Free Shipping - Max Delivery Time

[patille-0]

Hello, Has Free Shipping always had a maximum delivery time of 4 days?  So even if I post the item with a 3 day handling time to cover USPS delays it is not used in calculating the guaranteed delivery time.  I was not aware of this.  I have been a seller for about 5 years.  I may have to stop using Free Delivery.   I would appreciate your insight.

[soh.maryl]

Why, exactly, would so-called "free shipping" have a different delivery time? The post office has no idea who paid the shipping cost on your item, you or your buyer? Am I missing something here?  

[kensgiftshop]

When you look at your listings, what you see is different then what other members see in different areas.

What you see is what it'll take to ship the item to your zip code or near by.

[1tuna]

ebay states clearly that when you see free delivery that you can expect the item in 4 days

this is mentioned in the help pages

@patille-0 

[1tuna]

Free shipping

If you see a free shipping message in a listing, you can expect to receive your item within 4 business days and you won't be charged for delivery. You'll see free 1, 2, 3, or 4 day shipping in the listing, as well as the date you can expect to get your order by

[nobody*s_perfect]

That quote just makes no sense at all, since a seller can choose any handling time (up to 30 days!) and any shipping service when offering Free shipping, even Media Mail or ground shipping.

Here's the page the quote is from:

https://www.ebay.com/help/buying/shipping-delivery/expected-delivery-dates-buyers?id=4025

It also isn't consistent with what shows in listings; here's a listing offering Free shipping via Media Mail, with a realistic estimated delivery date range that goes far beyond the "4 business days" mentioned in the quote.

[fern*wood]

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@1tuna wrote:

Free shipping

If you see a free shipping message in a listing, you can expect to receive your item within 4 business days and you won't be charged for delivery. You'll see free 1, 2, 3, or 4 day shipping in the listing, as well as the date you can expect to get your order by

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That's the craziest statement I've read by ebay in awhile.  Someone must have been smokin' something when they passed the hat around for suggestions.

[1tuna]

I know it does not make much sense but its what ebay states

its sort of contradictory

[1tuna]

ebay also states this in the help section. I am sure not every one agrees with it either

Handling and dispatch time

We define handling time as the time it takes you to hand over the item to the shipping provider after the buyer has paid.

Buyers want their purchases to arrive quickly so we recommend setting a dispatch time of no more than 2 days. Shorter dispatch times are always better if you can reliably meet them

[patille-0]

So if the buyer does not receive the item within 4 days can he request a refund and must the seller send him or her a refund even though the item may be received after 4 days.  Is it a guaranteed money back type requirement?

[patille-0]

I did not know that.  Here is what has happened.  A buyer purchased an item from me on Monday, Oct 24.  I mailed it Tuesday morning (next day).  Tuesday afternoon the buyer messages me to say that the item purchased is for a Halloween party and must be received by Thursday the 27th or Friday the 28th.  If it cannot arrive by that time he wants a refund.  I message him that I would be glad to except I took it to the post office that morning.  I also mentioned that the item allowed 3 days for handling (which I specified when posting the item for sale) and then time for the postal service to deliver.   On Nov. 1 (6th day not counting day of shipping and Sunday) he requests a refund through eBay.  I wait until today, Nov. 3, and then ask buyer if he still has not received the item.  He does not respond and closes the refund request.  So he must have received it but not as soon as he expected.  I want to be fair with my buyers.  I need to know what he saw when he viewed my item.  When I view it, it says "4 day free shipping" which is very misleading.  I guess I need to ask eBay what he saw.  And does that statement indicate guaranteed shipping by that time or your money back.  

[pjcdn2005]

No it doesn't indicate that they automatically get their money back if the item arrives late. But if any item arrives after the estimated delivery date (free shipping or not) , ebay has said that the buyer can open a not as described return request  if an item is late.  I don't think that most buyer will do that though.

It looks as if ebay is ignoring your 3 day handling time. If you historically ship the first business day they assume that you always do that and will base your estimated delivery time on that. But keep in mind that when you see the 'free 4 day delivery' on your listing, that indicates the eta only to your own zip code.  However, when I use a California zip and look at one of your listings, it give me an estimated arrival of Nov. 7-9 which obviously doesn't take your 3 day handling into account. Even if you mail the item tomorrow, that arrival time seems iffy.   I don't think that the free shipping has anything to do with the eta other than the fact that it states  but you could test one listing to see if charging for shipping gives buyers a different arrival date.

I noticed that some of your scarf listings are showing a longer arrival date.  When I go to the shipping and payment tab, the first option shows that you are using ebay standard envelope which is only for coins, stamps, cards etc. not for scarfs.

[soh.maryl]

Had no idea.  Does that seem logical? If I buy from a seller in China, for instance, since a lot of them have free shipping, I can expect delivery within 4 days?  Don't believe that's happening, at least when I order the little junky items I use when I sew to adorn doll clothing.  

[pjcdn2005]

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@1tuna wrote:

Free shipping

If you see a free shipping message in a listing, you can expect to receive your item within 4 business days and you won't be charged for delivery. You'll see free 1, 2, 3, or 4 day shipping in the listing, as well as the date you can expect to get your order by

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It's possible that by 'free shipping message' they mean if you see the message in green that says"free 4 day (or 1,2, 3) shipping'.    Otherwise, their statement doesn't make sense as free shipping does not mean its faster.

[wastingtime101]

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@patille-0 wrote:

I guess I need to ask eBay what he saw.  And does that statement indicate guaranteed shipping by that time or your money back.  

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Before tracking gets a delivered status you can see the estimated delivery date shown to the buyer on the order details page @patille-0. If the package was already delivered then you won't be able to see the estimated date the buyer saw.

When an item arrives past the estimated delivery estimate provided by eBay, the buyer can open a return for 'not as described' although sellers frown upon using SNAD as the reason because:
- we can't control the dates eBay shows
- the dates are clearly labeled estimates
- we cannot pad the dates (at least not when using calculated shipping)
- we cannot control shipping carriers, weather delays, etc.
- many of us offer multiple shipping service options and if the buyer needs it by X date but chooses the slower service instead of paying for the faster service, well that was the buyer's decision. if it's urgent they should pay for expedited shipping or ask the seller if it's possible to get it by X date before making the purchase.
Buyers should (in most sellers' view) open a regular remorse return with the reason 'changed mind'.

In your situation the 3 day handling time is completely ignored because eBay uses your historical shipping time to determine delivery estimates. So if you have 3 day handling but almost always ship next day, eBay is going to calculate estimated delivery based on next day handling. For that 3 day handling to be factored in, you would have to actually utilize the 3 days for most of your orders.

The only way sellers can pad the estimated delivery date in the way you're trying to do, is to use flat rate shipping then not specify the service. For example, use "standard delivery" on the listing form instead of first class or "economy shipping" instead of media mail. When the service isn't specified, eBay factors in a longer shipping window.