twi Posted October 15, 2012 Report Share Posted October 15, 2012 So I'm shipping to Canada for the first time and the quote on the USPS website was $32 for a flat rate box! Am I naive or is this about how much I can expect to pay every time? Any cheaper options? Any shipping hints or tips in general for a neophyte? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Ullman Posted October 15, 2012 Report Share Posted October 15, 2012 Unless you're shipping bricks, Flat Rate is in most cases kind of a ripoff. Go to the PO and handle it in person. Depending on what you're shipping, I'd think it'd cost less than that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LAK74 Posted October 15, 2012 Report Share Posted October 15, 2012 If I'm sending a couple of jerseys to Canada for customization, I'll usually just send it first class, which will run about $12. The total weight including the box can't be over 4 pounds though, which means a limit of about 2 authentic jerseys or maybe 3 replicas. The only problem with first class is that you can't track or insure it unless you register the package, which is much more secure but will add a minimum of $11 plus the cost of insurance and the box. So you'd still be looking at about $28 if you register and insure it. If you're sending someone some jerseys that you sold through eBay, then you'll probably want to track and insure it, which means that your medium size Priority mail flat-rate box is really going to cost closer to $37 after you add the extra services. If you don't use a flat-rate box, you're still looking at about $28 for a 3 lb. box plus the cost of the box, tracking and insurance, so you're only saving about $3 to 4 by not using a flat-rate box. If you only send one jersey, you'll probably save an additional $2 or so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twi Posted October 15, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 15, 2012 I appreciate the responses. It's not an ebay sale, just a personal sale. I went to the PO in person and to ship a box with two CCM replicas the charge was $10.85. Not too bad at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LAK74 Posted October 15, 2012 Report Share Posted October 15, 2012 Not that you should be paranoid about this, but if you sell something of significant value to someone you don't know, and they pay through Paypal, sooner or later you could run into a dishonest buyer who will claim they never got the package. If this ever happens, you will probably be screwed out of your item and have your money taken out of your account plus service fees. The only way to protect yourself against this is to have proof of delivery (and insurance for the full amount if the package really gets lost), and the only way you can do this through USPS is by going with the more expensive methods above. There are probably members of this forum who have had this (or something similar) happen to them. Hopefully it will never happen to you, but I'm just sayin'... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OR68 Posted October 15, 2012 Report Share Posted October 15, 2012 Yea protect yourself with the insurance. I had a dishonest buyer about a jersey kit and I got screwed over by a low life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twi Posted October 15, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 15, 2012 As a newbie on the selling side of this, that's definitely a concern of mine. I do trust whom I'm shipping to but (and I hate to do this) I might just sell in the US in the future to mitigate the hassles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LAK74 Posted October 15, 2012 Report Share Posted October 15, 2012 If you limit yourself to US buyers, it may cost you less to ship, but you still run the same risk- American scumbags are no better than Canadian ones! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chow_hound Posted October 15, 2012 Report Share Posted October 15, 2012 Haha, Being a Canadian collector I cringe when i hear the "I'm deciding to only sell within the USA". Yes, we all know that shipping is expensive from USA to Canada and vice versa when shipped with a trackable service, but i can say that without question I would be comfortable as a buyer to pay extra for shipping in order to have a US collector sell to me if i really wanted the item. Don't cut out your BIGGEST fan base of Canada, just let the people know that shipping is $25-$30 and problem solved. Just my passion about the hobby coming out, too many times i've been ready to pull the trigger on a deal and pay asking price, only to have the person say they don't want to sell to Canada, and then a few months later sell the item for way less than i would have paid. With regards to First Class shipping ($10) i have heard horror stories about USPS employees in shipping facilities keeping those items without registered tracking as there is a customs label describing the package, and absolutely no recourse should the item go missing, be damaged, or stolen. I would also be inclined to say the same package could easily go missing as soon as it crosses the border for the same reason with Canada Post employees too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Ullman Posted October 15, 2012 Report Share Posted October 15, 2012 I've shipped literally THOUSANDS of books and pieces of artwork over the years, and have purchased insurance/delivery conf. maybe 2% of the time. I don't think fraud is a very widespread problem...or at least it hasn't been in my experience! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twi Posted October 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 17, 2012 chow_hound, I certainly understand how you feel. I've missed out on a few things because the seller wouldn't go to the US. Don't feel too bad, as I barely sell anything and I'm pretty sure I don't have anything I'm willing to sell that you guys here would be interested in, lol. On the customs description I put 'sweaters'. Technically true, right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KG777NT Posted August 7, 2013 Report Share Posted August 7, 2013 (edited) Hi guys, Quick question here. What's the best way to ship jerseys from the US to Canada. I checked with my local USPS and their prices were around $15 without tracking or $45 with tracking. Am I missing something? There has to be a cheaper alternative that includes tracking right? Thanks! Nvm just found this thread a few pages back: http://forums.icejerseys.com/index.php?showtopic=5156 Edited August 7, 2013 by KG777NT Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mnwildfan7000 Posted August 7, 2013 Report Share Posted August 7, 2013 Pack it in a bag (the tyvek kind) keep it under 4 lbs. Your customs invoice (provided by usps) has a tracking number on it. It's the number above the barcode. It tracks on the us side (usps) and on the Canadian side via Canada post. Key is the bag and under 4 lbs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brandon Posted August 7, 2013 Report Share Posted August 7, 2013 First Class to Canada has tracking that works now but most postal employees have no clue. It will range from $10-15. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mnwildfan7000 Posted August 7, 2013 Report Share Posted August 7, 2013 All the postal workers around me know and understand the short and long form tracking on the usps custom invoice. You really have to be clear with them on what your shipping and how cheap you are wanting to keep costs. Flat rate boxes are a money maker. Usps is keeping in line with ups shipping costs to Canada. But if you put it in a bag, or padded envelope and keep it under 4lbs you will do well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hockeyjerseyssuck Posted August 7, 2013 Report Share Posted August 7, 2013 Always pay to send with tracking, and full insurance. The only reason not to, is if you're selling an item that is so cheap that it's worth the risk of not paying an extra 10-15 bucks for the shipping cost. The way selling on eBay works, especially if you're Canadian, is that you have to be willing to sell your item for slightly less than what somebody in the states could sell it for, because they only need to charge half as much shipping as you do. Same idea if you're from the States sending to Canada. I would never send an item out without tracking and insurance. I'd rather wait longer to sell it. Personal sale or eBay makes no difference. If it's through paypal, without tracking+insurance, you expose yourself to the exact same risks eBay sellers do. Read the Paypal terms of service. Here's how it works. If you have no tracking at all, all the buyer has to do is say they never received the package, and they get their money back, end of story. Tracking protects you from that. You need tracking+signature confirmation on transactions (item cost+shipping) that are above a certain amount (300?). eBay sellers just have the added risk of dishonest buyers threatening bad feedback that might take time to, or be hard to get removed. But if you are using Paypal, it makes no difference if you sell something to somebody through eBay, or outside of eBay, it's all the same Paypal terms. 20-30 bucks sounds about right to send a package to Canada. It cost me over 30 bucks to send two jersey to the US with Canada Post, fully insured with tracking. But they were also named jersey rather than blanks, so I had to use a longer box in order to avoid bending the numbers or crests. I could have sent a single blank jersey in a 12x12x1-3 inch box for 20 dollars. In general, sending any less than 3 or 4 jerseys ends up costing significantly more per jersey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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