L
lotsa_mpg
Guest
I really got a kick out of reading all the posts in the, now locked, PK damaged cylinder post. It seems to have drifted everywhere and was almost getting a bit too controversial so I completely understand locking it. As a Canadian ebay seller (and occaissional buyer), I just thought I'd toss my two cents worth in and hopefully, explain to some degree, what we canucks go through when buying items from US sellers. First off, I really have had no significant problems with any seller, US or Canadian. But, oftentimes getting an item from the US can be a bit of a hassle through no real fault of the seller....except that some sellers insist on using UPS instead of USPS. I guess they have their reasons (dax explained his point of view well in that post). I can not understand why any Canadian buyer would refuse to pay the brokerage fees and/or taxes as it pretty much a given that we Canadians didn't come out on top in the Free Trade agreement....and most of us realize it and grin and bear it. Nor can I understand how any buyer could end up getting the goods without paying the fees. It doesn't work like that in my town...be it UPS or Post Office delivery. There are a couple reasons why I despise receiving items via UPS (or via any other method than the postal system).
1) We don't have a clue in advance of how much the brokerage fees/taxes will amount to as they seem to vary greatly depending on the item, the declared value, and where it was made
2) UPS and all other courrier services deliver to the door...which is fine if there happens to be someone at home ALL the time, but some of us live alone and do work during business hours and it can be a battle trying to track down our parcels as most courriers will not just leave the item on our doorstep without a signature and, of course, said brokerage fees/taxes
I much prefer USPS because:
1) The item arrives at my nearby Canada Post postal outlet and I can pick it up whenever it is convenient for me.
2) I generally have at least a vague idea ahead of time of what I will have to pay for taxes/fees......Here's basically how it works. If the item has a declared value of less than 20 bucks, there are usually not any taxes or fees to pay upon pick up. If the declared value is over 20 bucks, I usually end up paying 6% GST and 7% PST...and then an additional $5.00. They call this a service charge.....I guess that's to cover their labor costs for charging me taxes...God, that seems insane. Strangely, the odd time, an item will arrive from the US with a declared value of much more than 20 bucks and they let it slip by without charging me any taxes/fees....that rarely happens, and when it does, I just consider it a gift from above. Eastern Canadian buyers pay HST (Harmonized sales tax) which is a combined amount of the 6% Goods & Services tax plus whatever percentage their respective Provincial sales tax is.
I know this is getting a little long, but I just wanted to sort of give the US based sellers in here a clearer view of how it works when we buy an item from them, and why many of us prefer USPS. I won't even get into that socialism hokus pokus......I mean, I can see where some Americans might get that impression, but it isn't the case...Ok, I said I wouldn't get into it. I'm stopping now.
I sell lots of stuff on ebay and ship only through Canada Post, my US buyers receiving their goods through USPS. I am curious to know if US buyers of Canadian items who receive their items through UPS ever end up paying brokerage fees/taxes, etc? Having never shipped items stateside via UPS, I do not know if they end up paying fees like we do or not.
Pete
1) We don't have a clue in advance of how much the brokerage fees/taxes will amount to as they seem to vary greatly depending on the item, the declared value, and where it was made
2) UPS and all other courrier services deliver to the door...which is fine if there happens to be someone at home ALL the time, but some of us live alone and do work during business hours and it can be a battle trying to track down our parcels as most courriers will not just leave the item on our doorstep without a signature and, of course, said brokerage fees/taxes
I much prefer USPS because:
1) The item arrives at my nearby Canada Post postal outlet and I can pick it up whenever it is convenient for me.
2) I generally have at least a vague idea ahead of time of what I will have to pay for taxes/fees......Here's basically how it works. If the item has a declared value of less than 20 bucks, there are usually not any taxes or fees to pay upon pick up. If the declared value is over 20 bucks, I usually end up paying 6% GST and 7% PST...and then an additional $5.00. They call this a service charge.....I guess that's to cover their labor costs for charging me taxes...God, that seems insane. Strangely, the odd time, an item will arrive from the US with a declared value of much more than 20 bucks and they let it slip by without charging me any taxes/fees....that rarely happens, and when it does, I just consider it a gift from above. Eastern Canadian buyers pay HST (Harmonized sales tax) which is a combined amount of the 6% Goods & Services tax plus whatever percentage their respective Provincial sales tax is.
I know this is getting a little long, but I just wanted to sort of give the US based sellers in here a clearer view of how it works when we buy an item from them, and why many of us prefer USPS. I won't even get into that socialism hokus pokus......I mean, I can see where some Americans might get that impression, but it isn't the case...Ok, I said I wouldn't get into it. I'm stopping now.
I sell lots of stuff on ebay and ship only through Canada Post, my US buyers receiving their goods through USPS. I am curious to know if US buyers of Canadian items who receive their items through UPS ever end up paying brokerage fees/taxes, etc? Having never shipped items stateside via UPS, I do not know if they end up paying fees like we do or not.
Pete
