I'm selling some stuff on Ebay and I've had two people ask if I'll ship internationally (Argentina and Canada). Have any of you had any experience selling stuff internationally? Looking up on the usps.gov site shipping looks to be about 50 bucks which isn't too bad. Are there ways to get screwed if they pay through paypal? I'd hate to not sell something to someone if they are willing to pay the shipping.
I've done it before and it is a pain in the butt. I'd rather sell my item for $5 less and ship domestically.
It's easy to sell to Canada. Easy to ship and not very expensive. Most of Europe is OK, but I wouldn't send anything to Argentina. Yes you can get screwed by paypal- they will always rule in favor of the customer if there is a complaint. But that would happen from a US customer too. If it's worth a lot, send with a signature confirmation requirement- registered- (and make the buyer pay for it).
as long as they have verified shipping address on paypal and you provide delivery information , you should be covered for any chargeback,etc. Prioirty mail seems to be cheapest imo.
People in Europe all want to do wire transfers, which are a pain in the ass, (and even more so unexpectedly for them if they've never done one to the US - apparently wire transfers are incredibly easy to do from within Europe). Don't ship to China, PayPal won't reimburse you in case of a problem. I shipped to China once and after the funds had been transferred, the items delivered, and the cash withdrawn from PayPal and deposited in my bank, the guy filed a PayPal claim, and even though I had delivery confirmation that I could show PayPal, they refunded his money, because they don't "do China". If you ship to eastern Europe or Russia, you need to send FedEx or UPS which will cost a ton, but if you ship by international post, there's a pretty good chance it never makes it, or something will be missing when it does. In many countries, things get dropped in customs forever and when they clear, there is a big import tax. This can draw out finishing the transaction. Canada is pretty much as safe as shipping in the USA. I've done it more times than I could count and never had a problem. It costs international rates, but is as safe domestic. I've never shipped to Argentina, but from what I know of the country it should be one of the easier places in South America. I would be a bit concerned about some of the poorer South American and Central American countries.
Don't do it. It's not worth it. Shipping is very expensive. The item goes through multiple shippers. (who's responsible for loss/ damages?) When things don't work out, it's very expensive for buyer and seller. electronics have different voltages.
It's very easy. I print all my shipping labels from paypal and it prints out all the international forms you need as well. Then you can drop it off in the pre-paid bin or at the front. No need to wait in line since it's already pre-paid.
I had a bad experience shipping internationally and will never do it again on ebay. Continental US only on all my listings, but I offer free USPS Priority Mail shipping. Its a usually cheaper than UPS Ground or FedEx Saver and a lot faster.
I've shipped to the Netherlands and the UK, but like other posters said, I'd be a bit apprehensive about shipping to South America.
On the other side of things I frequently get things shipped to Australia from the US, China and Europe and never had any problems... so I guess what i'm saying is the shipping companies seem to do a decent enough job. I have sold to Hong Kong, South Africa and US and had no problems doing it that way either. Like anything big on ebay, if they don't have a decent amount of positive feedback, void their bid.
