why isn't country of origin mandatory?

[5953peter]

Why isn't country of origin on products mandatory on ebay? Commerce marking is mandatory on imported products. I believe Ebay should make country of origin mandatory. This is a critical piece of information when buying a product. In a bricks and mortar store - I can see country of origin. On ebay - I have no idea where it came from - and that impacts the purchasing decision. Why isn't this a mandatory field for sellers in order to help the buyers make an informed decision?

[sandypebbles]

Ask eBay

Same answers as on the other profile which asked a near identical question a week ago

What should it be the seller's sole responsibiltiy ?

Apparently buyers should be spoonfed every single little detail 

If it REALLY is that important to a person, they would be doing their own research online before buying anything anyway

Otherwise it is just a 'I'm the buyer gimme' whinge 

[aussietastic]

I think you are supposed to ask the seller?

In sth like a supermarket I think items are marked that way .. obviously by law .. but also you cant ask an attendant to query 50 items in your trolley "where did they come from", and anyway I see a lot of things in the supermarket marked "made in Australia from imported ingredients"  It is a pretty weak law.

I have also been to Bunnings .. do they have country of origin on their lawn mowers?

[aussietastic]

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@sandypebbles wrote:

What should it be the seller's sole responsibiltiy ?

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Umm..  bcz it "IS!"  .. dont you know the maxim "with selling stuff comes great responsability"

[sandypebbles]

Glad you won't be buying any of my items

(And no, I do not use my selling ID to post on the forum)

Glad you find yourself funny,it is important to believe in yourself

(Do you know that maxim)

And no, it is'nt

No matter how much information or detail a seller included on their listings, it would still not be good enough for some people

Don't like the way something is listed, don't buy it

Simple 

[aussietastic]

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@sandypebbles wrote:

Glad you won't be buying any of my items

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Hmm...  maybe I shouldnt if you get that many complaints

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@sandypebbles wrote:

(Do you know that maxim)

And no, it is'nt

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If it is on google .. it must be true

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@sandypebbles wrote:

No matter how much information or detail a seller included on their listings, it would still not be good enough for some people

Don't like the way something is listed, don't buy it

Simple 

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Maybe it should be .. if you dont like ppl complaining .. dont sell it!

 

[digital*ghost]

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@5953peter wrote:

Why isn't country of origin on products mandatory on ebay? Commerce marking is mandatory on imported products. 

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Can you please provide a source for this?

I've been trying to find one that refers to mandatory COO but so far I can only find information that confirms this for food, with a  vague comment indicating that it can be required for other products, but not always. 

(I'm asking purely out of curiosity, I label all of my products with "Made in X", and have it listed in a FAQs section, though it doesn't currently appear on eBay item specifics). 

[gutterpunkz05]

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@5953peter wrote:

Why isn't country of origin on products mandatory on ebay? Commerce marking is mandatory on imported products. I believe Ebay should make country of origin mandatory. This is a critical piece of information when buying a product. In a bricks and mortar store - I can see country of origin. On ebay - I have no idea where it came from - and that impacts the purchasing decision. Why isn't this a mandatory field for sellers in order to help the buyers make an informed decision?

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Are you talking about  Country of Origin, or  Made In ....  .   

COO  Is determined for purposes of trade:  Customs duties, Trade embargos Etc.

COO  Is the country in which a product obtained its essential character, or its Harmonized Code (HTS) Number.

It is mandatory to state the COO  or HTS on  customs declarations, ( if they are known), but the COO or HTS does not have to appear on the product.

Just because a product may show   Made In China.    Does not mean  China is the COO.

[5953peter]

You're right - my problem relates to country of manufacture. Here's three recent examples where I have had issues:

1) Pasta Maker. I want an Italian, quality pasta maker. The clones look 100% exactly like the italian one. It's very difficult to tell them apart from price - but how do I know the price isn't inflated on a clone? Do I need to ask every seller? It's not feasible. I did not proceed with this order.

2) N95 Masks. There are dodgy ones out there as we see in the news. I wanted to buy the good Korean ones. I found a seller and the pics created the impression in me that they were korean - so when I got them - they were made in china and I had to discard them.

3) HDMI cables. I tried to buy the best quality I could find - the price was high, they looked quality and created the impression of being japanese. They were in fact made in china, non-standard and didn't work properly with newer devices. When do I find this? months later. I just replaced them outside of ebay.

If I could have been able to search on country of manufacture on any of the above 3 AND it had been a mandatory field I could have got what I wanted first time by a simple search. It's all about being able to determine the product I want to buy. If I was in a physical store I could look at the item - but online.....different story. 

Thanks for your helpful reply. Some of the less helpful earlier responses have made me question whether I really could be bothered with ebay any more.

[lyndal1838]

After reading of your problems I think you are right....ebay is not for you.

Go to the local mall and inspect the goods before you buy.