Can shipping be changed after an item is paid and shipped?

[omgitlightsup]

If, for example, eBay calculated shipping at $20, but the actual cost of shipping was $60, is it possible to change the invoice after an item has shipped, so that the buyer can cover some or all of the remaining 40?

Thanks!

[dhbookds]

no

[richard1rst · Accepted solution]

Nope.

Double check the information you entered for the shipping - Weight AND SIZE. . eBay uses what you tell them. If it is wrong the greatest probability is you entered it wrong.

[jayjaspersgarage]

Not a good idea at all.   I was going to sell some custom planter boxes and went to UPS for shipping estimates.  I was clueless but happy I went in for the sticker shock.  Now I park in front of estate sales and lower my tail gate and sell them to people coming and going.  $900 per weekend.  Same way I sell antique furniture.  

[omgitlightsup]

eBay's estimates can be horrendously off, even if you enter the right size and weight. It has happened to me before, so as a seller, I stopped using calculated shipping, and I only use "free shipping" and make sure my starting price covers the shipping.

I'm the buyer this time, and I know the seller did not make this mistake. I was hoping there was a way to make the transaction fair, but I guess if there isn't, there isn't. Thanks for the help!

I'll ask the seller to include their paypal info so we can square it up off the books.

[dhbookds]

I've sold on Ebay since 2004, always used calculated shipping........never was the calculated shipping wrong except when I put in the wrong weight/dimensions.....probably over 9,000 packages, including a previous ID.....

[soh.maryl]

"I'll ask the seller to include their paypal info so we can square it up off the books."

Are you saying you will ask the seller to pay the additional shipping "off the books"?

[doc-holmes]

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@soh.maryl wrote:

"I'll ask the seller to include their paypal info so we can square it up off the books."

Are you saying you will ask the seller to pay the additional shipping "off the books"?

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I think they're (the buyer) suggesting the seller send them (the buyer) their PayPal info so they (the buyer) can send the seller the additional cost of  shipping. 

[winterpalace25]

Sounds dangerous to do it on ebay messaging. Sounds like money transacting off of ebay.  If Good Samaritan buyer has the return address from the package, they could mail a check with a note.

[mtgraves7984]

I'm the buyer this time, and I know the seller did not make this mistake. I was hoping there was a way to make the transaction fair, but I guess if there isn't, there isn't.

@omgitlightsup 

So you don't mind paying more than you thought you'd be paying? If the seller didn't err, who did? I'm confused...

[omgitlightsup]

That's surprising. I've been here since 1999, and I have never had anything but problems with calculated shipping as a seller. I also have shipped thousands of packages under several accounts over the years. I always use free shipping and bake the actual cost into the purchase price.

Back then, it was no problem to work out problems like this. But today we are prevented from interacting with each other, because eBay's greed overpowers any desire to cultivate a community. I can't even suggest that the seller contact me, because the message will be intercepted and censored.

It's like another user said, the only hope is that there's a return address on the package that I can send a check or money order to. The seller tried to contact customer service but I guess ran out of options and told me not to worry about it.

[dhbookds]

I don't understand...........you've had problems with calculated shipping, yet you "bake the actual cost into the item and then offer free shipping"..........does that mean you are trying to figure calculated shipping and use THAT to add to the item price?  If so......it IS probably going to be wrong unless you calculate the shipping to the farthest zone and even then you would "owe" shipping back to the buyer who lived closer and where shipping would be less. 

[omgitlightsup]

Thanks for the reply.

I am the buyer. The seller reached out to me because the item turned out to be significantly more costly to ship, and the seller needed to reach into his own pocket to make up for eBay's error.

Now that I have the package in hand, I am able to enter the length/width/height/weight and zip codes into ups.com's calculator, and when I do I see that the amount eBay estimated for shipping is off by more than $20. I also see that my seller shipped from a UPS Store location, which is not the same as UPS; and so he probably paid even more than that. But the $20 shortage was my main concern.

This had nothing to do with zones or accuracy. All the information is available through tracking and what's printed on the label, and I can see that what happened was exactly what I thought had happened. eBay calculated an unfair shipping amount. And since they also do not provide me with some way to make it fair, I was hoping someone here would know how to work around it. 

I miss the days when eBay permitted us to work together and solve problems like this. But the company has stripped us of any ability to talk directly between buyers and sellers. They tell us it's for "safety" of the "community," but we all know it's so that we won't attempt to avoid fees, because that affects eBay's bottom line. As long as the shortages are made up from buyers' and sellers' pockets, the company remains profitable.

However, when I am selling on eBay, to answer your question,  yes, I estimate the cost by checking UPS and USPS (they're doing the shipping, not eBay, so they are better positioned to calculate it); and then I add that to my minimum asking price to calculate my BIN price. Indeed, sometimes I collect a few dollars more. But I'm never so egregiously far off, as eBay has proven to be, that I collect double or triple the cost of shipping. And if you're wondering,  I have been known to issue partial refunds when this happens.

I do this because as I said, this has happened to me enough times that I learned to avoid calculated shipping. This seller will hopefully wise up and do the same.

eBay may have normalized being greedy and untrusting... but we can still demand better of ourselves; always remember that!

[nobody*s_perfect]

"Now that I have the package in hand, I am able to enter the length/width/height/weight and zip codes into ups.com's calculator, and when I do I see that the amount eBay estimated for shipping is off by more than $20. ...This had nothing to do with zones or accuracy."

You still can't confirm the accuracy of how the seller set up the calculated shipping in the listing. He might have entered the weight or  dimensions inaccurately.  Sometimes sellers just estimate those, then pack up the item after it sells.

[nocoolnamejane]

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@omgitlightsup wrote:

I miss the days when eBay permitted us to work together and solve problems like this.

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Asking for additional money for shipping has been against the rules for at least 15 years. Probably more than that. 

The shipping calculator for USPS is pretty accurate as long as you have the right dimensions and weight, taking into account dimensional weight and are careful with the distinctions between envelope and package or the different type of priority (flat rate or caculated).