Quote: "According to Ebay you must now send ALL INTERNATIONAL items with a trackable number [either Insured or Registered] or if it goes missing, or if the buyer just says it goes missing [they do not have to prove it] they WILL be reimbursed and you have no grounds to appeal."
I might lose as much as one in a thousand items that I ship internationally, but for me the probabilities increase greatly into the Middle East countries (and, I am told by others, into South America - although I have never lost postcards I have sold into South American countries). I do get more items that travel slower than they should, and generally if I suggest waiting a week before going further, the customer is usually comfortable, and the item usually arrives in that period.
If selling small or low value items, the question is whether it is worth quadrupling your postage costs and/or charges, and the effects that has on sales, or just reimbursing on the rare occasion an item goes missing. So far this has suited my business model, but with changes to the defect system and buyer protection that may change, as doing the right thing by the buyer and resolving an issue will now be deemed to still be a defect.
It has long been a case though, that if you can not supply tracking for an item, that you will lose any PayPal dispute. You need to calculate the risks and benefits of supplying viable postage for items that you sell, whether international or local (ie: occasional reimbursement vs. how much your sales totals are increased by having a viable shipping rate). I include registration or equivalent on sales/parcels over a certain value, and basically wear the risk for lower valuie items. If I reimburse about once a year on a parcel below that value, the savings/benefits are substantial. You just need to work out whether that type of business model suits your business.
Regards, Kevin
