any ebay users here ?

[islandman4567]

I'd just like to hear frm anyone who's had experience buying or selling on ebay .

What's your opinion of your experience and any pointers on buying . method of payments , security , what to look out for so I don't get scammed .

also , how do you know if an item is going to be charged duty when it comes across (if buying from the states) and how much.

 

[Gentle Ben]

buyer here, I pay with pay pal through my credit card.What to watch out for? check the sellers history, someone with excessive negative feedback might be someone not to buy from, I find most sellers are very good .
with free trade there is no duty , but you will have to pay GST & PST when importing into Canada, Canada Post seems to charge on shipments as low as $10, plus a brokerage fee, I have usually had no trouble nor paid taxes at the bridges importing the items myself up to $100. you can have items drop shipped to Mail boxes Etc State side for pickup.

 

[islandman4567]

ben ,

how are the brokerage fees determined ? when you say importing yourself , do you mean that you go across and pick it up and drive back?

 

[Gentle Ben]

I can't recall how brokerage fees are determined, flat rate or percentage
importing myself, yes, I have it shipped to Mailboxes etc, go over & pick it up, and import it for personal use into Canada.
If the parcel is for business use, or re sale, you will need a customs broker .

 

[wollensak]

Ebay Experiences

I have bought and sold a lot of camera equipment on Ebay.

The buyer bears all of the risk on Ebay, because the buyer pays and then waits to receive the goods. As a buyer, carefully review the feedback rating of the seller. Read the negative comments. There should be very few. The higher the rating (number of positives), the better. Lots of sellers try to pad the postage costs. Familiarize yourself with www.usps.com so you can look up the actual rates. Email the seller to get a postal quote. UPS and Fedex are best avoided - too expensive, USPS is the best. If your purchase is over $50 it will likely be stopped by customs - you will pay PST, GST and $5 handling.
Make sure the value declared by the seller is the actual value, not some inflated insured value. If its a very busy time of year, Christmas for example, a lot of packages are not held up by customs.

Ebay is great for selling. Get the best photos of your item you can. Close up detail is important. Select the picture package 6 photos with supersize costs 1 dollar. Determine the likely selling price of your item by searching sold items. Set a reserve price. Try to have your auction start and end on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday night. Remember Ebay time is Pacific time. You can choose the start time. Aim to have the auction time available to both east and west coast bidder - ie when they are awake. Make your auction available to worldwide - more bidders.

Be responsive - answer emails promptly.

 

[Keebler Elf]

I've bought tons of stuff off Ebay. It's hit-or-miss regarding customs; sometimes they inspect it and charge GST, sometimes they don't. Definitely check out a sellers feedback rating, especially in recent months. If there are negatives, check to see if there is a common theme (e.g. doesn't respond to emails). I use Paypal and have never had a problem. Finally, make sure you've got the shipping costs nailed down before you bid. If it's not crystal clear, send the seller an email. There are people that will gouge you on shipping, especially if you didn't know how much it would be beforehand (and if you won with a low bid; they'll try to "recoup" some of their losses with the shipping).

I've only ever had one bad experience. It was a seller who had two different shipping costs listed and tried to charge me the higher one, despite the fact that he had other auctions for the same thing at the lower amount. I had to contact Ebay and they contacted the seller. It took a while, but he eventually sold me the item at the lower price (and I received it w/o problem). He got a lot of negatives soon after and was booted from Ebay for not responding to peoples' emails.

In terms of bidding, I always try to wait until the last possible moment (yeah, I'm a "sniper"). I find that bidding early doesn't do you any good at all. It just lets others know you're interested. It also prevents you from bidding at the last possible second b/c you're the one with the bid in and you have to wait until someone else outbids you (at which point there won't be enough time left). I wait until 17-20 seconds remain, then I make my bid at a point that is significantly higher than the last bid (don't bother bidding up $0.50). The trick is to figure out what the last bidder has set his maximum bid at. Just b/c you bid significantly higher doesn't mean you'll have to pay that much; it depends on what the previous bidder's high is (you may only have to go up an additional 0.50 or a buck). Always bid $x.02 or $x.03; never bid a flat amount (e.g. $5.00) b/c that's what everyone does and they end up losing by 1 or 2 cents.

And don't forget to leave feedback (and ask for some in return to boost your own rating).

Good luck!

