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This is my first time shipping to Canada. I'm totally frustrated with the length of time it is taking for the packages to arrive. I had to send two separate boxes. They went Global Express.....3 - 5 days delivery.....and I paid a small fortune for the boxes to get to their destination quickly. They were sent on February 8th. Here it is the 19th and only one box has arrived at the delivery post office. The boxes left the US soil on the 9th. In a nutshell the boxes I sent have been in Canada for 10 days already!! Is this normal?
Shipping to Europe only takes 3-5 days and they're the span of the United States and an ocean away!! I sent these packages to B.C. Canada for pity's sakes. It's only a 6-7 hour drive!!
What does one have to do to get a package there quickly? I'd appreciate any input.
Warmest bear hugs, :hug:
Aleta
P.S. They were fully insured. Was that the stumbling block?
Newelley.BearsAleta...
Unfortunately, I know TOO well about the shipping delays you are talking about. I have a cd coming from the states that shipped out on Jan. 30th that I still haven't received, as well as some mohair that I ordered Feb. 3rd that has yet to arrive. It's pretty sad, considering I order cd's all the time from an online retailer that ships from Hong Kong and I always get the product within 7 days MAX. Therfore, one might assume that there is some kind of delay that occurs only with shipping between the US & Canada.
Charlotte Des Roches Designs((((Aleta))))been there...done that..it just takes forever to get to canada from the US...Marion(MerBear) & I did a trade last year & we had a race...re-inactment of the tortoise & the hare...I sent her a needle felted beaded turtle & she sent me a mini beautiful bunny...and my turtle won the race...by maybe a day or 2...so it happens in both directions between the US & Canada...what a sad statement for neighboring countries...I think the ornament I sent to NZ made it there faster than the stuff to canada 
Grrrr...
Hugs &
Aleta
.... Depending on what time of day u got it mailed...it may be only 7 actual working days today. And then..sometimes stuff sits in Customs...it sits til they say it moves...that is it. Not much happening with postal employees in the parcel end of things Sat or Sun here..so that is 4 full days when nothing would have moved. do u have a tracking number with Global Express? cuz if u do ..u may be able to see where it is.
That is the norm....it really sucks!!! Customs like to hold on to things....I can order stuff from the UK and the Netherlands and it arrives quicker than stuff from the US.....Oh yeah and like Veronica said, those 3-5 days are business days not weekends
Hugs,
Krista
Canadian post doesn't run on Saturday? 
Yes, Veronica, I do have my tracking numbers and I do know that one package has arrived at the "delivery office".....whatever that is. I'm thinking perhaps the office where one would take their package slip to accept delivery? The other package cleared customs at 3:02pm February 15th.....this past Thursday.
Still, one would think if you're paying Global Express prices the package would arrive "express", in 3 - 5 days, as stated. Perhaps though, it's Global Express to the border!! In which case, the USPS was all over that.....it arrived at the border in one day!! :crackup: :crackup:
Warmest bear hugs, :hug:
Aleta
Yup...you got it...Us Lazy Canadians :crackup: Yeah as soon as Canada Post would have taken over everything slows to a snails pace!!! And we don't normally have seperate parcel runs either so if it didn't make it in time for that days post man it would be held till the next day at the Post Office.
Hugs,
Krista
And thinking further then......it's rather silly to send "Express" if customs is going to have a teddy bear tea party with my bears. What then, would be your suggestion going forward?
Warmest bear hugs, :hug:
Aleta
Oh, wait, wait, wait!! I didn't say anything about lazy Canadians. Stateside we're just a bunch of work-a-holics!! We're a 24 hour/on the go nation in the U.S. That's probably why I'm in a dither about this whole thing! 
Warmest bear hugs, :hug:
Aleta
Wahtever you do just don't send it UPS (the Brown Guys)! Cuz then we pay twice as much to get it....
I think u hve done all that u can in hopes of it getting here as soon as possible Aleta. Let your buyer know that u hv been following it with your tracking number and where it is etc. I am sure they will understand if they use the post office for much at all.
Also..if the postal van tries to deliver it to her door...and any money is owing...they won't leave it if she is not home; they leave a tiny notice in the mailbox telling her which post office to pick it up at. However, if there is no customs charge ...and they do leave it.....and it is too big for her mail box... sometimes they hide it around the side of the house or somewhere handy.. so tell her to keep her eyes peeled. My delivery lady does that so that I don't have to go to the post office later to pick it up...sometimes she leaves me a note and sometimes she just dumps it and runs.... we keep checking around the side of the house if we are expecting things.....
Aelta , It is hard to say what other method to use. It's hit and miss with shipping. I too ordered mohair from the US and paid for express shipping. It sat in customs for a week in Ontario, and I got charged for handling and customs fees when it finally arrived. Other times I've ordered and it came straight through. Who knows ?
Yup, no saturday or sunday postal service !! One outlet here is open to accept items on Saturday and Sunday but it just sits there until monday morning.
