Question about sellers shipping costs.

[sapphire]

Though not antique related I have a question about sellers shipping costs.  Is it 'normal' for sellers to greatly inflate shipping costs, especially for cross border destinations?

Last night I won a camera.....unfortun ately saw it too late to received an answer to shipping.  Immediately after winning I sent them a message requesting the total.  Received an answer this morning......$29.  This is for a Canon Elph with charger and case.  For those that haven't seen an Elph, it fits in the palm of your hand and the case is a soft sided, foldable one. All in all the weight itself likely doesn't exceed 2 lbs.  Am I being unreasonable thinking this cost is a wee bit high? 

Regardless, I bid and won, therefore am obligated to pay....just thought that there were alternatives such as flat rate boxes.

[ironlord1963]

    What kinda of shipping service did they offer.  The few times I have sent product to canada, I used First class, which is cheap, but not tracking or conformation, bit risky but keeps the shipping cost at bay.  If it is under 64 oz. you can ship to canada for just around $12.00 I think, would have to run the numbers at the online postal site.  If they use a service like International priority, then I goes way up in cost.  The thing I don't like is that paypal through ebay only offers Priority or Express international if you print your labels at home, for First class you have to stand in line at the post office.  I'm a bit curious to see what 2 lbs will cost, and just for giggles I will check.  As for inflated shipping cost, yes many do, I have learned to add that cost to the overall cost of the item before bidding.  Personnally when selling I do add a little to cover my handling and material cost to shipping, but if the buyer writes me before bidding I'm alway willing to work a deal with them. 

[ironlord1963]

Ran the numbers from my location in Seattle.   First Class 2 lbs is $14.45, Prioity is $21.75, and Express is $35.00.   So if they use Priority, then the cost is pretty close, if the whole package is over 2 lbs. then it would be just about the right cost.  Shipping is the deal killer when selling online.  The cost has just went out the roof in my opinion.

[sapphire]

ironlord the only thing they stated when telliing me the cost was USPS Standard.  Hopefully I'll hear back.....seems the small flat rate box runs around $12.....if they want to keep the case (which would have to be folded) to save room I have no problem.  Either way I'll be paying, am just hoping for a little break on getting it here. 

[ironlord1963]

Yea I forgot about the flat rate box.  That would be the best of course in cost. Personnally I never use flat rate boxes.  They are good for items that are somewaht durable.  I mostly ship glassware items.  Flat rate boxes is made of 1/4 cardboard and are really weak.  USPS standard sure sounds like First class, if you get it with a first class label on it, you would have really overpaid on shipping

[talesofthesevenseas]

I agree, the shipping costs can be terrible, especially when dealing with large items like furniture. For those, the shipping often costs more than the item! Shipping within the continental USA through Greyhound seems to be about the cheapest option. I had to pass on some pieces I really liked because the shipping made them too expensive. Most often I use Craigslist for large or heavy items of any kind.

At least with the USPS flat rate boxes, weight doesn't matter and they go by "If it fits, it ships". So they are often a good option for heavy items, but not necessarily for light ones.

[Dean Perdue]

What's their detailed seller rating on shipping & handling charges looking like?

Maybe communicating with him to reach an agreement fitting your situation best and one you would be comfortable with would be worth a try.
Maybe he is adding insurance on the package to cover himself and you.

If he is inflating shipping charges and won't work with you leave him feedback that reflects this and contact eBay.

I would think a seller would be willing to work with their customers to reach a reasonable outcome  that will be good for both parties.

[sapphire]

Well, I finally heard back last night. This is what he/she wrote....."Cheapest price USPS give me is $27. $29 is priority flat rate box" which I'm assuming is for a medium size box plus handling (even though that's rather large for what they're sending).  I have seen other cameras of the same and larger size shipping anywhere from $8 to $15 range, though others are in the low to mid $20's. What made me even more curious was on proceeding to make my payment through PayPal I notice my invoice states UPS $29.  

So it's all paid for and for that price I hope it'll sprout wings and fly here.....considerin g my winning bid was $19 and it's the size of a cigarette package.  It does include a charger and soft case, but holy hannah I still think that's insane!

Dean I really don't know where to find a detailed seller rating so don't have a clue. 

[sapphire]

Oops .....Dean don't mind me, really shouldn't try to read anything when it's late and I'm tired.  I'd forgotten they didn't have a feedback rating yet, hadn't received enough detailed feedback. 

Really I have no one to blame but myself, found the listing about three hours before it was due to close and obviously the seller didn't get my message requesting shipping costs in time for them to reply before it closed.  Based on other's I was watching I figured I'd be safe allowing $18 ish tops.  Boy, was I wrong    Usually much more thorough went 'shopping' but last minute and late night combination was my downfall.

It just rather shook me that someone would charge that amount for something so small and relatively light.  Knowing postal rates on both sides of the border have gone a little screwy this past while accounts for part of it, but pretty sure there is a less expensive way to ship.

At least when it's finally arrives the mystery of USPS vs. UPS delivery will be solved.

[Dean Perdue]

Where is the item shipping from Sapphire?

Until you get your item and find out exactly what services this seller is gouging you for it's just a guessing game,but as a seller I'd be worried about my customer's feeling cheated.

Here are a few eBay links that have info on the limitations a seller should be within on shipping but it doesn't seem to hold much weight unless eBay is contacted (I don't think eBay does to good of a job on policing this without complaint).

http://pages.ebay.com/help/sell/maximum_shipping.html

http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/selling-practices.html

I can see a couple extra bucks to cover shipping materials and time involved but I think that this sellers charges are downright unreasonable or they just are not too worried about looking out for the best intrest for you the buyer.Hopefully they won't be too worried about negative feedback either.

If you find out these charges are way out of line, have you decided on what to do?

I guess I can see your point that you commited and should of looked closer at the charges before bidding, but does this give a seller the right to break rules (if they did) to take advantage of their customers.

Amazing the mix of truly good and truly bad that's out there.Guess it creates perfect balance though.

Please let us know more details when available and hope you can make this right.

[waywardangler]

I am late to this but sapphire is in Canada I believe and I assume the seller was in the US.  Looking online I see a Priority Flate rate box to Canada for up to 20 lbs at $26.95 and a small flate rate to Canada box for up to 4 lbs for $11.95.  Maybe they had their thumb on the scale when they weighed the Elph?

[sapphire]

Dean it's coming from Pennsylvania to Nova Scotia. I'm curious too to see exactly where the charges came from.  He states in his emails USPS, yet the invoice on PayPal states UPS........just waiting to see if I get hit with custom/brokerage fees and the like.  If I do, then I may have a few words to say as that would be totally unnecessary considering the options.  Otherwise I'll just suck it up as I was the one who didn't have all the info before bidding.

Will let you know how this turns out.

wayward, we'll see if that was a thumb ....... or a middle finger.

[waywardangler]

Yes, yes, sapphire, I forgot that the middle finger carries more weight than the thumb! 

[fancypants]

I've seen stuff (point-of-sale) on Ebay from 'asian' countries , esp China , with "buy it now" prices from $20 - $100 USD (and with starting bids @ the sub-$10 level) .
Many of these have shipping rates that are around $100 , some that even exceed that .

I don't have any issues with a seller charging reasonable prices for shipping/packing & insurance (which is often a fixed-rate that the seller/buyer has no control of) , but when I see excessive shipping costs I'll just pass on the item (and the seller) .

I feel that those who charge excess rates are simply pocketing the obvious diff .

[sapphire]

Argghhhh........... ..think I'll send a polite query to the seller to see if he can explain how this turned into $29