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Held in Customs

2K views 18 replies 11 participants last post by  onesixthwarrior 
#1 ·
May 26, I bought this head here Easy&Simple ES 1/6th 26013 PMC UOG Head Model Fit 12'' Male Body Figure | eBay everything was going well. It shipped two days later and reached the U.S. the first week of June. But then the dreaded customs delay happened and I was told they'll hold it for 30 days after which I should get it.

That sucks lol and it's slightly frustrating but I'm being positive by reminding myself it could have been lost in the mail or something. So it's here in the U.S. just not here at my door yet.

They say patience is a virtue and all good things come to those who wait. So that's what I'm going to try to do.
 
#3 ·
I guess there are more issues with customs lately, more than before. At least you know what is going on with your order. I don't mind waiting - too much, as long as it gets delivered. But there does seem to be more problems lately. I ordered three items from the same seller in late April. Still not delivered. Tracking info shows them going to different cities. Two of them said return to sender. I made a claim with ebay. Message back is wait four days for seller response. The response was, they resent shipping info. Not sure what to make of that. At this point I am just going to see about getting a refund.
I ordered a head sculpt too last May. I reported to ebay that it was late. The next day, the seller gave me a refund before I even asked for it. Two weeks later the head sculpt arrived. Not sure what to do about that either. There doesn't seem to be a way to contact sellers directly anymore. I've talked to a seller directly in the past. Now I don't see any way to do that now. I'm waiting to see if the seller contacts me about this.
I hope you get your order.
 
#5 ·
I reported to ebay that it was late. The next day, the seller gave me a refund before I even asked for it. Two weeks later the head sculpt arrived. Not sure what to do about that either. There doesn't seem to be a way to contact sellers directly anymore. I've talked to a seller directly in the past. Now I don't see any way to do that now. I'm waiting to see if the seller contacts me about this.
I hope you get your order.
Message your seller through the ask a question about a product on any of their listings or email the email address your payment record shows it going to.
 
#4 ·
Non-expedited packages being sent to North America are currently being subjected to more stringent screening by CBSA (Canada) and CPB (USA), mostly due to issues around substances like fentanyl being sent through the postal system. Screening is far more stringent on countries which are considered drug source countries. This is being complicated by other issues that effect how non-expedited mail is being prioritized for delivery as well. These links here and here are Canadian specific, but the issues are largely the same for both Canada Post and USPS. E-packet and EMS should not be as effected.
 
#7 ·
Same problem here when ordering from China based ebay stores. Sellers say customs have become more strict and most packages will be delayed. None of them went into detail as to why but some of the above post on your thread provide obvious answers.
 
#8 ·
I ordered a headsculpt from another seller and it took a month to arrive. Then I ordered another about a month later and it arrived in like two weeks. Situations like this make me reluctant to order from China-based sellers. I've had better luck with Hong Kong sellers in terms of consistent / shorter shipping times. I suppose that's the downside of lower prices?
 
#10 ·
Patience. Customs is a strange beast, and sometimes it's just the luck of the draw of something getting 'pulled out' for a random inspection. Besides the things mentioned above, there's also the issue whether the proper value was declared. That's becoming more of a problem and countries like Canada and Germany are cracking down, opening things and looking for values online. Much depends on the current patterns and watch-issues between departure county A and destination country B. Sometimes, it's simply just the processing time to get the customs fee invoice to you and/or transferring it to the end delivery agent.
 
#11 ·
Long customs delays definitely test your patience!!!! But talking about it here also helps. And thank you for sharing. I'd never seen that sculpt before now. Super cool!!!!
 
#14 ·
I lost a Kriss Vector lot bought off Ebay to customs back in March. Still has not arrived. CBSA pulled the package, and it stopped in ON. The Ebay seller refunded the money and has made his claim, and the package is gone. If it does eventually arrive, I will send payment, or make arrangements for the situation

A second one bought from a different seller, was delayed almost an extra month and a half, but finally arrived, just before the time to claim had elapsed.

Part of the problem I have noticed is boxes get through quickly, but items shipped in padded envelopes are being scrutinized more now. Not sure why, but that seems to be the trend.
 
#15 ·
Part of the problem I have noticed is boxes get through quickly, but items shipped in padded envelopes are being scrutinized more now. Not sure why, but that seems to be the trend.
Irregular packets/padded mailers/etc can't be scanned automatically (machines work best with flats/boxes and electronically printed labels) and are mostly hand sort. Also that is the typical packaging for most drug shipments and these are the ones that get the most scrutiny and are the last to be processed. Boxed shipments are also more typically (but not necessarily) sent using e-packet versus standard airmail. Standard airmail now has a zero priority status (meaning it is the last to get sorted and picked for delivery). Also keep in mind via paypal you have a 180 day claim period. The UPU (global partnership of the majority of the postal services) are kicking in some new rules in 2018 that should aid in this, but we are also likely to see an increase in shipping costs as the reimbursement rates between countries (along with the drug issue) are a big part of the problem.
 
#16 ·
As others have chimed in, customs can be peculair for a vareity of reasons.

One vendor I've done business with me told me much of his orders from China are currently being held in customers with an average wait time of 30 days and that is impeding his business. The reason for the longer wait time is supposedly due to a change in staff at the customs office and the new staff are getting acclimated to the process. Another vendor advised new/recent items arrived, but stuck in customs. They're waiting for it to clear so they can fulfill open orders.

It's not just individual orders/packages being delayed, it is impacting distributors and the 1:6 vendors will deal with regularly as well.

PATIENCE is really being tested nowadays especially among those with no patience and even those wil patience and then some.

In addition, shipping cost among the primary carrier/delivery services (i.e. FedEx, UPS, etc.) increased and the higher shipping weight due to the new PHICEN/TBL figures with bases are throwing some vendors and collectors off at times.

Forget about the notion of vendors absorbing the cost of the higher shipping charges. We're being charged accordingly regardless how some of the really cheap@$$ collectors may complain.
 
#17 ·
Just recently I was contacted by an eBay vendor that my package had been returned to them from customs (he didn't specify which customs). He asked me if I wanted a refund or if I wanted him to resend the item. I chose to have it resent. That was a few weeks ago. I'm expecting to hear back from him that it was returned again. I had suspected something had changed, and now this thread confirms it. Maybe I should ask him to resend it in a plain envelope since its' just a clothing item.
 
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