@Luther12@Electronics4u et al who use kote, kentexcargo, savostore, peer cargo etc to ship items from the US, i need some help.
I have been buying items for different stores online in the US and shipping them down to Kenya using some of the above mentioned shippers. But of late im running into problems with some sites refusing to ship to the addresses given by these companies. They are starting to flat out refuse to ship the items and this is after the order has already been processed so your credit/debit card has been charged. The transaction is later reversed but its in USD so you can wind up losing money.
Here is an email response I got yesterday from a company when I tried to ship my items through Peer Cargo’s address :
[ATTACH=full]121808[/ATTACH]
I had the same problem when i tried to ship Savostore’s California address. However, if you are buying from major sites like Ebay or Amazon this doesnt happen.
So has anyone else faced this issue? Did you find a way around it? Or are there particular companies that aren’t getting blacklisted that can be used and charge reasonable?
for your help, shika hii
[ATTACH=full]121809[/ATTACH]
So far, I haven’t encountered that as yet. I mostly go for the option of ‘buy-and-ship’ i.e. I let the likes of those shipping companies handle both the buying and shipping on my behalf.
The costs of corruption and an inept system are now being felt and trickling down. Cost of doing business. These companies are losing money when the customer complains and files disputes on their credit or debit (Mastercard or Visa) for non receipt of merchandise.
If you have a contact in the US, have them ship it to their address and that individual will personally have to ship it through the aforementioned couriers for it to get to you in Kenya as an alternative.
That is my backup plan. The only flaw is that the stuff i that i buy is for resale. So i would incur costs getting the items to the shipping company from my US contact, which I would then have to tack onto my prices. I am hoping to avoid that.
US is very strict when it comes to shipping. Those kenyan shipping companies experience alot of problems the moment they try their “Ukenya” huko majuu. But you can always assure the companies you buy from that you will bear the risk and you will not blame them incase of anything after they deliver to your address.
I tried that with the company in that email up there. I told them i would happily sign a waiver or check a box on checkout indemnifying their company of any loss of the goods once they have ensured that the goods have been delivered to the destination i.e the shipper. Lakini wamekaa ngumu. they have refused that story.
But its also kinda stupid on their part. Why should they care? after all I’m the one telling them to give the goods to that particular company. If the shipper steals my goods or they dont get to me, then its clearly the shippers fault. Its like me giving my atm card and pin to some random guy then I blame the bank for allowing him to empty the account!
Then I think that company is just rigid. Or maybe they want do do the shipping themselves to earn an extra coin.
Just take your business elsewhere and show them the middle finger.
It’s not the company being rigid. As long as you use a Mastercard/Visa and do not receive the merchandise, it supersedes any signed waiver with the shipping company. The terms and conditions, protections that you sign when obtaining a Mastercard/Visa supersede that “one time” waiver. That means you can go back and sue the credit/debit card company for their breach in the protections they offer. The shipping companies are aware of this that is why it becomes a moot point. The shipping company would be liable either way, whether he signed the waiver or not.
If the company’s origin is in the US, they do not do COD, unless he’s ordering pizza. Maybe try PayPal, it’s a shot worth taking. Ubaya na maybe advantage of US, consumer is protected sana. So these companies are trying to mitigate their losses, which is understandable. They are in business to make money and not losses.
It’s because of fraud. In case the shipping address and billing address are not the same and the card for this case Kenyan is non AVS and not 3d secure the merchant loses incase of a charge back.
Do exactly as @Swansea states, reason why some of those stores in US are flatly refusing story za freight forwarders is MAJORLY cause of the underlined.[ATTACH=full]121828[/ATTACH]
Maybe try PayPal, it’s a shot worth taking. Ubaya na maybe advantage of US, consumer is protected sana. So these companies are trying to mitigate their losses, which is understandable. They are in business to make money and not losses.