I am finding that certain sellers are overcharging shipping by a lot $$ - how can I deal with this?

[sasharanalli2001]

certain sellers are overcharging for shipping by a lot of money.  Having been a member since 2005 with over 700 transactions with 100% 5 star positive feedback - I know when I am being greatly overcharged.  I understand that it is shipping and handling and do not object to a small amount going to seller as part of the transaction. 

What I am referring to here is complete and utter gouging - an item that can be sent to me by one reputable seller for between 10 and 15 shipping is being marked as between 45 and 55 US for shipping - same item to same address.  What is eBay doing about this and where can I complain?  There are items I would very much like to purchase - I have even sent my zip code (postal code) and good sellers then amend their listings - others simply ignore.

This is fraud and theft - please ebay put some rules in place.....

[marnotom!]

But is the same shipping method being used in the comparison you mentioned?

Letter mail (First Class International) is a lot less expensive than parcel post (Priority) which is a lot less expensive than Express mail.

Then there's also the Global Shipping Program, described in listings as "International Priority Shipping" and is not to be confused with "Priority International" parcel post.  The Global Shipping Program, which is actually a forwarding service, sees you getting hit with three shipping charges in one: the seller's charge for shipping the item to Kentucky + a freight charge for getting the item to Canada + the charge for transporting your item from the Canadian receiving hub to your address.

[momcqueen]

While I can certainly commiserate with your point of view on handling fees which I oppose both as a seller and buyer, the best thing you can do is vote with your wallet. Don't shop there.

Those sellers are probably offering what you want for very very cheap as an asking price and moving all their profit into the handling side of shipping and handling. It's a shell game, and you don't have to play. The standing advice is to look at the total cost and decide whether it is acceptable to you. What's the better deal? Something that costs $50 with free shipping or something that costs $10 with $40 shipping? 

Aside from that, ebay policies do prohibit 'excessive' handling fees but there are no real procedures to address it. No fraud nor theft has occurred,

For the record, to cite 100 per cent feedback as a buyer is totally pointless. Sellers haven't been allowed to leave anything but positive feedback for buyers (no matter what they do or how they behave) for almost ten years. Ditto for the 'five-star' statement: buyers don't get stars those are for sellers only vis a vis Detailed Seller Ratings or DSR. 

[momcqueen]

For more information: http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/selling-practices.html and

http://pages.ebay.ca/help/policies/selling-practices.html

and a personal favourite of mine....

https://community.ebay.ca/t5/Seller-Central/HANDLING-FEES-Am-I-the-jerk-Excessive-to-charge-10-handl...

[momcqueen]

http://pages.ebay.ca/help/pay/shipping-for-buyers.html

"Sellers can charge reasonable shipping and handling fees to cover the costs for mailing, packaging, and handling the items that they sell. However, charging excessive fees for shipping violates our excessive shipping charges policy. Review the item description carefully to make sure you understand what the shipping costs are."

[murdarr.inc]

I'll start by saying that I agree with you.  This problem seems to be found mainly, though not exclusively, with items shipping from the USA.   Two listings for computer RAM (memory) chips.  Both the same item, both SHIPPING FROM THE SAME STATE, SAME SHIPPING SERVICE.  One had a reasonable charge of $15 shipping.   Costs me slightly less to ship the same item, same type of service, to a location within Canada (from Canada), so no problem there.

Second seller, from the same state, same item, same shipping service via USPS.. $45 SHIPPING CHARGE!

The two items were priced within $5 of each other, minus the shipping/handling costs,  

The prices for these items was reasonable for used RAM chips of the type being sold.   The only difference being that one of the sellers thinks that a box, label , packing tape, and a few minutes of their time somehow justifies adding $30 or more to the Shipping and Handling charges...

The ONLY time a super-high shipping costs can be understandable is this:

Shipping cross-border, usually with the Gouge-And-Screw,.. sorry, the Global Shipping Program.  Listing a $100 item as $19.99, with a shipping cost of $80 will same a Canadian customer from having to pay INSANE import fees. 

