Hopshopgo.com - www.hopshopgo.com

I joined this website to warn others about PayPal's latest venture called HopShopGo. It purports to offer those residing outside the US access to online vendors via a US based shipping address. The idea is sound, and one discussed at length some time ago with a friend who manages businesses for one of the worlds larger investment banks. HOWEVER, PayPal sees this service as another cash cow, and I have just been caught out by paying nearly double the postage offered by the site from which I bought some clothes!

This is how it works:

1. You sign up with the site;

2. Make you purchases, HopShopGo provide links to many popular vendors, I'm not sure if you can use others - I think you can(I bought from American Eagle);

3. You nominate your US postal address, provided by HopShopGo and the seller posts your goods there (in my case to Portland, Oregon, and free postage from AE for cont. US);

4. HopShopGo send an email to inform you that your goods have arrived, you have 15 days free to wait for other parcels to get there in case you want to consolidate for cheaper postage; and finally

5. You go through a checkout process to have the goods re-directed to Australia, Austria, Azerbijan etc.

Seems simple and convenient, the kicker is that HopShopGo charge an absolute premium to post (ship). It seems that you pay maximum volumetric weight (ask at the post office how this works) at a premium price, then there are the surcharges - About a dozen possibilities. I got hit with 'Remote area' surcharge, even though we live marginally outside Metro Sydney! I was lucky as the fuel surcharge was waived for me (but according to Youtube comments others aren't so lucky!). The end result, US$85 for postage that would have cost me US$50 from American Eagle!!

I went through this last night, so no credible comment od delivery times - I will update you later, HOWEVER it seems some reviewers on YouTube are not too happy with the delivery times - check it out for yourself!

MAYBE??? this service will come into it's own in allowing those outside the US to purchase hard to find goods from stores who don't post outside US, but the cost hardly seems worth it. My message?? Be very careful, check the cost calculators etc. before you commit to use the service, and trawl through you tube for ads and video complaints, and read the comments - I havn't found a flattering review yet.

You missed the mark PayPal, and it seems a number of your unhappy customers are trying to spread the word!!!

BUYER BEWARE!!