Have you ever had a buyer
irate because you won’t mark an international shipment as a “Gift?”
If you receive a negative/neutral feedback in retaliation, eBay will remove the
feedback. There are conditions. The feedback must reference that
the reason for the negative/neutral rating is because of a delay in customs or
customs fees. Sellers will need to include specific information in regard
to international shipments. All the information is below:
Hello everyone…We hope
you enjoyed the holidays. My team and I are looking forward to kicking
things off in 2009. I’d like to provide you with a few important
selling-related updates and reminders you should be aware of as you prepare
your listings for the new year.
Update to Feedback
Removal Policy – Customs Fees
Many of our cross-border sellers have asked for help when they receive a
negative/neutral Feedback rating because they wouldn’t mark an item as
“gift” in order to sidestep customs fees. eBay will now remove
Feedback if a) the listing meets the Customs Requirements below and b) the
seller receives a negative or neutral Feedback comment which references customs
delays or customs fees.
The following text, or very
similar wording, must be included in the listing and be:
- In
the format below
- In
a font size no smaller than the majority of the other text in the item description
- Prominently
displayed (in the upper half of the description, free-standing, etc.)
“International Buyers – Please
Note:
- Import
duties, taxes and charges are not
included in the item price or shipping charges. These
charges are the buyer’s responsibility.
- Please
check with your country’s customs office to determine what these
additional costs will be prior to bidding/buying.”
In addition, sellers may wish
to include additional helpful statements for their buyers, such as:
- “These
charges are normally collected by the delivering freight (shipping)
company or when you pick the item up – do not confuse them for
additional shipping charges.”
- “We
do not mark merchandise values below value or mark items as ‘gifts’
- US and International government regulations prohibit such
behavior.”
To learn more, please read
eBay’s Feedback
Removal Policy.