eBay shipping costs

That would be the same as not figuring tax into an in person purchase, where applicable-- and boy, is it applicable where I live.

If your shipping was close to $10-- and that's not difficult these days-- I would be OK if you rounded it up to $10 to cover the padded envelope or box, etc.

If your shipping is $10 and you throw it in an envelope with a stamp, don't expect any repeat business from me, or any feedback. It doesn't seem to me, though, that is how you operate.

The true bargains with "free" shipping are few and far between in my observation, and fewer still in numismatics. There are too many ways to compensate for that not the least of which is overgrading.

I can, I have and I will. Nothing personal here, it's the way I evaluate any transaction, whether it's online or in person. For example, I don't drive all the way across town to pick up a one cent per gallon cheaper price for gasoline, either.

Your cost as a seller is not really of interest to me. It's my "to my door" cost that I'm paying and that's what I care about. If it's stated plainly and it's reasonable, and it's not asterisked and accompanied by whining about how I have to pay for your gas and the tire wear and the oil changes, plus the wear to your shoes while you're walking from the parking space to the door of the post office, plus the incremental deodorant expended while waiting on line, then I'm potentially interested.

With respect to speedy delivery, I can respect the opinion of two days to get a five star rating, but it's not something I feel I can personally subscribe to. I have decided to not even bother with the star ratings at all since, as the opinions expressed thus far about shipping time have illustrated, it's quite subjective.

With respect to "with shipping" listings... the new version of the eBay pages, to which I have been subjected from time to time, include the shipping costs right in the listing, before you click on the listing to read the details. "Not specified" becomes a red flag to me and the odds are that the listing will not be clicked upon.

 

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As I see it, the issue at hand is not the cost of S&H, but rather the inflation of that cost. If you charge $10, then provide something close to that in shipping. I'm not opposed to paying $10 or so for the flat-rate priority box, as I know it costs $8.95, postage included. I won't pay $10 for a paper envelope with a single stamp. That is where the line should be drawn. I always know what my shipping costs are up front, and if I don't like it, I move along. I once paid over $250 to ship something from Europe (no, it wasn't a coin, it was an ophicleide). I factored that in, and I knew up front what I was getting. (It was a box about 18"x18"x60", and I got it in less than a week). I got what I paid for. If it had taken 3 months, and been all banged up, then we would have had a completely different situation. Shipping & Handling should be just that, not Shipping & Handling (& profit padding).

 

Well whatever an ophicleide is you were informed of the shipping.
I once sold a front air dam from my 1985 Omni GLH turbo for $75. I made my own box. The USPS would not touch it and refused to ship it. The only local way I could ship was UPS and they charged $130.00.
The buyer wanted it so bad he agreed to pay that. One hundred thirty-dollars to ship a $75 part!

 

I just won an auction off of eBay, a bulk coin purchase to fill in some holes in a Dansco album. I factored the shipping cost into what I was willing to bid before making the guy an offer. Shipping was $12.00. I thought that was steep, but I got the package and saw he actually paid $14.21. Sometimes it cuts both ways.

 

That's fine if you're selling at a fixed price and can set it at whatever you feel the value to be. However, in general when selling on eBay you have to take whatever the final price is, doesn't matter if it only gets up to $40 (in your example) or for some reason goes to $80 because of a buying frenzy.

Of course you can see all the time auctions with a starting price that's rather high (say $50 in your example), and often those are the auctions that get zero bids. In which case, the seller must still pay eBay listing fees, a few bucks at least, so do you list it next time at $53 because it cost you $3 for the failed attempt to sell in addition to the $50 value of the coin? Probably not, it's just a cost you have to accept, which is why you should also accept buyers who price shipping into their total cost they're willing to pay. Just the way it is.

 

Out of curiosity, what did you buy? You can send up to 70 pounds in a flat rate box for $8.95.

 

As a seller you can set your reserve at $50(for a $50 coin) with s&h $10 and I most certainly will not bid. You might also not sell the coin - not sure if the seller still pays a listing fee. And from what I read here most sellers would rather have higher s&h because that means lower ebay fees which would increase their profit. Also if you read back thru this thread you will see a lot of buyers consider s&h when bidding on a coin. To me the key is to get as close to grey sheet as you can so you need to include s&h.

 

it sounds fair to me, Handeling is more expensive then shipping !!

 

I can't believe all this chatter about something that the buyer clearly showed in the add. If you did not want to pay for the s&h don't buy the item.

 

I think the original point was that the buyer charged what was thought a reasonable price for s&h, then stuck a 2x2 in a cheap envelop with no padding - so then the shipping fees were excessive. And in this case the buyer dinged him for excessive shipping. The rest of the debate was opinions on what was right and/or wrong and most everybody has an opinion. What I find interesting(as pointed out by another) is the various points of views from sellers and buyers. I consider this a fun thread(nothing to get upset about because everybody is allowed an opinion).

And the most funny thing is I won a auction, but was busy reading up on this thread and miss added my bid. So I spent a $1.70 more for coin than I wanted to spend. Then to make matters worse I realised since I started watching the 2006 ASE burnish eagles I should have dropped what I would spend another $5. Darn-it all I forgot to check closed auctions(and dealers) for the last couple of weeks. I bid on several of these puppies shooting for less than $90(including s&h) lost everyone. Too much travel and work. I did not realize they dropped so much. Bought all my other stuff last year, but not one of these.

