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eBay international fulfilment problems shipping vintage electronics from US to UK
Summary: ajmayo2005 expressed frustration about their vintage calculator shipment being canceled after failing inspection at eBay's hub while shipping from the US to the UK. They noted that the issue seems specific to eBay's international fulfillment process, as items shipped directly through other means like UPS do not encounter the same problem. Despite lacking batteries, vintage electronics appear to be frequently flagged, contributing to a decline in US vendors on eBay UK. tobiasd4 suggested that customs might be involved, but ajmayo2005 clarified it's a hub issue and not a customs one. fargvs speculated on voltage differences, but this was dismissed due to the absence of a charger. The discussion highlighted confusion and lack of transparency in eBay's inspection process.
I have had an item (vintage calculator) fail inspection at the eBay hub (shipping US to UK) and consequently the transaction was cancelled. Other forums have mentioned issues shipping vintage electronics from the US. However I cannot find anything in eBay's policies that covers this. The item did not contain batteries or even a charger, just the calculator, case and some printed manuals. This is not the first time this has happened to me, but the problem seems to have worsened recently. Does anyone know what's going on?
john1297576
Mentor3 weeks agoSellers do not have to use ebay services, they can seller direct, which is probably cheaper, but as all ready said, rules and regulations make it too much for sellers to bother, so resort to using ebay services which no doubt make up their own rules as they go along.
tommystrezures
Mentor3 weeks agoDid the calculator have batteries inside it? If so GSP will have restricted it. Did the seller take them out (if applicable)
fargvs
Mentor3 weeks agoAmerican made electronic items have different voltage requirements USA =110V - UK = 230V --- a possible reason perhaps ?
ajmayo2005
OP3 weeks agoExcept that no charger was provided so I cant see that being the answer.
tobiasd4
Mentor3 weeks agoNothing to do with ebay.
It will be USA/UK customs who decide if an item can be sent from 1 country to another.
You will get a refund.
ajmayo2005
OP3 weeks agoThat is incorrect. I have recently received another vintage calculator directly from an eBay seller but they shipped directly through UPS. It cleared UK customs with no problem. The issue here is the eBay hub through which all items transit when eBay international fulfilment is chosen by the seller. The hub inspects items and then in some cases they are marked 'failed inspection' and the item does not get sent to the courier. This is not a customs issue and these items are not prohibited or restricted products, nor do they contain lithium batteries (or indeed any batteries).
There seems to be a problem now where pretty much any vintage electronic item may not clear the hub. Exactly why this is, is unclear, and eBay customer agents have no visibility into the hub and cannot determine any details regarding the issue. Nor is there any mechanism for appealing the decision. The item is 'liquidated' i.e given to Pitney Bowes, who may re-sell it domestically or destroy it - nobody knows. But what is the problem that is now making it impossible to ship vintage electronics internationally? As I said, there is no evidence that this is a customs issue.
ajmayo2005
OP3 weeks agofurthermore, when you now search ebay uk for any vintage electronics items, you'll see that pretty much all the US vendors have just disappeared overnight. So something is going on, it's just that eBay won't tell us what it is, exactly.
I had another calculator I purchased while the item above was in transit to the hub. The vendor offered international fulfilment but the very next day (about a week ago) the transaction was cancelled and the vendor explained that they could not ship to the UK. No reason was given.
tobiasd4
Mentor3 weeks agoThere are a lot if issues with USA, which is no doubt why they won't sell outside America.
Trump has a lot to answer for with his ever changing tariff,
Buyers/sellers can't keep up with regulations.