posted on February 8, 2009 08:02:50 PM new
Question for you. My flat shipping is stated as Cont. 48 US States only via FedEx ground. Bidder wins and is from Hawaii. Do I have to sell it to him? MY shipping is flat and stated as FedEx ground only in several places. I can't send this for the price I stated in the auction and beside that, my TOS is as stated. What do you think?
posted on February 8, 2009 10:15:22 PM new
Buyer should have asked for a quote before bidding. You are not obligated to complete this transaction.
I have a similar disclaimer in listings that I ship FedEx but I also add that buyers in Hawaii and Alaska should contact me for a Parcel Post rate guote.
People in Hawaii and Alaska already know that FedEx Ground is not a delivery option.
If you did want to complete the sale, I would suggest you send them an email with aan explaination about available shipping options. You can also cut them off at the pass before they send you a PayPal payment by sending an ebay invoice with the Parcel Post rate or Priority Mail rate in the shipping field.
posted on February 8, 2009 10:18:58 PM new
PS, Continental 48 may not CYA since technically Alaska is part of the North American continent. I use the term contiguous just incase some one wants to get picky about my shipping terms.
posted on February 9, 2009 04:59:47 PM new
People should understand that "Continental 48 states" doesn't include Alaska, because if it included Alaska, then it would be the "Continental 49 states".
posted on February 9, 2009 05:35:25 PM new
My guess is the person in Hawaii already knows that it's going to cost him/her more to get it to Hawaii. Why not go to the USPS site and figure out how much to ship it there and then send an adjusted bill. You will find that Hawaii bidders are very good customers.
posted on February 9, 2009 05:39:57 PM new
I understand your logic Sthoemke and also know that a majority of "reasonable" people would assume the same but "Continental 48" has not been a correct statement since 1959.
Unfortunatley there are still a few buyers out there who seem to enjoy making sellers jump through hoops because some such insignificant loophole was found in a listing.
Or as with the case for Romantique they won't bother to read your fine print at all and then will yell foul because you won't give them the same shipping costs as you give everyone else.
I have several different saved statements that I use when shipping FedEx Ground. One is for the items that tend to draw more intelligent buyers:
This item is shipped FedEx Ground.
Shipping Restrictions apply if your delivery address is a PO Box, APO/FPO, Hawaii, Alaska, Puerto Rico or Canada. These areas are not served by FedEx Ground. Please contact me for a rate quote for an alternate delivery method to your area.
For the listings that I suspect will bring in the problem buyers, I spell it out in a little more detail:
The Shipping Rate shown on this listing is for FedEx Ground delivery. FedEx Ground delivery is only available for physical street addresses in the lower 48 states.
If your delivery address is a PO Box, APO/FPO, Hawaii, Alaska, Puerto Rico or Canada this item cannot be shipped FedEx Ground. We can provide an alternate means of delivery but your shipping costs will be higher. Please contact me before purchasing this item. I will need your complete delivery address to provide a shipping quote.
posted on February 9, 2009 06:58:04 PM new
As always...Thanks for all your input. I lucked out with this buyer. By the time I finished typing my question to you here, he had sent me an ebay message saying he was sorry that he didn't read one single word of the fine print because he got caught up in the excitement of finding something he'd been wanting for some time and placed that last minute bid.
After he won he realized shipping would be much more but hoped I would be willing to invoice him the corrected amount for a priority mail delivery and would be able to send it after all.
It was over 30.00 shipping which made me cringe, but, he's happy as a clam...it's paid for.. and on its way. I'm a happy camper too, but I was really bracing for a whole different scenario.
posted on February 9, 2009 08:59:43 PM new
Glad it worked out for you Romantiques.
Our daughter is stationed in Hawaii and does most of her shopping online because there are many things she cannot buy on the island. Most of the online retailers will only ship FedEx Air so shipping costs can be prohibitive. She gladly pays Priority Mail rates when she can find a seller willing to work with her.
For sites that do not ship to HI, she often has things shipped to us and then I forward them to her via Priority Mail.
