Why won't some ship to Canada?

[OneSelfLost]

I find this kind of silly, never once have I had troubles shipping or receiving items over the border. Maybe I'm just lucky. But I've seen a lot of others on here and on other forums who put up their fences when it comes to shipping to Canada. It costs MAYBE and extra 5 bucks, and it's safe to say that the package will make it. I'm asking out of ignorance, like I don't know.. What's the big idea??? (lol)

Actually, it costs me more to ship within Canada then it does for me to ship to Florida.

Can anyone share their experiences or thoughts? And please.. Don't be afraid of shipping to Canada :)

[sQuidvision]

My issue with shipping to Canada rests with Paypal. Paypal policies heavily favor the buyer... so if you pay for an item, i ship it, and then you claim you didnt receive it i have to PROVE to paypal that i shipped it. USPS doesnt offer international tracking numbers, just shipping insurance, and so it costs me an extra $30-50+ to ship to canada, which when i am selling items that only cost $50-150 makes it a raw deal for the buyer.

Just my 2c

EDIT: I should mention i have no issue shipping to the great white north if the buyer is willing to gift money in paypal... then its just a few extra bucks like you said, but may buyers are uncomfortable with that.

[Dover]

Usually i find one of two factors; time or money.

Sellers don't want to spend too much on shipping, unless you are willing to split or cover shipping. They don't know that the easiest and cheapest way to ship to Canada is using good old United States Postal Service. Which answers the other factor of Time.

Usually USPS is fast enough, they have two faster services for not much more money, Priority and Express. Some sellers insist on using couriers such as United Parcel Service or FedEx but ultimately these couriers can and will charge additional border / customs charges; UPS charges an additional $ 30 on top of whatever the shipping is, so its a total rip-off.

[maniacmechanic]

I have shipped packages to Alaska , they get there in 3 days , Maine 3 days , Cali 3 days , the times I have shipped to Canada it has allways been 3 weeks ( in a USPS Priority Mail box ) Customs ??

[OPBN]

While it may be a little more relaxed than shipping to Europe, my major issue with shipping parts to Canada is customs. Customs can delay shipments for up to a month or more. As mentioned earlier though, if a customer is willing to pay the extra shipping costs and pay as a PPal Gift, I'll ship anywhere they want. However, I make it known upfront that if customs decides to delay, seize or destroy the package it's all on them.

[skipdogg]

It's illegal to ship paintball guns into Canada....So says UPS.

[Hook]

It's illegal to ship paintball guns into Canada....So says UPS.

Never, EVER ship from the US to Canada via UPS. They will rape you with ridiculous brokerage fees.

Case in point, I bought a Dye pod pack from a forum member for $35 shipped. Item was well packaged and got here quickly in two business days. When the UPS delivery guy handed me the package, he told me I had to pay $17 in brokerage fees. And get this - they DON'T accept cash! You have to pay by check or credit card. Who the heck doesn't accept cash?! Well UPS doesn't apparently since a delivery guy got money stolen from him.

But I digress. Ship to Canada with USPS all the time and it will be worry-free.

[mag79]

All the packages I send alway get hung up in customs. The DC # will show tha it arrived in Canada, but it will sit in customs for a few weeks

[OneSelfLost]

I get most my packages within 10 business days when I buy something from the states, Mind you, I mostly buy parts and smaller items rather than an entire marker. I have bought a few markers from the states and they were hung up in customs for four days each, which isn't too bad considering I still got them within the 10 business day mark. But for smaller items it should never be more than a few extra bucks. But Paypal issues, okay, I can see where you guys are coming from in that regard. I guess as long as the shipper can provide proof to the buyer, Paypal can be left out of it. Like a pic of the receipt or something.

If you look up the customs laws, it states that paintball guns are okay to ship over the border permitting they are not replicas. So a mag or a cocker would be fine but a RAP4 is a different story.

[BenoitOWN]

Shipping price for USPS priority increased but is better tracked(yes they are) and faster to arrive.
My package in custums are normally released the next day or same

[bigbthebenji]

My issue with shipping to Canada rests with Paypal. Paypal policies heavily favor the buyer... so if you pay for an item, i ship it, and then you claim you didnt receive it i have to PROVE to paypal that i shipped it. USPS doesnt offer international tracking numbers, just shipping insurance, and so it costs me an extra $30-50+ to ship to canada, which when i am selling items that only cost $50-150 makes it a raw deal for the buyer.

Just my 2c

EDIT: I should mention i have no issue shipping to the great white north if the buyer is willing to gift money in paypal... then its just a few extra bucks like you said, but may buyers are uncomfortable with that.

X2

[wetwrks]

ok...my story

person purchased a splash twistlock barrel from me. I shipped UPS (yes I saw your message about not shipping ups but usps here is for the dogs...I'll explain that in a bit). On the customs form I listed it as what it is...paintgun barrel. The package didn't make it thru customs as they thought it "might" be a firearms part. The even OPENED the package and looked at it. I got word from the ups lady that it was on its way back. I get home from work to find an empty shipping tube without an endcap. Fortunately they have free insurance and thus I got my $ back on it.

As for USPS...I worked for a company that would ship an average of 10 - 15 packages a day. In a typical month we would have 3 packages lost and even more damaged. The local usps has lost 5 packages off the back of their truck within 10 minutes of leaving our business...fortunately someone found them in the middle of the road and returned them to us. We finally found that the difference in shipping costs were easily made up in not having our packages lost.

I avoid the usps with a passion and because of all the hassles dealing with customs, lost packages going to Canada, damaged goods, extra costs...it all adds up to not being worth my time and hassles.

The other side of the coin is I have seen people from Canada unwilling to ship to the US.

[Ir0nExpress]

It's some that have listed the above (paypal dispute) and also...for me personally, if there's any disputes over the condition of the item (though I've only had that issue once or twice within my 6 or so years of dealing with BST's) that eating extraneous costs such as the lost taken on shipping and such is not worth it.

I'd like to provide a reasonable remedy if anything arises and shipping over the border simply isn't as viable. Flat rate in the US yes, it'll bite the cost, flat rate to Canada...different story.

[Zone Drifter]

I have no qualms shipping to canada through USPS. It might cost a bit more, but you can always inform people that if it's going international that you'd like and extra bit of cash to cover shipping. The only times I have had problems is when using UPS.

I remember shipping things back and fourth to my ex-girlfriend in Vancouver, and things would be fine shipping Canada post or US Postal service, but that time I used UPS to ship a digital camera was the time they charged her $30 destination fee and it took over 3 weeks... didn't quite make it for her birthday!

So long as you stick with the main mailers, you should be fine provided you expect to pay slightly more to ship over the boarder. If it costs too much, I can always just drive 5 hours to Montreal and ship it out from inside Canada, lol.

[hill160881]

USPS is the way to go.

label all parts as "pneumatic parts" on the customs form, and dont use priority as there is a cheaper way and you need to ask the clerk all the prices to find it. Also disassemble the marker into two or three pieces. shipping will take less than two weeks anywhere in Canada. If you label it as baintball equipment or use the wrd gun it will take weeks longer to get through customs.