OT: I'm So Mad

HI Sandy,

The buyers on eBay are getting quite snotty aren't they. I got a negative feedback from a person who DIDN'T EVEN PAY ME FOR THE ITEM.

If the auction clearly states the shipping costs then you have every right to tell her that the shipping cost is FIXED and cannot be changed. If you have another bidder go into the auction and click on the number of bids and then offer a second chance to the under bidder.

Tell the NPB that you are going to offer it to another person who doesn't have a problem with your shipping costs. If she had a problem with the shipping cost then she should have e-mailed you during the course of the auction not after she has won it.

Just remember,

is a good option to join and then have the negative feedback removed. If she doesn't pay you don't forget to file a NPB alert with eBay to get your fees refunded. Smile, There's a photo needing scrapping. :-) Kate

Oh I can see why it would make you mad! $3.95 plus the envelope $1.00 is $4.95. What do they expect you to do take loss! As an ebay buyer I do look up the negative feedback and you'll just have to describe why you got the negative. I always take that into account, because I know their are mean spirited people out there who'll give a negative for no reason.

Lynne

Some people have nerve I tell you. They complain after the fact because they figure you'll give in just to get rid of the item. We used to sell on ebay and it got to be a headache. If she does leave you negative feedback (which she has no right to) you can respond with a comment stating that it was her fault because she was unhappy with the auction rules you placed. YOu shouldn't have to take a loss. If she didn't like the shipping she shouldn't have bidded or she should have e-mailed you prior to bidding.

Chrissy

Did they email you threating you with negative feedback? If so, forward that email to ebay and they should block her from posting on that auction.

It happened to me one and I got a negative removed because I kept the "threat". It was the same situation. I told them it was X amount SHIPPING and the other was HANDLING (Price of box) People forget the Handling part all the time. They go to the Postal website and calculate it then gripe about it.

Just send all your corrospondce to ebay. First you need to fill out this form:

Just state that the buyer wants the item but is threating to leave negative feedback if you do not lower the Stated shipping costs. Hope that helps. Michelle

I would be livid too. You stated the price along with shipping and that's what she agreed to pay when she first bid on your auction. If she doesn't pay you for the full amount, give her back her money, leave her a negative feedback explaining why you left it, and re-list. Only this time call it 'shipping and handling charges'. What you charge for shipping is totally up to you, if you charge at all. The buyer needs to realize it is your gas thats drives you to the post office, your time while waiting in the lineup at the post office, your $$ to pay for the padded envelope and then there is the postage on top of that. If you said you want $20 for that, then you have every right to charge $20 for that. In your case, $5 is a good deal!

quoting:

I have to agree, $5 is high. There are things you can do to lower it. You can go to the PO and get a priority mail box, and now you can shave off $1 'cause the box is free. Padded mailers should not be more than $1 retail, 50 cents in bulk. I just threw a tshirt and a padded mailer on my scale. 9oz. That's 2.21 initally for first class mail + .13 for delivery confirm and .20 PayPal label fee (if you used it) + padded mailer 1.00 (retail) = 3.54

Hey, I hear you, don't like it, don't buy it. I'm pointing out while a buyer can "don't like it, don't buy it", there's a fine line for both buyers AND sellers. Sellers also have the responsibility for keeping a nice balance between the buyer and seller. Sellers can make it a better experience for buyers by (one example) lowering shipping costs. That higher shipping cost may get you fewer bids, or some negative email, for example. With the attitiude of "don't like it, don't buy it" buyers can abide by that (in balance with you) or some can give you negitive email about it. That negative email shows you just stepped over the fine line, and the balance just tipped a little. You can help rebalance the situation by doing something on your part (such as lowering shipping costs). It also raises your professionalism and raises your ability to be in business.

Yes, but don't you think the buyer should have e-mailed before the end of the auction to question the shipping and handling issue? According to the rules of ebay, "Buyers automatically enter into a legally binding contract to purchase the item from the seller if they win the auction-style listing or use the Buy It Now feature. eBay's Unpaid Item policy requires buyers to pay for the items that they commit to purchase. eBay will take action against buyers who do not pay for items they have won." Would you have bid on an item, won the auction, then tried to haggle the shipping and handling fee that was clearly stated in the auction by e-mailing the seller and telling them in a rude manner you would pay for the auction "after" they readjusted the total. I don't sell that many things, don't buy mailers in bulk, don't own a scales, and yes, I have gone to the PO to check shipping charges if someone has asked me (politely) before the end of an auction.

I have a scale, it was a free digital one.... from an offer online, and I don't ship that often... besides, they are less than 15 bux at walmart! even USPS offers them for free.... not the digital ones but a scale!

i am also a seller on ebay and a buyer to(more then I'd like to admit).. I usually email the person first if I have questions about shipping or anything else. Then when I have it in email writing I will bid. I state in my auctions that it is a fixed s &H charge. The shipping might be $3.85 priority, but the people need to think... I am in the middle of nowhere... I spend GAS going to town to mail the item, If I don't have packiong material and have to get special stuff to pack an item then YES i charge a HANDLING charg for such items. You might have to go thru square trade or whatever the name of that thing is and get the negative remark removed.. Some buyers out there buy cheap stuff just so they can leave negatives.....

Just my 2 cents... ~cowchipper

When I sell on eBay I do try to keep my shipping costs down. However, in most cases the person selling on Ebay also has to go and bring the package to the post office, though of course now, if you use priority, they will deliver the envelopes/boxes to you free and pick up the envelopes/boxes for free too if you use click and ship, which also gives you free tracking for the item. The Tshirt could have been placed in a plastic bag and then in a flat rate priority envelope at $3.85. HOWEVER, in this case, the person who purshased the item entered into a binding agreement and it was that person's responsibility to read the auction details. Belly aching afterwards is just bad manners and compounds the initial lack of judgement on the buyers part.

That said, with the flat rate priority envelope at $3.85, and the new flat rate priority box at $7.70 which includes free boxes, delivery of the boxes, pick up of the boxes and tracking, I think that enformed ebayers should expect their shipping charges to stay withing a certain limit in the future. BTW, I once received 5 of the sizzix red dies on one of those flat rate priority envelopes, so they are pretty strong and a little tape around it does a long way.

M-C in Dallas

I don't agree. $5 is not too much for shipping and handling. The sellers time is worth money. She is the one who is packaging up the item and driving to the post office to send the buyer their merchandise. That's worth time. If the buyer had to go to the store to buy that item, she would have spent that in gas and time herself. This seller has a 100% feedback. If she stepped over the line with her S&H charges, don't you think her feedbacks would reflect that already? The person who is complaining about her charges has a problem and should not have bid on the product if she believed the shipping and handling charges were too much. I've bought and sold plenty enough on EBay to know to check 4 things before bidding. The price, the S&H, where they'll ship to, and do they accept paypal? If they don't meet MY requirements, I SOB that auction and go to the next one. Simple as that.