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Do you know the old saying Buyer beware? Well I would like to tell you seller beware I have been selling on eBay now for 2 years. I became a power seller in a short time. I have opened my items up to people all around the world. Shipping to Japan, Africa, and Australia along with many other countries has been so exciting for me. I had thought about logging the destinations on an atlas map. My crafts and others items have gone half way around the world.

 Though I want to first thank my loyal and trusting customers from around the world, I have found in my 100’s of shipping outside the U.S.A. and Canada shipping has caused me great financial loss. I want to explain why.

 I try to keep my shipping and handling reasonable but it seems many times after the packing of the items, I get to the Post Office only to find the box is over sized or heavier then guest-a-mated, or it has to be shipped in a different manor then stated in the description because of size, weight or cost. The P.O has no chart they are aware of to help me better figure out the shipping rates overseas. I can’t get them to get me one for the U.S. so it is understandable how they don’t have one for outside the U.S.

 Another problem with outside U.S. and Canada shipping is when people buy more then one item and want combined shipping. I find most the time the package is much bigger or heavier then I thought it would be once the items are packed so I am shorted on shipping fees once again. This is one reason for this blog.

 The third reason for my sharing this blog with you is in most - to all of my descriptions I state… If insurance is not purchased by buyer seller is NOT responsible once the item is shipped from the post office. My foreign customers are aware of this in my listings.

 As most of you know, shipping to other countries can take up to 6 or more weeks, having to go through customs and possibly sitting in customs etc. When insurance is not purchased by the buyer and they don’t receive their item/items in lets say 2-3 weeks, they file a claim through paypal and/or eBay and their money is usually returned and the seller is out the item, the fees and the shipping and the handling even though they shipped it, have the postal receipt and stated in there description seller is NOT responsible once the item is shipped from the post office.

Example: I once had a customer that purchased some items from me, they did not receive the item in what they call a reasonable time so filed a claim against me. Even though I had proof it was sent out, paypal returned all of her money to her and debited my account. She left me negative feedback when it was 100% out of my control. She went on holiday only to come home 3 months later to find her package from me sitting in her P.O. held up from her customs department in her country. It was sitting there over 2 months. I do want to say… this was a happy ending. She returned my money for the products she received but not until I sent her a notice saying, if she received her product she can’t keep the money and the product.

 I just want you to be aware if insurance and/or delivery confirmation is not purchased for international customers, paypal will reverse charges on you and you are out the money, fees and the item you sent. Even if insurance is purchased and confirmation is not purchased they can still give the customer back their money. No matter how loyal you are to paypal as a business owner, know you are not the one they are protecting. They protect the customer right or wrong. Even with proof with a PO receipt, note… they don’t care. There is NO-WAY you can prove or dis-prove an overseas buyer received their items without delivery confirmation and only God knows whether they are telling the truth or not.

 KEEP IN MIND… If you are going to ship international, SELLER BEWARE or send AIR PARCEL POST with insurance & delivery confirmation. If they want it, let them pay for it. I have lost too much money trying to be a global business owner shipping to our international friends. Know personally I am going to have to either stop shipping abroad or up my shipping to compensate for my many losses.