posted on August 31, 2001 12:24:57 PM
I don't understand why, but this month I've had 3 buyers pay me to insure their items when their high bid has totaled $2.00 and under. (I've been trying out packer's theory and starting my bids low, so some do go that low, but others make up for it. )
This is not an inconvenience for me since I go to the post office and stand in line anyway. But I do not even mention insurance in my auction ads. I do not have any sort of disclaimer about not being responsible if they don't purchase insurance, blah, blah, blah... And I don't mention insurance in my EOA notices either.
I even have a money-back guarantee statement in my auctions which is supposed to make potential bidders more confident.
Maybe these buyers have been burned before, I don't know. But I think it's costing them a ridiculous amount relative to the total cost, since the shipping is also only a couple of bucks. They're adding almost 30% to their total by insisting on insurance! And it's totally unnecessary when doing business with me.
But, they pay for it, they get it...
Anyone else have buyers paying for insurance on such low-dollar items without being asked to pay for it?
posted on August 31, 2001 12:57:31 PM
Yes, I have a had a few of these lately. I usually send the extra money back with the item and tell them that I guarantee the delivery on my items.
I also buy and am seeing way too many sellers refusing to take responsibility if an item is lost in shipping. I will not bid on these auctions, just hit the back button and wait to find the item another time.
posted on August 31, 2001 01:01:42 PM
I'm one of those many bidders who offer insurance at the customer's request. But no, I am not responsible for what the USPS does with the item after I've done my part.
It's not hurt so far.
Most buyers expect to pay for insurance if they want it.
posted on August 31, 2001 06:04:14 PM
i know there is a low insurance limit for registered mail going to hong kong,something like 67 dollars,i think it has to do with fraud.
i have a book buyer one time from hong kong who asked me to insure a 35 books for 150 which i refused.
with higher priced items,buyer could have an indentical piece at home which may not be in good resalable condition,so they are playing a game.
why does anyone want to pay 1.10 for insuring 2.00 item is beyond me?
some seller always report on the green slip insured for 50,no matter what the actual purchase price is.
posted on August 31, 2001 07:21:32 PM
I don't know why some sellers would insure a $2.00 item for $50.00. I know it's still $1.10, but if a claim would have to be filed, I certainly wouldn't say the buyer had paid more than the $2.00 they'd paid.
Personally, if the buyer pays for insurance I feel bound to insure it, regardless of whether I agree with their decision or not. Sure, it might seem nice to return the $1.10 with the shipment, but I think it's running a risk that the buyer might get mad because they asked for the insurance and didn't get it. Who knows?
And when these payments are beamed, I've already been charged the credit card fee based on their total payment amount. That also doesn't make me inclined to refund money I never asked them to send in the first place.
I could even understand if they wanted the package tracked, but you don't get a tracking number with $1.10 worth of insurance.
Oh well, a mystery that will go unsolved...
Unless there are any buyers lurking who can give us a buyer's perspective on insuring such low-dollar shipments?
posted on September 2, 2001 04:17:29 AM
I always guarantee delivery or send a replacement or refund. I insure all packages costing more than $15 and self insure the inexpensive ones. I use u-pic.com for private insurance at 40 cents per hundred dollar value when coupled with delivery confirmation. Otherwise it costs me 60 cents per $100. The cost savings is nice, but the time savings is considerable which is the main reason I use it.
posted on September 2, 2001 05:21:31 AM
I almost never get an insurance request. Frankly to insure something under $50 is a waste of time. My mental limit is $100--then if something does go wrong, it's worthwhile to hassle through the claim paperwork.
So far I have never had anything lost or damaged that I've sent in over 1,000 items.
posted on September 2, 2001 05:34:45 AM
In my auctions I say:
MONEY BACK GUARANTEE
You will receive your merchandise as advertised or your money back.
I could still understand someone wanting insurance for a higher dollar sale, though they'd get their money back much faster from me.
Either they don't read, or they don't believe it, one of the two. Or they don't understand that merchandise as advertised doesn't just mean a mistake in the auction description. After all, if it's lost or damaged, then it's not exactly received as advertised, is it?
Maybe some buyers routinely insure all their packages, but I agree with mballai. Under a certain amount, and it just isn't good economic sense.
posted on September 2, 2001 07:34:00 AM
Sometimes sellers are embarrassed @ telling the p.o. they want insurance on something with $2 value.
When I sold ballcards, I insured the cards for bookvalue instead of what the card sold for. If the card was booking for less than ten dollars, I didn't insure them.
I have the same policy, but don't mention it in my auction listings (only that I give full refunds if an item is described incorrectly). My theory has been that stating this up front might attract fraudsters hoping to get a free item by claiming non-delivery.
So I'm curious: What type of item do you sell, and how many claims of non-delivery do you get?
posted on September 2, 2001 12:37:19 PM
Actually, I sell mostly books.
