eBay sellers 'making money off postage'

[Fides]

I can't see anywhere in the T&Cs that says no petrol. There is shipping cost mentioned which is the money to Royal Fail and handling cost. I would argue strongly that fuel is a handling cost.

It states no business related fees like employee wages or mileage costs. Our own viewpoints are irrelevant - I believe we should be able to charge for everything too, ebay disagrees

 

[FreshandMinty]

£8/9 for a jacket!? i sold a tweed jacket , postage was £6.40, for recorded delivery. It ended up costing me less than that for the actual posting however it was very well packaged. The buyer left me feedback complaining the postage was high! Flippin cheek.

 

[Jesstickle]

It states no business related fees like employee wages or mileage costs. Our own viewpoints are irrelevant - I believe we should be able to charge for everything too, ebay disagrees

I'm not a business. I am a private seller and I can't see where it says that. But I am probably just searching really badly.

Anyway, I have 100% positive seller feedback and ebay haven't banned me yet so I'll just carry on doing what I'm doing!

 

[Tern]

£2.00 for posting a jacket that can't be right.......... I find my average is about £8.00 and the PO big envelopes are a £1.00 each

It was £2-£3 can't remember EXACT amount. But trust me it was as had to collect from PO so checked. She didn't even bother messaging me wondering if 'd like the extra money back!!

 

[conniegirl]

Tbh I'm no suprised it's so high! Royal fail tried to charge me £16 to post a sidesaddle cane!
Ended up sending it via my Hermes for £2.50 but it involved having to drive 15 miles to one of thier parcel shops!

 

[sunleychops]

Why are you all so surprised and horrified at someone making extra profit?

Do you all also think that every online retailer charges carriage at cost price? Wake up.

 

[sunleychops]

This was not on eBay it was on facebook but i bought a tweed jacket - needed it posted and asked lady how much postage was - she said that she imaged it would be about £8/£9 - Sent an extra £10 for postage got jacket and turned out to be £2 i just though what scum. -.-

Scum for making a bit of extra money. Jesus christ everyone seems to want everything for nothing these days!

If you ever make a penny on postage charges i hope you are aware you are nothing but 'scum' also.

 

[ester]

I'm not a business. I am a private seller and I can't see where it says that. But I am probably just searching really badly.

Anyway, I have 100% positive seller feedback and ebay haven't banned me yet so I'll just carry on doing what I'm doing!

This, I'm not a business either. I will always try and do postage as cheap as poss (ie currently on sale item is much cheaper to send with collectplus but the nearest of those is further than the post office).

 

[Goldenstar]

Scum for making a bit of extra money. Jesus christ everyone seems to want everything for nothing these days!

If you ever make a penny on postage charges i hope you are aware you are nothing but 'scum' also.

If Tern wanted something for nothing she would want free postage but that not what she saying , it's entirely unreasonable to seek to make a profit on the postage and I simply ignore listings where the postage looks to high .
I always check postage costs now if it looks out of order I don't buy .

 

[Spottyappy]

The biggest issue with ebay, is that you virtually are forced into using PayPal and, with paypal,you get ridiculous charges. So, you get a double whammy. Ebay and paypal fees.
I do not charge excessively for postage, but I do exact to cover my costs including the charges made by PayPal,

 

[Goldenstar]

Why should the buyer pay for the benefits you get from using paypal ?

 

[sunleychops]

Why should the buyer pay for the benefits you get from using paypal ?

There are no benefits as a seller to using PayPal.

 

[*hic*]

I always check postage costs now if it looks out of order I don't buy .

And, that's the way to do it! I'd add that if I really want something and the postage is silly I will message the seller and check the postage or advise of a courier who might be able to send it more cheaply. If I get a sensible answer I might then buy. If seller is rude or obnoxious I report them, easy.

 

[JPJPJP]

Maybe what has happened is that OP has bought two dresses that were listed separately with £6 each postage and, in buying two, expected to benefit from the seller combining the two purchases into one parcel for delivery.

However, as others have said, there is ample opportunity to understand the postage charges arising before you go through the Buy It Now process.

Asking the Seller, in advance of making the purchase, if there is an opportunity to benefit from combined postage on multiple purchases is surely the right thing to do?

For me, the buyer should suck it up and mark it down as the cost of a lesson in how to buy more smartly in future.

If I was the seller in question and you opened a case on the basis that you hadn't properly read the listings and had taken umbrage at the clearly stated postage cost then yes, you would indeed miss out on the chance to own the dresses.

In fact I might send you a short video of me packing them into a parcel addressed to a more worthy buyer.

 

[puppystitch]

I've used the ebay postage calculator a few times recently and it has got the postage cost wrong every single time, without fail - and always to my disadvantage. One small bracelet I sold for a very small amount and actually ended up worse off that if I had kept it as the difference in anticipated and actual postage costs was greater than the value of the bracelet

 

[benson21]

eBay sellers 'making money off postage'

Hi,

I recently won 2 dresses from the same ebay seller and I went to pay yesterday to find the postage is over £12 (from personal experience of posting similar items it should be no more than £6 Royal Mail first class) so I sent her a message asking if she could double check the postage as it seemed very high for the items. Well I had a reply today saying the reason it's so high is because she wants to make a bit of money off the postage as she didn't want too sell the dresses for too little (not sure why she started them at 99p then!), I don't know what to say back to her as I refuse to pay that much postage, I'm not made of money hence why I'm buying my clothes off ebay! Any ideas what I can say back to her?