We get charged on anything over $20 CDN!  Many shipments from China get in without this happening, which is probably why so many of us buy from there, even though it often means waiting several months to get an item.  But paying $20 import fees on a $100 item tends to prohibit much cross-border shopping.

Other than this one exception, as I said, I agree.  There NEEDS TO BE A LIMIT on allowed handling charges.  Perhaps requiring sellers to use only the "Charge Actual Cost" rather than allowing a fixed cost for shipping would help, along with a limit of $10 extra for the "handling" charge.    A seller who always charges the maximum shipping cost, to avoid losing money when shipping to the farthest/most expensive country from their location..  is in the process SHAFTING any and all buyers who do NOT reside so far away, and who should not be paying for a "shipping distance" that they don't need.

As in, US seller sets their "fixed cost" to cover shipping to Australia.  Fine if their buyer is in Australia.  But a buyer in Canada would be paying for thousands of extra miles in transport of the package, without ANY justification.   Hardly a reputable way of doing business.

Indeed, something must be done.

Jeff

[momcqueen]

"Listing a $100 item as $19.99, with a shipping cost of $80 will same a Canadian customer from having to pay INSANE import fees."

To the best of my knowledge, import fees are assessed on item price not item price plus shipping and handling.

[marnotom!]

I think that's the poster's point, MJ. Assuming that they mean $19.99 CANADIAN dollars, mind you.  (I'm reading "same" as a typo for "save".)  An item with that value wouldn't see the item charged for taxes and duty, although they'd still have to pay processing fees that are part of the GSP import charges. These would be added to the shipping charge, though.

Speaking of shipping charges, I'm not sure if Jeff's aware that a seller has little control over the shipping charges levied by the Global Shipping Program. The only thing the seller using the GSP can do to adjust the shipping charge is finagle with their domestic shipping charge, the part of the GSP's total shipping charge that's for getting the item from the seller to the Global Shipping Center in Kentucky.

[reallynicestamps]

Perhaps requiring sellers to use only the "Charge Actual Cost" rather than allowing a fixed cost for shipping would help, along with a limit of $10 extra for the "handling" charge.  

To avoid this, many sellers just add the necessary handling (packaging, mostly) costs into the price of the item.

Doesn't make it any cheaper, but *cue smoke and mirrors* it is less annoying to the buyer

In the same way, sellers who are able to use Flat Rate Shipping, will often add the postage price into the asking price and call it *cue smoke and mirrors* Free Shipping.

In my opinion, the simpler the invoice the happier the customer.

So if applicable sales taxes are rolled into the price, postage and packaging are rolled into the price, and insurance is rolled into the price, the customer is happier with the transaction than if she pays price +shipping+ 'handling"/packaging+ sales tax+ insurance -- even if the bottom line is identical.

Further, many consumers believe that a higher price means a better product.

And even further, sellers believe that the customer who is comfortable paying a fair price, is an easier customer to deal with.

[reallynicestamps]

Since most handling is actually packaging, I'd like to note that when we moved we paid a specialty company $200 to package a large , fairly valuable, painting for us and another $100 to a specialist at this end to unpack and hang it securely.
Sometimes, $10 is just not going to cut it. Especially for sellers of fine china and glasswares.

[i.am.vivian]

This is such a busy bustling thread  I want to weigh in too.  I don't think I can add anything that hasn't already been said.

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sasharanalli2001 wrote:

certain sellers are overcharging for shipping by a lot of money.  

What I am referring to here is complete and utter gouging - an item that can be sent to me by one reputable seller for between 10 and 15 shipping is being marked as between 45 and 55 US for shipping - same item to same address.  What is eBay doing about this and where can I complain?  There are items I would very much like to purchase - I have even sent my zip code (postal code) and good sellers then amend their listings - others simply ignore.

This is fraud and theft - please ebay put some rules in place.....

