What to do when overcharged?

[Desert Rose]

I've been buying quite alot of different things lately (All MLP related however ) and from all over the world.

Unfortunatly, many times I notice how the sellers overcharge me on shipping grossly. While it has never happend here on the Arena it has happend alot on Ebay and Etsy.
For example: A little while ago I purchased an item from Etsy. The shippingcost demanded was $15. When the package arrived the other day the shipping label said $5.

And that's not the first time nor the most overpiced shipping demanded I've had to pay.

Does this happen alot and what do you do about it? I mean, the shipping clearly shows up on the label so why are people even doing this? O.o

Just getting frustrated with all the extra $$ I'm paying for absolutely nothing other than the sellers greed - or so it seems.

[hopscotch]

It does happen a lot. Definitely make sure you give less than the 5 star rating afterward so they get the message, although that probably won't help you avoid it again with so many sellers doing it. If sellers can shift profit over to the shipping they can avoid larger fees from Ebay, I believe. Which is why sometimes you see items with such a low price but with a crazy shipping price.

If the shipping price seems high, I would just message them and ask politely about it. I've done it a few times and every single time they lowered it to an acceptable price, but I know that's a hassle to have to do. Ultimately, you might just have to either go for it if you want the item enough, contact them to get it lowered, or avoid the item and sellers that you believe are doing it.

[Lancer]

If it's only a little, I tend to ignore it.  I myself usually round up to the nearest 50p (like I charge £2.50 on eBay when I know postage will be £2.20), especially on cheaper items...remember the seller is usually having to pay for packaging and there are an awful lot of fees associated with eBay and Paypal.  If I sell something internationally for 99p, I generally end up with only around 28p.  So if I didn't overcharge those extra few pence, I'd actually be out of pocket.

For bigger overcharges (like £1 or more), you could try gently messaging the seller and pointing it out.  In some cases, it might be a genuine mistake.  I post a LOT of parcels in one day and sometimes I KNOW that I've overcharged on one or two of them but as the individual post office receipts don't give prices, I never know for sure which ones went for less.  A couple of people have emailed me for this reason, and I've always been more than happy to refund them the difference (and apologise!)  UK shipping is particularly hard to guess because one thing will go "large letter" and another "small packet" when there's only 1mm between the two items!

If they don't offer to refund even after your email though, I'd definitely give them a low star rating (for eBayers - don't know much about Etsy).  I'd probably still leave positive feedback if the item was satisfactory, but then I hate leaving neautrals or negatives for anyone!

[ponylady]

I completely agree with Lancer.  But the easiest thing I have found to do is to just not purchase items from sellers who gauge me on shipping. 

I have no problem paying a $1 or $2 extra as I know what it costs for packing materials, time, etc.  And I also understand most of these folks are just normal peeps trying to get by. So that doesn't bother me.  But when they are raking me over the coals for the tune of $5 or $10 I walk away because it's my choice whether I want to pay that or not.

As far as what you can do about it, I am not sure how Etsy handles those types of things.  But ebay you can report sellers for excessive shipping charges.  Click the following link and Report the Seller to eBay - scroll to the bottom of the page where it says "Contact Customer Service" - report the seller for "excessive shipping" or "circumvention of eBay fees".

[Desert Rose]

Well I don't mind either when its just a little over, but yes, when it is $10 over like in my example it's not acceptable in my opinion.

And don't get me wrong, I'm not completely naive Every time when I see a pony on Ebay and the shipping is $40 I completely ignore said auction as I know that is a ripoff.
However, this last item wasn't a pony - it was a random MLP item and I honestly had no clue how much it weighed, how it would have to be shipped etc. and couldn't from that do an estimate of what it might cost to ship.
And it's those cases I'm talking about.

As for packing material etc. I can be ok with paying for that. (Allthoug I personaly re-use boxes and packingmaterial to save on costs and the enviroment - But I realize not all do this or have the posibility to so I'm not gonna complain over that).
But I honestly don't feel it's right to increase the shipping cost to cover other fee's. I can understand where you're comming from Lancer, almost not even breaking even. However, wouldn't the fair thing for everyone be to put the price on the item abit higher then so you do earn something from selling it?
And I say this as both a buyer and a seller. 

But as I said, I can look past a few $ over. But not all these $10+ over. I honestly think it's a very poor and dishonest way for people to earn some extra money.
Sad to see it seems to be a common problem and I'm starting to get the feeling I should just stick to buying from folks on the Arena.

Gonna see if I can compose a friendly but firm letter to this latest seller anyway.

