When an overseas buyer bids on an Australia only item.. what to do

[springyzone]

My sister just sold a glomesh bag. When you click on postage and handling details, it clearly says Posts to: Australia.

The postage cost for the boxed bag is pretty much only Aust post price ($13), maybe even a fraction less and her dilemma is the winner of the auction is someone from NZ.

I just looked up the postage to NZ and for this item it would be $28.15 (for one with a signature required).

My sister isn't a professional seller, just we are trying to clear a few bits and pieces lately from an estate.

What would you suggest she do?

I suggested she write to the buyer and explain she sells only to Australia, as outlined in the ad, because postage to NZ would be too dear.

But should she ask for a cancellation and if she does and the buyer ignores it, can she later open an unpaid item dispute?

But what if the buyer pays? I have said if that happens to refund it.

If my sister does that and asks for a cancellation, will she get a defect?

We are having a bad run lately.

First she sells a bedroom suite and the buyer messages next day to say sorry, no transport not buying, have a nice day, then this!

What is wrong with some buyers lately??

[springyzone]

Thanks, I will send her that link, though she said she is a bit over trying to sell on ebay and won't be doing much of it.

All the same, best to cut off as many trouble makers as possible.

[cherry*135]

Postage cost isn't reasonable to NZ from Aust., especially since they removed the under 250gm category for parcels a year or so ago.

 Not including registered post etc

Up to 500gm is $10.55 airmail .. would a glo-mesh bag weigh more than that? It would need protective packaging which would increase the weight.

Over 500gms to up to 1kg is $21.15 airmail

1-1.5 kig is $29.55 airmail

A 1.1kg parcel to NZ for $29.55 is quite a lot considering it is only 3 or so hours by air from Sydney.

There is no cheaper sea mail option to NZ.

[springyzone]

500g-1kg is indeed $21.55 airmail, but the point is, that is not registered and has no tracking.

It is a bit over $28 to send the same parcel registered, and I can't see why an ebay seller would choose the cheaper option as they have no protection then if anything goes wrong.

The bag my sister was selling was in a box and weighed about 480g on its own, so in the box, it weighed over 500g and also, out of the box, it would have needed extra wrapping which would have sent it over the limit as well.

You are right, postage cost between Aust/NZ is quite dear, but the whole problem could have been avoided if the buyer had asked for a postage quote first, or even asked if my sister was willing to post to NZ as there was nothing in her ad that suggested she would, it said posts to Australia.

[Anonymous]

As ebay now charges fees on postage it is not worth your while to post.  I just say no I wont post to you and refund them, not worth the expense and hassle and with this lovely new return policy if they don't like it you are going to get hit with the expensive postage cost. Too risky. 

[chameleon54]

Around 20% of my sales are to overseas customers and it was a rapidly growing market 12 months ago. Since the FVF on postage and return policies making tracking essential, this overseas expansion has come to a grinding halt. It seems to have been the straw that has broken the camels back. As others have mentioned the new return policies are certianly very concerning for overseas sellers and while I have not had a claim yet, I,m not looking forward to the first one. ( it is quite common for my post cost to be $80-$100 for a single item. ) With the high International postage costs, I cant add any extra to postage cost for self insurance ( in fact I am now subsidising many quotes ) and feel I am just getting squeezed out of international sales.  

[Anonymous]

Yep too expensive, too risky, they have so many days to claim their money back and you are out of pocket for an 80.00 postage cost. I had my first return and it was automatically ticked that i was to pay for return postage or just pay them the back the whole cost. I will not sell anymore expensive items on ebay and I certainly will not pay for postage that is anymore than 13.40.

[cherry*135]

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@springyzone wrote:

500g-1kg is indeed $21.55 airmail, but the point is, that is not registered and has no tracking.

It is a bit over $28 to send the same parcel registered, and I can't see why an ebay seller would choose the cheaper option as they have no protection then if anything goes wrong.

The bag my sister was selling was in a box and weighed about 480g on its own, so in the box, it weighed over 500g and also, out of the box, it would have needed extra wrapping which would have sent it over the limit as well.

You are right, postage cost between Aust/NZ is quite dear, but the whole problem could have been avoided if the buyer had asked for a postage quote first, or even asked if my sister was willing to post to NZ as there was nothing in her ad that suggested she would, it said posts to Australia.

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Yes, that is the point. Sorry, my post was mainly referring to an earlier post (quoted below). I hit reply to the last post at that time which was yours.

chameleon54 -Postage cost is generally pretty reasonable to NZ so perhaps the buyer is aware of this and happy to pay.

Postage rates from NZ to Aust are lower than Aust to NZ . Perhaps the buyer thought Aust Posts rates would be similar to sending a parcel from NZ to Aust. As you said the buyer should have asked first if the item could be sent to NZ and at what postage cost.

I can buy something from NZ, from a commercial seller and the small parcel rate the cost is $5NZ.

You can't send any size parcel even domestically in Aust for $5. Much smaller postal network in NZ though, compared to the land size of Aust.

[springyzone]

It is as I suspected, things have gone bad.

My sister received quite a polite email from the NZ buyer, thanking her for posting the bag, but saying the item was listed as in excellent condition but a couple of the glomesh links on the back of the bag are missing.

My sister examined the bag before she posted it and there were definitely no missing pieces.

She has sent a reply to say she is sorry to hear about this and could the buyer send some photos of the damage so we can compare it to our own photos of the back, as there was no damage when we examined it.

But where do we go from here?

I just know in my heart of hearts this woman is not happy because she paid international postage rates, so she is going to want her money back somehow.

Must we necessarily pay her return postage costs?

My sister is adamant that the woman can't keep the money and the bag, even if it means the buyer may wilfully damage the bag in the meantime.

[thecatspjs]

If you have in your possession:

good clear photos of all angles of the bag that clearly show that the relevant area of the bag was not damaged when listed

AND can craft an objective supporting statement that succinctly outlines the transaction issues 

AND point to a reliable, consistent paypal buying & selling history with a low level of disputes or claims relative to the volume of your paypal activity,

then IMO and experience, you have the upper hand in dealing with the buyer, and in defending a paypal claim.

However, all of the above may not be relevant if the buyer chooses to open an eBay MBG dispute - I will wait and see, I imagine my turn to gain some experience is not far away.

[goaussies1]

I'd pre-empt the buyer. Send an email to ebay with the transation history, and your concerns with the buyer.  I've found the ebay email option excellent. Better than phone calls. Include all id details. Provide relevant photos. If you have suffcient photos on the ad to show the bag is not damaged, there can be no case aginst you.  But the buyer might find their end a little uncomfortable.