eBay Envelopes uptick in postage due

[sniper_piper]

I sell dozens of trading cards on eBay every week. In the past few weeks I've had an uptick in buyers reporting they've received their envelopes with "Postage Due" marked on the envelope. Today, I received a message from a buyer that they received a USPS pickup tag on their door marked with postage due and had to drive to their local PO where their envelope was being held for $0.57 postage due. This envelope contained two trading cards in rigid top loaders, butted end to end in a 9.5" x 4" envelope. The total envelope weighed less than 2oz. As I've seen this happening more and more lately, I have been over posting these envelopes at the 3oz rate ($1.12). This is the first time I've heard of a buyer having to fork over the postage required to get the envelope as usually USPS seems to mark it and deliver it anyway (I've had it happen to me as the buyer before too)

For a test, I walked the "same" envelope into my local PO and requested to send it non-machinable. They charged me $0.88 for that service (granted not tracked.) 

I've reported this to customer service and they said they would open a case about it with ebay internal but hopefully posting here can get some traction too. I know I've found many posts like this over the years looking back on this forum but wondering if with the recent postage increase this has caused an increase in these instances?

[pjcdn2005]

Other threads I’ve read about are suggesting that the envelopes being set like this are too rigid and being spit out of the machines making them not machinable.   It has nothing to do with eBay other than that they may not be specific enough about what envelopes will be accepted.  The following thread has some recent posts about it.

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Shipping/Standard-Envelope-postage-due-NIGHTMARE/m-p/34131279#M462926

[wastingtime101]

The problem @sniper_piper is the top loaders. Those top loaders pass through some sort facilities, but they get kicked out of many as too rigid. Depends on the equipment at the regional sort facility.

Suggestion is to avoid top loaders. Envelope has to be flexible, not rigid.

The method of "over posting" as you call it, and paying the higher rate, should in theory cover the non-machinable cost. Have any of those been kicked back yet either returned or delivered postage due?

[1786davycrockett]

@sniper_piper 

"This envelope contained two trading cards in rigid top loaders"

And the key word to solving your problem is "rigid."

The eBay Standard Envelope (ESE) must be flexible enough to nearly bend in half as it passes at high speeds through a series of rollers inside the USPS sorting machines.  Anything which is too rigid will jam the machines, and be kicked out as "nonmachinable."

Skip the rigid top loaders, and just use a penny sleeve instead.

[southbayallstars]

"Skip the rigid top loaders, and just use a penny sleeve instead."

And then sit back and wait for the inevitable negative feedback you'll receive for being a f'n moron who shipped the card with inadequate protection.

What eBay needs to do is change the parameters of the program to insist on sellers only using Card Savers instead of top loaders, since the toploaders have a chance of getting snagged in the machines.

[tobaccocardyahoo]

All Ebay can change is their instructions.

Neither they nor USPS is going to change the letter sorting equipment which processes ESE.

When the package is found to be "non-machinable" many POs are requiring postage due. As many posters on this and other threads have said, this must be machinable.

Being non-machinable has also been a major cause of the ESE delivery delays.

I have had some delays on Ground Advantage shipments with top loaders in number 10 envelopes. Someone throws them in with the letters. My solution is Do Not Bend stickers on the envelope.

[worldcoinauctions]

As you have been told, the toploaders are a problem. Your envelope must be able to bend around a 10 inch diameter drum in order to go as an ESE. If you put them in penny sleeves you will be OK. I indicate on my card sales that all items under $20 are shipped in an ESE in a penny sleeve (I do put the packing slip around that.) I also offer ground advantage for a flat $5 fee (for most that is a bit more than it really costs, but do the math on a .99 card sale with $4 shipping and see what you get in the end!)