Cheers for the advices so far

[lovesbabysquirmy]

If they are difficult or give you a nasty attitude please share who they are with the rest of us.  Yes, most of us can overlook $2-3 dollars in overcharge but yes, anything over $10 is grossly inappropriate. 

[FantasticFirefly]

Agreed!
I round up shipping enough that when paypal funds hit my bank account I'm not OUT any shipping money. So, on ebay I ignore .50cents-$2 on small totals and $2-3 overcharge on larger shipping totals $20+ shipping. I do notify a seller when I notice the label says say $7 shipping while I paid them $17. Most of the time they send me the difference, I only had one lady imply *I* was being difficult, but she still refunded the difference. Usually people have been lovely, some say they intentionally overcharge and refund the difference once they actually send parcels but forgot about mine. If they are NOT so nice in your situation and an avid pony seller please do share their ID.

[BlueyBirdy]

On rare occasions I have accidentally charged the wrong shipping cost. Usually it's an undercharge but I think a couple of times I overcharged. In fact I frequently lose money on shipping as charging what it actually costs me in materials would likely lose me customers, especially as eBay pushes sellers to offer free shipping (seriously - they don't want sellers to make money, just to make their site look pretty).

However, the problem I have is that no one lets me know if the shipping cost is wrong and I end up with low Detailed Seller Ratings on eBay. I've received a few 1 star and 2 star ratings from seemingly nowhere (the buyers left generic positive feedback) and it's actually damaging my previously good reputation. I may have sanctions placed on my account all because buyers won't talk to me.
If I knew why people were leaving me these low scores I could help resolve the problem! I've never been anything other than professional and swift in my dealings.

In short: If you're overcharged shipping on eBay when your item arrives, for the love of Celestia, contact the seller before leaving feedback and enquire about the shipping cost!
If the seller fobs you off with lame excuses or never gets back to you then go ahead and leave negative feedback. I hate people who over-inflate shipping as much as the next person.

Sorry for ranting but eBay are being very, very harsh on sellers right now and we need all the help we can get.

[Star_Warrior]

I wonder how much of the overcharging is due to sellers actually trying to make more money, or if it's a problem on eBay.  I want to sell some things on eBay and started filling out the seller listing.  It got to the shipping and would only let me put in a priority shipping cost which is far higher than first class or parcel post.  It also is accounting for tracking and delivery confirmation (which do cost extra through the post office).  I've always believed in giving buyers the most accurate shipping cost possible and allowing them to choose which way to have it sent.  For myself, I've always been fine with waiting a little while longer for my package if it means saving money.

As a seller you have to put in the weight and size of the package and eBay calculates the price.  I believe there is a way to change this, but if the seller is like me, there's no knowing how (or instructions on doing it).  If someone is just following the prompts of eBay they could easily overcharge on packages without knowing it.  I'd like to give the sellers the benefit of the doubt having discovered this bit of eBay headache myself.

On this topic - does anyone know how I can adjust the shipping costs properly?  I could put in a fixed rate, but that's not going to help considering I have no idea where the buyer will be located.  I could still end up over or undercharging.  Yuck!  And if I choose anything other than priority shipping, eBay says I have to pay the shipping costs.  Very frustrating!

Star Warrior

[FantasticFirefly]

In short: If you're overcharged shipping on eBay when your item arrives, for the love of Celestia, contact the seller before leaving feedback and enquire about the shipping cost!
If the seller fobs you off with lame excuses or never gets back to you then go ahead and leave negative feedback. I hate people who over-inflate shipping as much as the next person.

This, yes! I always do this. Just never mention FB/star ratings in any way as that can be viewed as feedback extortion. Like I mentioned, most people will readily correct it, and honestly forgot. Some have told me they intentionally imput higher shipping into their listings now so when shipping is a little more then they expect they are not out any money- which means they refund anyone who's shipping is less then charged. Many sellers have been doing this I'm guessing as I get random shipping refunds all the time now before my items even arrive.

[Lygeia]

As a seller, I would definitely consider that $10 excessive for tacking on to the shipping.  However, I could see how easily these shipping errors can occur. 

When we list an item, ebay auto-fills what it thinks most people would use as a shipping option.  I've seen some crazy stuff come up when I am listing, like $10 US shipping for a single G3 pony, after the site overestimates the weight.  I have to manually fix it...some sellers probably just finish the listing and never notice especially if they are high volume. 

[nhal039]

I would message the seller they should give your money back to you. I have had it happen a couple of times and once I messaged the seller they refunded me the difference without any problems :  )