posted on September 8, 1999 09:53:09 PM new
I was high bidder on cotton shirt and short set for a baby. High bid was $3.00. In contact, I was told to send $4.50 for shipping. The shipping outweighed what the outfit was worth and I sent her an example of an on-going auction for a heavy shirt and pants that was to be shipped for $2 and a 5lb book for $5. So now I'm in a dilemma because she obviously doesn't want to send it for less. I'm sure I will get negative feedback about this but the shipping stopped me in my tracks. It's less than 3 ounces. What to do, what to do?
posted on September 8, 1999 10:24:39 PM new
She did post shipping charges BUT who would have thought the outfit would sell for $3? I didn't! At the same time, her latest auction is for 8 pairs of pants and matching shirts and the cost to ship is only $5. So how can she take an infant outfit that weighs less than 16 pieces of clothing and come out with $4.50 when I proved to her it's only $2? This is a designer outfit, btw so I thought bidding would go past $12.
posted on September 8, 1999 11:01:39 PM new
I am not following your thoughts. You thought it would be 12.00 but it is 7.50 so you must be getting a bad deal?
This is not an occassion to perform mathematic proofs. There is no analysis of delivery cost necessary. It is a reading opportunity. Read what she posted the shipping charges to be, add that to the final winning bid amount, send her payment.
---
*The Whip Itself*
posted on September 8, 1999 11:58:15 PM new
Reading opportunity? The item questioned was $3. That is the VALUE of the item. The postal service DOES NOT charge $4.50 to send something under 3 oz. I prefer not to give my money away. I'm sorry you feel $4.50 in shipping is such a small expense. I'd rather have a 5lb. book shipped which is only $3, btw.
posted on September 9, 1999 07:58:25 AM new
If you thought the outfit would go past $12, but it sold at $3, paying a total of $7.50 seems like a huge bargain to me. If she is insuring the package and using priority mail, it will cost her $4.05 to ship it. That is only .35 cents over her actual cost. Some sellers, myself included find it much easier to use Priority Mail to ship stuff. Chances are the item is already packaged and ready to ship using Priority. Would you be happier if the price had gone over $10 and the shipping was still $4.50? Sounds to me like you got a good deal. In the immortal words of Ann Landers, quitchurbellyaching.
posted on September 9, 1999 10:57:24 AM new
If the auction stated that the shipping price was $4.50, then thats the shipping price. You agreed to it regardless of what the item sold for.
While it isn't too nice of them to charge so much, you *did* agree to it and I guarantee it would hold up in a court of law.
M
(not melissaj @ eBay)
posted on September 9, 1999 11:09:53 AM new
For it to hold up in a court of law she had better be quoting the UPS or the US Post Office shipping rates and NOT a "guess". Otherwise, it WILL NOT hold up in a court of law if that is NOT what it costs to ship. AND if my package were to arrive with only a $2 shipment cost, who fudged the postal service; me or her?
To "agree" is a binder but when I was told I won and the price I won at she immediately was given examples of what it actually costs to send. Thankfully, today she wrote me and told me that she understood.
posted on September 9, 1999 11:34:10 AM new
I took the liberty of hunting this transaction down, hopefully I got the right one. To quote the seller:
"If you have any questions, please email me before placing your bid. Winning bidder to pay by check (personal checks will take 10 days to clear) or money order plus $4.50 s&h (and insurance if desired) to be received within 10 days of auction close"
She charged you for shipping and HANDLING. Handling is the packaging and the work involved in packaging the item, NOT the absolute shipping price.
To avoid this in the future, I suggest you ask the seller if they can knock down the shipping price before you place a bid. I sell a quite a few things on ebay and this is a common occurance for me, to have buyers ask if I can knock down the shipping price. Usually I agree, but sometimes when the package is already wrapped and ready to go, I have to say no.
Its nice of her to let you slide, but in the future, don't expect it from all sellers.
Since we like to say that we went to UofD, here is my schooling list:
Schooling List:
Yale Law School, 1978
Stevens Tech, 1994
Parsons, 1987
SVA, 1998
(In other words, no one really cares where you went to school.)
posted on September 9, 1999 11:58:43 AM new
I guess I will have to read more closely before buying children's clothing from now on as I don't believe people who do not sell in massive quantities should charge for handling.
I also have plans on selling on e-bay at some point but I can tell you that if I have to hike my butt up to the PO after the dang thing is wrapped and personally have it weighed, I'll do that rather than OVER charge or use a computer to guess shipping charges. It's not as if the woman is doing massive handling or selling, either.
Btw, I quoted my school of law because your information was incorrect. It was not put there to impress.
posted on September 9, 1999 12:36:54 PM new
First, my apologies for being a bit nasty. Its been one of those days and my law career is long gone, left it for arts sake.
So anyway, in a way, I agree, in another, I don't. Its rough, as I can see both points of view.
I can see how a buyer can be upset, especially if well overcharged as you were. I do agree that 4.50 was way too much!
If the item is something simple to pack, then getting zonked with a handling fee doesn't sit right with me either..
BUT, I can see some sellers points in the handling charge. This is overhead to them. If they sell low priced items, then the extra packaging, like bubble wrap and so-forth cuts into their already minute profits. Some items can take a while to be packed, like porcelain, etc. Or maybe they have to drive 50 miles to the post office. Luckily, we don't have this problem, as I would guess your from Jersey and I am in NYC.
This little bit of overhead, at the end of the year, can realy add up.
On some things I do charge a handling fee, but ONLY if they are a major pain in the arse to pack.
On other things, I charge the actual shipping cost. I also ask if the buyer would like Book Rate or Priority and give them a bit of a choice. (I mainly sell antique books)
I should also mention that I have two local kids who pack part time for me and still try to maintain 'actual' shipping despite the extra overhead.
Here is a great example of being overcharged (as taken from the NY Times a year or so ago): The typical PROFIT the Chrysler makes on each minivan they sell is $10,000.00. Again, this is *pure* profit, after employees have been paid and so on. They will then tack on a 'destination charge' when you order a new vehicle.
Now this, to me, is robbery.
I can't stress enough that you should read every part of a persons auction, cause there just may be something in there that will snag you real good, like with the item that you won. Some sellers would just go *ballistic* if you asked them to drop their shipping price after you win or even bid.
When you do start selling, do yourself a huge favor and grab a baby scale or something from a garage sale and weigh your items (with the packaging on the scale too!) - then head to www.usps.gov and see what the shipping will cost. They are very accurate and have never steered me wrong with a shipping price. Well, except when my scale was out of whack, but that was my own problem.
posted on September 9, 1999 12:52:15 PM new
No problem, Melissa. I graduated from law school and then went to the Center for Creative Studies. Like you, I HATE LAW and I would make a terrible attorney as I do not have the killer instinct (unless you're coming after my money). And let's not go on about Chrsyler. I wept when I read their profit scale on minivans (I have two; one very old, and one new).
I am in a crappy mood lately also as I have recently returned from Seaside Hts., NJ and am back home (I am a displaced New Jerseyian living in MI) after many hours of driving and two screaming kids.
Art is MUCH better than law, isn't it? No STRESS!! (well, sort of anyway).
I have a baby scale and I can still remember what all the poundage is from lugging my kids around. Still, hopefully when I get to the point of selling, I want to be completely honest about it and make a profit on the items I sell and NOT overcharge on shipping. That's how I would like to be treated and so far, this was the only bump. Most ask HOW I want it sent and I prefer the cheapest route (except with china).
I'm sure something else will pop up and I'll be snapping about something or other here.
