dr. Benway]

Then he's free to comment and see me straight.

[cgbier]

I see you're already rolling up your sleeves

[Jim E]

That may just be a very unreasonable request... for example, to ship absolutely anything to Italy from Canada (or anywhere in Europe) it is a minimum $50 shipping charge, with no other options available. Their postal system in Italy may also have the same extortionist type fees.

That's another thing he would, as an Italian citizen, know, HD.

I'd say it's unreasonable for him to keep three if he only paid for one.



.

[Almohada]

He paid for one? I thought he paid for both??

[Dr. Benway]

I live in Thailand. I wait for family or friends who are coming here on holiday to deliver things in person. You can't trust some of the people working in Thailand's postal service - it takes just one moron. In uncivilised countries it's the best you can do.

[darthpaully]

He paid for one? I thought he paid for both??

He only paid for one- he only ordered one. But yeah, he DID pay for his HVFF and there is no reason to think he's pulling a fast one. Especially since everyone is basically in agreement that the problem here is not him, but Italian customs.

I agree with you guys on taking great care of my customers. The right thing to do is get him his merchandise and it absolutely does matter in the long run.

I don't really see any other choice than to wait the 90 days hoping it's in limbo. I guess if if no dice at that point then I'll have to thingk about sending it again via FedEx.

[Janke]

You could of course ask him, in a nice way, to pay the FedEx charge - that's something he should have done in the first place - but since you didn't require him to do it, you should still wait a while for the Italian custom officials to wake up from their siesta...

Compared to FedEx, Registered Mail or EMS mail are other possibilities, they both have tracking numbers, and do have a less rigorous customs clearance system than courier express.


Examples of charges from Finland to the US:

Registered Mail, weight 9 oz or less: $10, 18 oz or less: $25.

EMS: minimum charge is for 4.5 lbs: a whopping $70 !


However, if it's cheaper for you, you might just refund his money, and ask him to pay anew when/if he gets the original merchandise. In any case, you've lost the value of one shipment, even if both do arrive...

[HD-tography]

Well guys he is GLADLY paying for them. It's not like he demanded to be sent another. He paid for it.

What makes you think he paid anything for the second one? AFAIK there has only been one payment for the first one...

I wonder if he is a member on here... Hope he didn't read above

Chances are he IS a member here... however what does it even matter, Uncle Paully is just asking for unbiased advice, to a situation he unwittingly walked right into in ignorance of the awful hassle it is to ship to Italy... being a resident, perhaps the buyer should have requested insured/trackable shipping the first (or second) time it was shipped, as he would be well aware of the problems with the postal system.

EDIT: OOPS! LOL guess I'm late to the party

[darthpaully]

You could of course ask him, in a nice way, to pay the FedEx charge - that's something he should have done in the first place - but since you didn't require him to do it, you should still wait a while for the Italian custom officials to wake up from their siesta...

Bingo. I can't backtrack on him, and ultimately the responsibility is mine for not having him fedex it in the first place. Lesson well learned! I also would like to mention that just because he's from Italy doesn't mean he's run into these types of issues, nor should I expect him to act accordingly. I did, in fact, mention the situation at hand regarding his countries "suspect" customs policies and he said he's never heard of such problems. I HAVE shipped a few orders to Italy without incident and have done well above the average human amount of online transactions since the internet has been around, so I think my history is an honest enoguh sample.

However, if it's cheaper for you, you might just refund his money, and ask him to pay anew when/if he gets the original merchandise. In any case, you've lost the value of one shipment, even if both do arrive...

This is an option I have definitely considered.

EDIT: OOPS! LOL guess I'm late to the party

HAHA! No problem HD, thanks for being on team darth! I agree he's a memeber here at some level, as most customers that order my product are.

Again, thanks for the input everyone. This is good stuff...

[cgbier]

Bingo. I can't backtrack on him, and ultimately the responsibility is mine for not having him fedex it in the first place

I can give you absolution: Once a shipment leaves your hands, it is the responsibility of the shipper and the receiver. If your client doesn't want to use FedEX, if given the chance, is his problem. The only solution I see for you is to brutally force customers in specific countries (basically all of southern Europe, south east Asia, and Africa) to use a trackable and insured shipping method.

I was working for an international direct selling company in logistics. Everything for northern Europe (France, Scandinavia, Benelux) was shipped with the German mail system. Spain, UK, Greece and Italy only went via UPS - for a reason. Despite the fact that there are no customs inspections (besides UK) anymore in most of the EU, there was always trouble with the mail to the south.

