Combining seperate items

[sambda]

I am a private seller.

Somebody bought two items from me, about a minute apart, but checked them out seperately.

In this case the help (https://www.ebay.co.uk/help/selling/posting-items/postage-rates/offering-combined-postage) says:

"To ensure you're protected, you should send items that aren’t combined using the Simple Delivery label provided."

The label for which purchase - the second one or the first one?  Do I put both on or what?

BTW My post office insist on weighing all my items to check the the prepaid Ebay postage is enough.  I had one refused the other day because my package was too heavy for the given postage.  This was using the postage charge that Ebay told me!

[**peaseblossom**]

You only use one label per parcel.   If they are inexpensive items you can send them together but the second one will have no proof of delivery, and to get it showing as dispatched you have to generate the original prepaid label without using it of course.    And you'd have to wait 14 days for the second payment.  

This is assuming the two items don't take the weight over the cost of a single parcel.   

The alternative would be to cancel/refund the transactions with the buyer's agreement and relist with items on one listing and a single postage cost for the buyer to buy and pay again.

[sambda]

If I just post both items in one package, and just generate the one postage (both items together are still under the size and weight limit for just one item) will I still get my money for the second item (as it will never be "dispatched" according to the system).   I mean, just ignore the second postage thing completely?

[a45heaven]

@**peaseblossom** 

Shambolic !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

and this process is currently being presented to the US platform - which i believe does not differentiate between Private and Business Sellers. So they can choose to implement the process? 

I wonder which users it will be expanded to on the UK platform in the near future?

[**peaseblossom**]

If you paid for the unused original label you can cancel it here:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/claims/simple-delivery/refund/seller
Or if the buyer paid for it it will be refunded to them automatically in 30 days.

@a45heaven   I agree.   It would be nice to choose.   Trouble is most sellers would  probably choose not to and ebay wouldn't like that. 

[sambda]

The processing times of an order appear to be cockeyed too.  I have the standard "3 days" processing time on my orders.  Somebody ordered something about 5.30pm on Friday, and I bought the Simple Delivery postage late that day.  On the page for that (once you've cliked to buy the postage), it said I had to dispatch by this Sunday.  Huh, since when is Friday to Sunday 3 days? (and it the "working days" settings, I only have weekdays as "working days".)

Meanwhile, the "order details" page says dispatch by Wednesday, which is the correct last day for the 3-day dispatch.  But I wonder if I'll be penalised for not meeting this Sunday dispatch deadline, whatever it is.  I think the moral is not to buy the postage till you are ready to send, not days in advance.

Of course, apart from those ^^^ two "deadlines", there's another deadline too - the validity of the postage label you have bought. That seems to be two weeks, I believe.

"Simple"?

And you don't seem to be able to set the processing time manually to 4 days any more - you used to be able to do that.

Meanwhile, on my combined-postage issue, I didn't buy the Simple Delivery *at all* for my second packet (the one I'm not actually going to do because I put both items in the first packet).  So the system won't even be aware that item has been sent (in the first packet) - and it'll stay at "dispatch now" and "dispatch overdue" etc.  I wonder if that will block me from even getting the selling money for that item, or whether it'll change to "Funds available in Ebay balance" at some point, even though I haven't generated the barcode/label etc.

[tressygirl · Accepted solution]

@sambda  wrote:     Meanwhile, on my combined-postage issue, I didn't buy the Simple Delivery *at all* for my second packet (the one I'm not actually going to do because I put both items in the first packet).  So the system won't even be aware that item has been sent (in the first packet) - and it'll stay at "dispatch now" and "dispatch overdue" etc.  I wonder if that will block me from even getting the selling money for that item, or whether it'll change to "Funds available in Ebay balance" at some point, even though I haven't generated the barcode/label etc.

Sending the items which were purchased separately in one parcel, will only generate the one tracking number when this shows delivery it will do so only for one item, therefore one payout will be released.

For the other item there is no proof of delivery, the payout for that item will be held for a minimum of 14 days before release.

The notification to post that second item will soon stop. 

[sambda]

Ah - that's useful info.   It wasn't clear if I could leave the postage "ungenerated", or had to generate it but not actually use the barcode.

[millymolly399]

I had a ‘buyer’ want to but several of my Barbie dolls and wanted to pay less and have combined postage.  Sending offers didn’t work as of course the buyer protection made the offer even lower. But also this wouldn’t work for combined postage. They suggested I re list the dolls together on a new listing, which seemed a faff, particularly as I’d have to copy all the details and find all the photos again. I reached out to eBay chat and they told me if the buyer put them in their basket, eBay’s simple delivery would calculate a new delivery cost and they’d all go together.

so I revised the prices for all the ones they were wanting ( sending offers wouldn’t work for this).

the buyer put 4 in their basket and eBay calculated a combined postage rate of £5 ( so the ‘buyer’ said).  Another option ebay suggested was letting the buyer pay for the postage on each doll separately and any unused labels would be refunded to them within 30 days. 

So the upshot is if the buyer places all the items they want into their basket first, eBay will combine the postage and presumably they’d all track together. Now whether the new postage will be suitable I can’t say for sure. My buyer said 4 Barbie’s would be £5, but they may have assumed the £2 buyer protection fee was also postage, which would have come to £4.94 and makes sense. 

anyone tried this? As I said my buyer got me to change the prices on a dozen dolls, tried to buy only 4, then decided they couldn’t afford it. So I don’t know if the label would have been suitable.