 

[islandman4567]

thanks guys,

I started reading the stuff on ebay on how to get started , but I prefer to hear from the users . lots of good tips so far . I'll keep this stuff in mind.

 

[dickydoem]

I have bought a number of things on eBay. I have a paypal account and find that is convenient to pay with, although not all sellers will accept paypal. I have also used money orders and in several rare case for small amounts have sent cash. Never had a problem with any of these methods.

Most of what I buy comes from the U.S. and as for being charged G.S.T. and P.S.T. it can be hit and miss when shipped by post. I have sometimes been charged on small value items and not on large value items. Canada Post adds a $5 fee. Try to avoid courier services if at all possible. They are usually much more expensive and they always use a border broker. The brokerage fee for UPS is $65.

Also, when bidding decide on a maximum that you want to spend on an item then bid that amount. That way if the Snipers like the one above try to outbid you they will have to bid more than you are willing to pay. One of the problems with snipping is that whan you wait so late you only get one chance. If you don't beat the other bidders maximum, you don't get a second chance.
If there is something that I really want I seldom lose.

 

[baby boobies]

UPS and Fedex are best avoided - too expensive, USPS is the best. If your purchase is over $50 it will likely be stopped by customs - you will pay PST, GST and $5 handling.
Make sure the value declared by the seller is the actual value, not some inflated insured value.

As stated above, avoid UPS at all costs. I've ordered a US75 item...and paid 200CDN when it finally came to Canada via UPS. How you ask? 75US item plus 25US shipping, converted to Canadian dollars it was about 130. When UPS came a calling there was about a 65 dollar customs duties. There was a broker age fee, service fee, inspection fee, GST and PST. You name it they just kept dinging you. And when you call in to confirm this outrageous value...they just reem off numbers and leave you shaking your head.
I always insist that they use USPS. I find that is the cheapest always. I ordered a 150US item, and had it shipped USPS. I ended up paying only 20 bucks duties on it.

Again it is hit or miss...I've gotten tons of smaller items with no charges. Then one time I get a $20 package and get charged $16 duties. The inspection sticker said on it 'not opened'. Um...why did I just pay a %70 duty for someone to do nothing?! Problem is the broker fee is flat rate minimum charge. Go figure.

Thats what you get when Canada outsources its customs inspection to 3rd parties. Its a farce.

 

[tboy]

I wholeheartedly agree BB, UPS is a big rip off....I mean I've left personal items at friends' places in the US and they tried to charge me duty and handling and brokerage when I had them shipped up. I'm talking a personal cellphone here. Frickin bandits.

USPS IS the best, as said, IF there is going to be duties the charge is only 5.00 plus whatever the duty is.

For a complete list of items and the associated tariff go to the canada customs website and download the list. Many items are 6% some lower some higher.

Many sellers won't ship to a PO box so watch for that

Paypal is the most secure, they basically guarantee your purchase is as described.

You will have to have an ebay "confirmed" address for most purchases same as paypal. This way they can verify that you are actually the holder of the credit card and the item will be shipped to YOU not someone else. Many credit card companies in Canada won't confirm your address (see the paypal website for more info on this).

As stated, look at the seller feedback, if they've only sold 10 items and have 2 negatives I'd avoid them at all costs.

Watch for phatom bidding. There are a lot of sellers that have their friends etc. bid on an item to up the price. If you are bidding on 2 or 3 items from a single seller check the other bidders id. If you find they are constantly bidding on the same items as you are, stop.

Be knowledgeable about what you're buying. Know what you can get it for at retail as many times I've seen tools that are on sale at Canadian Tire for $9.99 selling for 20 bucks or more on Ebay (dummies lol).There are deals to be had, I typically have been paying about 50% retail on the items I've purchased. The best deal I've gotten to date was an RC gas powered car kit that was selling for 700 here when the package arrived it had a price ticket on it for 499 US and I paid, landed here with shipping, $150.00 Cdn for it.

Just be careful, follow your gut, if the deal seems to good to be true, it probably is!

 

[langeweile]

I have bought a few items of Ebay, one of them was a car.
My experience has been very good, but I have heard about some bad experiences as well.
usually checking the feedback section will tell you something about the seller. Be careful, because some guys buy and sell a lot of small items to increase their feedback.Feedbacls are both for buying and selling.
Take the time to read through them.
Set yourself a limit and have fun.
Don't spend a lot of time bidding either, usually if you show up five minutes before close, you can get want you want. Be sure to use proxy bidding, in case you are neck on neck with someone.

