Getting a bit sick of this over charged postage.

[gogetafix]

The last few months I've been buying from ebay quite frequenty. On some small items I've bought the postage has been set on the listing at £3.20 (Second Class Small Parcel). When the items arrive they have been sent as a Large Letter for £0.96p. I do know that postage includes packing as well. The latest parcel that I had arrive was just a very cheap jiffy bag. No extra bubble wrap or anything. So not a lot of cost with the packing. 20p at most.
Knowing these boards I know some my cry "Well you were happy to pay the postage price" and yes this is true I was happy to pay the postage price because I presumed it would be sent as a small parcel. The items I buy aren't that flat so I presume they would be over 2.5cms in depth. Perhaps the sellers thinks the item will have to sent as a small parcel hence the £3.20 Second Class postage price. 
When these sellers post their parcels and find out it can be sent as a Large Letter and pay for that service they pocket that difference in cost and don't bother sending their buyer a message and say it was sent as a Large Letter and not a Small Parcel so here's a small refund. These people must think their buyers are stupid. 
I also know these sellers have fees to pay but keeping the cost of postage that wasn't paid is all a bit of a con in my opinion. If it were me I'd partially refund the buyer. 

[naughty_neena]

Sorry that dont compute.

Buyer buys item. Total including postage = £10 

Buyer buys item. Total with free postage = £15

[lisac-2009]

It annoys me as a seller when buyers criticise they paid a bit more for postage than on the post office label.  Well it costs money to buy Jiffy bags & packaging, not to mention driving to the post office.  Once you take into account all the fees when selling small items for a few pounds it's hardly worth all the time and effort.   Plus the postage costs are clearly stated on the listing so it's very transparent.  For example if I sell an item of childrens clothing for £3 and charge the exact postage cost, by the time I've paid for packaging, final value fees and driven to the post office I might as well have chucked the item in the bin! 

[iluvneighbours]

Tgat seems to be the case. I recently contacted a seller to ask about a £9.50 postage charge for a pair of shoes as the charge seemed out of line with P&P in their other listings. They appreciate me contacting them and said that the postage cost came up when they listed their item and they hadn't noticed it. They reduced the charge.

[iluvneighbours]

What annoys me is sellers packaging items inadequately in a thin envelope, brown paper or a thin carrier bag. Although nothing has been lost packaging has got torn in transit and RM has even put the package in one of their clear bags with a note about the damage.

I've been selling on eBay since 2004 and in the earlier days RM had so many different price bands by weight it was really easy to get it wrong.  Nowadays it is much easier.  I have always issued a partial refund for any difference.

[237ben]

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@iluvneighbours wrote:

What annoys me is sellers packaging items inadequately in a thin envelope, brown paper or a thin carrier bag. Although nothing has been lost packaging has got torn in transit and RM has even put the package in one of their clear bags with a note about the damage.

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Absolutely. 

I understand sellers may have legitimate costs over and above the cost of their chosen delivery service. Officially eBay "allow" some of these (eg. packaging) but not others (eg. petrol). I say "allow", although the truth is eBay take no action against a seller who flouts this particular rule. 

But it does grate when sellers who justify P&P charges by arguing that they have to cover the cost of packaging materials are using such inadequate materials that have cost them next to nothing (ie. a thrice-used Jiffy bag and six inches of sticky tape are hardly going to bankrupt anybody.)

I don’t mind paying a realistic P&P charge, but I do so in the expectation of an item being properly packaged and protected.

[lisac-2009]

So if I quote small parcel but when I get to the post office they charge me large letter because they squish it through the slot you would be angry. How about the other way round? I have been caught out before when the counter staff change and insist it won’t fit through the slot when I have quoted for large letter. Would you then be happy to pay the extra?? I can almost guarantee 100% not.

Sent from my iPhone

[iluvneighbours]

I don't see that one has any bearing on the other.  As a seller on ebay for many years I have had occasions where for one reason or another I have had to pay a higher postal charge but have absorbed it as part of my selling process/cost and it has nothing to do with the buyer.  It doesn't change my attitude to buyers or stop me refunding my buyers for any excess charge they have paid.

[lisac-2009]

I’m not a professional seller just sell a few kids bits here & there when they grow out of them. I buy good quality packaging & usually charge £3.65 for a small parcel to take into account the cost of packaging. I don’t think that’s excessive. It’s a risk to send anything large letter as you don’t get the insurance so I usually avoid it.

Sent from my iPhone

[237ben]

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@lisac-2009 wrote:
So if I quote small parcel but when I get to the post office they charge me large letter because they squish it through the slot you would be angry. How about the other way round? I have been caught out before when the counter staff change and insist it won’t fit through the slot when I have quoted for large letter. Would you then be happy to pay the extra?? I can almost guarantee 100% not.

Sent from my iPhone

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I’m sure post office counter staff think they’re being awfully helpful and kind when they squish things through the slot and charge the lower rate. Unfortunately this frequently results in the addressee getting hit for excess postage charges. 

