What a mess...what to do...

[moondogblues]

I bought 7 ACEO's from a seller, actually won them at auction for .99 each.  Seller had 2.35 each for s/h so I of course messaged first to ask if she offered combined shipping.  She said yes so I bid on them.

I won them and asked for a request total through the cart.  Got the dreaded 'seller does not offer combined shipping'.  I messaged seller and asked for a revised invoice.  Got a message back that the cards would be shipped together in one envelope.  Which they were.  Is she being deliberately obtuse?  I paid 23.38 for the cards and 6.93 was cards and the rest shipping.

I was reminded by eBay to pay, and it was clear to me that the seller was just messing with me and not going to refund anything so I paid the whole thing.  I did make it clear to her that I was not happy.  This is her final message to me from a few days ago.

"I know you liked my art, but I think it would be best if you no longer purchase any of it.
You will never be a happy camper. I don't like being put in the position I am in. We are done!"

I soooooooooo wanted to reply with something on the order of..."We are NOT done, I still have feedback to leave."  But my better sense told me to come here and seek advice.  She has perfect feedback, mostly from buying.  The cards are nice and I would have cheerfully paid the exorbitant shipping if I had known up front.  The total for shipping was 5.10 and it had tracking number which she didn't include in eBay.  She also didn't add stiffener or write please do not bend on the envelope.  Just threw the cards in willy nilly.

I am not sure what to do.  I feel that she deliberately jerked me around and that she makes money off the shipping.  Help.

[fern*wood]

In the future I would be sure to add "discounted" to your combined shipping question.  

[chapeau-noir]

She sure didn't respect her art much to be just tossing it into an envelope any old way. Sheesh. 

[vintage-camerastuff]

You can always leave her neutral feedback because of not following through with combined shipping as promised.

[nanniestreasurechest]

You still got a good deal for someone's original art even with paying the shipping but if she said she would combine shipping she should have refunded part of the shipping.  It would have probably made me a little angry also if they didn't follow through with what they said they would do regardless of the great deal.  $.99 for ACEO's blows my mind anyway.  That's why it's hard for more serious artists to get a decent price for their work.  

[fashunu4eeuh]

Hi @moondogblues sorry this happened to you. It is up to you as to whether you want to proceed or just put this behind you.

If pursuing it, I think you could consider reporting this seller for potentially violating the Shipping policy, and the Fee Avoidance policy.

eBay’s shipping policy reads as follows:

”Only include shipping charges that are actually incurred and are related to the cost of shipping and handling the items being delivered

• Actual cost paid to the shipping service
• Handling costs, including the cost of packaging materials and insurance
• The actual cost of delivery confirmation or extra services, such as certificate of mailing, certified mail, collect delivery, delivery confirmation, registered mail, restricted delivery, return receipt, signature confirmation, special handling, or similar services”

https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/default/shipping-policy?id=5035

It doesn’t actually say it is a violation to make a profit off shipping, but it strongly implies it. And the seller charged you an excess over the amount of his actual costs, which is not allowed.

Then there is this policy:

https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/selling-policies/selling-practices-policy/ebay-fee-avoidance-poli...

In the Fee Avoidance policy, it stipulates that charging a buyer more than the actual costs to package and ship should not be passed onto the buyer. It reads as follows:

“Examples of avoiding fees includes making offers to buy or sell outside of eBay, requiring the buyer to make additional purchases, or charging excessive shipping fees.”

Under the circumstances, you inquired about combined shipping upfront, and the seller  assented, therefore you expected a cost savings.  So I am wondering if you could make a case for excessive shipping. And that it was unreasonable for the seller to have charged much more than their actual shipping costs incurred, which was $5.10 postage, and whatever their cost for a manilla envelope, and a handling charge, if any.

It was after the fact that you see the seller profited from an excess shipping charge. But i also believed that when the seller assented to combined shipping, that meant a discounted shipping for you. Otherwise you would not have bid on the items. (So in future, you’ll know to pinpoint a seller by asking if they combine shipping for a discounted postage rate for you as the buyer.)

I believe i would not keep the items, but return for a full refund, as promised in the seller’s listings. But only if the entire amount is refunded.

[femmefan1946]

Less than $20 for six pieces of art.

The seller should have priced them at $3.99 each with Free Shipping and there would have been no argument.

Buyers hate to pay shipping. Buyers hate even more to pay shipping that is greater than the purchase price.

This has nothing to do with reality and a lot to do with visceral reaction.

[chapeau-noir]

As it was, if I understand correctly, it wasn't even fee avoidance - she still will be paying fees on all that shipping. If she had combined shipping and sent an invoice for everything (including a bit lower shipping, but still enough to give her some decent money - I would have understood, myself), her fees bill would have been cheaper.

You could chose not to leave feedback at all, but I would not leave a positive. I would just upfront tell her that I would have appreciated simple honesty and not nasty messages taking her frustration out on me, as I would have understood if she needed to charge more, as we're all fighting the same battle.

