Totally Shipped Off!

[sanjosefuji]

Imagine winning this Carlton Fiskautograph off of eBay for $6.50. Pretty awesome, right?

Now imagine having to pay $11.25 for shipping. Let's just say... it killed my celebratory mood.

I was curious to see if the seller uses this strategy with all of his customers, so I went through his other eBay listings. That's where I discovered that his other baseball cards had shipping rates ranging from $2.07 to $4.00. So what's the deal?

I love showing off this card ;-)

Is my card going to be hand delivered by Ms. Upton? I decided to ask the seller about his outrageous shipping rates. His response:

Touche´ Mr. Mcromano-half! It truly is my responsibility to bid based on the shipping price, which is why I sent payment immediately after reading the seller's response.

However... based on your original listing, the shipping fees were listed as: Varies based on location and shipping method (see photo below).

Who in the heck assumes that it's going to cost themselves $11.25 for shipping?

By the way, the card wasn't delivered by Ms. Upton. And guess what? It only cost the seller $2.97 to ship. Let's say we tack on another $2.03 for the padded envelope, gas, time, and ink. That still only brings it up to $5 for shipping. Which means he pocketed an extra $6.25. I'm not amused.

Oh well... we bid and we learn. I'm tempted to leave this guy neutral or negative feedback. Am I out of line? Also... can he leave me neutral or negative feedback in retaliation?

Interested in reading your feedback.

Happy Sunday and sayonara!

More...

[cornwellfamily]

I have also gone through the same life lessons on bidding on EBay. In fact I've learned that if the bidding is generally low on something I know is worth more I always check the shipping and see that it is usually high which drives down the bids. In your case though where the shipping costs vary, I see that meaning if the bidding price of the card is low I'm going to jack up the price of shipping to cut back on my losses. As far as negative feedback I tend to leave that alone as that can come back to bite you. I once bought a lot of Ping-Pong Balls from an ebay dealer and when I got the box of them they had no bounce (Literally) and I had to throw away all 100 of them. I left the seller negative feedback and for the next 3 months I got waves of nasty emails from the seller and he also got my phone number somehow and was making harassing calls to my house all because I said his balls sucked (maybe he took it the wrong way now that I think about it). As long as the card is in good shape you really don't have an argument in my opinion.

[OriolesFan]

I haven't bid on ebay in a good while. However, when I do, I check the shipping cost before I enter a bid. My bid + the shipping, together go to the maximum I'll spend on the item. So, my advice, CHECK the shipping costs BEFORE you post a bid. If the shipping cost isn't posted send a question to the owner, and wait for a reply, prior to bidding. If he/she had it posted you have no argument. Have a good day, and MERRY CHRISTMAS.

[ucffans]

I wouldn't recommend leaving negative feedback. it seems to always come back to get you and isn't worth the hassle. I would only leave negative feedback if it involved not sending an object or if the object was not in the condition it was advertised to be. Chalk it up to lesson learned.

[bobjah]

The $6.25 probably went to pay pal and ebay cost . I have allmost stoped useing ebay alltogather seems like it cost more to sell than its worth .The shipping price he made is crazy but its probably only way he was going to profit .I have been useing sites like lista lately .

[thebighurt035]

Seeing that he had such a vague description on his shipping I would have sent him a message asking for the exact shipping charge.

I haven't bought anything off ebay in years but I (not saying you should) would have left this turd a negative and if he left me a retaliatory neg I would have accepted it like a badge of honor... but that is me not saying others should do what I do...

Still a nice looking autograph card of Fisk...

[hayn]

Fujisan, as you are well aware, everything, and I mean everything that you do on eBay is relevant! Never ever make a purchase with emotions, you must always pursue your purchases with extreme prejudice. What do I mean by this? First, read in detail, the item you plan to purchase. Find the book value, research other sellers that offer the same exact item. Check the shipping cost. And most importantly, contact the seller! Tell the seller that you are serious in winning this auction. Verify S&H cost. Ask about the item in question. Ask for more photos. Treat this purchase, as if you were spending a Million Dollars! In reality, it is! You work hours and days that are long and hard, you place your moral value above all else, and you sacrifice time which is money. So you are spending what I can consider a Million Dollars!

If the seller becomes irritated by your request, then politely thank them, and do not pursue any purchases with this seller. For the short time that I've been collecting, all my eBay auctions have been handled in this manner. I have yet to have a seller irritated by my request and I have had successful auctions on all my purchases. Unfortunately, as you already know, there is nothing you can do. I would leave a positive rating and move on. Is the seller right? Of course not, but this is the way bussiness transactions have been handled since the beginning of time.

Take this as a lesson learned, enjoy your time with your family and friends, and please be safe during your Christmas celebrations. Have a very happy new year!

Toshi

[jwgreen68]

Just for the record...a seller can't leave negative feedback for a buyer, only positive or no feedback at all.

Like Rodney, I always check the shipping cost first and also where its coming from. I determine what I will pay for the card and place my max bid, which is my value minus the shipping cost.

[thebighurt035]

His shipping info for that card only.

Shipping: Varies based on location and shipping method

At the price he charged it should have been put into a small fireproof strongbox but after seeing that shipping info he posted I would have asked first,lol

[schwood]

Just ask him for justification on the shipping charge. Ask why it cost 11 bucks and shipping was 2.97 and say 2 bucks for the other incidentals. Ask where the other 6 bucks came from and see if he can justify it.

I thought there was some rule also that shipping on items had to be reasonable and within some range. Like someone could not charge you 10 dollars to ship something that reasonably only cost like 4 bucks to ship. Where was this guy shipping from? The Antarctic?

[schwood]

I will tell you what, it says that the item will ship by USPS Priority mail at 11.25. He shipped it first class. It is stamped right on the bubble mailer. I would ask him why it was not shipped by priority since that was the quote in his auction. It should have come in a medium flat rate box for that amount of shipping.

[azdbacks1998]

You definetly have some pull since you have the envelope with the shipping cost listed. I'd contact him for justification, and for a very reasonable $6 refund. Tell him you dont want to, but that you are inclined to post negative feedback since you feel like you were mislead on the shipping cost.

Very disappointing that there are sellers out there like this. Your inquiry about the unreasonable shipping was very professional, his response is nothing but immature.

Good luck!

[sanjosefuji]

Thanks for all of your feedback. I wish I would have read your comments earlier. However several people left comments on my actual blog site, so I took there advice... along with the advice of several friends who sell on eBay.

I figure some of you might be interested in what the outcome was. In short, I called eBay to ask for their advice on the situation. They recommended that I contact the seller again, which I did. He ended up refunding me $6. I never left him feedback. Mainly because I didn't feel that it was a positive experience... however leaving him a neutral feedback after he met me half way didn't seem fair either.