eBay automatically up sizing packages for combined sales.
I’ve just sold two magazines on eBay under two separate Buy It Now listings to the same buyer. Even though both listings were set up with Large Letter postage, eBay has automatically changed the package size to Small Parcel and won’t let me switch it back.
Is this normal behaviour now, or is there a way to stop eBay from forcing a Small Parcel label when the items still fit Large Letter?
8 comments
johannadee
·3 days agoThis happened to me this weekend. Buyer bought and paid for one item including £2.72 Large Letter postage. An hour later same buyer bought and paid for another item, eBay combined postage and charged buyer 55p postage to upgrade to Small Parcel (not really necessary for the size, but heyho). So far, so good. Then buyer asks to cancel first item and I accept the cancellation request. Buyer receives full refund for that item, including £2.72 postage. And today I posted his second item, for which he has paid 55p postage for Tracked 48 Large Letter, a saving of 80%! I am sure that eBay did not foresee this, but the opportunity for misuse is clear.
sml192
·3 days ago · EditedEbay are just so good at programming things! Even the additional 55p to upgrade from Large Letter to Small Parcel doesn't make much sense as that makes £3.27 in total when the price for a Small Parcel is £3.38 (assuming you have opted out of Evri).
Edit: Actually looks like the £2.72 is including VAT and the 55p is excluding the VAT, which would then make it £3.38 in total meaning they have actually got that bit right.
jonatjonatjonat
·4 days agoThe two listings were sold with Simple Delivery - so ebay just provides the label it deems suitable for the listing.
It doesn't really matter what you have received given the customer has paid ebay for the label, and they've supplied the label to you. It's ebays money on this one at the end of the day!
vernonhouseclearing
OP3 days agoWhile it may not affect me financially, it does bother me that buyers end up being shafted and pay more postage than necessary. Both magazines could have gone as a Large Letter, but once eBay combined the purchases it forced a Small Parcel and removed that option.
jonatjonatjonat
·3 days agoThe buyer was presented the price of postage and was happy to pay it. They could have combined into one order but still chose not to.
vernonhouseclearing
OP3 days agoGoing along with something doesn’t mean they’re happy with it - they've just accepted it.
If they’d put both magazines in the basket and checked out together why would eBay then think that was a large letter and not upsize to a parcel?
jonatjonatjonat
·3 days agoProbably wouldn’t but they wouldn’t have been charged twice, it would have at least recalculated the postage for the combined order.
vernonhouseclearing
OP3 days agoI think they must have done that as it was an additional 55 pence for the second magazine that took the total p&p to £3.38 which is the price for a small parcel.
They were both sent in the same Large Letter though.