posted on July 31, 2001 10:01:45 PM
Wow...Im catching up here and only stopped long enough to answer two questions. One is from someone named gardenia(?). I am not charging the customer extra...where did you get that idea? I said insurance is optional. I also said I didnt understand her mode of thinking..that she won it for 9 dollars so why insure it for 9 dollars. The value is more than 9 dollars. But its up to her. No where did I state I was charging her for insurance unless she wanted it.
Packer, you asked: Say you insure it for $75. It gets broke and the insurance pays the claim. Are you going to give the buyer the $75 or their original buy price of $9?
For starters, the item cant break because it was a jewelry item, although it could get lost or stolen. When something happens to an item that is never delivered, or broken, I normally send the insurance claim to the bidder themselves and give no refund. They make the claim, and pocket whatever it was insured for. Sometimes I have issued a credit to the customer as well as sending them the insurance claim (depends on the item). I have been selling on ebay for 3 years and only have had to do that 2 times (sending the claim itself to the bidder).
posted on July 31, 2001 10:04:31 PM
msgardenia
posted on July 31, 2001 08:21:54 PM
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What I don't understand is this started over "she did not want to purchase inurance". The item in question to be insured for 75.00. Later on you state you only ship UPS you do not ship USPS. All shipments with UPS is automatically insured under 100.00 no extra charge. So, why are you charging her extra????
There is the post I was trying to answer. I didnt say she should insure it for 75. I said it was WORTH that and more. I know USPS gives automatic insurance of 100.00 worth, but I dont ship USPS, as stated in my inital post. Where do you get me charging her extra???
posted on July 31, 2001 10:07:34 PM
No, hepburn. UPS automatically insures for $100. USPS(US Postal Service) requires extra insurance be purchase apart from the postage. That was what she was asking. Your post states you only ship UPS, so the insurance is automatically covered. That's why I thought it was a typo. Do you ship UPS or USPS?
posted on July 31, 2001 10:11:28 PM
Yes, Im proud of the ones joining in my ranting and raving, lol. (sorry for answering in bursts, but Im reading and answering as I go). Eventer, yes, it is there right to do as they see fit. I stated that I was just irked that it went for less than I thought. That will teach me to think, eh?
Is that what I did? Typo? I was so busy ranting and raving, I didnt check before hitting the submit button. So, to clarify, I ONLY ship USPS, not UPS. (Dang, I get those two mixed up often. Imagine the PO having to deal me all the time saying "Hepburn, we are NOT UPS...we are USPS. You know. YOU ESS PEE ES". Sorry. I think I need a cranberry something spiked.
posted on July 31, 2001 10:17:25 PM
I think what caused me to spill over in ranting about this is because something similar happened to my husband recently. He bought some coins on ebay for 50.00 and the BOOK value of them was 150.00. He asked the seller to insure them for 150.00 and the seller refused. He said he would only insure them for the high bid of 50. My husband then said he would pay the extra for the insurance and the seller still refused. So husband said forget it because they were BOOK value of 150.00 and he bought them, he was paying the insurance and he wanted them for his collection and if they were not to be insured as their BOOK value, forget it. The man said "fine. Forget it". Then this gal emailed me and I couldnt figure out what her mindset was, so I ranted.
Good discussion and I learned something. Thanks for the input
posted on July 31, 2001 10:21:46 PMIMHO this entire thing is about one person wanting to impose their value system on someone else.
