Are Shipping Costs - Out of Proportion? How can they be "Determined"

[bearlover69]

I am "Reviewing" 2 items on eBay:

____________________________________________________________

08-11 Volvo S40 V50 Left Halogen Headlight Assembly 31265706

Shipping: Whitesboro, New York - 715 miles

$70.95 eBay International Shipping
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2x Front Disc Brake Caliper w/ Bracket for Volvo S40 2004-2011 V50 C70 C30 Mazda

Shipping:  Austell, Georgia -1,540. miles 

$39.85 eBay International Shipping.

___________________________________________________________

So, why does it cost:

$70.95 to ship 1 Headlight to me in Nova Scotia Canada
BUT:
$39.85 to ship 2 Front Brake Calipers with Sliding Brackets 

Both: using eBay International Shipping?

I'm SURE,  the Calipers would be SUBSTANCIALLY HEAVIER in Weight  *with Dimensions- Slightly More *. 2X the Distance at 1/2 the Price~

Are Sellers, allowed to charge above the costs of EIS?

[postcardcountry]

the first leg is sellers shipping to the EIS center in Illinois  (zip code 60139)  This is the only part of the shipping the seller quotes.  VAT and Fees plus additional shipping from IL to Nova Scotia is determined by the EIS  center.

Whitesboro NY zip code is 13492

Austell Ga is 30106

You can use the following:

https://www.ebay.com/shp/Calculator

This is the eBay calculator to figure out how much shipping should be between two points.  You need the dimensions of the package and the weight.  The second screen shows the results with one tab for retail and one tab for commercial.  It will be showing the rates for various shippers.    Give this a try.   Understand, this is calculated shipping.  This is just a way to see why the rates are so different from what you expect.

[chevymontecarlo88]

Instead of fixating on the shipping costs, look at what it will cost you (total price Item + shipping) shipped to your door.

[bearlover69]

Thanks for your reply, Postcardcountry

"the first leg is sellers shipping to the EIS center in Illinois  (zip code 60139)  This is the only part of the shipping the seller quotes.  VAT and Fees plus additional shipping from IL to Nova Scotia is determined by the EIS  center."

Are you implying that there are actually 2 Shipping Charges (+ the Import Duties/ Taxes)
and the Seller has given a shipping charge for only part of the Journey?

Assuming the both items were to go to the IL Shipping Center -Using the Calculator, I do see substantial Differences - which Justifies the Costs of the Items, - in Proportion to the Size / Weight and Distance, of the 2 Different Items.

Therefore, if I'm using the Calculator, Correctly:

The additional cost of Shipping for the Headlight would be:

Service/Delivery time Canada

USPS Priority Mail International 6-25 business days	$46.40
USPS Priority Mail International Flat Rate Envelope 6-25 business days	$30.90
USPS Priority Mail International Small Flat Rate Box 6-25 business days	$32.20
USPS Priority Mail International Medium Flat Rate Box 6-25 business days	$61.80
USPS Priority Mail International Large Flat Rate Box 6-25 business days	$74.60
USPS Priority Mail International Padded Flat Rate Envelope 6-25 business days	$30.90
USPS Priority Mail International Legal Flat Rate Envelope 6-25 business days	$30.90
USPS Priority Mail Express International 3-5 business days	$69.75
USPS Priority Mail Express International Flat Rate Envelope 3-5 business days	$59.50
USPS Priority Mail Express International Legal Flat Rate Envelope 3-5 business days	$59.50

Back to top

Standard services

Service/Delivery time Canada

USPS First Class Package International 0 business days

$24.80

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The additional cost of Shipping for the Brake Calipers would be:

_____________________________________________________________
If this is so, 
will I see the Different Prices "WHEN Checking Out"

**OR" will there be Additional Charges (in Addition to what the seller has ALREADY CHARGED, for shipping)- AFTER CHECKOUT- ?  ( this has happened to me before)

Thank You!

[fbusoni]

@bearlover69 

There also may be "handling charges" included in the shipping prices that you are seeing.  

The handling charge is set by the seller and will not /not be visible to you.

[bearlover69]

Thanks for your reply, fbusoni 

Since I'm "Negotiating" an Offer:
This is what I'm seeing for the Front Brake Calipers:

Just what should a Buyer Expect when Checking Out?
The Cost of Shipping has "Gone Through the Roof"

***There is also a $6.00 coupon at Checkout for this listing.

[bearlover69]

That's the very thing I'm trying to do?

This is a Similar Item, for 2 Brake Calipers for the Same Car (Roughly Same Price).
I would expect that the "Import DUTIES Fees", would be Comparable:





This is like a Seinfeld Skit,

Jerry Tries To Buy A Car From Puddy | The Dealership | Seinfeld

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_liAd5eN7E

[chevymontecarlo88]

It does not make sense at times but that is where i will look at each seller (feedback, length of time on eBay, inventory mix of seller) to make a buying decision. Sometimes i will pay more for an item if the seller has a better track record or has been selling similar items for some time. You know this already and this is how i would approach it.

