eBay- Bullying sellers about S/H costs after receiving item?

F

foxycleopatra

O.G.
Mar 7, 2006
3,147
13
#1
Has this ever happened to you?

Sorry ladies, but I just have to rant today. A couple of days ago I sold this pair of very-expensive (almost $1k) designer shoes on eBay -- to this eBayer whom I just recognized as a banned tPFer (oops). The shoes are brand new.....it's one of those long-sold-out, highly-covetted celebrity shoes. The first time I had the auction up that pair didn't sell (although there were a lot of watchers); a potential buyer then contacted me to express interest and asked about lowering the price -- I agreed and lowered the starting bid price for her....and on the re-listing the shoes were sold to her. Per my eBay auction terms (stated clearly in my auction), shipping/handling charge for all US addresses was a FLAT RATE of $20 for USPS Priority Mail with delivery confirmation -- flat rate regardless of destination as long as it's the US; insurance would be optional and additional (at the request of the buyer). She sent an instant payment via PayPal (bid price + $20 S/H, no insurance purchased/requested) at 1:56 PM my time and asked me to ship that same same day if possible (i.e. within 3 hours) -- I agreed, and even though I was at work at the time, I called home to get somebody to rush to the post office that afternoon to send the package so she could get it ASAP.

Well, she got the shoes within 2 days and sends me this message saying first of all [FONT=Arial, Verdana]"Hi, I wanted you to know that I recieved the shoes today and I love them"[/FONT]....but she's "very disappointed" by the $20 shipping/handling fee (which had been stated clearly in the auction terms)-- basically demands that I refund her the difference. She says: "I must of assumed for an expensive item as this that they would be insured. Very disappointed by this."....."[FONT=Arial, Verdana]since I do sell on ebay also, I know what the going rate is for shipping. I have been doign this for quite a long time. You did not have to buy the box you shipped it out in. They are free at the post office. You did not even insure the item. What if they had got lost."..... [/FONT]"It is not good business to overcharge and not get the service you expected. You should do the right thing and refund me the difference."......"You may have lowered the price of the auction by $20 but I now what the shoes retailed for. You made a nice little profit on them."....."Not good business practices. I suggest if you are to continue to sell on ebay that you learn, customer is always right."

What would you do in my place?

I know I shouldn't give in to her bullying....but part of me just wants this argument to stop and just take a $10 loss for bad luck....$10 just isn't worth losing sleep over. I can't believe a person with a feedback score of 294 -- who claims to be a seasoned eBay buyers/seller -- would write back berading a seller for "ma[king] a nice little profit" and setting too high of a price when they received the item as described, within 2 days.....when they claimed outright they love the item.....and not to mention, when they were the one to bid on the item in the first place (and agreed to the price).

Thoughts?
 
#2
Nope...don't do a thing...I wouldn't even respond.
She knew the price when she bought it....and if she is a knowledgeable ebayer she knew this ahead of time.
If she negs you then respond to the feedback with something like "buyer agreed to terms of auction before bidding"
Also...something to consider: insurance is purchased for the seller's protection (NOT the buyers). For expensive things, you should always insure the item. If they were broken or damaged during shipment they could easily file a dispute with paypal and win it...then you're out 1K and the shoes!
For expensive things I would always factor that into my shipping price.
Also.....you may want to consider using paypal shipping...that way the buyer can't see what you paid.
 
#3
If you made enough on the shoes I would refund the difference. Its only a few dollars. I would have definately insured them. There will always be people with a different opinion. Just do what you feel is best.
 
#4
twiggers said:
Nope...don't do a thing...I wouldn't even respond.
She knew the price when she bought it....and if she is a knowledgeable ebayer she knew this ahead of time.
If she negs you then respond to the feedback with something like "buyer agreed to terms of auction before bidding"
Click to expand...

:yes:


Buyers like the one you're dealing with are the reason why I hate selling on Ebay. It never fails, I list an auction, clearly state the S&H costs, someone bids & wins, then they hassle me about the S&H costs.
 
