PenBBS Etsy store shipping to the UK

[steve50]

I ordered a couple of pens from PenBBS back in October, and now I'm into the 7th week of waiting. I find it surprising because pens from Chinese sellers on Ebay seem to reach the UK pretty quickly. If anyone ordered from their Etsy store recently, have your pens arrived yet? Do they just turn up one day out of the blue??

[JollyCynic]

Prior to the pandemic, PenBBS orders from their official Etsy or eBay shops typically took two to four weeks for me.  During the pandemic, however, international shipping has been much more difficult.

 

Shipping on the China side don't appear to have changed much.  It used to take four or five days to leave China, now it's taking six to eight.  The problem comes when they hit customs in the UK.  They'll sit there for weeks or even months before they're looked at.

 

For example, an order I made on 30 April left China on 8 May.  But customs didn't scan it in Heathrow until 15 July.  It arrived at my house the next day, 11 weeks after the initial order was made.  That's by far my most extreme example.  Other orders have taken 3 weeks and 4 weeks during the pandemic.

 

They use China EMS, which has typically been slower through customs for me than the Small Packet Plus shipping I normally get with ultra cheap eBay and AliExpress pens.

 

As to Out Of The Blue, you can use your tracking number from PenBBS on the Royal Mail site.  It will update your tracking when they've managed to find it in customs.  For me, it's normally at my door one or two days later.

[steve50]

Mine must have been sitting in customs for ages but it got delivered today after nearly 2 months. Will definitely pay for faster shipping next time.  

[Ste_S]

Wish I'd read this thread before ordering. 11 days so far since my pen left China, I suspect it's going to be a while yet before someone in the UK decides to scan it!

[Ste_S]

My 456 eventually arrived eight weeks after leaving China.

 

I, of course, want to buy another one now. Has anyone used the upgraded shipping from PenBBS's Etsy shop, and does it cut out the period where then pen disappears in UK customs waiting to be scanned?