I've been branching out into phone cards once in awhile and am looking into other things. Once in awhile audiobooks, CD's, and the like.
But the problems with claims of non-delivery usually occur with the items that go Media Mail. And generally, when I tell them to give it another week, I get an email a couple of days later that the item just showed up. So I've never actually had to refund for any "lost" packages.
I don't honestly think my posted guarantee leads to these claims. I think it's just that many buyers don't realize that Media Mail doesn't get there that quickly sometimes. Now I'm posting the approximate delivery times in my ads and EOA notices to forwarn the buyers.
Oh, and I'm not really embarrassed when I tell the PO to insure such small amounts. They know me and they know it's the buyer's request, not mine. And they think it's senseless also to insure for those amounts but they'll gladly take the money.
posted on September 2, 2001 12:57:06 PM
I think of insurance and dc mainly as receipts and proof that I've shipped. As a buyer, I usually request insurance because the things I buy are "one of a kind." I don't think I'd insure an item under $5.00.
The proof of mailing comes in handy sometimes. I just had a situation where the buyer (who'd paid for insurance) was emailing me daily because his media mail item wasn't there yet. On the third day I attached a copy of the green insurance form to my reply email - he calmed down until he got his item.
posted on September 2, 2001 02:32:44 PM
I've had the same experience with media mail, even though my "I've shipped" notice tells then one to two (sometimes three) weeks. I handle the impatient inquiries same as you do, tell them I guarantee safe arrival & ask them to wait a week.
Out of about 2000 eBay sales, I've paid out once on an item that didn't arrive (ironically, priority mail). Two weeks after I sent the refund (six weeks after mailing) the book showed up, and the buyer refunded my refund.
If a buyer mentions insurance before they pay, I tell them I guarantee safe arrival on items under $50 and provide free insurance if the item is over $50. (If I expected the $50 price, I've already built the cost into my S&H; if it's a surprise, I'm happy to splurge on insurance.)
Twice, I think, a buyer has still insisted on USPS insurance despite my guarantee. One said his apartment bldg had a problem with package theft, and the PO would hold insured packages for his signature rather than delivering them. The other had had problems collecting from other sellers on non-arriving items, and didn't trust my guarantee.
If the buyer doesn't ask, but just adds $1.10, I honor their redundant request and buy the insurance. Figure it's the penalty for not asking first.
posted on September 2, 2001 06:22:41 PM
I agree that DC and insurance do provide proof of mailing, among other choices the PO offers. Maybe that's why they want it then, but the DC would be much cheaper, but maybe it's not so well known among buyers as insurance.
I get an itemized dated receipt from my post office that shows the city, state, zip, and postage cost for each package I shipped that day. The only extra that's provided on the insurance slip is the cost of the item. So if my buyers want proof that I shipped, I already have it and it doesn't cost them a dime extra. But unless they ship packages often themselves, they wouldn't know that either.
posted on September 3, 2001 12:59:06 AM OK, I know you guys are going to hate me for this, and I'm preparing my shield now--but I charge a $2 handling fee if a buyer wants to insure something he/she won for under $20 .
(That's in addition to the USPS's $1.10, of course.) Like mballai says, it's a waste of my time and the bidder's money to insure small amounts. I've sold over 800 items and only had one lost and one damaged. Going to the Post Office is not something I like to do very often. In my neighborhood it usually means a 30 minute investment in time (drive there, parking, standing in line, transaction, exiting). OK, you can start throwing darts now!
posted on September 3, 2001 04:52:08 AM
In a situation like belalug3 presents, I can see where it would add an extra inconvenience to the seller. So far, it's not an inconvenience to me, since I'm 5 minutes from the PO and even when the line is unusually long, my max wait time has been 15 minutes.
But I guess if you use online postage, stick the stamps on yourself, get a pick-up, etc, so you don't actually have to stand in a line, it does create a bit more of a problem, doesn't it?
I wonder if a short sentence added to the TOS for those types of situations would help prevent this. Something to the effect of I will not insure packages with a winning bid of less than (fill in your own comfort zone amount here).
posted on September 3, 2001 09:30:38 AM
To BJGrolle: Thanks for a great post; I'm glad someone finally asked this important question. Your suggestion of just refusing to insure certain paltry amounts--that's something I refuse to do. If someone is silly enough to want to insure a $5 item, I'll do it if they pay me for my time.
To
Sadie999: Yes Sadie, I do clearly state my insurance handling fee ($2 for items won for under $20) upfront in my TOS. And yes, I would still refund their $$ if an uninsured item was lost in mail (but like BJGrolle, I don't advertise this for obvious reasons). Let's face it: Paying 30% for insurance, with such a small risk factor, is ludicrous! I'm glad my buyers pause and think twice before they tack it on.
)
OK, I know you guys are going to hate me for this, and I'm preparing my shield now--but I charge a $2 handling fee if a buyer wants to insure something he/she won for under $20 