[lisac-2009]

And you lose the insurance so best avoided

Sent from my iPhone

[iluvneighbours]

I understand where you're coming from.  I'm a very small business seller and factor these things into my business model. 

[elitegiftsltd]

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@lisac-2009 wrote:
So if I quote small parcel but when I get to the post office they charge me large letter because they squish it through the slot you would be angry. How about the other way round? I have been caught out before when the counter staff change and insist it won’t fit through the slot when I have quoted for large letter. Would you then be happy to pay the extra?? I can almost guarantee 100% not.

Sent from my iPhone

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Can buy a slot to use at home. Or RM used to supply a card one for free, don't know if they still do. More flimsy but can add a cardboard backing to it to extend its useful lifespan. 

Anything that may be at the limit we measure before listing. Anything that jams or is tough to push through gets a redesign of packaging or else upgraded to next size. 

[jckl1957]

Large letters and small parcels sent using standard Royal Mail are covered for up to £20 compensation for loss.  There is no 'insurance' element on a small parcel - you can claim up to £20 like you can for a large letter.  (I worked in the local Post Office until November and details are also on the RM website.)

[*knight-rider*]

`Ebay needs to get a grip of these Scammer Sellers who regularly and knowingly Over charge for postage. `

How can you be `scammed` by a seller on postage, when the charge for it is there for you to see, allowing you the `choice` on whether or not you buy it?

i think all this is swings and roundabouts, some you lose out a little bit, some you gain, because if you won an item worth say £10 or £20 for 99p, would you complain about the postage at all 🙂  Like many here, i always consider the total cost before bidding or buy it now, if i`m happy with it, besides, if the overcharge is only £1 or £2, there are other things to consider in the postage, such as the expence of packing material etc, it`s not just the stamp.

[gallovidian]

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@*knight-rider* wrote:

How can you be `scammed` by a seller on postage, when the charge for it is there for you to see, allowing you the `choice` on whether or not you buy it?

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I'm sure they didn't intend you to get that item for 99p, and expected it to go  much higher. They would have taken that high postage even if oversight or despration had made the overall price a rotten deal. Neither of those makes a buyer lawful prey for an ambush set up not when the right kind of person buys, but at the time of posting the listing.

While I am sure people do exist who expect P&P to be simply the cost of the stamp (despite guidance to the contrary in eBay policy), I am sure they are a great rarity. The policy makes it clear that the charge is about money actually spent by the seller to get the item to the buyer.

On threads like this we hear innumerable reasons why that expenditure might be more than some buyers assume, and some of them are even true. Our real concern should be when more substantial sums disappear into the void, and are in fact enjoyed by a seller who did nothing for them. Even if his item went tor 99p. It wasn't the buyer who did that, but the non-buyers who chose not to compete for it.

Such gross rip-offs are now far too rare for anybody to feel regularly sick of them. That is  a success story, due to our ability to leave feedback, to the perfectly sensible practice of counting the total cost (although it doesn't confer absolution on the seller we either buy from or avoid), and to our ability to report obvious cases to eBay.

[mrs-trebus16]

I have a method to calculate postage

Before listing, I weigh and measure the product so I know roughly the size of the package I am going to send and by which service. I add roughly £1 to the amount and I tend to round it off and keep my post rates similar. Because I do this, it is very rare that I overcharge for postage.

On one occasion somoeone bought two of the same item and paid the postage for each. I popped a £2 coin in the parcel and never got thank you or anything so, I won't do it again.

I have a spreadsheet with all my items with columns showing asking price, FVF, post charge, post cost and the final 'profit' so there are no shocks or surprises when it comes to the final payment coming to me

(I don't understand people who complain at the fees they are charged AFTER they have sold their item when it clearly shows you how much it's going to cost before you click the 'List item' button. Is it different for businesses? I can't remember)

[bennotbill]

I'm assuming all the postal complainers never buy anything with Global Shipping or get anything delivered from their local high street.

They just complain about the alleged pound or two over payment here by the small fry while ignoring the gross charges of the bigger fish.

[pokemon_charizard_2022]

why do you need a thank you for offering a fair postage discount? do you expect a buyer to kiss you *** over £2 that in your opinion was the right thing to do?

[gallovidian]

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@tsmgmd wrote:

What next.

The o.p bids for a item at £5.

When it's delivered he finds a old receipt showing the seller only paid £3.50 for it.

Would the o.p be messaging the seller saying you've overcharged me..

I thi//nk not.

Ah, an item? eBay don't have any policy - and a selle hasn't pledged himself to observe a policy - saying that sellers must sell items at cost price. For the P&P charge, they do.

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[fugsthefiend]

just paid £7 for a next day delivery for a record, it took over a week to come, and the postage on the parcel shows £3.55, no response from the seller and after being a member since 2005, I had to give my very first negative feedback.
if the seller does this to every buyer, its a nice little earner.....
(I also bought several other items 3 days after this, with second class postage, and they turned up 3 days before the record did)