You ever have a little thing make you wanna flip out?

[comicseekers-migration]

Buying 7 comics for $28.19, but the seller only charging $16.19... WoW!!!, $12 dollars to spend somewhere else!!!

 

If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands

If you're happy and you know it, then your face will surely show it

If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands.

 

 

Or not.

$2 overcharge!

 

 

considering that the Flat Rate Priority mail box only costs $8.00 to ship at least 20 comics

[skybolt]

Buying 7 comics for $28.19, but the seller only charging $16.19... WoW!!!, $12 dollars to spend somewhere else!!!

 

If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands

If you're happy and you know it, then your face will surely show it

If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands.

 

 

Or not.

$2 overcharge!

 

 

considering that the Flat Rate Priority mail box only costs $8.00 to ship at least 20 comics

 

I wish USPS can come up with a smaller sized Flat Rate Box for $5.50 or something. For instance, shipping 10 vs. 50 comics in one box shouldn't cost the same. Because of the total weight, even if I place only 10 books in the larger priority box, the total fee still comes out to about $8 again.

[jbud73]

He said $3 in each auction. He listed very little else. He says he has a policy of charging $1 per comic after the first auction, but this policy isn't in his auctions.

 

There is virtually no way shippin comics from WVA to VA can ever cost $9. Especially if you ship first class. There is no excusing triple billing for shipping.

 

You know what's going to happen though -- whether you pay the excess shipping or not, he'll stick them in a manilla envelope with no support and they'll be thrashed when you get them.

 

You know thats the thing that really me about the 1 cent auction shipping profiteers. Look I know they are setting up their auctions to circumvent EBAY fees and if EBAY is to lazy to shut them down well what can I do about it. I just look at it like the Heritage BP and adjust my bids.

 

BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUT what really kills me is when I win 3-4 books for 25 cents and then pay $12 for shipping and they ship the books, no bagsm no boards, media for $0.85. Hey I'll pay the HUGE over charge on shipping but at least gimme a bag, board and some cardboard, all of which cost next to nothing.

 

I'm kind of scratching my head over all this. The clear answer seems to be don't buy nickel and dime books over the internet, unless it's a trustworthy seller who you know won't rip you off on shipping and will pack the books securely.

 

We're talking about books that cost less than $2 each, right? By definition, they can't be too rare, so buy them at a LCS or at a con.

 

The problem Sen. Palatine is that you've been abroad for too long. These days most LCS's don't carry anywhere near the extensive runs of stuff that they used too. Same goes for cons, usually its not profitable for dealers to bring a lot of these books to the show. Every once in a while you just end up needing a few issues to complete the run and have to look to EBAY and the large volume dealers, especially considering I live in Monterey not exactly the bright center of the comics universe.

 

Oh by the way, I hear Matt Nelson hates you, or thinks you hate him. You might want to make nice with him 'cause adverse relations may actually put a dent in your Dark Jediness considering which side of the force he operates on - solidarity among the Sith is important these days dontcha know

[Rob]

He should still report him to ebay for excessive postage costs.

 

You guys are ridiculous. This guy is doing the seller a favor. He doesn't have to combine shipping costs at all. He should have charged $3 per comic, as that's what the buyer agreed to when he bought the comic.

 

I just weighed 7 comics, bagged and boarded, reinforcement cardboard, packing material, and a Priority box, and it is over 2 lbs. Priority Shipping for 2 lbs 1oz from my zip code to NY (gotta give the benefit of the doubt) is $9.00 exactly.

 

I know excessive shipping is a hot topic on eBay. But it's usually when someone charges $20 for $3 shipping. Charging $9 for what may have cost him $6 is not a big deal, IMO. I'm shocked that there's still the perception that everyone's paying exact shipping charges. eBay even has a place for you to enter your handling charges. So he has a $3 handling charge, big deal. In my 9.5 years on eBay, I've seen that a "$1 for each additional comic" is a common practice. Why is there such backlash about this one?

[DKB]

AZ to NY, is not WVA to VA. You couldn't have picked a worse example. WVA being, you know, just West of VA.

 

He was going to 1 comic first class. So I'm willing to bet the 7 comics would not have traveled in any kind of box. Flat Rate envelope, $4.05. $5 is very reasonable shipping + handling. I'd accept $6 as the edge reasonable shipping + handling. I even told him I'd take $7.

 

And you are right, he's doing me a favor by offering to ship it for twice as much as it was going to cost him.

 

If you think its ok for someone to charge $21 just cause they didn't SAY they'd combine shipping... FIne, be a by the book kinda guy, but there's no question that's out of line and worth of a kick in the shins.

 

Like the thread says, little thing. I've made no bones about the fact that its a few bucks. Its just that I just got done working pretty hard to combine shipping at $1 - $1.50 within cost for up to as many as 200 comics...43 auctions, even so far as to give .50 or .75 refunds, and I can't stand the fact that the dude is bold faced ripping me off and has no qualms about it.

[FlamingCarrot]

AZ to NY, is not WVA to VA. You couldn't have picked a worse example. WVA being, you know, just West of VA.

