eBay

berthaley · ‎04-03-2020

My very first experience with FedEx shipping. If there is a seller out there who's never tried FedEx, I just want to warn you. I've sold a 1,5 lb roll of wallpaper and chose FedEx shipping, $8 supposedly - less expensive than USPS. Now, a month later, Ebay has sent me an invoice showing that I owe $22 for FedEx!! I've lost instead of earned by selling my wallpaper. Even though all these numbers are not big compared to what many people deal with, but I'm just shocked to see the sheer deceptiveness of FedEx shipping option!! So, those who are just starting to learn to sell on Ebay, be warned.

haha-607197 · ‎04-03-2020

The only way to succeed at third-partying the account eBay owns at FedEx is to always ship in plain, rectangular boxes in excellent condition. Any deviations will incur non-disputable FedEx surcharges.

picknparley · ‎04-03-2020

I've been shipping through FedEx for over 20 years and have never had them come back for more money. This is an ebay problem, not FedEx.

orangehound · ‎04-03-2020

@picknparley wrote:
I've been shipping through FedEx for over 20 years and have never had them come back for more money. This is an ebay problem, not FedEx.

In my experience, it is due to the inexperience of the seller ...

the USPS will take just about any form of packaging, but FedEx and UPS have stricter packaging guidelines and will slap on a surcharge if there is a violation.
Some sellers do not provide accurate dimensions for the package.

orangehound · ‎04-03-2020

@berthaley wrote:
My very first experience with FedEx shipping. If there is a seller out there who's never tried FedEx, I just want to warn you. I've sold a 1,5 lb roll of wallpaper and chose FedEx shipping, $8 supposedly - less expensive than USPS. Now, a month later, Ebay has sent me an invoice showing that I owe $22 for FedEx!! I've lost instead of earned by selling my wallpaper. Even though all these numbers are not big compared to what many people deal with, but I'm just shocked to see the sheer deceptiveness of FedEx shipping option!! So, those who are just starting to learn to sell on Ebay, be warned.

@berthaley

Shipping with FedEx has some gotchas that are not experienced with the USPS. Most likely you were either charged for (a) "dimensional weight" rather than "actual weight", or (b) you were assessed a surcharge.

If you want any of us to help you understand the charges, please provide:

Origin and destination zip codes
Dimensions of the package.
Description of package exterior (shape, cardboard box, box wrapped in plastic, etc.)
Cost you were expecting
Cost you were charged

berthaley · ‎04-03-2020

Origin zipcode – 48198, destination code – 97123

Dimensions of the package 23x5x4 inches

Roll of wallpaper, cylindrical shape, wrapped into bubble wrap and plastic cover over it

Cost I was expecting based on what FedEx offered me $8.25

Cost I was charged $22.16

redmodelt · ‎04-03-2020

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Q-A-COVID-19/New-Seller-NEED-ADVICE-What-is-this-FedX-eBay-shipping-Sc...

orangehound · ‎04-03-2020

@berthaley wrote:
Origin zipcode – 48198, destination code – 97123
Dimensions of the package 23x5x4 inches
Roll of wallpaper, cylindrical shape, wrapped into bubble wrap and plastic cover over it
Cost I was expecting based on what FedEx offered me $8.25
Cost I was charged $22.16

The cylindrical tube with plastic cover will incur a $13 packaging surcharge ... FedEx is picky about packaging. You can see their requirements on page 115 of the 2020 FedEx Service Guide.

With the $13 surcharge, the shipping price would be $9.16 ... I'm not sure why that differs from the expected charge of 8.25, but eBay has been inconsistent with rates over the last month.

berthaley · ‎04-03-2020

Thanks for the numbers. Then they shouldn't have given me this deceptive estimate at checkout. They protected themselves with all these vague unclear terms and conditions knowing that it's too tedious to figure out. FedEx is definitely a dishonest and unethical company, grabbing money from those who are trying to learn. I didn't have any problems with USPS. Ok, lesson learned, never again.

atikovi · ‎04-03-2020

Pay for shipping with cash over the counter at Fedex if you want to avoid this.

berthaley · ‎04-03-2020

But later I might get an additional bill from FedEx, saying that my payment at the counter wasn't complete due to all these vague rules.

randbcollectibles · ‎04-03-2020

I can top that one. I just received an Ebay invoice with a "shipping" fee over $96 after I already paid $15 to ship the item - an item that sold for $75! It was accurately measured and weighed. The box was under 6 pounds but the invoice claims 21 pounds. I'm considering this to be a blatantly fraudulent charge and will file a dispute with my credit card company. I've never had this issue before in 20 years of selling. I'm done with FedEx if this is the new way of doing business!

picknparley · ‎04-03-2020

I still don't believe this is a FedEx issue.

Come on, seriously? $96 to ship a roll of wallpaper. No Way.

It's the result of an error on the ebay invoice. FedEx is not / has not asked for more money to ship the parcel. To prove it, call your local FedEx office with your exact same dimensions, sending address and destination address. See what it costs. Then give them your tracking number and ask if they can explain your being charged $96. I believe they'll tell you they didn't, but maybe the tracking number can be tied into the payment received by FedEx.

ebay pays your (our) FedEx bill once a month along with thousands of other sellers' invoiced bills.

Just for point, I've shipped some really strange shaped boxes and not had any problem. Boxes that I've put together to fit a particular item that are literally covered with tape, etc. There might be a little bulge here or there from a little extra packing. I've never had a package refused because of how it looked - and I've shipped some really weird stuff over the years. The key to getting along with FedEx is to be honest with your measurements and weight.

atikovi · ‎04-04-2020

@berthaley wrote:
But later I might get an additional bill from FedEx, saying that my payment at the counter wasn't complete due to all these vague rules.

The clerk at the counter would weigh and measure the package and then you would pay cash for it. If the clerk makes an error it's on them. On the slim chance they would send you a bill, throw it in the trash or don't use your own name on the return address, just Occupant.

orangehound · ‎04-04-2020

@randbcollectibles wrote:
I can top that one. I just received an Ebay invoice with a "shipping" fee over $96 after I already paid $15 to ship the item - an item that sold for $75! It was accurately measured and weighed. The box was under 6 pounds but the invoice claims 21 pounds. I'm considering this to be a blatantly fraudulent charge and will file a dispute with my credit card company. I've never had this issue before in 20 years of selling. I'm done with FedEx if this is the new way of doing business!

@randbcollectibles

Can you post the details? We might be able to help you understand if the charges are consistent with FedEx, or if there was a blatant error. Go on the Shipping Labels page, find the transaction (I think the list defaults to 7 days, so you might have to expand to 90 days), and click on the price ... this gives you some details about what was entered and what was charged.

Provide:

Origin and destination zip codes
Dimensions of the package (what you measured, and what FedEx claims)
Description of package exterior (shape, cardboard box, box wrapped in plastic, etc.)
Cost you were expecting
Cost you were charged
Type of service used (Ground, 2-day, express, etc.)