Canada Post Snap Ship - Anyone else getting Unauthorized Charges?

[teenytrinkets]

I've been using Canada Post's Snap Ship for a couple of years now, off an on.  In the past few months, the rates have been much better online than the rates I've been getting at the counter, and with the small flat rate boxes.  Until June....when I had a large volume of sales and shipped out about 25-30 packages.

For the first time ever, I had a bunch of packages "re-assessed" - meaning, when they were scanned by the machines, 6 of them were "increased" in size by .5 cm, and consequently I was charged an average of $2-$3 more per package.  After more digging, I realized that this is how CP handles insufficient postage for packages prepaid online.  While I appreciate the package not being returned to add postage, I am not a huge fan of CP determining what I owe, and just charging my card without notification or authorization.  But, this is how Snap Ship operates.  They say their scanners are 99.9 percent accurate. Well, of course they say that - they're charging you more money without your knowledge or consent!

I use the same box for about 80% of my packages. And I always add another 10g or so for labels/paper/tape, and add about .5cm or more to l/w/h in case the box is bulky and bows.  This size box was "reassessed" as incorrect dimensions ONLY when the volumetric equivalent was exactly 1 kg (every other time I've used this box, magically my dimensions for this box were correct...hmmm).  In each case where my shipment had that 1 kg volume, all of my boxes were reassessed and increased in size by only .5 cm and charged more money.  Not one single other box of that size on all of my statements has ever been changed in 2 years. Because none of them have been exactly 1kg.  The 6 that were charged more were all 1 kg volume.  Seems super, super coincidental.  And shady.  Like their system is designed to "up" the box dimensions just enough to charge more money!  Sure, the amounts are low.  Low enough for customers to maybe let it slide.  But enough for CP to make a bunch more money on these unauthorized charges. 

Now I won't use Snap Ship if my volumetric equivalent is 1 kg. I'm better off to use a flat rate box (since most of these I ship from BC to ON).

Just wondering if anyone else has ever had this happen to them?

[recped]

It doesn't matter who you use to print shipping labels, you are buying the labels from Canada Post and you abide by their rules. One of their rules is that you need to reimburse them for postage shortages using your standard payment method.

You signed an agreement, the charges are not "unauthorized".

The question about the accuracy of Canada Post equipment is a totally different story. If you want some "fun" reading look up Lee Valley vs Canada Post. I think in the end Lee Valley "won" but a somewhat hollow victory and it took years of litigation. Their main beef was over the way triangular shaped boxes were measured for volumetric weight calculations.

FYI - Canada Post will also refund OVERPAID postage, it's rare but it does happen.

[travis7s]

Yes it has happened to me as well, Canada Post will bill the extra fees through Shippo as well. I don't really think its a conspiracy, I've really tried harder to be accurate and haven't got an underpaid charge since late April. In that case I had listed it at 40x31x14 and they sampled it at 41x31x14, and that cost me $0.64 extra.

My guess would be your 1kg boxes are right on the threshold on the next price point, something as simple as the box being slightly squished could throw it off. (0.5cm is not very much) If you try adding a full 1cm in SnapShip does the price go up?

[teenytrinkets]

Yeah, the boxes are pretty close to the threshold to increase the price - that's why the .5 cm here and theremakes a difference.

My beef is that out of all my shipments they have only reevaluated the ones that are on that 1kg threshold, and increased all of them by .5 cm either by length or width - despite the fact that i know they didn't all legitimately require the increase.

A bit of a live and learn scenario, I suppose, with the caveat to be careful to read the fine print. I'm not accustomed to my card being charged without my knowledge.

[brettjet38]

- Tape Mesure

- Scale

I have shipped 1000's of packages using PayPal, this has happened to me once. I always round up to the nearest CM on each size and always put the weight to just under the threshold for that package. This way I never overpay or underpay and sleep easily at night...

And, if your package bows, you need to measure the widest point or that bump will leave you with a bump on your "payment" method.

[travis7s]

I imagine if its not going to result in a  price change they won't even bother reporting that it was oversized/undersized. In some cases you can be off by like 10cm and it won't change the price.