Sold my lens to UK, have some problems, need input

[myelphoto]

well frist of all thanks to you guys who would take your time to share your opinion on this matter

I sold my lens from POTN forum to this guy in UK, he requested not to put lens worth because it would get him a hefty tax, so I put it as a gift of $50.
send priority international and I thought be done with it.

after 1 week lens has not arrived yet, and he is cussing and panicking that the lens might be stuck in custom and could get to him in about 60-90 days.
now he's claiming that it is my fault and my responsibility because the lens never get to him. and he's going to file a dispute in paypal

If I had known this issues, I'd stay away from foreign buyer....

what would you do if you were in this situation?

[Tom]

Try to track it and find out where it went. You won't be able to.

Chalk it up to experience. Pretty common scam.

[PhotoByLeal]

Sorry to hear that!
I don't know what to do, that's why I stay FAR FAR away from the UK!

How did you you send it?
Is there any way it can be tracked? (UPS tracks World Wide)

I hope things works out for you......

later,
angel m. leal jr.

[myelphoto]

Yeah There is tracking number , and when I tracked down it says just left US on OCT 4th.

[Rson]

Do you have insurance on it?
Do you have the customs form? Sometimes items take a while, if it was sent on the 4th it might not get there until 2 weeks.

How did you send it.?

[dbphotos]

Yeah, if it just left the US on the 4th, it's still in transit. The time he has been waiting is not unusal at all. Send the guy the tracking # and when PayPal contacts you send them the tracking # as well. International deals just take longer.

A little lesson, don't ever fraudulently fill in customs paperwork. If the buyer isn't willing to pay the tax, then don't do business with them. The headache of getting in trouble with Customs is not worth the sale.

I've sold lots of things to U.K., Canada and Austrailia and never a problem. You just have to make sure you do it right and communicate.

[photonewb]

how did you send it? UPS? FedEx?

Sadly you may be losing out entirely as it is common to claim that they want you to put it as a gift and doesn't cost much so that you can't insure it for it's real value etc.

[BigBlueDodge]

I wouldn't worry too much about it. You shipped the lens, have proof. The buyer may have had unrealistic idea's about how long he thought it would take for him to get it.

Did you send the buyer the tracking number? What is his response?

[Jenny Z]

I don't trust anyone buying anything from the UK... too many scams. :(

I don't think he can dispute the claim if it's still in transit and you have proof. Tell him to chill.

[myelphoto]

I sent it USPS priority international, have proof for custom paper and receipt of postage.
I think so too he is just freaking out buying lens out of US. I read paypal has seller protection policy if it was shipped to verified address

[crazeazn]

if customs holds it how is it your fault?

[HotHolly]

Ive shipped stuff to UK before and had issues with the customs tax. Buyer wanted me to pay it. There are a lot of cases of international fraud via PayPal. IF you shipped it to the verified address AND sent it with online tracking info, paypal should side with you and deny his claim. That wont stop a credit card chargeback. Keep talking to him and send him the tracking info. Its kinda premature if it was fraud or a stolen account. Some buyers also dont realize Priority Mail international is about 10 days from here to UK. And Priority Mail may be faster or slower depending on where its leaving from and going to. I live in an area where the PO closes on Sat. It slows departure. Good luck.

[Howard Barlow]

Originally Posted by myelphoto

I sold my lens from POTN forum to this guy in UK, he requested not to put lens worth because it would get him a hefty tax, so I put it as a gift of $50.
send priority international and I thought be done with it.

The guy asked you to commit a felony, and, by your own admission, you did by lying to customs about the true value. Now, there is trouble in paradise.

OTOH, it's his problem. Everything goes through customs. He knows that, or he would not have asked you to lie.

I have shipped things to England, and Russia, with no problems. However, the amount I claimed was reasonable for the items. Perhaps, customs is taking its natural slow process, or they may be deciding to find out if it was a gift, after all. Regardless, gift or sale, if the lens was worth far more than $50, chances are it will still require duty.

For future reference, there is no right way to do a wrong thing. Just sayin'.

[kula23]

Wow that is risky to sell to foreign buyer, I wouldn't do that. Good luck and hope all is revolve.

[Angelo]

In England duties and vat may be assessed. If UK customs decides that there may be a falls value claim it will slow down the process. They are no dummies and will reassess a fair value, but it slows down the process since it has to be inspected.

I've always used FedEx or UPS because the tracking is much better than the USPS.

In the transaction, was it agreed that he would pay the duties and/or Vat?

The problem does not seem to be in your park. I would trace it with USPS and provide him with whatever details you can get from USPS. He will be notified by his postal service telling him that a package has arrived for him and to come and claim it. At that point he will be told to pay the fair duty/vat. He can contest the value which will delay him getting the lens until it's reviewed.

It's not your problem, unless it's lost.