shipping to Canada: Tips

[todeen]

I have a card I need to send to Canada. I read a horror story less than a month ago about shipping to Canada. Any tips so the nightmare doesn't happen to me. It's an expensive card.

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[x2drich2000]

Generally speaking, I usually avoid shipping to Canada due to the hassel, expense, and worries of something happening. That said, I made an exception recently. Payment was made using F&F so funds couldn't be pulled back if things went sideways, I shipped using the quickest USPS way possible even though it was more expensive, and packed the card so that it would be safe even if it got run over by a truck. With all that, the number one thing that made me feel OK about the sale was that the buyer has been an active participant on the board for years. A lot can be said for knowing who the other party is and for getting multiple solid references if you don't know them. There's no way I would have done the deal for someone new to the board or had just signed up in the last couple years.

[Aquarian Sports Cards]

We ship a dozen or so packages to Canada each auction. USPS all the way or your buyer can get hit by mysterious charges by UPS or Fed EX (not customs) and frankly USPS seems quicker. Pack it like it's a Faberge Egg.

[todeen]

Originally Posted by Aquarian Sports Cards

We ship a dozen or so packages to Canada each auction. USPS all the way or your buyer can get hit by mysterious charges by UPS or Fed EX (not customs) and frankly USPS seems quicker. Pack it like it's a Faberge Egg.

have you had any hiccups? are their tiers of shipping?

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[Jim F]

I have been seeing posts like this for years. Put the card in an envelope and head to USPS. Get yourself a tracking number and off you go. No problem. It's Canada, not somewhere half way around the world. It may be too expensive but the buyer pays shipping anyway.
I ship dozens of packages a month from Canada to the US and only remember 1 issue in the last decade.
If it's a high value item, FedEx all the way, never use UPS for cross border shipping. Make sure the buyer is aware that customs charges will apply if you're not comfortable sending at a lower value

[todeen]

Originally Posted by Jim F

I have been seeing posts like this for years. Put the card in an envelope and head to USPS. Get yourself a tracking number and off you go. No problem. It's Canada, not somewhere half way around the world. It may be too expensive but the buyer pays shipping anyway.

I ship dozens of packages a month from Canada to the US and only remember 1 issue in the last decade.

If it's a high value item, FedEx all the way, never use UPS for cross border shipping. Make sure the buyer is aware that customs charges will apply if you're not comfortable sending at a lower value

The story I read the other day involved a seller sending an item bought on Ebay to Canada. He had to send to eBay authentication before it could go to Canada. Authentication sent it to a PO Box in Canada, but somehow it was bounced back to the US as undeliverable, and it did not return to ebay, but rather was labeled as lost. EBay froze the account of the seller, through no fault of his own. After nearly two months, eBay paid back the seller. The card was sold by USPS to a lost merchandise buyer, and the card ended up on eBay again.

I don't believe anything like this will happen to me....I mean, I sent boxes from Thailand by 6-8 weeks boat ride that arrived safely. But I also wasn't sending a valuable card either and didn't care if some necklaces and film got lost.

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[Aquarian Sports Cards]

Originally Posted by todeen

have you had any hiccups? are their tiers of shipping?

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I had one package that bounced around a bit, but I have had much less difficulty with USPS than I did with UPS.

[todeen]

On an entirely unrelated note, my wife and brother-in-law lived in South America during the 2000s. They both would adhere pictures of Christ on the package to prevent theft and mischief. I guess it works; bad mojo to mess with jobu's rum. If you need to send items to our southern continent cousin, remember that piece of advice.

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[skelly423]

I've read a lot about cross border deliveries. Usually you want to arrive at the border around 2:00-3:00 am to minimize any unwanted attention. Flash your lights twice, and keep the car running. When you see the single flash of lights in return, you know the deal is still on. Ignore the men with guns (they're there for your protection as well as their own), and drop the money in the back of the car that flashed you earlier. They'll load the return wares in your car, at which point you drive like hell to get away from the border.

It helps if your car has a discrete compartment like this.

[Vintagedeputy]

I sold a card to a Canadian buyer who had a U.S. post office box in Washington state somewhere. He’d drive into the US every few months to collect his mail, so I only had to ship it there.

[rjackson44]

I stay away its a horror show ,,

[todeen]

Originally Posted by skelly423

I've read a lot about cross border deliveries. Usually you want to arrive at the border around 2:00-3:00 am to minimize any unwanted attention. Flash your lights twice, and keep the car running. When you see the single flash of lights in return, you know the deal is still on. Ignore the men with guns (they're there for your protection as well as their own), and drop the money in the back of the car that flashed you earlier. They'll load the return wares in your car, at which point you drive like hell to get away from the border.



It helps if your car has a discrete compartment like this.

this is quite funny. who could predict buying/selling cards would come to this?

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