posted on July 12, 2001 10:22:24 AM new
A seller charges $5 for shipping and it arrives postmarked .76 cents. This drives me crazy! What to do?
To answer a few questions:
Yes...I agreed to pay USPS priority shipping and insurance. So I guess that's why it seems crazy to me. I sell 100 items a month and charge my customers exact shipping. Boxes are free from USPS and the item didn't require any bubble wrap or special packaging. So when I buy, I expect the package to be delivered as stated. This is the 3rd time this has happened.
[ edited by AuctionPulse on Jul 12, 2001 05:36 PM ]
posted on July 12, 2001 10:26:38 AM new
I'd just be glad I got the item in good shape and move on...That does seem high, but you did agree to pay it. I hate high shipping too, but I just don't bid if I don't want to pay the shipping price.
posted on July 12, 2001 10:32:50 AM new
Was it SHIPPING *AND* HANDLING?
If so, then you have NO gripe whatsoever. Technically speaking, if it was just SHIPPING, you'd have no gripe. Because shipping is the costs associated with getting it from the seller to the buyer. If the buyer does not live in the Post Office or UPS Site, then there are real costs getting it from their location TO one of those sites.
$5 was what they charged to get it to you. You agreed to pay it.
Watch TV. All those places charge you $19.95 S&H to get the Popeil's Pocket Fisherman to you -- do they base it on what it will actually cost them? Of course not. But you agree because that's what they are charging.
posted on July 12, 2001 10:33:00 AM new
While $5 does seem high, it all depends.
The cost of business is expensive, if you paid with paypal, and it is a $20 item, it cost the seller about $2.50 to sell the item on-line. Those costs usually (not always, but usually) get made up in the handling costs, which of course you agreed to pay when you bid. Add $1.10 for insurance and 76 cents for shipping (now it would cost 80) and that already is about $4.40 - It is not far off from $5
Now, if the seller said something like "Buyer pays $5 exact shipping" then you have a point of contention.
posted on July 12, 2001 10:51:24 AM new
I have really never understood why so many people seem to "compulse" over "shipping".
If a price is quoted in the auction. You decide if it's what your are willing to pay.
If a price is not quoted in the auction, you can email to ask what it will be. Then you can decide if it is what you are willing to pay.
If a price is not quoted in the auction, and you don't get a response to your email with a quote, then you have the option to take the gamble or not bid.
Once, you have decided on what you are willing to pay in shipping, it should not matter what the postage on the package says. You have already agreed to it.
If it is a real issue with you, then you need to ask more questions of the seller before placing your bid.
You could ask exactly what method they use to ship.
You could ask exactly what is included in their shipping cost.
You could ask exactly how they pack it and the cost of the materials to do so.
You could ask them exactly how they arrive at the cost and request a breakdown or itemization of the expenses.....
The list goes on and on.
Bottom line, if the price you pay for the item and the shipping price you pay is something you have agreed on....you really should not complain.
Is there any wonder some seller now have TOS 4 times longer than the description of the product?
I have personally never made a "bad" buy on an auction. Even in the case where the shipping was actually more than the item! I was not upset. I was pleased to have made such a good deal!!!!!
edited for UBB
[ edited by sulyn1950 on Jul 12, 2001 10:54 AM ]
posted on July 12, 2001 02:20:01 PM new
How do you expect the seller to make money off that $1.00 auction except on shipping? although lately sellers aren't even doing that,their just selling their stuff for $1 to $3 and paying all the fees. I wonder if thats why you can't make money on the stuff you use to do well with on E-Bay. People have killed the prices on E-Bay starting everything at a $1.00.
posted on July 12, 2001 05:18:06 PM new
This is such a touchy subject in here. I agree with auctionpulse. If the seller needed to charge an extra $4.25 for handling, then they need to find a new supplier for boxes and maybe do a bulk mailing 1-2X week. If my costs ever sink so low that I have to start doubling/tripling or quadrupling my shipping fees to come out on top, then it's time for me to quit.
posted on July 12, 2001 05:18:44 PM new
Yes...I agreed to pay USPS priority shipping and insurance. So I guess that's why it seems crazy to me. I sell 100 items a month and charge my customers exact shipping. Boxes are free from USPS and the item didn't require any bubble wrap or special packaging. So when I buy, I expect the package to be delivered as stated. This is the 3rd time this has happened.
[ edited by AuctionPulse on Jul 12, 2001 05:28 PM ]
[ edited by AuctionPulse on Jul 12, 2001 05:33 PM ]
posted on July 12, 2001 05:31:05 PM new
Well, if you want to feel better about that...I once won an auction which dictated I pay $12 for shipping. I received the item and the ACTUAL ship cost was $4.30. No packing materials, just the original mfr box and a mailing label. My bad! So I just had to accept it, but that made me more cognizant in future dealings (not with THAT seller!!) of what I would pay for shipping. I absolutely understand there being consideration for handling (i.e. shipping supplies, etc...), but that was too much!