[sin-n-dex]

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@moondogblues wrote:

I bought 7 ACEO's from a seller, actually won them at auction for .99 each.  Seller had 2.35 each for s/h so I of course messaged first to ask if she offered combined shipping.  She said yes so I bid on them.

I won them and asked for a request total through the cart.  Got the dreaded 'seller does not offer combined shipping'.  I messaged seller and asked for a revised invoice.  Got a message back that the cards would be shipped together in one envelope.  Which they were.  Is she being deliberately obtuse?  I paid 23.38 for the cards and 6.93 was cards and the rest shipping.

I was reminded by eBay to pay, and it was clear to me that the seller was just messing with me and not going to refund anything so I paid the whole thing.  I did make it clear to her that I was not happy.  This is her final message to me from a few days ago.

"I know you liked my art, but I think it would be best if you no longer purchase any of it.
You will never be a happy camper. I don't like being put in the position I am in. We are done!"

I soooooooooo wanted to reply with something on the order of..."We are NOT done, I still have feedback to leave."  But my better sense told me to come here and seek advice.  She has perfect feedback, mostly from buying.  The cards are nice and I would have cheerfully paid the exorbitant shipping if I had known up front.  The total for shipping was 5.10 and it had tracking number which she didn't include in eBay.  She also didn't add stiffener or write please do not bend on the envelope.  Just threw the cards in willy nilly.

I am not sure what to do.  I feel that she deliberately jerked me around and that she makes money off the shipping.  Help.

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Leave factual, appropriate feedback. Seller promised to provide combined shipping so I bid on x number of lots. Request an invoice with combined shipping and seller refused to provide. Paid full shipping on the invoice and seller did not refund any to reimburse me for the combined shipping she offered before I bid. Then seller sent me a nasty message and told me to take my business elsewhere.

that's about all. I rarely if ever leave negs, but I would in your shoes.

C.

[sin-n-dex]

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@moondogblues wrote:

"I see the seller told you they would combine but doesn't mention if they will reimburse you.

You only paid what you agreed to pay. When you bid on the auction you accepted the potential S/H."

Robbie, I always ask about combined shipping before I bid or buy.  Which I did, and she told me yes.  So I was bidding in good faith that I would get a break on the shipping.

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It's because of sellers like her, that my buyers don't trust me when I tell them the shopping cart is glitchy and I will refund over payments. Some buyers trust me and pay excessive amounts in shipping because they want the items, and trust I will not keep $40 in shipping on something that costs $8.30 to ship. Other buyers ask about combined shipping but shop elsewhere because they can't request a total (I have it set up to combine shipping, but only some buyers are able to request a total), they don't trust they'll get refunded because so many sellers wouldn't refund anything that was overpaid.

C.

[aproudparent2010]

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@moondogblues wrote:

If the seller had been upfront with me then I wouldn't be upset.  I tried to copy/paste the whole message chain but eBay kept disallowing it, even though I had no names.  The cards weren't damaged luckily so I am going to keep them.  It was the way she just danced around the real issue that bugs me the most.  Unless she is really stupid and thinks combined shipping is just using one envelope to mail the cards...then she lied to me.


You are confusing combined shipping (all items in 1 package) with a combined discount (less shipping when you buy multiple items)

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[dqdistribution]

I don't trust a single seller, and trust what eBay shows me I'm obligated to pay.

The agreement that is made is based on what eBay shows, not what anyone says.

[dqdistribution]

I'm more on that side that it was just a request to put order in a single package.

I don't see anywhere where the buyer suggested a discount.

[aproudparent2010]

You are confusing combined shipping (all items in 1 package) with a combined discount (less shipping when you buy multiple items)

She even told you what envelope she would use and that it fits 6 cards....

[stuff4divas]

@moondogblues   When a buyer asks a seller to combine shipping, it is understood that the purpose is to get a discount on shipping cost. If the seller acts otherwise, especially after the fact, they are playing word games.

Here is eBay policy> https://www.ebay.com/help/buying/shipping-delivery/shipping-rates/saving-combined-shipping?id=4063&s...

I definitely would leave a negative with the comments already suggested in the other posts, bc you got 'jerked around' and lied to.

That was a horrible way to treat a buyer and on top of it, leave such a nasty message to you.

She may not have liked that u won at such a low price, but that is not ur fault, it's on the seller for not starting the auction at a higher price.

[chapeau-noir]

"Combine shipping" is different than "combine items/packing" - if the seller had been truly confused, she wouldn't have jumped the gun with that message telling OP to get lost, she knows what she's doing.

All things do not need to be resolved and having the last word is generally over rated - I'd say just do what you can live with - I'm kind of crunchy so I try to err on the side of honest kindness rather than letting my temper go. In the end it sounds like 7 pieces of nice artwork for $25 or whatever - that seller isn't going to do well with those business practices, though, and that's unfortunate.  She needs to respect her art and not fall into the .99 auction trap.