 

He was going to 1 comic first class. So I'm willing to bet the 7 comics would not have traveled in any kind of box. Flat Rate envelope, $4.05. $5 is very reasonable shipping + handling. I'd accept $6 as the edge reasonable shipping + handling. I even told him I'd take $7.

 

And you are right, he's doing me a favor by offering to ship it for twice as much as it was going to cost him.

 

If you think its ok for someone to charge $21 just cause they didn't SAY they'd combine shipping... FIne, be a by the book kinda guy, but there's no question that's out of line and worth of a kick in the shins.

 

Like the thread says, little thing. I've made no bones about the fact that its a few bucks. Its just that I just got done working pretty hard to combine shipping at $1 - $1.50 within cost for up to as many as 200 comics...43 auctions, even so far as to give .50 or .75 refunds, and I can't stand the fact that the dude is bold faced ripping me off and has no qualms about it.

 

 

Here ya go.

 

 

[DKB]

...and all I get jackassery.

[Darrell F]

So I'm willing to bet the 7 comics would not have traveled in any kind of box. Flat Rate envelope, $4.05. $5 is very reasonable shipping + handling.

 

If 7 comics are coming in an envelope, you are screwed anyway. I know when I pack a box (I never use an envelope) I use a lot of packing materials. My time is also worth something when I stand in line at the post office for 45 minutes. These are the reason that I can justify my charging $8-$10 for shipping a slab. Yes I know you are talking about raw books.

[DawgPhan]

...and all I get jackassery.

 

what did you expect from these guys...

[Artboy99]

I hate being charged "International rate" when I am a mere 200 miles north of the seller. I am in Canada instead of the USA. His domestic rate is 5.95, his international rate is 24 dollars.

So please understand why you wont get any sympathy from me for the 5 dollar overcharge.

 

Artboy99

[Rob]

AZ to NY, is not WVA to VA. You couldn't have picked a worse example. WVA being, you know, just West of VA.

 

Sorry, when I was plugging in values in my USPS Shipping Assistant, I used the zip codes that I usually input. I hadn't memorized your particular details. When I set my shipping costs, I use the amount it will be to ship to the furthest zone, as I can't predict who will buy my item. Perhaps he did the same, and WV to CA was $9. And no, I don't adjust shipping costs if it happens to be to an adjacent state.

 

If you think its ok for someone to charge $21 just cause they didn't SAY they'd combine shipping

 

If you agreed to $21 shipping by bidding and entering a contract, yes. If he didn't list shipping costs, and then surprised you with the $21 fee, that would be unethical in my eyes. I am the biggest opponent against high shipping fees. But what I'm saying is that you agreed to the $21 fee, so if he charges anything less than $21, you should be happy. If you didn't think each comic was worth $4, then why did you bid? I never bid on items with high shipping costs. There's no reason to assume the seller will reduce his stated shipping to actual costs.

 

I really don't see how you're being ripped off. He called out the price in his description, and you agreed. Whether he calls it "shipping fees" or not, it's all the same price. A $5 comic can be a $5 bid and free shipping, or a $1 bid and $4 shipping. Some people hide a portion of the final price in shipping fees. (If it's exorbitant, it's against eBay's rules as fee circumvention and should be reported.) When I bid, I add shipping in, and determine if the final price is worth paying. Next time, be more diligent when you bid. I think all eBay newbies learn this lesson once.

[DKB]

AZ to NY, is not WVA to VA. You couldn't have picked a worse example. WVA being, you know, just West of VA.

 

When I set my shipping costs, I use the amount it will be to ship to the furthest zone, as I can't predict who will buy my item. Perhaps he did the same, and WV to CA was $9. And no, I don't adjust shipping costs if it happens to be to an adjacent state.

 

 

If you charge someone based on AZ to NY, and they live in Phoenix, and you don't adjust the charge, you are profiting on the shipping, not on the book. You are well within your right, of course, but as far as i'm concerned, its a shady practice. You could do the "right" thing and either alter the shipping on the invoice (easy to do) or if they pay right away, refund at least a portion of the difference. No one is asking you refund to exact shipping costs, but get it close? You know, a "hey, you are paying for shipping with this money, and I don't need this much to ship it" sorta good faith thing.

 

Its naive to think people would do this, but one can hope, eh?

 

And did someone say "pay for the time you stand in line at the Post Office"? Please. I'd hate to think what esquirecomics would charge for that 45 minutes considering what his hourly rate probably is. If you are charging $2 to stand around for 45 minutes, you could try a job at McDonalds and double up!

[JuliusSeizure]

There's no reason to assume the seller will reduce his stated shipping to actual costs.

Well, there's the matter of good customer service and ethical business practices, but you're right, you can't assume those. Seems to me that legally, the seller is in the right, but ethically, the buyer has just cause for displeasure. In cases like this, I always ask ahead of time before bedding on multiple items, because with my luck I'd run into the jerk who WOULD charge the $21.

 

Really, nobody wins, because DKB will certainly not buy from this seller again, and neither will most people he 'names names' to.

[skybolt]

Really, nobody wins, because DKB will certainly not buy from this seller again, and neither will most people he 'names names' to.