#5
aww c'mon foxy. You've met her halfway already. You stated all terms in your auction and she's trying to get over for $10. That doesn't seem right. I wouldn't even respond. It's buyers that piddle over triflin :censor: that makes me not sell on Ebay.

eta: I thought the whole point of selling on Ebay was to make profit so what was the point of her statement?
 
#6
Ignore her. She's a bully.

No one held a gun to her head and forced her to bid on the item or agree to the terms....which she did by bidding. Plus, you had already lowered the price for her, correct? I don't understand why she is nickel and diming you to death.

I've often bought from sellers who charge more for the shipping than the actual shipping costs. I just think of it as 'shipping and handling' as with buying online from department stores. Besides, you clearly stated the shipping charges up front. If she had a problem with that, why didn't she say something then? Or just decide not to buy? She clearly really wanted the item.

Just ignore this bully. If she negs you, anyone will be able to clearly see that you were a good seller and she was a jerk.
 
#7
I say ignore her.

I know when I have sold smaller items, that I didn't expect to sell for much, I upped shipping by a few dollars, just to gurantee I would have enough money to cover shipping and like ebay fees while still pocketing a few dolalrs. But you don't owe her any favors, if anything you should hold that money and say had you not been rushed to send it out that day you would send, but she's being unreasonable.

Also get the funds out of yr paypal asap.
 
#8
IGNORE HER!!! If you give in to her, she will badger the next person she buys from...
She is a bully and expects you to cave....You didn't leave her feedback yet, did you???
NEVER leave feedback before the buyer..

AND like the other poster said, the insurance is for the seller! Always pay it and add in the cost for your handling.

Good luck to you!
 
#9
I agree with everyone..If you feel the need to respond though, I would just say "I'm glad you like the shoes however my shipping charges were stated upfront & you were completely aware of them when you paid." & leave it at that.;)
 
#11
I understand being miffed that the shoes weren't insured, but that's her error, not yours. Either send her a polite email about the terms of the auction or ignore her.
 
#12
i personally would have wanted them insured as well for that amount of S&H but she should have addressed that before having you lower the price and paying you, etc. anyway, the point of insurance is really only an issue if the item were to get lost, which it didn't.

bottom line: a responsible bidder would have read all the terms of your auction.
 
#13
I probably would have required insurance on an item that expensive (protects you as the seller), but since they arrived okay, that's moot. She probably didn't read carefully enough and made the assumption that insurance was included. I tend to also charge a flat rate when I ship. Sometimes I overestimate and sometimes it send up costing me significantly more. I figure it evens out. One time though, a buyer gave me a neutral for having too high shipping. It was an $8 charge for any number of items of clothing. The buyer bought just one item and even though the shipping was stated both in the listing and at the bottom, she wasn't happy. You can't always please everyone. I have paid $20 to have shoes shipped just once. I thought it was a lot, but I wanted the shoes.
 
#14
Did you say banned from here? I guess not since I can still read and type. Funny how that happens huh? Since this will likely be my only post, I guess make it a good one.

Do you have violins to go with that cup of self pity?

Waaaahhh a banned member is picking on me, Help me oh wise PFers.

Foxycleopatra, you charged me $20 to ship an item and you paid $5.50 for. Obviously, the amount I sent you was enough to cover insurance. You are wrong about this, not me. I guess that is acceptable to some of you. It is not to me. I have never overcharged someone almost 4 times the amount to ship something. You are just upset because I called you on it.

I suggest to anyone who plans on buying from her check out what the shipping prices are before she send it out.

On a side note, I want to say hi to Vlad and Megs on Ft Lauderdale beach. It was fun playing vball the other day.
 
#15
I have been selling on eBay for years and I think it's good business practice to charge what you think the shipping will be per the usps website (I always have to guess on the weight of the item) and then reimburse the difference if my buyer's paid too much. I don't think it's fair to say shipping is $20 if you only spend $10 on it (or whatever the difference is).

You should figure out what your fees/shipping/etc. will be beforehand and build them into the price of your item. That's just my opinion, but I've never had an unhappy sale yet. :smile:
 
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