OH GOSH YES, PLEASE DON'T USE UPS!!!!
don't worry Aleta.....we all call the postal people lazy... it is a joke here about any government employees....you know.. ....4 guys leaning on their brooms and one guys working.... lol
Baird'sBears:redface: Apologies, all . . . CanadaPost is the laziest, wonkiest, screwist, wimpiest, greediest postal service on the planet.
If there's any way (any way) to sponge a few extra bucks off the mailing public, they'll find it.
Everybody goes home on Friday afternoon--no weekend activity. Nothing whatever between about 3:00 Friday and 11:00 Monday. Pickup from your mailbox? Ha ha ha ha ha.
It's not a service, it's a cash cow (sorry cows) for whatever reigning government. You pay duty on gifts, even if a package is clearly marked as such, because CanadaPost assumes that mail recipients are just as crooked as it is, and rarely delivers anything without charging taxes (15%) plus $5 for the trouble it takes to suck up your money. They assume that everybody cheats, so they ignore their own exemptions. Most packages I receive from the US and the UK have been opened.
The delivery people are always apologizing, but there's nothing they or anyone can do. The people in charge are always the dudes who failed at mailsorting. Couldn't handle the alphabet, or count past 10 because they ran out of fingers . . .
I'm beginning to think it would be worth taking the train to Buffalo to mail my critters. I have to watch their progress hawkwise to make sure they arrive at all. Once they're across the border, there's no problem.
Don't get me started . . .
:hug: No need to apologize....Our Postal System is Lazy!!!
Another option I just remembered...I ordered a photo cube from the states and they sent it FedEx got here within a week and I didn't have to pay anything at the door!!!
As Veronica said don't use UPS as then we have to pay outrageous brokerage fees!!!
I wait just as long for things shipped to me within Canada as I do from the US so it isn't anything on your end that is delaying it, it is total 100% Canada Post!!! I guess the only thing from now on when shipping to Canada would be to let your buyer know that this is just an estimate time, and give them a tracking # so that they can see that it is Canada Post causing the delay, not you :hug:
Hugs,
Krista
Eileen sorry you've had such terrible luck. I can honestly say that I have never had a parcel opened but I do hate that $5 handling fee. Luckily most of the gals at the outlet I use are really sweet and I trust them fully. My mailman is usually pretty good, although I agree that I rarely get delivery on fridays !
Now that we have scared everyone from ever mailing anything to Canada, I'll never get mail :crackup: :crackup: :crackup:
Wait a ding dang minute here! Am I understanding you correctly? You have to pay to have your package delivered? And they open it? And they make you pay more money on top of the postage I already paid????
You are all having fun with the ditzy blonde chick, aren't you? You can't be serious. Seriously? So. What you're telling me is that everything I wrapped so nicely is being fingered and poked and pity knows what all. Oh, I think I'm going to cry. This is my first ever package to Canada and a most expensive set of bears and all those goodies in the trunk. To think of someone other than the collector unwrapping the ribbons and tissue and putting their hands all over my bears and going through their goodies. Miss Wednesday Mayfair and Little Abigail are probably thinking I've sent them into the wild woolies of world.
At this moment I am absolutely horrified. I had no idea.
Not feeling so very huggy at this moment,
Aleta
Kran-Beary'sCanada Post travels on the antlers of a moose. A slow moving one at that!
The mooses at customs won't usually charge you $5.00 handling if the parcel is addressed to you personally. If there's anything to indicate that it's commercial (like a business name on the package, or 'commercial' checked on the declaration ) Canada Customs goes into 'Pay Me' mode.
As far as opening a parcel goes...that's the right of Custom's mooses. It's keeps the countries safe. Random inspections are done at US Customs too.
AND just to clarify....there is a difference between shipping and mailing. Mailing is done by USPS and Canada Post. There is an agreement between governments that allow the parcels to flow fairly smoothly, free of additional charges beyond duty, tax and commercial handling fees.
Shipping goes by USP, Fed EX and other privately owned couriers. Because shipping takes business dollars away from the Government, there are BROKERAGE fees and other charges associated that can make international shipping much more expensive. FYI.
nt
Not everything gets opened Aleta, but if like Nancy said it has business labels on it then the chances are higher!!! I used to put my logo labels on the outside, but have now stopped that and they now go on the gift box inside, just to disuade any curiostiy on the customs officials...I have only had one package opened before delivery and that was from Intercal...they didn't bother with many others, but must have been "the" random box!!
Krista
Little Bear GuyAleta you are better off to send it just regular mail and not the global express it will take the same amount of time just cost more. I really hate the 5.00 fee and taxes we have to pay for a shipment coming in. If the value on the package is more than 20.00 then they will charge you the 5.00 fee for handling. We won't get hit with duty on a teddy bear as there are no duties as it is considered a toy but you might get hit with the taxes on it.