 

The package weighed about 3 lbs. The coins were shipped in a small cardboard box. They came in plastic tubes, taped shut, and rolled in bubble wrap. One of the tubes broke open in transit (it was a medicine bottle!), but nothing spilled out. The seller charged $7.20 to insure the package which was worth about $500. Therefore, assuming he did pay $14.21 to ship (per the lable), and $1 per $100 of declared value for insurance, he lost exactly 1¢ on shipping and insurance. That doesn't include any costs he incurred for materials.

I guess I'm in the middle when it comes to this discussion. If a seller charges an exuberant amount for shipping and insurance I expect the item(s) to be packaged accordingly. The seller's feedback can often be a telling indicator in such situations. Feedback has its accuracy problems, but have previous buyers complained about the seller's shipping practices? If not, odds are you will be OK. If the seller does charge an inordinate amount for shipping and insurance, and the item arrives poorly packaged, it is clear that the seller intended to make a couple of extra bucks by cutting a few corners, eBay rules notwithstanding. That bugs me. I've had a few items shipped to me that way, and they could have easily been damaged. I've been lucky so far, but I know the time will come when I'll get bitten. Conversely, I've had sellers go the "overkill" route when it comes to packaging, and I have remembered those guys. They will get my repeat business. They realize the value of what they are shipping, and the importance of the item to the buyer.

The problem is with actual "auctions," those with no reserve or starting bid. If a coin or coins sell for less than the seller had anticipated, he is likely going to look for a way to recoup some of his losses. That usually takes the form of poorly/cheaply packaged items, inflated insurance costs, and slower shipping options that cost less- unless the particulars are clearly spelled out in the auction. And, even if the seller states that he will ship an item in a certain way, that doesn't always guarantee that is what you'll get.

 

[/quote]Maybe because shipping does not cost $10.00. You won't get my bid either.[/quote]

Victor,
That was what we call “an example” it is used to illustrate a point.
Shipping has never cost you $10.00? Postage for Priority mail alone, not including packing materials, costs $8.95 for the first 70 LBS.

 

I think that we have talked this shipping thing to death. I was the one who started this thread and my biggest complaint was that in this particular auction I felt that I got a poor deal on the shipping. I felt that I was in the right by leaving feedback to show this. Keep in mind, I still left positive feedback, I just stated the facts about the shipping. Hopefully this will make the dealer think about shipping in the future.

In the 10 years that I have been on eBay, I have gotten some really good deals, and I've gotten screwed a couple of times, this happens. On the whole I understand how the eBay system works and I deal with it accordingly. In no way do I mean to say that every dealer out there is out to screw people on shipping, I find that most people are reasonable, there are just a few people out there that try and ruin it for everyone.

On the plus side, I've started going to my local coin club meetings, and I am joining this month. At the meeting I found out that a new coin store is opening, on Sept 1, just 5 min down the road from me, the first one within 30 miles, so hopefully my problems will be solved with a nice local dealer.

 

J. Cordiero, if you would be kind enough to provide your eBay handle to me, I will make both of us happy by avoiding your auctions.

I believe that you missed my point-- I care about what it costs me, not what it costs you. Whether you, or any other net based or brick and mortar based seller, survives, depends on whether a reasonable price/value ratio is presented to consumers like me. This is basic economics and it often amuses me how some folks think they are or should be somehow immune to these principles.

I will also point out that the $8.95 rate you quote is for the new flat rate Priority Mail for up to 70 pounds. I would find this irrelevant when the shipment of one to several small coins of up to about eight ounces of total weight is $4.05. (I'm figuring that the box weighs about eight ounces making the total weight within the one pound.)

I'm sorry that you decided my response was rude; but I have no intention of retracting it so we'll just have to agree to disagree. I think it best to stop right there and I'll not offer further comment.

Meanwhile, allow me to provide a out of numismatics example of shipping costs which, at least to me, appear to be extreme.

An item which weighs about 4 ounces is being listed on eBay with a UPS Shipping Rate of $11.47 including three dollars for handling. That would imply a UPS rate of $8.47. Even that would be potentially feasible, but here's the kicker: No combined shipment rates. So if I buy two 4 ounce items and they go in a single one pound box, I just handed the shipper $11.47 in incremental revenue.

Any guesses on whether I might bid on any of this seller's items? Surprisingly, the answer is "maybe" since the opening bid is low enough to make the all up all in price-- the one I care about-- meet my personal price/value ratio. If others feel the item is worth more, more power to them and I will cheerfully step aside.

I heartily endorse the avoidance of reserve prices. Don't make me guess!

 

umtrr-author

I guess I did miss your point. Because, what it cost the seller- IS GOING TO COST US, the consumer. Do you not understand that basic economics also takes into consideration the cost of S&H? It amazes me how some customers think that they should have to pay just book value for a coin and NOT have to pay for that coin to reach their door. Like it’s going to arrive by some free, magical means.

Your finding my example of $8.95 for Priority mail irrelevant is meaningless to me as it was an example. It is my belief that you would have a problem with just about any example used.

You also make it sound as if it is a concern of mine weather or not you retract your remarks. How presumptuous and odd.

The rest of your statement is of no meaning to me.

I will agree to disagree also and that will end the subject.