Canada Post is testing Swap Spot, which lets buyers and sellers use a post office as a drop-off and pickup point for resale transactions.
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Canada Post says it is test-driving a new service called Swap Spot to support Canadians in the resale market, with buyers and sellers in the Greater Vancouver area among the first to be able to use it.
Under Swap Spot, Canada Post says the seller drops off an item at an agreed-to post office and the buyer picks it up on their own schedule, without meeting in person. The corporation adds that payment can also be handled at the post office.
Canada Post says each Swap Spot transaction costs a flat fee of $5 plus tax. After the buyer picks up and pays for the item, Canada Post will send the seller an Interac e-Transfer within 5 business days.
The service is described as a way to complete transactions for users on platforms such as Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist and Kijiji. Canada Post says, as a general rule, items that can be legally mailed in Canada can be exchanged through Swap Spot.
Canada Post says prohibited and controlled items are not accepted, including firearms, drugs and controlled substances, dangerous goods, perishable items, and anything illegal under Canadian law.
Canada Post says the trial is currently available at post offices in Calgary, Hamilton, the Ottawa-Gatineau region, and the Greater Vancouver area.
The trial comes as police departments in the region promote safer ways to meet for online purchases and sales. Coquitlam RCMP has previously pointed to “buy and sell exchange zones” outside of its detachment, while the Vancouver Police Department has a Safe Exchange Location outside its headquarters at 2120 Cambie Street.
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