I missed this one. I didnt think I was trying to impose on anything or anyone. I ranted about something I couldnt figure out. Something wrong with that? Wrong forum? And what does Quick on the Draw mean? Please enlighten me. For ranting?
posted on July 31, 2001 10:23:32 PM
"Quick on the Draw" refers to another poster here (didn't post to this thread). It's just a play on words, hepburn.
posted on July 31, 2001 10:28:02 PM
Thanks for the explanation katyd. I never come to EO anymore and always hang out in RT when I get the time, so I wasnt sure of what that meant. Anyway, it was a good discussion and I learned more, so it wasnt a complete lost cause.
edited to add that this whole forum is people imposing their views on others, lol. Just look at RT in the political threads...proof is in the pudding
posted on July 31, 2001 10:28:39 PM
I went to the USPS site and looked up insurance and found this:
"Do not insure your packages for more than their value. The amount of insurance coverage for loss will be the actual value, less depreciation. No claim payments are made for sentimental losses or for any expenses incurred as a result of the loss."
Now, how do you apply that to stuff you sell on eBay?
I won an item back in May and the package arrived in one of the USPS' little plactic bags. It had a huge rip in the bubble mailer and of course it was empty. I had paid $76.00 + insurance AND $3.50postage. The seller filed the claim for me. I received a check today for 79.50! I didn't get the cost of the insurance back!!!!
hepburn did you ask her what she would do in the event it didn't arrive? DC will only prove it was mailed. Will she expect you to send her a refund? If she says NO, then I'd let her have it her way. However, from reading this forum for a long time now, I suspect most who "refuse" insurance will turn right around and demand a refund including postage if the item doesn't make it. When I buy OR sell, I make insurance mandantory! I have even emailed seller's before bidding when the ad didn't say anything about insurance being offerred or included in the quoted shipping, just to be sure I could get it. In my auctions I state that shipping includes insurance. No exceptions.
Why? If I'm a seller I have a chance of getting something to refund to the buyer. If I am the buyer, I have a chance to get most of my money back should it be lost, stolen or damaged!
edited for bunches of typo's
[ edited by sulyn1950 on Jul 31, 2001 10:31 PM ]
posted on July 31, 2001 10:32:19 PM
Sulyn, you're lucky you got your postage back on your claim. The cost of the insurance is never refunded, but I've read of others who have gotten their postage back too. I've never been able to get my postage back on any claims I've filed. Only the value of the item.
posted on July 31, 2001 10:34:32 PM
When UPS accidentally delivered a high priced game I sold to the wrong house they immediately paid the claim - of the amount of the auction that they themselves printed off of eBay!
posted on July 31, 2001 10:35:11 PM
sulyn, I have always left it up to the bidder to decide if they want insurance or not. In my confirming bid email, I post what is due, the shipping and where to send it. I also state, underlined, in bold, that "I am not responsible for theft, damages or loss of any item once I ship, so insurance is highly recommended" and leave it at that. They normally email me back and let me know if they want insurance or not (I also give the quotes WITH insurance and WITHOUT).
This gal I was ranting about was not aimed AT her. It was aimed TO her, because she was just the proverbial straw and I couldnt figure out her reasoning. Now I understand it alittle more, and it IS my values imposed on her which is unfair. However, I still dont agree with it. I will always protect my investment for its BOOK value, not what I paid for it. But, to each his/her own.
posted on July 31, 2001 10:38:34 PM
All my sales are final. No refunds, no exchanges. In the 3 years I have been selling, I havent run into a problem with that policy because I describe the item very very well. However, I have made mistakes and when I do, I have them keep the item, and I give a full refund (including shipping and insurance if they paid for it) or, I give them a credit for the same full value. I never ask for the item back, unless it was really pricey for me initially.
posted on July 31, 2001 10:41:26 PM
Hi hepburn! No I know you don't want to hear this . You said --> "I will always protect my investment for its BOOK value, not what I paid for it." That would not be the case on one of my auctions. I would not insure over the final bid amount. If that is a problem, and you bid on eBay frequently, perhaps you should ask the seller ahead of time?
posted on July 31, 2001 10:51:54 PM
Thanks morgantown for welcoming me back. BTW..are going to get katyd her birthday present?
