"Default" calculated shipping rates??

[tlc-mo]

Fellow eBayers:

I have questions (concerns?) about a recent notification from eBay. Here's what the notification (in part) indicates:

We’re reaching out to let you know that, starting May 15, your listings that display calculated shipping will default to showing eBay Labels discounted shipping rates. The new default rates will apply to all of your active and future listings that offer calculated shipping; listings with free or flat rate shipping won’t be affected.

So, does this mean that buyers will pay OUR discounted shipping rates instead of what the shipper actually charges? If that's the case, who makes up the difference between the discounted rate and the actual rate, we sellers? Any help understanding this change will be appreciated.

Leon Book

tlc-mo

Cape Girardeau, MO

[comics-scifi-collectibles]

@tlc-mo   

eBay has always given sellers the option to pass along the discount on shipping to buyers.  

This change just reverses the previous default setting. The previous default setting charged buyers the full shipping amount, and we had to change the setting to pass the discount on to buyers.

Now the default setting passes the discount on to buyers, and we will have to opt out to change the setting to charge buyers the full amount.

If you use calculated shipping, you can choose to either:

Pass the discount on to buyers, or
Charge buyers the full retail rate and keep the difference for yourself.

If you do not want to start passing the discount on to buyers then I recommend you Opt Out on this page>

https://www.ebay.com/sellercenter/shipping/calculated-shipping-rates

I personally pass the discount on to buyers and add a small handling fee with calculated shipping.  

[disneyshopper · Accepted solution]

If you go to your shipping preferences, you can select to charge the buyer the commercial shipping rate, or you can select to charge the buyer your discounted shipping rate (which will reduce the cost of shipping displayed to the buyer).

https://www.ebay.com/ship/prf

[tlc-mo]

Thank you. I suspected that was the case. For us, the shipping discount more or less equaled the eBay processing fees. Selling our collectibles is a sideline "business" for us, so three to five dollars or so is not going to make or break us either way, but still, giving buyers the discount cuts into our "profit" margin, slim as it is anyway. I'll investigate the options you so kindly laid out in your message.

Gratefully,

Leon

tlc-mo