Overcharged for Freight?

[antflan77]

  I sent out a large vacuum cleaner via UPS and purchased the label on Ebay. After adding insurance, just as a precaution, the shipping came out to $72 approximately. Thirteen days later, my account is charged $107 for shipping even though I have no message from UPS or Ebay prior to this charge and no explanation whatsoever.

    Is this something I want to bring up on Ebay Facebook? I am told I need to pay by 7/8, even though they already tried to take the money from two different accounts. Can someone please direct me to the fastest way to head off this silent heist? Thanks in advance.

[slippinjimmy]

Did you enter the correct weight and dimensions (packed) when you printed the label?

UPS are well known for adding various types of surcharges.

[luckythewinner]

On eBay, Fedex and UPS charges are estimates and are subject to adjustments after the label is purchased.

https://www.ebay.com/sellercenter/shipping/preparing-your-shipment/packaging-and-measuring

https://www.ebay.com/sellercenter/shipping/faqs

[dqdistribution]

Buy your UPS labels on pirateship to avoid these up charges on eBay.

[antflan77]

       Yes, I did. When I sold it, I had 32 pounds, but after packaging it and before printing the label I changed it to 38 pounds to avoid any "after the fact adjustments" which I've received a couple of times for being off by three and four ounces, but those I had no problem with, but almost $40? And a full week after it was delivered? 

     So, to answer your question, I have no idea what the discrepancy could be.

[kensgiftshop]

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@antflan77 wrote:

       Yes, I did. When I sold it, I had 32 pounds, but after packaging it and before printing the label I changed it to 38 pounds to avoid any "after the fact adjustments" which I've received a couple of times for being off by three and four ounces, but those I had no problem with, but almost $40? And a full week after it was delivered? 

     So, to answer your question, I have no idea what the discrepancy could be.

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With UPS and FedEx, they both like adding extra charges and you're not charged until after it has been delivered.

[antflan77]

But how can I find out what they are claiming? The UPS tracking number gives no additional details?

[tobaccocardyahoo]

The most common reason for this problem is that you entered the correct weight when you bought shipping but did not enter the package dimensions or entered them wrong.

UPS, FEDEX and USPS will charge you for "dimensional weight" which is the equivalent of a much higher physical weight if the package exceeds their stated limits.

New sellers often fail to learn about dimensional weight until they see a charge after the fact like this one.

New sellers often make sales, when there is competition to sell the item, they have underpriced the shipping for the item.

If this was a shopvac, it is highly likely it exceeded dimensional weight limits.

The charge you have seen may include a penalty because you failed to specify the right dimensions, as well as the additional shipping charge.

You could experience the same problem no matter where you buy shipping. Your credit card will be charged if you used it to buy shipping on many sites,

Most sellers experience this problem only once.

[txentosupply]

I used to do a lot of shipping via UPS for several companies that I used to work for (1993-2016). Unless you were really up to date on all of the charges, they would ding you with extra charges. One was for incorrect addresses, which could be as simple as typing in "street" instead of "road", or "avenue", etc. Another one was for "oversize" packages, when the dimensional weight was more than the actual weight. Always best to ship in the smallest possible box. Another upcharge was for "residential" delivery instead of a "business" delivery. I think I remember there being a redelivery charge if they couldn't deliver it the first time. I'm so sorry you got charged extra for probably a very simple error, but they count on those for extra revenue. Just as a side note to you & anyone reading this, the UPS Union (Teamsters) may be going on strike the end of the month if a new contract isn't ratified. I remember one that lasted for several months. Fed-Ex Ground refused to sign up any new customers during the strike. It's always good to have a backup plan before a problem.

[dbfolks166mt]

     As others mentioned when you purchase a UPS or FedEx label through eBay the initial charge is only an estimate and UPS is infamous for unilaterally adding surcharges and they have a LOT of them. 

https://www.ups.com/assets/resources/webcontent/en_US/2023_Assessorial_Preview.pdf 

     I don't use UPS that often but like robbie3141 when I do I purchase my labels through Pirate Ship which protects you from the surcharges provided you had the correct dim's and weight when you purchased the label. Pirate Ship's discounted rates are about the same as eBay's.  I have never been hit with a surcharge for a UPS shipment where I had purchased the label off Pirate Ship. I also use Pirate Ship for quite a few of my other packages since they offer Priority Mail Cubic which eBay does not, at least at the moment. 

     As for finding out what the surcharge was for you may have to go to UPS for that or request it through their online site if you have a UPS account. 

[theteamsetguy]

@antflan77 ,

All carriers including UPS, USPS, and FedEx have surcharges for extra long or tall packages. Since it was a vacuum, my guess it was a pretty long package.

You could have been charged dimensionally instead of actual weight. That is why it is VERY important to enter the package dimensions accurately. To determine dimensional weight versus actual weight multiply length by width by height.

Here’s a example:

Lets say your vacuum package was 15” width, 15” height, and 48” length.

15x15x48 divided by 139 is 77.69. In this case since dimensional weight 77.69 versus actual weight of 38 pounds you will be charged as if the package weighed 78 pounds.

[theteamsetguy]

@tobaccocardyahoo ,

I don’t know about many seller’s experiencing this 1 time based on some the other posts I see on these boards by many other sellers.

[theteamsetguy]

@txentosupply ,

If there is a strike.

My guess is the excess volume will end up at the USPS since they can’t refuse packages. 

My guess is FedEx will limit what they will accept so that they won’t overload their system. If the post office ends up with a bunch of Priority and Express mail it will end with FedEx whether they like it or not since they have the contract to move all air packages for the USPS.

[txentosupply]

I did some research & the last UPS strike was in 1997 & only lasted for 15 days. Surely seemed like a lot longer trying to find carriers to ship with! Our primary customers were the auto & petrochemical companies. If a unit went down, they could lose millions per day waiting on our products to arrive.

[luckythewinner]

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@antflan77 wrote:

       Yes, I did. When I sold it, I had 32 pounds, but after packaging it and before printing the label I changed it to 38 pounds to avoid any "after the fact adjustments"

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How big was the box for your "large vacuum cleaner"? For example, if it was 18x18x48 it would need to be shipped at the 90 pound rate PLUS a surcharge. 

Large Package Surcharge
A Large Package Surcharge will be applied to each UPS package when its length plus girth [(2 x width) + (2 x height)] combined exceeds 118 inches, but does not exceed the maximum UPS size of 157 inches.

Large Packages are subject to a minimum billable weight of 90 pounds in addition to the Large Package Surcharge.

An Additional Handling charge will not be assessed when a Large Package Surcharge is applied.

https://www.ups.com/bq/en/shipping/zones-and-rates/additional.page