Have fun.

 

[shakenbake]

As stated above, avoid UPS at all costs. I've ordered a US75 item...and paid 200CDN when it finally came to Canada via UPS. How you ask? 75US item plus 25US shipping, converted to Canadian dollars it was about 130. When UPS came a calling there was about a 65 dollar customs duties. There was a broker age fee, service fee, inspection fee, GST and PST. You name it they just kept dinging you. And when you call in to confirm this outrageous value...they just reem off numbers and leave you shaking your head.

UPS and Purolator are on my BCL, Bad Courier List.

 

[shakenbake]

eBay Buyer Protection!

Let's not forget that there is Purchase Protection on many items listed on eBay. If there is something substantially wrong, with the listing at least, you can apply for a refund.

I have been buying stuff on eBay for almost three years, and only got partly burned on an item that was just a piece of junk, and not up to Canadian regulations, from a Canadian seller. I was firm on my position and got a significant refund through Paypal. All my other transactions have been great!

shakenbake

 

[islandman4567]

wow, I guess UPS doesn't give a shit about repeat customers. with all the comments so far it seems pretty clear that everyone agrees that they're gougers. How the hell can they get away with this as standard practice?

This is the exact reason that I started this thread . I once bought something from the US a long time ago , and got slapped with some rediculous charges when it got to my door . I don't remember if it was sent UPS but it sounds like it was .

Never bought anything from there again.

 

[shakenbake]

wow, I guess UPS doesn't give a shit about repeat customers. with all the comments so far it seems pretty clear that everyone agrees that they're gougers. How the hell can they get away with this as standard practice?

This is the exact reason that I started this thread . I once bought something from the US a long time ago , and got slapped with some rediculous charges when it got to my door . I don't remember if it was sent UPS but it sounds like it was .

Never bought anything from there again.

They offer commercial discounts to regular users with accounts. Some people are masochists!

 

[Bobzilla]

Definitely check out the seller's feedback. They only problem I've ever had is actually going on now. I paid through Paypal hours after the auction ended, then never got the item. They never responded to phone messages or emails, & 6 wks. later, I still don't have it. I finally filed a dispute through Paypal & got a refund. Had I checked out the seller's feedback more closely, I probably wouldn't have bid, because they apparently do the same thing to most people.

 

[tboy]

Hey bob, that reminded me of something that almost happened to me:

Some guy was selling dewalt 18 volt batteries for around 30 US a piece. If you know anything about dewalt these batteries can sell for around 100.00 CDN a piece so it was a deal.

I bid and won 3 batteries and when I went to pay, his shipping price was 3 times higher than quoted so I asked for him to correct the amount.

I never heard back from him and later found out that he didn't complete ONE transaction (sold about 100 batteries). All the info he provided Ebay was bogus and he was gone....with about $3000.00 US

I was po'd at Ebay and was thinking why don't they check out the sellers more closely? How could they afford to refund $3000.00? If you check the stats I think there are something like 1,000,000 transactions a day, and last year $20,000,000,000.00 US was sold through ebay so a minor inconveniece like 3K wouldn't even put a slight nick in the cost of actually researching the sellers.

Just watch that feedback list and even contact some of the buyers if you are in doubt......(and check for the buyer protection logo on the item description).

Added: ebay shares are now selling at $760.00 each where they were initially offered at $18.00 when the company went public!

 

[xarir]

I don't have too much else to add. Reading feedback is important - I didn't do that once and had a lot of trouble getting the item shipped to me. I did eventually receive it but it was painful. Had I read the feedback I probably wouldn't have bid on the item.

If you're buying, take the time to read the item description carefully and look at the photos. You can tell a lot about people from the way they write; if you're comfortable then bid away! Or you can email a question and see what the response is.

When buying stuff, just decide the max amount you're willing to pay and input it. eBay will take care of the rest. There's no need really to monitor the item and keep inputting new bids.

When selling stuff, be a good eBay-er and email the winner promptly so you can conclude the auction in a timely fashion. Treat the buyer the way you would want to be treated if you were buying something.

Lastly, if you're looking at audio / video equipment I'd recommend audiogon.com over eBay. There's more selection and the sellers are true audio hobbyists who know their stuff.