Shipping Overcharger eBay User aaa41583

[ashlyne]

Thanks for the info, Firefly. 

Just wanted to say be extremely careful saying ANYTHING about feedback or the star rating when contacting a seller to see if they'll do something for you.   I very vaguely mentioned the star system rating, not even in a direct way, when asking ajbgames about the shipping overage and she reported me to ebay. Ebay saw it as extortion and dinged my account for 3 months for a "Policy Violation".   They take it very seriously, so I would avoid any mention of it. 

That's interesting about Canada's postal tax.   Can anyone verify if the UK has such a thing? I believe I've heard that the postage stamp cost is the actual cost. I did re-weigh the whole package and calculated the shipping price on Royal Mail and it came out exact.  There were no extra services on there like registration or signature.  Plus, if there were, I'm sure klicic1986 would've mentioned it.

It seems to me ebay won't go after excessive shipping charges on multiple item buys.  And there's no standard on combined shipping that says the seller has to send a certain amount back.  So if you buy 10 ponies, and the shipping is listed for $5 each, the seller can charge you $50 (or even just $45 and call it a combined shipping discount) and send it in a flat rate box for $14.  It's quite a scam!

[FantasticFirefly]

Wow, thanks for letting me know. Huh. Now I'll make no mention of it, just ask if an overage gets corrected. Those stars are the reason I mention a more minor (more then a couple bucks) difference to a seller in the first place. I don't want to leave someone a lower rating, when they fully intended to refund an overcharge but forgot.

Adding to this.
If I mail something within Canada, there are some additional charges. A fuel surcharge (I don't think is reflected on the label) is added and sales tax is applied on all charges, in BC it's 12%. This ONLY applies to mailing within Canada. If I mail to the USA, the price you see on the package is the price I paid.

[ClosetAvalanche]

Of course Ebay doesn't care about people who over charge on shipping- they get their fees from them anyway, why should they?

Sorry, I keep ranting about that fact, but it's an unfair practice to honest sellers

[babystarz]

Of course Ebay doesn't care about people who over charge on shipping- they get their fees from them anyway, why should they?

Sorry, I keep ranting about that fact, but it's an unfair practice to honest sellers

It totally is, because it makes me so much more wary about bidding. From now on, I'll have a hard time justifying a bid with a seller that has any bad feedback regarding shipping costs, whether or not it was deserved (it's not like I can tell). Your auctions are great though, I'm never hesitant over yours I have some favorite sellers that I always check first and that I know will be upfront about any flaws and only charge at cost shipping. You're one of them ^^ But unfortunately, for sellers I don't know or who are just starting out, I'm not willing to give them the benefit of the doubt any longer, or wait for a shipping refund since there are clearly people who are more than happy to pocket the unspent money.

I think eBay has gotten so big that the company doesn't have the resources to deal with this stuff, so everyone loses out.


And what really ticks me off more than anything is that this seller outright lied about the "materials" thing. It's offensive to me because I pay out of pocket for pretty tissue paper and stickers for every sale I make within the US, so that the buyer can have the joy of unwrapping a "present" upon receiving a package from me. And the only reason I don't do it is if an item is too oddly shaped or shipping internationally (in which case customs may very well unwrap it). I do this for free because I want buyers to have a good experience with me, and know that I care about them and the item.

[dippindot]

I pay out of pocket for pretty tissue paper and stickers for every sale I make within the US, so that the buyer can have the joy of unwrapping a "present" upon receiving a package from me.

I want to buy something from you now, just for that.

[hikari_amaya]

I pay out of pocket for pretty tissue paper and stickers for every sale I make within the US, so that the buyer can have the joy of unwrapping a "present" upon receiving a package from me.

I want to buy something from you now, just for that.

Same here xD I love presents!!

[babystarz]

Hehe thanks guys As you can see, doing things that build customer loyalty and satisfaction is better in the long run than ripping someone off to make a quick buck and losing them as a customer forever anyway. So being unscrupulous happens to be bad business sense! My grandpa and dad grew their family business from the ground up (twice, because it burned down in the 70's), and they have people that will come from 6 states away just to deal with them even though there are closer businesses that will give them the same deal. They even have the entire Hutterite community (50,000 people) dealing exclusively with them because it's an insular community that only deals with outsiders if they know they can trust them. Some of them come from as far away as Canada to do this. One colony invites my dad to their children's Christmas pageant every year. I guess that's why I feel so strongly about this subject - I have seen the fruitfulness of building strong connections with customers, because they keep coming back year after year and pass on those connections to their kids, and they recommend you to others. And frankly, it's much more pleasant to deal with happy people!

[hikari_amaya]

I completely agree on the strong ties my grandmother who is crop grower and a supplier of stew tomatos etc. Dealt with this one family for decades and within the last 3 years she had to sever ties because the children took over and messed everything up. To the point they're having to file bankrupsty. And the parents begged but she said no she would never deal with them again. Once a honest family goes bad its all over. that's why I check the bad trader list now so I don't get screwed over

[Xaniss]

Okies, I've just logged onto this subject, so please forgive me back-tracking a little...

Firstly, I'm really sorry to hear you've gone through this, but I'm really glad you've shared your experience as a warning to all (I've watched many of her auctions with an expectant drool, but never dealt with her) and it affirms to myself, not to deal with this seller - no matter how good her ponies look!

In regards to shipping over-charge - I've actually had this happen before with a seller from Hawaii (trembly3054) who said she would ship my ponies (a MIB Sparkler in a mangled box & a Mummy Sunbright) priority mail and I paid around $44 for it. When it arrived, it was sent first class for $12.50... I did open a 'item not described' after she promised to refund me $30... which she didn't do and I made out to paypal that the ponies weren't in the condition as described on ebay and I got my $30 back! Mind you, this was back in December, 2010!

If you DO have this experience again, you can either do that or make out the ponies never arrived and ask for a partial refund...? The latter may not be the honest way, but the more I deal with ebay sellers (this isn't really directed at sellers in the realms of pony buying though) the sneaker you've got to become, as they simply don't care they're ripping you off... Sorry if that sounds like a rant, but I've been though some awful, devilish ebay sales lately! AND it seems to be getting worse!