[ edited by Triggerfish on Jul 12, 2001 05:32 PM ]
posted on July 12, 2001 09:05:18 PM new
Kewl!! We haven't had this topic come up in at least 2-3 days ...
Did the seller say he would send it Priority Mail? Or did he just say buyer pays $5 for S&H?
I agree that it is slippery of people to say and do things like this. Obviously you would not do it yourself, and I personally wouldn't either ... but... you should never assume anything! Your idea of how people "should" run their auctions is just that - your idea and other people will have different ideas as to what is acceptable, and what they feel they can get away with and still face themselves in the mirror every morning.
Certainly, if you are the type that will get perturbed if you pay $5.00 and get a package stamped $0.76, then you should carefully inspect your auctions for the weasel words and ask first to nip it in the bud!
I personally follow the pattern of the others, and I look at total paid and whether it was a good deal or not. You have so many people now who offer $0.01 item and $9.99 shipping, that this is really the only sensible way.
posted on July 12, 2001 09:10:58 PM new
Sounds to me like the agreement was for PRIORITY mail, and it did NOT come priority mail! (Not for .76 anyway!) I hate it when they say they will ship it priority, I pay for priority, and I get it by slow boat to China!
posted on July 12, 2001 10:12:34 PM new
What is all of the discussion about Handling? AuctionPulse said that they agreed to Priority and Insurance as stated in the auction. He/She received it first class mail.
This isn't a matter of if the seller was charging to cover packaging, it is a matter that the seller did not ship by the agreed upon method and owes AuctionPulse $4.24 for the wrong method of shipping.
If you say you'll ship by one method and charge for that method, then ship that way.
posted on July 12, 2001 10:19:58 PM new
IF the TOS said "priority shipping" or the seller stated "in writing" that the shipping would be priority, then shipped by some other method, then AuctionPulse has every reason to be angry & leave a neg if they so desire.
However, if the TOS didn't STATE the type of shipping, nor did the seller state it in writing, but AuctionPulse ASSUMED it would be priority, then the really don't have a valid complaint against the seller.
posted on July 12, 2001 11:08:43 PM new
I agree with Micheneraddict. It was stated on the auction that is was to be shipped Priority.
I still left the seller positive feedback...because the item was as described and he did complete the transaction promptly. But I did let the community known about his shipping practices.
Thanks for all of your great feedback. I am new to the boards and I am having a ball!
posted on July 13, 2001 02:08:06 AM new
IF the seller stated Priority mail, then you should ask for a refund of $3.50 less 76 cents.
On the other hand, I will never understand why it's ok for everyone on the planet to charge $5+ for shipping things like cd's, etc. - EXCEPT eBay sellers. We're supposed to ship for nothing.
Also (just another small rant) - when you buy from a "Big retailer" and they say they'll ship within 5 business days or "4-6 weeks," this is also ok, but let someone PayPal an eBay seller, and drop everything! That baby's gotta ship!
You know what mail order offers? Products, yes. But also the convenience of getting it delivered to your home without you having to get in the car, etc. Often you save sales tax also.
So, as always, if you don't like a seller's shipping, don't bid. If the seller doesn't state shipping, ask. Once you've done that and paid - do not whine.
posted on July 13, 2001 05:12:27 AM newauctionpulse, sure, if he said he'd ship priority and didn't, you're justified in being upset.
On my first read of it, it seemed that you were charged $5 and assumed it would be on priority mail. That is a valid and reasonable assumption to make, but as we all know too well from reading this board ... .....
My first one of those, she charged $3.20 for "shipping" and $0.85 for "insurance" (this was back when PM and insurance were exactly those rates) and got a $0.55 postage on the package. I sent her a long nastygram and she responded that she did not say it would be PM and she did not say it would be USPS insurance (she self insured and charged everyone $0.85 and simply kept it), and she saw no reason why I would have assumed that.
I this as a slimy used car salesman tactic, but she viewed this practice as completely acceptable, and said if I didn't ask then I was bound by her terms. And this was a 200+ feedback seller.
posted on July 13, 2001 10:06:52 AM new
I now post $5 flat rate shipping and handling. Period.
If it's going to be Priority Mail, then I state that it includes Priority Mail.
For the most part, I send Priority because it's easier -- boxes are free, etc. However, I don't always (books are sent Media Mail because they are so heavy).
Anyway, if someone says $3.20 (or now $3.50) and doesn't state Priority, it is unwise for someone to make that assumption.
[ edited by sulyn1950 on Jul 12, 2001 10:54 AM ]