I think really you have got to pay up, as it seems it was clear on the item the postage but..... I do think its wrong that the seller can up the postage costs to make money as she didnt get enough for the dresses!​

 

[criso]

I think the issue here is that the OP didn't check before if the seller would combine postage for mulitple items, it seems like a reasonable thing to ask but I don't think the seller is obliged to do so. In theory they could send out as two packages and having sent a few things recently with royal mail I know that signed for small parcel starts at £4.30 so add packaging and you're not far off £6.

I always sort items by price inc post and packaging. I was looking for some cables recently and it's interesting how many came to the same price when you combine the price and P & P. So some were say £2.99 with free postage, others were 99p with 1.99 postage. Sometimes from the same seller who that way gets to the top of a search regardless of how people sort.

 

[Goldenstar]

There are no benefits as a seller to using PayPal.

Yes there are ,I will buy from you remotely as I am protected ,I don't have to send you a chq with my bank details on to someone I have no knowledge of .
A dishonest person can do a lot of damage with a name address and the details on a chq.

 

[charterline]

Tbh I think Ebay has become a bit of a rip off now for postage.

Due to idiotic buyers, I will always send things via recorded delivery now, which costs more. A small parcel with Royal Mail signed for is £3.90. You need to charge at least £4.50 on the postage to cover the costs that ebay and paypal take off you for the final fee.

Then there is the packaging, tape, and fuel money to get to the post office!

 

[WandaMare]

In fact I might send you a short video of me packing them into a parcel addressed to a more worthy buyer.

That made me laugh I'm going to try that next time I get any awkward customers

 

[olop]

Due to idiotic buyers, I will always send things via recorded delivery now, which costs more. A small parcel with Royal Mail signed for is £3.90. You need to charge at least £4.50 on the postage to cover the costs that ebay and paypal take off you for the final fee.

Then there is the packaging, tape, and fuel money to get to the post office!

This. Unless you sell loads of items or things of higher value you can't make any money selling bits and bobs on eBay anymore.

I always courier stuff I sell now, costs a bit more but I reflect that in my postage costs.

Then u get the twits who leave negative feedback for something they have bought but hadn't read the listing properly.

I think you will have to pay up OP, ask to combine postage before you commit to bid for next time

 

[conniegirl]

Yes there are ,I will buy from you remotely as I am protected ,I don't have to send you a chq with my bank details on to someone I have no knowledge of .
A dishonest person can do a lot of damage with a name address and the details on a chq.

Sorry but paying paypal 3.4% +20p of your price, which Ebay has already taken 10% plus a listing fee (35p)
Then having to pay the same on postage, stressing about what happens when you get a bad buyer who purposely damages your item for a partial refund or claims that the item never arrives when you sent it and have proof of postage. Paypal always find in favour of the buyer even if they are in the wrong, so for your own peace of mind you HAVE to buy postal insurance (and even then they wont pay out easily) and buy recorded delivery.

Personaly I'd rather have less bidders and a lower price but cash or cheque. Infact i very rarely use ebay now and sell things on forums and gumtree instead as ebay takes so much of the money I'm often better not selling the item!

 

[noodle_]

i use a courier...6.50 upto 5kg inc box.....

never use royal mail they are a rip off

i make no money from postage... at all...if i quote too high i refund.......

selling loadsa clothes and equestrian stuff and literally making a loss on it all.......

 

[mandwhy]

Well firstly you should always check the postage before bidding, but sometimes when I feel like an eBay vigilante I like to go round reporting listings for unreasonable postage costs, just because some people really take the pee.

 

[Cinnamontoast]

You can leave poor feedback on the postage stars, but if she told you £6 each up front, your bad for bidding. Saying that, I charged under a fiver for a pair of brand new endurance trainers in their box, the postage was more yet I still got crap feedback for postage, mental!

 

[ILuvCowparsely]

ITS WRONG I had a seller answer my question how com postage is high - they said well its to cover my petrol and to make extra on postage GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR.

 

[sunleychops]

Well firstly you should always check the postage before bidding, but sometimes when I feel like an eBay vigilante I like to go round reporting listings for unreasonable postage costs, just because some people really take the pee.

Then you need to get a life. That's pathetic.

 

[Toby_Zaphod]

You really should check P+P price before bidding & when you are interested in buying more than one item from the seller you need to message them asking if they will combine p+p.

In this case you could have good grounds to report the matter to ebay because you have a message from the seller saying they want to make profit from the p+p & ebay will not be pleased. Ebay have tried for many years to stamp out this, I believe their main reason is that they don't get their fees from P+P only the final selling price so it not only costs the buyer money but it also lessens their profits.

In the end though you have to factor in the p+p price into the purchase price & if you are happy then buy, if you're not don't & buy from somewhere else, simple.

 

[Polos]

In fact I might send you a short video of me packing them into a parcel addressed to a more worthy buyer.

And I would send one in return of me spending my hard earned cash with a more polite and legitimate seller



Lesson learnt I paid the extortionate £12 postage so this seller can make £25 as opposed to £13. I have sold on ebay before and know how expensive it can be (as can Royal mail be). As a result I only sell off preloved and use couriers so it's cheaper and everyone's happy and postage is accurately charged. I normally send a message in advance asking about combined postage but in this occasion I found and bid on the dresses in the last 15 mins so there wasn't time, my mistake.

 

[sunleychops]

Yes there are ,I will buy from you remotely as I am protected ,I don't have to send you a chq with my bank details on to someone I have no knowledge of .
A dishonest person can do a lot of damage with a name address and the details on a chq.

I'm talking about being a seller. Hence why i used the word SELLER in my original post.