Why People won't sell to France...Reason No.1 of 100

[269sqnhudson]

Here's a message I just got from a winner on an auction of mine 5 days after I posted the item and posted the tracking number on Ebay;


'Hello, where is my helmet!!!???? Because i haven't received NOTHING?'


FIVE!!!!!!!!!! days after it was posted (seven days from auction end) with a functioning tracking number posted on the day of posting . £16 paid for postage by International Signed For, not express (obviously at that price)

This always happens....ALWAYS! :roll:

 

[asiamiles]

This always happens....ALWAYS! :roll:

Yes, it's a common occurrence. And I always get a bit apprehensive when I receive such a message. It's why expensive stuff has to go Express. Sometimes, international post does take longer than expected, and while European buyers are perhaps more used to mail coming from other countries, Americans tend to expect things right away. Thankfully, cases of items going astray in the mail are - perhaps surprisingly? - very rare indeed, and in well over a decade of international shipping I can count them on one hand.

 

[Andrew]

Is this a comment on his obviously bad internet manners or do you think it's a try on? Have you checked to see if it's actually been delivered?

 

[John Lever]

My greatest fears are when selling outside Europe and an item is trapped in customs. Buyers think the seller is responsible and just say ' I am tired of waiting and want a full refund '

 

[269sqnhudson]

Is this a comment on his obviously bad internet manners or do you think it's a try on? Have you checked to see if it's actually been delivered?

I've got tracking and it's on the way. His expectation of delivery time is so unreasonable I don't honestly think this is the account holder. The name is signed XXXX and YYYYY as if it's two people.

Also he sent a message saying 'You said you would post it on 28th' but actually I sent the message on 28th saying I'd post it 'tomorrow'
Not that it even matters, the auction ended on 27th!

 

[Andrew]

Complex to say the least. Does make you wonder what the agenda really is. I've been lucky over the years to have on the whole dealt with sane reasonable people from many Countries- and considering where I am most of what i have has come from OS. Whenever I do sell a big sellup It concerns me that éventually i'll strike a similar problem. Years ago I bought and sold a lot on Ebay and it seems that assholes were fewer and further between but do come from the world over (plenty here too). Best of luck with it

 

[Anonymous]

the French are always very demanding and anxious.
they also have a little trouble understanding English and often misinterpret the messages when they do speak it very well. Nevertheless, they are good buyers.

 

[Silver Surfer]

dont know why, but guys??? form malyasia like to bid on stuff, but have no intention of paying...malyasian sense of humor? several months ago, i sold an aloha shirt to a guy in france. as this was sent usps first class, i told the buyer it may take up to 10 days for the shirt to get to him. he sent a message 5 days after the end of the auction asking [you guessed it] "wheres my shirt?" [something out of a marx bros movie]. it gets better. 2 weeks after shipping, he still didnt have it, so i went to the tracking# to see what was going on. the info supplied by the usps said that the parcel had made it to france, period. another 2 weeks later, he wanted his dough back, and i was just about to refund the dough, and write the whole thing off, when, voila! he sent a message saying he got the shirt. my guess is that the parcel was held up at french customs for all that time. by and large, considering the huge volume of stuff that is flying around the world, on a daily basis, its amazing that there arent more glitches. words to buyers: "be patient, grasshopper". ditto, sellers.

 

[Peter Graham]

I sent an ELC Luftwaffe jacket to France last Friday. I'm rather anxious now. :shock:

 

[gyrobroyeur]

I'm one of the 64 999 999 other frenchs.
Can you tell me where are your 99 other reasons ?

 

[ECKHARTUS]

the French are always very demanding and anxious.

We look after ourselves by reading of Platon

 

[gyrobroyeur]

the French are always very demanding and anxious.
they also have a little trouble understanding English and often misinterpret the messages when they do speak it very well. Nevertheless, they are good buyers.

Not totaly true: sometimes, we are very bad buyers! :ugeek:

 

[rocco74]

will make 'the end of Italy, where many do not intend to ship goods.hi

 

[John Lever]

I sent an ELC Luftwaffe jacket to France last Friday. I'm rather anxious now. :shock:

Peter,
Next time for a small [??] fee you could use a Paypal postage label printed from my ebay. That way the site automatically logs when you post the item a tracks its progress to the buyer. The drag is that it's a fair bit more expensive than Royal mail or Parcelforce. It could be worth it in some circumstances.

 

[a2jacketpatches]

I've sent countless patches to France over the years, never an issue. I do feel the language barrier when communicating custom patch preferences with all countries speaking other than English. A lot can be misunderstood, I find that single sentences, each a line of it's own, without emotion of any kind, and straight to the point, helps very much. I'm thinking years ago, a guy did this for me and it cleared up a big mess and that's why I use this method regularly. One line communicates one fact, I even # them for them to reference if need be. In the past two weeks, I've shipped to Hong Kong, Japan, Switzerland, England, Germany, Korea, Australia, Canada, Russia, and that's only what comes to mind. So I've heard it all from everywhere in ten years. Most have been genuinely good transactions and communication this way.

 

[a2jacketpatches]

I've sent countless patches to France over the years, never an issue. I do feel the language barrier when communicating custom patch preferences with all countries speaking other than English. A lot can be misunderstood, I find that single sentences, each a line of it's own, without emotion of any kind, and straight to the point, helps very much. I'm thinking years ago, a guy did this for me and it cleared up a big mess and that's why I use this method regularly. One line communicates one fact, I even # them for them to reference if need be. In the past two weeks, I've shipped to Hong Kong, Japan, Switzerland, England, Germany, Korea, Australia, Canada, Russia, and that's only what comes to mind. So I've heard it all from everywhere in ten years. Most have been genuinely good transactions and communication this way.

Example-

1) Once posted with USPS, I can only provide tracking information.
2) The exact same information is available to us both at usps.com, and you can investigate for yourself if you have the time by using the tracking#.
3) All other questions, please see 1) because I simply do not know

 

[269sqnhudson]

I'm one of the 64 999 999 other frenchs.
Can you tell me where are your 99 other reasons ?

I'm steadily building up a series of blocked bidders from France. I'll hit 100 sooner than I'd like!

 

[269sqnhudson]

This is unreasonable surely? He buys from some other guy in the UK too and he says:

Hello, Horatio live in "**********, Maidstone ME17" and i receive always under 4 days, is it ridiculous?? I think that no! Horatio is only a very serious seller!
Take care
Regards
S & Y

What's this guy on? He ALWAYS gets International deliveries in 4 days!? Bull
He actually thinks that because 8 days have passed since the sale and 6 since I posted that this is somehow unheard of.

This is getting very very silly

T

 

[269sqnhudson]

This is unreasonable surely? He buys from some other guy in the UK too and he says:

Hello, Horatio live in "**********, Maidstone ME17" and i receive always under 4 days, is it ridiculous?? I think that no! Horatio is only a very serious seller!
Take care
Regards
S & Y

What's this guy on? He ALWAYS gets International deliveries in 4 days!? Bull
He actually thinks that because 8 days have passed since the sale and 6 since I posted that this is somehow unheard of.

This is getting very very silly

T

Oh and I checked, he buys patches form Horatio, PATCHES! Not 1.4kg helmets. He's comparing a letter with a parcel, he's a propper loon

 

[unclegrumpy]

Clearly, this is an ageless problem, steeped in history, and an example of the differences of opinion that reflect an irreconcilable cultural divide....a division between two great cultures that may never be fully bridged!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9V7zbWNznbs&NR=1