Is it a violation to use uShip service to ship a large item, without requesting the fee on invoice?

[tsambrosis]

I sold an item that did not have the shipping fee specified, but instead marked as 'freight shipping'. The items is essentially a 'finished' piece of plywood that's around $50. I.e. it's clear I'm not trying to get away charging $1 on an item that would say, be valued at $100.

The buyer  is unable to pay for the item, unless I manually send the invoice with the shipping fee specified. The invoice has a drop down option for local pickup.

When sending an invoice to the buyer, I was planning on marking the item as local pick up.

User sends me their email address, and then we agree over the private email on how they wish for the item to be paid an shipped for. Again, I'm using uShip, since the item is 'too big' for standard FedEx and UPS shipping services and is close to $300. Greyhound no longer provides shipping services.

Is this against ebay's rule?

Ebay charges a final value fee on shipping. So if I charge the buyer $200 to ship, ebay will charge an extra 13% of that $200 on me, the seller.

[simba6 · Accepted solution]

You can't charge a buyer more than what is on the eBay invoice.   You can't ask them to make another payment to you.   Yes, eBay will charge the FVF on the full amount.   One reason you can't  have them make a payment to you as eBay would not get their " cut " .

[wastingtime101]

The item was not sold as local pickup. You cannot have the buyer pay for the item on eBay then arrange payment off eBay for shipping. That would be a violation of eBay's fee avoidance policy, and may even be considered an off-eBay transaction depending how they view it @tsambrosis .

You can cancel the transaction, relist as local pickup, then the buyer can arrange shipping on their end. If you take that route you should not take off eBay payment from the buyer for shipping or arrange it yourself. It will void seller protections. You need to have the buyer arrange and pay for shipping themselves.

To follow through with the current transaction, you should be quoting the buyer a ship cost that factors in the fees you'll pay on that amount, then send the buyer an invoice for the total amount.

All that said, are you sure you want to risk that amount of money to ship a $50 item?

Here's some general info regarding freight shipping.

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This page is a good reference for freight shipping on eBay and links to a list of freight carriers whose tracking integrates with eBay: https://www.ebay.com/sellercenter/shipping/shipping-on-ebay/freight-shipping

Research your options. You should speak with the carrier to determine if they offer packing services or if you need to handle that yourself, if they have a lift gate for residential delivery, whether the quote covers inside delivery, what their insurance coverage is, do they have online viewable signature confirmation for delivery, what happens if the buyer refuses delivery for some reason, etc. Cover all your bases before diving in.

Keep in mind the risk factor. If a buyer files a claim (whether a true claim or a false claim), you're on the financial hook to deal with that. Some items are best sold with the Local Pickup Only option.

Many sellers use freight shipping quite successfully. If you jump in, do it with your eyes wide open. Learn all the potential outcomes before going that route.

[soh.maryl]

What's your plan if you find a way to ship it, buyer receives it and claims not as described?

Perhaps this should have been a firm "Local Pickup Only"?