Doc, things do get lost not only in south east Asia. USPS to the the Pacific isn't kosher either. Whenever I get a package from B&H or any hobby shop someone has peeked in (and it wasn't DHS). The source could be traced to Guam. Some folks here lost some stuff in transit and Guam was the last timestamp before it disappeared. The person himself hasn't been caught yet, though.

[Janke]

FedEX, if given the chance

In this case, it appears he wasn't - correct?

[BarteS]

Darth,

in my shipping experience from the USA, I had trouble with both Italy and the Netherlands; and resorted to ONLY ship FedEx to those destinations.

What is your sample size? Please do not make statements based on single incidents. There could be multiple reasons for these issues, receiver being one of them. Plenty of ads on Ebay state they do not ship to Italy, but never regarding the Netherlands (and I do check quite a few ads from Ebay.com or the likes, due to links or to check what the market is like abroad). And - got to find myself some non-treated wood - I have not yet encountered issues with packages to or from the Netherlands (99% incoming), including an HVFF.

[darthpaully]

If your client doesn't want to use FedEX, if given the chance, is his problem

In this case, it appears he wasn't - correct?

He was NOT given the opportunity to Fed Ex it. To this point I have only been shippng USPS 1st class to keep the cost at a minimum. The "gamble" has payed off largely (100+ sold, 1 single incidinet). I will heed your advice in the future though cgbier, for sure.

I have not yet encountered issues with packages to or from the Netherlands (99% incoming), including an HVFF.

Thanks again for your business and continued support! Merry Christmas Bartes!

[cgbier]

Darth, the main difference (besides the outrageous cost) is that private shippers have their own customs agents, while the mail system works the way of "just dump it onto the other stuff there. I'll take care of it somewhen".

[Jim E]

Darth, you should have told us your customer was a member here. Then I could have insulted him and impugned his character right to his face!

Joking.

[Lunchbox]

It's always good to protect yourself to ship with tracking option. Say like if you receive payment from paypal. If the buyer files a claim, you will need tracking number to proof that you shipped the package.

It's more expensive to ship with FedEx or UPS. ANd you have to prepare two copies of Commercial Invoice for the shipment.

Or you can ship with Global Express Mail (it's called EMS for the rest of the world). It comes with $100 insurance automatically.

[cgbier]

EMS has the problem that it gets mixed up with the mail system again. For less civilized countries that means lock up at customs.

[Lunchbox]

EMS is relatively safer than regular mail at a more affordable price. DHL, FedEx and UPS all are better but they are more expensive.

[Janke]

EMS is relatively safer than regular mail at a more affordable price.

I agree. This is because EMS is tracked - in fact, here in Finland at least, you can follow the tracking on the web.

AFAIK, I don't think an "ordinary" but registered shipment can be tracked in real time. But, it can be done afterwards.

[cgbier]

EMS is relatively safer than regular mail at a more affordable price. DHL, FedEx and UPS all are better but they are more expensive.

It is true, but EMS doesn't use their own customs agents. In some countries, this will slow down the process tremendously compared to FedEx et al.

Tracking for EMS and First Class Mail is nearly instantaneously. As soon as a package is scanned, the data go to a server and, from there to the web.

[Lunchbox]

It is true, but EMS doesn't use their own customs agents. In some countries, this will slow down the process tremendously compared to FedEx et al.

Tracking for EMS and First Class Mail is nearly instantaneously. As soon as a package is scanned, the data go to a server and, from there to the web.

It's true. With their own customs agent, the chance To get billed import duty is higher. And there is no negotiations too because they already paid for you and you have no choice but to pay them back.

I have a customer sent back a defective light to me. I need to pay import duty on that to UPS.

[cgbier]

I have a customer sent back a defective light to me. I need to pay import duty on that to UPS.

That sucks, but then the shipment could have been marked as "defective item, no commercial value" or something to that extent. That normally saves you import duties.
Our local customs tried to pull the same thing on us when we got two cams back from CLA. We had to prove that they are ours...

[Lunchbox]

Since UPS already paid US customs, they have to file a claim on behalf of me. Then I have to provide documentations to proof. Much of the trouble, UPS also charges me for THEIR SERVICE that I didn't ask for.

[cgbier]

UPS also charges me for THEIR SERVICE that I didn't ask for.

Actually, you, or your customer, asked for it by choosing them as your carrier. It's in their terms of sale.

[Lunchbox]

Actually, you, or your customer, asked for it by choosing them as your carrier. It's in their terms of sale.

Well just as you said, its the customer picked UPS to ship. I didnt ask for it. The terms of sales is between that customer and UPS, not me.