Ridiculous Shipping Label Adjustment

[5teeeve]

I got an email that I was charged an additional fee for being underweight on a shipment.  I get it - you have to pay for the weight you are shipping and I fully understand why the processes are in place and how they work.  What I don't understand is why it would be necessary to consider an extra 2 ounces as such an inaccuracy to the shipping weight that somewhere someone felt validated to charge me an additional dollar for shipping.  Seriously though, the extra 2 ounces could have been a pencil or sheet of paper placed on the package.  The charge for the money is not the frustrating thing, it's the principle of it.  Couldn't the thousands of dollars eBay has taken as service fees cover these two ounces??  How about every time I over pay for a label by a pound or two (which is likely 95 percent of the time)?? I recently read an article about droves of sellers leaving eBay to chose other platforms.  I was hesitant to fully believe that sentiment but petty punishments such as this one really leave a sour taste in the sellers mouth.  Anyone else dealing with such frustrations?

[mtgraves7984]

My kneejerk reaction is that the 2 ounces put the weight up a whole pound... as if you'd shipped a 10# package.

[heckofagame]

eBay is not charging the shipping, the carrier is. It's on the seller to provide accurate weight and dimensions. 

[inceptions]

USPS is charging you for the under-payment, not eBay. The weight brackets have always cut off at the even pound mark (2 lbs 1 oz ships at the 3 lb rate).

If you over-pay, you'll receive those adjustments too.

A human is not indiscriminately deciding to stick it to for for an extra ounce or two. Your packages go through automated machinery at the USPS sorting hub that weighs and measures each carton and spits out the charges/credits for the under/over payments. They are sent to eBay to be processed.

Why is it likely that your weight is off 95% of the time? It should be correct 99.9% of the time. Invest in a digital postal scale so your weight is accurate (weigh the item and the packaging before you list) - not only for the reasons discussed here but so that you are charging your buyers accurately.

[ripsmc]

Why should eBay cover a couple of ounces out of the thousands in service fees? This is the carrier doing it. Because it  could add up tremendously when that was multiplied times thousands of incidents no matter who was on the hook for it. Imagine how many underpays a day the USPS gets.

The same reason a brick and mortar store can't afford to eat a few dollars countless times.

When I used to sell on eBay I always figured roughly 5% more on shipping and always rounded package sizing up to avoid weight/size problems. Since I only charged actual shipping  costs I would refund any overage once said and done. Never a problem that way.

[ms.rodriguez*]

This is YOUR fault.  You always round up.  USPS charged Ebay because you used Ebay shipping and now Ebay is charging you.  Get a scale.  Make sure that the batteries are good.  My scale gives a wrong weight once the batteries start to go bad.    Anyway, ALL  shipping companies round up whether it's weight or measurements. 

[pargran3]

This is not ridiculous. You underpaid. In the world of packages over two ounces is a big difference. Now if it had been .002 ounces I might agree.

And yes, I have been billed for underpayment for small differences like that. I have also gotten refunds when my error was the other direction. It is what it is.

[lakefor94]

Over the years,I have been served adjustments both ways. Refunds and debits.

I just try to get the shipping weight correct,  every time. If it is 9.10 lbs the shipment goes as 10 LBS.   If it is 9.05 lbs it goes at 10 lbs.

[trans333]

Yeah, my partner & I have seriously considered selling elsewhere due to this same thing. We sat here laughing, although it isn’t funny, when we realized they weighed it out to the like quadrillionth place—was that really necessary? Guess I’ll make sure my scale is calibrated. I could understand if it were way over or way under, but sometimes just the way you toss a package on a scale gives an inaccurate weight. Maybe they should put that focus on something more important than a measly 2oz…

[albertabrightalberta]

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@trans333 wrote:

Yeah, my partner & I have seriously considered selling elsewhere due to this same thing. 

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It's not ebay that charges for the underpayment. It's the post office and since the shipping label was purchased through ebay, it's ebay who forwards USPS's charge to you.

If you and your partner go elsewhere to sell, you'll run into the same problem if you don't purchase enough postage for the weight of the package.

[redmodelt]

1 pound 1 ounce becomes 2 pounds, been that way at USPS like forever. 

[inceptions]

@trans333 

This is a USPS policy and they do it with all the big marketplaces (eBay, Etsy, Amazon...)

When you print a label online and take the package to the counter at the PO, if you underpaid they won't take the package - you'll have t buy a new label.

Prior to this, if you underpaid on a drop offs or carrier pickups the package would either go back to the seller or arrive to the buyer postage due. (There were no refunds for over-payments.) This is a HELP to sellers - not a problem.