Shipment refused
Hello, a couple of days ago I sold an item (smartphone) that had to be shipped to Greece. It’s not the first time I’ve shipped abroad, so as far as paperwork goes I’m already prepared and in this case, knowing that a battery is being transported, I know it has to be declared. The thing is that, as usual, I used the shipping service that eBay provides “automatically” with Packlink, I paid and the documents to put on the package arrived. I shipped the package and a day or two later I see that the package will be returned to me because on the shipping note the description of the contents says “clothing”. Packlink has already refused my refund because the shipping label was scanned. In this case can I request the refund directly from eBay, since it was the platform that filled out the shipping note automatically? Thanks.
daxsisko
·2 years agoin short: you can’t ask eBay for a refund because you bought the shipping from Packlink (and so obviously the reference is the latter);
the observations made by the other users are also generally correct, and may be useful for the future
heavenwelkin
·2 years agoUsually, for a smartphone they don’t make a fuss, with or without a removable battery; if you simply write smartphone + (model) on the customs declaration, they’ll let it through even at the Italian postal customs, because it’s a common item that is not perceived as DANGEROUS GOODS.
Maybe with a notebook or a camera they’re a bit more picky.
Best regards.
heavenwelkin
·2 years agoHi, so, let me explain why Packlink puts clothing.
Basically, the customs operators at Poste Italiane block and send back a ton of parcels preventively, labeling them as likely dangerous goods because either they don't feel like it or they don't have the ability to determine what can go through and what can't.
So if you ship particular items (as happened to me), like inverters or other materials with descriptions that aren't immediately recognizable, it's very likely that they'll send the shipment back.
When the package comes back, you suffer these damages:
1) You lose the shipping cost, which is not refunded to you
2) Problems arise with buyers who may react badly
3) You have to choose to cancel the sale, with the buyer's reaction that follows.
4) You have to reschedule a new shipment with a more expensive but definitely more serious courier like UPS, DHL or FedEx
So Packlink, rather than eliminating this awful international service, decided to solve it this way.
The problem is that if customs sees two different declarations, they block the package and return it to you..
Since in the customs declaration you have to attach proof of sale such as the eBay "invoice", you therefore have to modify the waybill generated by Packlink for international cron/EMS
These are things that take time and expertise, so for your next sales I recommend using another courier if you don't want this kind of problem.
Kind regards.
technopartsbay
·2 years agoI quote you:
"I’m already prepared and in this case, knowing that a battery is being shipped, I know it has to be declared. "
And right after:
"the parcel will be returned to me because on the shipping note, as the description of the contents, it says "clothing"."
So, you knew that the description made by Pack-link needed to be "corrected" (the item comes out automatically, as per the official note:
"Since May 18, 2021, Poste Italiane has communicated that for Extra-EU international shipments, the TARIC code (Community Customs Tariff applied in the European Union) has become mandatory in the printing of the label.
However, due to a technical problem at Poste Italiane, all Crono Internazionali labels (EU and Extra-EU) are automatically printed with a generic TARIC code (6103290000 clothing).
The user will have to enter the correct TARIC number by hand or delete the prefilled field directly on the computer, choosing from those currently allowed by the postal network (attached Excel)."
The Latins used to say: "Vigilantibus, non dormientibus iura succurunt"...
mocer-75
·2 years agoIt's a known bug and never fixed (as usual), it has to be corrected manually; if I remember correctly I once read a FAQ about it.
It's strange, though, that it gets sent back to you; between European countries there's no customs, sometimes I've left clothing and never had any problems, maybe the difference is that there's a battery involved...
heavenwelkin
·2 years agoYes, you're right, in Greece a customs declaration isn't needed.
So it could be that by having the seller explicitly write LITHIUM BATTERY, he shot himself in the foot.
In fact, to ship a lithium battery even to EU countries, dedicated labeling and packaging may be required.
marioelegio
·2 years agoIf they know that there’s an item with lithium batteries inside the parcel, the couriers specifically ask for the UN3480 label even for shipments in Italy. If the label is missing, they refuse the parcel.
https://business.poste.it/business/files/1473806245421/crono-linee-guida-batterie-litio.pdf
hi
mario
mocer-75
·2 years agoI can confirm that even within the EU the label is required, I received a powerbank from amazon yesterday and the label with battery was clearly visible.
Same when I bought a tablet from amazon.de
From what I know, such parcels are always transported only by land transport, but I wouldn't bet my life on it.
sika700
·2 years agoNo.
Ebay did not sell you anything, the responsibility for what you declare on the shipping form is yours, if something didn't "add up" you were the one who should have noticed it and corrected it.
Best regards.