We use UPS to ship our pracels to the US and have never had any problem, we also ship our bears back from the US with UPS and again no problem , I guess we have just been lucky. It doesn't appear that there is a brokerage fee going to the US unless the value is over 250.00. WE don't get hit with a brokerage fee when we ship our bears back as we show them on the declaration as show samples.
Something I found out interesting as well just recently was with our Provincial Sales Tax (like your State Tax) If someone comes on to our website and orders a bear from us , regardless if they live in Ontario or in Germany or the US we are suppose to charge them Ontario provincial tax (now that's bloody stupid if you ask me).
I was under the understanding that if you lived in Ontario then we had to charge the tax , I didn't realize it has to be charged on every sale on our website. It's very frustrating let me tell you.
Big Hugs
Shane
Kingfisher Farm Teddies and Folk ArtAleta, oh yes shipping to Canada is a nightmare. It takes FOREVER. I shipped a large saddle by USPS.....I was so afraid the buyer would slam me with neg feedback. I have several collectors up there, and the boxes are always opened. Only once, at Christmas time, I put pretty paper on top, and it got there in time for the holiday, but all others have been rifled and SLOW....as in......OVER A MONTH! Pam
Back Road BearsWonder if I'm in the wrong business. Perhaps I could start a private currier service between the US and Canada and figure out a way to get past the moose with out them knowing!?! I could drive from the southern most point in Florida to the Yukon Territory faster than our packages find their way through the shipping
system.
Who wants to be a driver for the TEDDY BEAR EXPRESS????
:crackup:
Hi Aleta,
I had a Lady from Victoria, BC buy one of my bears, a while back and Oscar arrived safetly, in the end.
I know I was a little worried and checked nearly every day to see how his travels were going?
I know Rakhel told me that they did not deliver on Saturday and then there was a special holiday also.
I am sure that your lovely bears Miss Wednesday Mayfair and Little Abigail, will reach their new home soon - don't worry.
Hugs
Carolyn
:hug: 
:hug:
Newcastle, OntarioOh Aleta,
I hate to join in the thoroughly wonderful job we Canadians are doing in trashing Canada post, but I really must. Yes, if there were a competition for the WORST postal service on the globe, we would win with NO CONTEST . Part of your problem right off the bat, was shipping to BC. Now BC is a beautiful province, but I LIVE IN CANADA and can ship to ANYWHERE in the world faster than I can ship from Ontario to BC! I don't know what it is, but it always takes weeks for anything to get there. Also keep in mind that this is the same postal service that sent the Steiff clown bear BACK TO ENGLAND twice, after it was supposed to be returned to my niece! She had to email the president of Canada Post to get any service!!!
I buy reasonably often from Ebay.com, and I always insist on the seller sending my things by Airmail Letter Post. It is for parcels as well as letters and has quite a generous size limit. Unfortunately, it doesn't include insurance, so it wouldn't have worked for you, but I always tell the seller I will take responsibitly for "no insurance" and so far, every parcel has made it and some in three days. I've found that it is the fastest, most reliable way to ship to Canada.
I paid a fortune for a Xmas gift to get to our son overseas, a few years ago. I paid "global air" or something and it cost me ovver $80.00. The idiots put it on a ship and it took 8 weeks. When I asked for a refund, they told me there was no guarantee for delivery! I asked for a supervisor and said they could damn well make sure it got on a plane as I had paid for airmail! I did get a refund but after screaming at some hopeless clerk who hadn't got a clue! So, now you know why so many sellers don't want to sell to us LOL! I'm sure your parcel will be delivered soon - I just hope your customers don't get hit will duty!
hugs,
Brenda
PS: I have to agree with the others - don't EVER ship to Canada using UPS (United Parcel Service)! The brokerage fees are usually more that the item is worth.
Baird'sBears
Great info, Nancy--I've been proudly including my business name in my address. Before I did, my incoming packages were unopened. Time to rethink that one :doh:
Shane--you're joking, right? I thought we only had to charge GST/PST for domestic sales and shows!!
The only problem I've had sending from Canada to the US or abroad has been the slow delivery. I always track the moose, and find that it lingers at the sorting facility in Etobicoke (you don't want to know) for days and days and days, poor thing. But my outgoing packages do eventually reach the collectors unmangled. The only one opened (not by Canada Post) was a mouse that went to a collector in Sweden.
It's my incoming packages from anywhere else that get opened. They're mostly fur and other supplies, with business names in the return addresses and values over $40, so I guess it figures.
But I reserve the right to hate it.
Little Bear GuyHi Eileen,
No I"m not kidding about the PST, I was floored when they told me that. I had phoned them because I had another question and it came up in conversation about the webpage. It was also brought to our attention that if I attend a show in the US and take orders and they aren't paid for then and there, then when I request payment for them I had to charge PST as well. They consider the sale to have taken place in Canada and in our province, I just shake my head over the whole thing.
big hugs
Shane