I'm not a fan of buying automobile parts online unless it comes from a reputable seller. Local is better for me but i understand others may not have that luxury.

That is a great Seinfeld episode!

[bearlover69]

I only need one Brake Caliper, and there is a Seller with a 99.3% Positive Rating, that has one - and just as Cheap, or Cheaper.
However, they are a Seller I had purchased Brake Pads that did not fit, in a Prior Transaction. 
See Post: "eBay is Removing BAD Reviews and Embellishing Sellers Ratings"  

I've still not been FULLY compensated for this transaction -    - and the Seller Walks Away from a Bad Review! !!!!

Therefore, I will not bother with this seller!!!
https://community.ebay.com/t5/Buying/eBay-is-Removing-BAD-Reviews-and-Embellishing-Sellers-Ratings/m...

[supercharger-parts]

Headlights like that need a large box, and hopefully large enough to pack it appropriately.  It's most likely (in my headlight shipping experience) the size of the box, not the weight in this case.  Of all the things I have shipped, headlights are probably disliked the most by me.

[bearlover69]

with your experience in shipping headlights, what size box would it take
I used 15"x15"x15" @ 2 lbs., as an example in the Shipping.
It surely isn't more than 8 inches high
Can you Please, give an example of shipping costs?

[pjcdn2005]

As someone else mentioned the seller inputs the cost they are charging domestic customers and eBay adds on the international portion.  Then ebay adds the total prices together and you only see the total shipping cost.  In some cases it  can gives you insight into the international charge if you  look at what the seller is charging to ship the item to the hub in Illinois.

The headlight seller is charging domestic buyers shipping so to ship the headlight to Illinois, the cost is $39.  Your cost is just over $70 so ebay is charging you just over $30 to ship the headlight to you from Illinois.

The brake seller has free domestic shipping on that listing so the only shipping cost you see is from Illinois to you.  That is why is is less expensive. However, keep in mind that sellers who give free shipping are accounting for that in the cost of their item.  So sometimes one shipping cost will look more expensive just because another listing has the cost buried in the cost of the item. 

[bearlover69]

I've given examples of 3 items for sale

1
08-11 Volvo S40 V50 Left Halogen Headlight Assembly 31265706

Listing Price:
113.38

Shipping: 

$70.95 

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2.

2 brake Calipers: $119.99
Shipping: 

$40.40
Duties: $7.70
____________________________________________________________

3.
1 front Brake Caliper:
$44.99
Shipping: 
20.62

___________________________________________________________

Of those 3 listing, there was none with "Free Shipping"
Only one with a Duties Charge 

Surely- there should be some Standard for Shipping Costs- however, it seems like a "Fly By Night" Business.

Not one seller is able to give a Direct Answer that makes "sense" (to me)- or a Quote? 

Additionally, if the item was to go from New York to Illinois - that would be 750 miles in the WRONG DIRECTION.  Then I pay for it to go from
Glendale Heights to Nova Scotia 1462 miles - Go Figure!
Furthermore; with my past orders using eBay's Global Shipping and EIS - I think there's only been a 50% success rate of getting my items.

Since eBay was my 1st Place to look, I think I'll Explore other Sellers - as I previously had been doing for the past years.  I'll Reiterate, eBay "Used to be My First Stop Shop" -

I thought it "WAS", Fantastic;
Now it's an only if I can't find it somewhere else, Store!

[buyers_win]

They probably using a flat rate for shipping and charging for materials while using UPS or FedEx, or priority mail. They would charge the highest shipping cost for them to mail to. Alaska would be a higher cost then to Illinois but because it’s a flat rate it’s gonna be more expensive.

[wastingtime101]

Others have explained, but it's not clicking for you so let's see if I can explain a different way. Below examples are using made up numbers, but hopefully will get the point across.

Item A

Seller charges $30 flat rate domestic shipping, eBay adds $30 for international shipping, buyer sees one combined rate of $60

Item B

Seller integrates shipping into item cost and offers free domestic shipping, eBay adds $30 for international shipping, buyer sees one combined rate of $30

In other words, the rate the seller charges for domestic shipping (from their location to the eIS hub in the US) will impact the ship cost you're seeing.

Also keep in mind, if a seller offers free or flat rate domestic shipping (within the US), sometimes they fail to fill out package weight and dimensions on the listing form. When that happens, eBay uses item/category estimates to determine the international shipping portion. That can explain how 2 sellers located in the same city and offering the same shipping service will show 2 different rates for the same item - because the item from the first seller is offering more accurate rates based on weight and dimensions and the item from the second seller is using estimates because the seller didn't enter weight or dimensions.

Larger packages cost more both domestically and internationally. Even 1" can have a big impact on ship rate.

You want consistency in rates, but even if you were located in the US, buying from other sellers in the US, you'd see a wide variance in shipping rates on the same item.