ebay fees on postage charges

[everton4]

I guess people already have spoken about this but i am not sure ... can ebay or anybody tell me why they make money off postal and shipping charges !!! i get that they have to make money on the product as they are advertising it for me , but why on postal/shipping costs when then do nothing for this ... its really annoying me and other ebay users that i talk to 

[four_mid_able]

It's been this way for years now ,best to add the extra cost into your total/start price.

Ebay tell us that they did this as too many sellers were trying to avoid fee's by listing an item at 99p and adding p+p costs of 50 quid etc and sending items at a real cost of 3 quid etc.

[bennotbill]

A tiny infinitesimal number of sellers used to load the postage to avoid fees. Instead of just dealing with them eBay took the opportunity to massively boost their bottom line. And of course blaming that tiny number of sellers for their very profitable decision.

[papso22]

The way to look at it is that ebay base their fees on the total the buyer pays, which makes sense as part of the fee is for processing the payment, and that includes the postage element.  They make their money on the total you get, it doesn't matter to them what you then spend that on.  Just don't think about it as 'item' and 'postage'. 

It's just the way the fee structure works and once you get that in your head it's far less annoying.

[cheekychippy210]

There is nothing to say you have to use their service. Set up a hermes account or if you like the royal mail, walk around to a post office. Hermes, evri, you can print at home or in the drop off shop, never lost a parcel in the years i have used them and quick. Personally I will never use the royal mail again simply because of their policy on used goods and profit. Evri, full tracked.

[plpmr]

"I guess people already have spoken about this but i am not sure"

you can be sure that the subject has been talked to death over the last decade or so - have a read of the massive number of posts on it.

[theelench]

Although it's true to say that this topic has been done to death over the decade since ebay started charging on P&P costs, it's also one of the most persistent topics on this board.  So it's regularly re-started by members who still  see it as unfair. 

I think that's a good thing as a regular reminder to ebay how their customers perceive the charge and that it is  still something that should be discussed.

You say it not only annoys you but other ebay users you talk to.

I think you're lucky to know them.  A decade ago my local was full of people buying and selling on ebay, sometimes both at the same time.  Now the only person I know who uses ebay at all is an occasional buyer of RAF memorabilia who never sells anything.

[arkwebus]

I have never really worked out why all sales are not required to include postage etc.  What eBay calls post free!  Though I had a parcel which arrived unstamped as that was what seller thought post free meant!   @evertontk 

[cotswold_curations]

It's the cost of business. Add a little buffer to cover it. There's a guy I know in the US (power seller) who makes 100k a year in extra postage fees... no joke.

Jay

[4_bathrooms]

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@cotswold_curations wrote:

It's the cost of business. Add a little buffer to cover it. There's a guy I know in the US (power seller) who makes 100k a year in extra postage fees... no joke.

Jay

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The Advertising Standard's Agency has the following to say about inflated delivery charges:

"It’s important to note that inflated delivery charges can make price claims misleading.  All delivery charges quoted should be accurate and reflect the true cost of delivery; they should not be used to make the selling price of the product seem more attractive"

The linked ruling is interesting reading; especially as it was made in March 2013. 

[cheekychippy210]

In the days of me selling on here I learnt it was far easier to offer free postage. Ofcourse there is no such thing as a free lunch and indeed the postage is factored in. However, when a buyer buys more than one there is no combined postage or can you please!!! Also, I ALWAYS chose the "other courier" option in drop menu. Finally, I NEVER bought the labels from ebay, had a longstanding hermes account so no need to. (drop off shop 200mtrs walking distance from my home, 2 others within a mile) Free postage all the way.

[kath3735_wxmjn]

lucky old you then!  Our local Evri courier will not deliver off the main road but then lies and says no one in, house does not exist  etc etc.  I never buy from anyone who uses EVRI, if i want something i may get in touch and see if they will send RM.  EVRI are the only courier group who never delivers, never a problem elsewhere.  Also never lost a parcel sent through RM either as a buyer or seller.  All depends where you live. 

[kath3735_wxmjn]

i never understand why people get so hot under the collar about it either as a buyer or seller.  As a buyer i always add the two figures together and if the overall cost is what i am willing to pay for an article then i will buy it, how it is broken down is completely irrelevant.  As a seller i just price to the total i am hoping someone will buy for.  I charge more than the actual postage cost because i also only use new envelopes/bags, tissue paper for clothes and address labels (not forgetting brown tape and sellotape!)

[clydeandrascal]

As others have said, quite a few sellers tried to avoid eBay selling fees by reducing prices & adding the reduction to carriage, because that was fee-free.  Adding the 20%ish to the carriage charge is an easy way around things (that's what it costs when eBay & PayPal fees are combined) but be sure to add a little message to the end of your packing note to say that carriage includes eBay fees.  It is perhaps unfortunate that eBay is coy about telling buyers it charges fees at all.  The alternative is to add carriage costs to the selling price but this can result in an uncompetitive price.

[plpmr]

"Adding the 20%ish to the carriage charge is an easy way around things (that's what it costs when eBay & PayPal fees are combined)"

what PayPal fees?

"but be sure to add a little message to the end of your packing note to say that carriage includes eBay fees."

Strictly against eBay policy.

[clydeandrascal]

I suppose PayPal fees depend upon whether or not you use PayPal.  As for the comment about the illegality of pointing out that eBay fees apply to carriage:  there is no eBay policy determining this - how could there be?   eBay fees are not secret. 

[buffster1963]

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@clydeandrascal wrote:

I suppose PayPal fees depend upon whether or not you use PayPal.  As for the comment about the illegality of pointing out that eBay fees apply to carriage:  there is no eBay policy determining this - how could there be?   eBay fees are not secret. 

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Sellers are only payed through Ebay managed payments now, so no paypal fees at all. Buyers pay ebay for the item and then ebay pay the seller. 

[awol1968]

While I agree this does enrich eBay, it wasn't just a small number of sellers, it was all of China!!! Years ago, nearly everything from China was 99p as was already mentioned. The other problem was that eBay wasn't refunding postage costs. So, you paid 99p & 12 quid postage, it goes wrong & you get 99p back!!! I don't think the advice to add postage costs to the price isn't good advice. As a buyer, if I buy 1 item & the postage is included, that's fine. If I want 10, there's no way I'm paying postage 10 times for small items. I will find sellers that combine postage as that reduces the price for me & doesn't increase them for the seller. Including postage does make more money for sellers for small items so maybe it's worth it for them 

[mrs-trebus16]

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@cheekychippy210 wrote:

There is nothing to say you have to use their service. Set up a hermes account or if you like the royal mail, walk around to a post office. Hermes, evri, you can print at home or in the drop off shop, never lost a parcel in the years i have used them and quick. Personally I will never use the royal mail again simply because of their policy on used goods and profit. Evri, full tracked.

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You're missing the point

Enquirer is asking why ebay charge fees on postage a seller charges a buyer - not for buying postage through ebay

[cheekychippy210]

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@mrs-trebus16 wrote:

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@cheekychippy210 wrote:

There is nothing to say you have to use their service. Set up a hermes account or if you like the royal mail, walk around to a post office. Hermes, evri, you can print at home or in the drop off shop, never lost a parcel in the years i have used them and quick. Personally I will never use the royal mail again simply because of their policy on used goods and profit. Evri, full tracked.

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You're missing the point

Enquirer is asking why ebay charge fees on postage a seller charges a buyer - not for buying postage through ebay

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"can ebay or anybody tell me why they make money off postal and shipping charges " Read on here much about why return labels are more money than buying label at PO. Please highlight the mention of the word "seller" in OP