I dont do alot of buying on ebay, myself. But my husband makes a point of asking buyers now before he bids, lol. Lesson learned by him the hard way. (He really wanted those coins for his growing collection. He builds them up, then resells them after a few years).
posted on July 31, 2001 11:38:17 PM
I shipped an insured Priority Mail package earlier this year that really made me panic over the insurance claim.
To begin with, I was shipping liquor bottles. Liquor is illegal to ship by Postal service, HOWEVER, the bottles were very old I could not guarantee the contents that remained was actually liquor.
The buyer paid almost $1000 for these bottles. I had insured them for the amount the buyer paid. Only a couple of the bottles sold on eBay, the rest was a private sale.
The buyers check got lost in the mail, and so did my Priority Mail package. (I trusted the buyer to send the money!)
Needless to say, for almost a month, I waited on pins and needles to see if my package was going to get there. I was dreading making the insurance claim.
After 27 days, my package finally arrived. The buyer reissued a check and sent it Fedex. (The buyer's check was eventually returned to the buyer because the buyer failed to put a complete address and stamps on the envelope!)
Whew! Crisis averted...
But the original question remains: Would the USPS have made good on the insurance claim?
posted on August 1, 2001 07:21:28 PM
This thread is not over yet!
Calling KatyD, hello KatyD!
A scenario for you:
I go to a local auction. Purchase $2000 worth of merchandise [just did!]. On the way home another driver, who had one too many cranberry cocktails, hit and demolished my vehicle including all the auction items [his fault][hypothetical!]. Normally, I can turn $2000 into $6000 eBay sales.
Question:
Is the insurance company going to pay $2000 for the loss [not counting bodily harm or vehicle damage], or will they pay the unrealized $6000.
MTown
[ edited by morgantown on Aug 1, 2001 07:22 PM ]
posted on August 1, 2001 07:45:26 PM
Morgantown (W Va?)
Hmmmm.... How much insurance do you have on your car? You might (according to some) get $20,000 for the merchandise, after all you paid for $20,000 worth of insurance.
But I'd bet you get $2000. And you might have to fight for that.
posted on August 1, 2001 08:18:02 PM
Hi hepburn - You said, "Would I want to insure it for what I won it for, or what the VALUE is on the market? Duh. Where do these people come from?
hehe....well this one comes from AR. I would have asked the same thing your buyer did. Asking for just the delivery confirmation, would prove to me it got mailed. I would not hold you responsible for what happens after it leaves your house.
I look at it this way. The item is now mine and it's my decision (since you gave me the option). I'm willing to take the risk of not insuring, to save myself a little money. I guess we all go by what our experiences have been. I buy a lot on ebay, have for almost 4 years now. So far....touch wood....there has not been one lost/damaged item when I didn't choose to insure it.
When my confort level for loss is reached, I willingly pay for adequate insurance.
posted on August 1, 2001 08:56:08 PM
Now Morgantown,(you little trickster) If the guy who hit you is insured, of course he will need to pay $6000 for the "book value" of the glass. Don't ask me how you will gather up all the shards to prove WHAT they were before you were T-boned in the intersection, heh heh.
IF the other driver was uninsured, it will fall to YOUR insurance company to cover the loss, and of course THIS scenario requires that you provide them your $2000 receipt from the auction, because you want to try to mitigate the rate increase that will come at your next policy renewal due to the claim.
But of course we know that you carry special collectibles insurance covering your business inventory and this is the policy that will cover your loss rather than the car insurance, no?
posted on August 2, 2001 04:34:49 AM
KatyD, I don't know where Morgantown lives, (there is a Morgantown in West Virginia, but...), but some places have "no-fault insurance", and the other guys insurance (or lack of insurance) doesn't matter.
I still think you're wrong. Insurance covers loss, not lack of gain.
Well, we all had fun ranting and raving without you, hepburn. Sorry you missed it! 
I would have asked the same thing your buyer did. Asking for just the delivery confirmation, would prove to me it got mailed. I would not hold you responsible for what happens after it leaves your house.