 

It ultimately comes down to what you just stated. I'd much rather have a returning customer than saving a couple of bucks any day of the week. For instance, I had this one buyer that would take him a month to send me a money order . He kept sending apology letters because he could never keep up with all his purchases. I basically let it go, since he eventually paid for every purchase, while winning about 20% of my auctions.

[Rob]

AZ to NY, is not WVA to VA. You couldn't have picked a worse example. WVA being, you know, just West of VA.

 

When I set my shipping costs, I use the amount it will be to ship to the furthest zone, as I can't predict who will buy my item. Perhaps he did the same, and WV to CA was $9. And no, I don't adjust shipping costs if it happens to be to an adjacent state.

 

 

If you charge someone based on AZ to NY, and they live in Phoenix, and you don't adjust the charge, you are profiting on the shipping, not on the book. You are well within your right, of course, but as far as i'm concerned, its a shady practice. You could do the "right" thing and either alter the shipping on the invoice (easy to do) or if they pay right away, refund at least a portion of the difference. No one is asking you refund to exact shipping costs, but get it close? You know, a "hey, you are paying for shipping with this money, and I don't need this much to ship it" sorta good faith thing.

 

I actually do that when shipping heavy objects. Not going to charge $12 to someone locally that only cost me $5 to ship. Believe it or not (not obvious by the point I'm trying to make on this thread), but my #1 priority on eBay is customer service. I do my best to keep my shipping charges down, and sometimes undercharge and have to use part of my profit to ship an item. But if I charge $5.95 for shipping and it comes to $4.95, I will keep the $1.

 

And I don't agree that he's profiting on the shipping and not the book. Like I said earlier, I think most people combine the bid and the shipping cost, and consider that the price of the comic. The seller is basically saying, "Warning: the final price will be what you bid plus this amount." So bid accordingly. If a comic is worth $20, and the seller is offering free shipping, then bid $20. If he's charging $10 for shipping, only bid $10. And if he ships it $4.05 Priority, don't complain that he ripped you off on shipping. You paid $20 for the comic regardless. If he was charging $4 for shipping, you would have bid $16. It's silly symantics. I don't see the ethical issue with the shipping costs. Again, I'm not condoning them. I hate the practice, but only because I think it would hurt my sales.

 

I sold a huge framed photo last month (check ID: vintagebatman) and charged $10 for shipping. Well, it didn't fit in a Priority box, so I had to buy a box at the UPS store (I was late and needed something quick). It fit perfectly, but cost me $6.25. Then Priority shipping was $9.90. That's $16.15 for shipping, and I only charged $10. So my final bid of $10 was reduced to $3.85 after I ate $6.15 in shipping. I don't mind, it's all about customer service.

[EastEnd]

AZ to NY, is not WVA to VA. You couldn't have picked a worse example. WVA being, you know, just West of VA.

 

When I set my shipping costs, I use the amount it will be to ship to the furthest zone, as I can't predict who will buy my item. Perhaps he did the same, and WV to CA was $9. And no, I don't adjust shipping costs if it happens to be to an adjacent state.

 

 

If you charge someone based on AZ to NY, and they live in Phoenix, and you don't adjust the charge, you are profiting on the shipping, not on the book. You are well within your right, of course, but as far as i'm concerned, its a shady practice. You could do the "right" thing and either alter the shipping on the invoice (easy to do) or if they pay right away, refund at least a portion of the difference. No one is asking you refund to exact shipping costs, but get it close? You know, a "hey, you are paying for shipping with this money, and I don't need this much to ship it" sorta good faith thing.

 

I actually do that when shipping heavy objects. Not going to charge $12 to someone locally that only cost me $5 to ship. Believe it or not (not obvious by the point I'm trying to make on this thread), but my #1 priority on eBay is customer service. I do my best to keep my shipping charges down, and sometimes undercharge and have to use part of my profit to ship an item. But if I charge $5.95 for shipping and it comes to $4.95, I will keep the $1.

 

And I don't agree that he's profiting on the shipping and not the book. Like I said earlier, I think most people combine the bid and the shipping cost, and consider that the price of the comic. The seller is basically saying, "Warning: the final price will be what you bid plus this amount." So bid accordingly. If a comic is worth $20, and the seller is offering free shipping, then bid $20. If he's charging $10 for shipping, only bid $10. And if he ships it $4.05 Priority, don't complain that he ripped you off on shipping. You paid $20 for the comic regardless. If he was charging $4 for shipping, you would have bid $16. It's silly symantics. I don't see the ethical issue with the shipping costs. Again, I'm not condoning them. I hate the practice, but only because I think it would hurt my sales.

 

I sold a huge framed photo last month (check ID: vintagebatman) and charged $10 for shipping. Well, it didn't fit in a Priority box, so I had to buy a box at the UPS store (I was late and needed something quick). It fit perfectly, but cost me $6.25. Then Priority shipping was $9.90. That's $16.15 for shipping, and I only charged $10. So my final bid of $10 was reduced to $3.85 after I ate $6.15 in shipping. I don't mind, it's all about customer service.

 

Agree wholeheartedly... particularly last sentence.