AuctionCut

What do you think about the folks that have $1 auctions but the shipping for a $1 product is like $30 bucks? Even though it only costs about $5 to ship it?

Whose making money scamming shipping costs?

It does happen a lot, but eBay are clamping down on it. I recall seeing a lot of powersellers last year, selling ps2 bundles for £1 with Buy-It-Now options, plus £99 shipping.

You are allowed to charge reasonable amount for postage, packaging and any other materials used - but you can not make a profit on these.

Its referred to as Shipping Gouging and Ebay are getting heavy on it....reports are coming in of account losses etc etc

A seller friend of mine got a warning for it this morning, so make sure your shipping/p&p reflects the actual costs involved.

Remember the FVF is only on the item price, not postage. Most of these sellers will not refund the postage if it's faulty either.

Great, you got a $1 refund on a faulty PSP. Whoopee-doo!

You can report these people for fee avoiding

There is a certain limit to how much you can charge for shipping for certain item. Charging excessive shipping may result listing removal.

No may about it, Ebay are stepping up the removals almost daily...

This technique is used to get more viewers and possible bidders.

twocows wrote:What do you think about the folks that have $1 auctions but the shipping for a $1 product is like $30 bucks? Even though it only costs about $5 to ship it?

Whose making money scamming shipping costs?

Hello Folks, I'm new here, but not to the online auction biz. Nice site here.

I've often said that shipping and handling has value. It costs me money to package merchandise, it is worth something to me. Having said that, excessive shipping and handling only stands to ruin the satisfaction of the buyer. Therefore, if the seller is interested in customer satisfaction, repeat business, and decent "word of mouth" advertising, they will make it their primary purpose to please the customer, hence, not ripping off with excessive charges. It is a fine line.

Buyer beware also applies to this discussion. By that, I mean, if the auction states the charges for shipping, and you don't agree with it, don't buy the item. I don't think it is fair for a buyer to agree to the terms, then complain after the fact.

So, there are 2 important sides to the issue from where I stand.

Jim

I'm an advocate for designer handbags. I scan 1000's of listings a week and report fakes and excessive shipping gougers. Its a frustrating & time consuming job because of Ebays built in powerSTEALER protectors. 9 times out of 10 its these powerSTEALERS who jack up the shipping to cover ALL of their expenses which is 100% against listing policy. A seller who upcharges from 7.00 to 20.00 per item is way out of line and it takes Ebay weeks of daily reporting to move on one of these gougers. These sellers make 1000's of dollars a year tax and fee free with this violation.
The only way to really fight these people is to report & report & report every time you see an item thats in violation. $3.00 per item is enough to upcharge over actual shipping. USPS has FREE boxes that will fit 90% of anything and they will pick it up at your door! Heavy item? Have UPS pick it up! Where's the right to charge 25.00 shipping for a freaking handbag?? Or 12.00 to ship a CD? Or 15.00 to ship a shirt?? Its not enough to just not bid on these items! Newbies are used to paying that kind of shipping thru catalogs and thats another issue with me. I do NOT order from catalogs anymore just because of this.

Nice rant!!

P&P/Shipping is always an emotive subject, but a lot of people forget that it is not just the price of a stamp, and in the UK more Post Offices are closing daily, and as yet there is no suitable private alternative therefore some people have to travel a few miles to send their items.

When I price up my P&P I take into account all costs involved in selling, but also consider what the competition are charging as I will not be sold short. If Buyers are happy to pay up to £3.50 P&P for a DVD, and I can cover it for £1,00 then I will have no hestiation in charging £2.00 - it's not seen as unreasonable, not is it seen as gouging.

But $25 for a bag is a lot excessive - even if it is insured to the max!

I forget you guys are in the UK. At least it seems as though this forum originates there? I know you have higher shipping rates there, but I guess the upcharging can work anywhere. Yeah, I can rant! Alot of times it gets me in trouble!

Having been on ebay a good while now, I see people overcharging for p&p. Two thoughts.
1.Ebay should look at it's fees on the smaller priced items.
2. People can charge me what they want for p&p, as long as I feel that the total paid is correct for the item.
I bought a 4gb Mp4 player for $1 and $20 p&p. I think I got a bargain.