eBay informed international sellers this month that it would offer certain protections in the event that tariffs impacted their shipments to buyers located in the US. The marketplace posted information for Canadian, UK, and Australian sellers.
Package delays into the United States are happening. One shipping carrier announced last week that as of Monday (April 21), it would stop accepting certain US-bound packages from overseas because of delays related to new US Customs regulations that had caused a surge in formal customs clearances.
eBay had informed international sellers that in cases where packages were delayed due to tariffs, it would offer the following protections:
“We’ll take steps to protect you as you adjust to these new tariffs and requirements. This includes adjusting late shipment rates when valid tracking shows problems were caused by postage delays, and removing associated defects. We’ll also remove negative feedback related to tariffs.”
In cases where buyers refuse to pay tariffs and fees, eBay told international sellers the following:
“If buyers do not pay tariffs, associated fees, or provide the required information to carriers, they generally won’t receive their item from the carrier. The carrier’s policies will then decide what happens to the item. eBay Money Back Guarantee will not apply in this case.”
Etsy had also offered to protect sellers who were impacted by tariffs.
NOTE: Readers who are running into tariff-related issues can leave a comment below or send an email to the editor at ina@ecommercebytes.com.