---

It's not "fraud and theft".  Well, not fraud anyway.  And not really theft since you are made aware what the seller is charging to begin with.  It is deceptive and slimy, pretending the fees are so high, sure.  But the thing to do is buy from someone more reasonable.  You say some sellers amend their listings for you.  

One possible explanation for outrageous fees on first glance  is that some sellers set their "international" shipping cost to cover as far away as Australia and Japan but to mail to Canada is a LOT less.  So then ask the size and weight of the item and what they would charge to mail it First Class to Canada.  

Before you do that make sure you fully understand USPS shipping fees.  You may not be as current on all the changes as you need to be, so here is the link to check what a First Class parcel would cost to your POSTAL CODE, 

https://ircalc.usps.com/?country=10054

As others have pointed out, the real variance in cost is the WAY it is being shipped.  A small item (by that I mean like a handbag or a pair of sandals, too big for an envelope but not quite a wood stove) coming USPS First Class will be cheapest, but if the seller lists with USPS Priority that will turn into about $50 Canadian with the exchange rate.  

There are limits to what can come First Class (up to 4 lbs & 36 inches around, I think) but you can ask a seller to send it that way for you.  First Class provides DELIVERY CONFIRMATION to sellers, so there's no reason not to.

If the item is on a GSP listing that will be very expensive.  Sometimes the import charges are separate, sometimes rolled into the shipping fee, and there is no absolute rule about it that I can see.  And sometimes the shipping fee is unbelievably high.  If the seller won't mail to you directly, buy from someone else.  

But to answer your question specifically, eBay does nothing about it and there is nowhere for you to complain.  If you enter a term like "excessive shipping charges" in the Customer Service Q&A box here, 

http://ocsnext.ebay.ca/ocs/sc

you get told, 

"If an item's cost seems excessive, try to find a better deal. You can also use our Shipping Calculator to research shipping rates. It's against our policy to have unreasonable shipping charges in a listing, or to provide unclear or misleading shipping information.

Sellers are allowed to:

• Charge actual shipping costs
• Include the cost of packaging materials, insurance, and delivery
• Include delivery confirmation or extra services in the handling cost

Sellers aren't allowed to:

• Charge more than the maximum shipping costs in categories with shipping caps
• Charge a separate fee for insurance
• Charge for business-related fees such as employee wages or gas mileage
• Include contradictory or confusing shipping terms in the listing"  

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sasharanalli2001 wrote:

Having been a member since 2005 with over 700 transactions with 100% 5 star positive feedback - I know when I am being greatly overcharged.  I understand that it is shipping and handling and do not object to a small amount going to seller as part of the transaction. 

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Positive feedback on a buyer only ever means how many items they bought.  OK, it can indicate you know how the system works, and even what it costs to mail items to you.  But a buyer with 100% fb doesn't mean no seller ever wanted to complain.  Some sellers leave fb that says "5 star buyer" but that's stupid because buyers don't get stars.  For what?  

If you have been here since 2005 you should have seen the change in 2008, 

http://www.ecommercebytes.com/C/abblog/blog.pl?/comments/2008/1/1201611437.html

Maybe buyers should get stars, even if they couldn't have negs.  It could include 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️   Payment speed time (fast or slow payer)

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️   Communication (politeness and response time) 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️   Receipt time (how long it took them to acknowledge arrival)  

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️   Congeniality (the PITA factor)

There.  That's what we need.  Stars for buyers.  Make them earn that 100% they're so proud of.  :-)  

[momcqueen]

"Maybe buyers should get stars, even if they couldn't have negs. It could include

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Payment speed time (fast or slow payer)
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Communication (politeness and response time)
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Receipt time (how long it took them to acknowledge arrival)
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Congeniality (the PITA factor)

There. That's what we need. Stars for buyers."

I LOVE this idea.

[momcqueen]

You might be correct, marnotom! I saw merely a high shipping cost quoted along with the words 'insane import fees' and assumed it was a complaint about the latter without trying to decipher what the typo truly meant to convey.