Discussions

Anyone know if Boarder services is open through COVID and if so how is everyone getting there stuff across. I wish they would open the boarder up already.

You could always email Border Services and find out directly from them? That’s what I would do anyway.

According to website, Border Services is open. Never did close. Problem is getting through US Customs to pick up items. Not considered essential service. I, too, wish I could order items. A riding mower tire on Amazon.ca is $138. On Amazon.com it is $53. Just have to wait until border reopens for travel and non-essential services.

I am also looking for an item to be picked up so if anyone knows of anyone send them my info!

Regarding the comment on opening. The boarder. Please don’t.

I don’t quite get why people have such a problem with this. Just order your goods , have them shipped by mail and if applicable pay the taxes and duty either when ordering, online or at the post office . It’s so simple.  
The border needs to stay closed for safety.

It's probably different in the UK George. Unfortunately not everything can be easily ordered and shipped to Canada for various reasons and that is why such a service like border services exists. So it's not as simple as you think.

Some companies don't ship to Canada, and some manufacturers don't allow their products to be shipped to Canada.  
 
For products that can't be shipped to Canada, Runnin' Red can pick up packages from Pembina, ND. They have two warehouses in Winnipeg where the packages can be picked up from once they've been imported into Canada.

I wondered because I order parts that are not available in Canada from companies in the United States regularly and I’ve never had a problem getting it mailed here right to my box number. My suppliers have always been happy to do it and I’m happy to pay shipping and taxes.  
Works out great for me I guess!  
 
Edited by Farmergeorge, 2021-02-03 17:42:59

Many US companies won't ship to Canada. They can't be bothered to figure out a simple export form. A lot of US companies have free shipping within the US as well so that's a huge savings. For those that do ship to Canada it's more expensive to pay shipping. Also many of the carriers like UPS charge brokerage fees on top. Also many won't ship to a P.O. Box, needing a physical address which doesn't apply to rural. Myself I wait until I need several items to make the trip down worth the $30 bucks or so worth of gas.

When you look at a car part you can’t find in Canada that’s 18$ and free shipping in USA but shipping to Canada is 24$ or you want order a part that’s 450$ and import fee is 150$ I’d rather go down for weekend get away pick things up so we need the boarder to open it don’t make sense I could fly there but can’t drive there

My last order from Pennsylvania was over $1000 parts plus $20 mail tracked to rural post box here and $125 taxes. I thought that was a bargain , much cheaper and safer for me then the time and fuel to drive there.  
 
Edited by Farmergeorge, 2021-02-03 23:42:58

I'm assuming the $53 is in USD. With today's exchange rate, that's $68. If both are Amazon, I'll assume it will qualify for free shipping either way.  
 
If you're driving from Brandon to cross as Bossivain, it's roughly 100 km each way, so a 200 km round trip.  
 
If you're driving a Honda Civic, with a highway fuel rating of 8.4 L/100km, you'll need roughly 17L of fuel to make the trip. Gas is around 104.9, so you'll need about $18 fuel to make the trip. If you drive something more like an F-150, you'll use $23-25 fuel. That's not including the cost of wear and tear on your vehicle, or the cost of any food/rest stops you make.  
 
So, without accounting for your time, it will cost you $86-93 for your tire if you order from Amazon.com vs. .ca.  
 
If you paid yourself for your time, with min wage being 11.65/hour, with a trip time of 3 hours (to allow time to get through customs etc), you should "pay" yourself $35 for the trip.  
 
So now you're at $128.  
 
I frankly would just order it from .ca and get it delivered to my house.

If it was me I would message George he could likely get you the same tire or a better one shipped right to his farm for $45.

That tyre is available in Canada and any saving on that wouldn’t be worth the trouble after freight and possible taxes. It doesn’t pencil out.

You don’t know yet what his handling fees are....

What peculiar sized riding mower tyre are you wanting that a local tyre dealers could not supply?  
I imagine that most riding mowers tyres are a fairly standard size and the local dealers would be only to happy to have your business.

I would charge Canadian retail + shipping and handling , ie : not worth doing if item is available in Canada.  
 
Edited by Farmergeorge, 2021-02-04 17:17:18

How much are you paying yourself when you are on eBrandon sharing your opinion?  
 
I never tell people where to spend their money. It’s disrespectful. Their money, their decision. We already have politicians with hand in my pocket wanting to spend my money where they want.  
 
I too am one that misses the drive to the States to see Jay, checking out the fall leaves and the winding road south of Metigoshe, picking up the oddball American grocery items unavailable in Canada, and of course picking up the great deals I found on the internet that have free shipping within the States.  
 
Buying local is good, but if you’re having to show the local business what you want online so they can order it in, you may as well order it yourself and ensure the order is right.

If something is readily available in Canada it’s not worth the time and effort buying it from the states, support local businesses whenever possible, it’s your community!  
If an item is unavailable in Canada I’ll save my gas and time and have it mailed. I’ve never had a problem but If a company refused to ship to me in Canada then I don’t need their goods !  
 
Edited by Farmergeorge, 2021-02-05 07:45:24

Farmergeorge said: " If a company refused to ship to me in Canada then I don’t need their goods !"  
 
The logic in that statement is flawed. A company that has a shipping policy that won't allow them to ship certain products to Canada has no bearing on whether or not you need that product. I suppose it presumes you can get that product elsewhere, from a company that will ship to Canada. That's not always the case.  
 
I know for myself, I needed a product for a restoration project I was working on. No one in Canada could supply, and no supplier in the US would ship it to Canada. I had it shipped to Border Services and thankfully was able to pick it up the last day the border was open.  
 
I'm not suggesting that the border should be opened anytime soon. It's closed for a reason and until it's safe for travel back and forth we just need to deal with the problems that brings us. It does mean however that some products are going to be unavailable to us for awhile.  
 
We all want things to return to normal, but if we are premature it will just prolong the need for lock downs we are experiencing now.

A lot of companies don't ship to Canada because of certain antiquated tariffs. I see it a lot, someone will order a bolt of cloth and the Customs charges are like $700. For whatever reason some products have been excluded from NAFTA , almost to the point of seeming arbitrary, and come with extreme tariffs. A lot of companies don't ship or won't ship those items because they know it makes no sense to do so. Also some items are illegal in Canada because they don't meet CSA standards or contain ingredients CFSA has determined to be harmful, etc, etc.  
 
Not saying that is what happened in the cases of anyone on this thread but just a bit of info.

Like George says if it's not readily available in Canada it's not worth buying. But all joking aside I hear ya on the outrageous shipping from the US sometimes. Also if you can avoid UPS you usually won't get hit will duty and brokerage fees if you can get something shipped up here. USPS is always the safest but usually the slowest but still likely be twice as fast as Canada Post. Also crazy how you can get something for a $1 shipped here free from China.  
 
Edited by BiG Mack, 2021-02-05 19:22:14

That is actually not what I said at all is it.  
What I did say was this:  
If readily available in Canada then its more sense to buy from Canada as locally as possible.  
If not available in Canada then it makes sense to order from elsewhere (like my parts shipments).  
If it cannot be easily shipped to Canada then I will manage without it because I’m not wasting my time and fuel to cross the border to get it.