JohnGaunt wrote:Free, but they can only be used for shipping Priority Mail.  They can not be used or re-used for any other type of mail.  Yes, people use them as cardboard liners and re-use them to ship packages, but all that is illegal.

One eager postal clerk opened up my Media Mail package because it looked as if I were using bits of a Priority Mail box.  Fortunately I was not, but then I couldn't remember if what the item was ---a game or a magazine or what, so I got ripped-off on postage.

As a result of the USPS' determination to make me not use or re-use boxes,  I have found that unused Priority Mail boxes are good for drying stripped minis, separating items, and anything else that requires a stiff piece of cardboard.  

Of the 8 billion times I've used some bit of USPS packaging to mail something, if they catch me once someday, I'll still be ahead...but seriously, don't those guys have anything better to do?  I've never had a package opened yet, if it happens someday it won't be out of one of my local post offices, they are so busy and so short of employees nowadays it's a miracle if you can get out of there in 30 minutes even mailing one package...I hear about it happening, but it's never been at one of my local USPS stations.

Mike B.

Mars wrote:
Although it would be nice if the seller was upfront with stuff like this, many sellers are not.  So what happens if it is not mentioned, you win the auction and the seller says it will be $210 for your $10 book because ...  There should be nothing wrong with this since all $200 of the fees are reasonable handling costs.

The trouble with asking Ebay about anything is they won't give you any kind of firm answer unless they are forced into it.  In this case they will just send you off to their policy pages.  If you post an auction with such handling fees, then you are forcing Ebay to make a decision on it.

I've always believed in letting the marketplace sort itself out....

You want to charge $15 shipping each package?  Fine. I'm going to charge $5, and take all your business. All the poor rubes that don't read your shipping and pay $15 for one module are only going to do it ONE time.  I'll be in business long after the "genius" who thinks they are getting around the system by charging a lot on shippng.

And if the seller isn't upfront about shipping costs (Cougie, take a GIANT step forward), DON'T BID ON THEIR DAMN AUCTIONS!!!!!!  Nobody, and I mean nobody, is holding a shotgun to your head and making you bid on that copy of Red Sonja Unconquered from the seller with no upfront shipping cost.  If/when the seller slaps you with a $100 shipping fee, it's your own fault, and I would recommend you either pay it because your'e stupid enough to bid on something without knowing the shipping fees, or refuse to send the cash and exchange negs.  There are alot of people in this world that think because they can't pull their head out of their ass you and I should do it for them.  I swear people act like their money is as valuable to them as toilet paper is to me, the way they throw it around.  They bid on auctions with no descriptions except for the title....they bid on auctions with no photos....they bid on auctions from sellers with excessive negs or less than 90% feedback....they bid on auctions from foreign countries know for their scam artists such as South Africa or Asia...and then they are SHOCKED to find out they get bent over and used like a long haired pretty boy on the "OZ" tv show.  Geez.  

Essentially, Ebay doesn't give a damn AS LONG AS THEY GET THEIR MONEY UP FRONT, which they do.   They are against excessive shipping and handling fees, sure....because they don't get a piece of it!  Their job is to make their rules and policies sound threatening, but in effect be so vague as to actually allow any type of activity. For example, in our above example of the guy charging $15 for a module, well is that excessive per Ebay's policies?  I haven't a clue.  Maybe he's sending them in a Express next day envelope for $14.40 a pop....in that case it's not excessive.  Maybe he's slipping it into a plain brown envelope with no backing for $1.50.  I would consider that excessive, but once again since Ebay hasn 't taken the time to define the word, I have no idea if that would qualify.  

I don't know about other sellers here and I won't speak for them. But personally I'm not running a charity.  Frankly ebay and their rules can shove it up their ass, I don't care what they think or say because they've proven time and again they are concerned with making money above all....their new "hidden" bidder policy for one makes me want to throw up, it's so blatantly ridiculous.  I'll charge as much shipping/handling as I ethically can to refund myself for supplies, make a small profit, yet stay below or at the same price of other Ebay dealers so as to compete with them in the marketplace.   I won't apologize for it one bit either...the charges are right up front.

Ugh, and just wait for that mail price hike next month.......

Mike B.

I don't know about lawyers and duct tape and Canada and all that....

I only know that the cost of shipping on Ebay has gone up by 50% to 100%  or so in the two years I have been active there.

1)  A number of sellers charge $6 for mailing a module.  That used to be the cost for mailing a boxed game.

2)  Many sellers charge $9.99 for shipping a module or a book without blushing.  Some charge $11.99 with a totally straight face.

3)  "Combined Shipping" has essentially gone away.  "Combined Shipping" no longer means putting two items in the same evelope for free...since the cost and the "handling" are exactly the same.   It means "half off" or "only $2 more" or "we don't charge extra for insurance" or something like that.

4)  Even sellers who claim to charge "actual cost" for shipping must be paying $7 these days for media mail and a manilla envelope.  In fact, "actual cost" listed on an auction without the "actual cost" in dollars clearly stated is now a good reason to avoid that seller.

So, I contact a seller and ask, "Do you offer combined shipping?"  The reply I consistently get is, "Yes, the first item is actual cost ($6) and each additional item is only $2.50."

If I am stupid enough to bid, then I get three items crammed in the same manilla envelope that arrives with the cost listed as "$3.95."

So....$6 + $2.50 + $2.50 = $11 - $3.95 = $7.05 - $0.25 for the envelope = $6.80 for "handling," because licking an evelope with three things inside requires such massive amounts of effort...$5 to $7 worth of effort, in fact.

I'm not angry at the seller for doing this.  Clearly, sellers feel the need to supplement their profit by making at least some money on shipping.  I blame Ebay and PayPal fees.  The stupid person here is me.

So long as the shipping and handling fees are clearly listed...and hiding your handling fee in a small note down at the bottom of the listing does not qualify as "clearly"...I figure that prices in general have gone up and shipping is the form that increase has taken.

It has gotten so common to make money off of shipping that when I scroll down a set of listings I actually look first at the shipping prices.  If a shipping price is not clearly listed in the item category list then I generally ignore the auction unless it is an item I might be willing to get reamed for.

Then again, there is the somewhat high shipping I paid to CrazyEgor last week that translated into near instantaneous delivery of my items, in a very secure two-day envelope.  Nice work, Egor.  

Mark

lucyjoyce wrote:Using priority mail boxes for media mail shipments feels like stealing to me.  I won't do it, but I understand that others do it as a form of recycling, etc.  To each his own.

I tend to agree, if perhaps for a different reason.

Basically, I don't want my free supplies to dry up. To me, the deal with the USPS is built on a certain level of trust that goes something like this: "Okay, we will deliver an unlimited amount of supplies to your doorstep, for free, no strings attached, but we do ask that you use these supplies for Priority Mail only."

That seems fair to me; personally, I would never use Priority Mail materials for anything except what they are intended for. It seems like a small price to pay for one of the last great bargains out there.*

I'm not claiming to be some sort of saint, though; I am highly motivated to follow the USPS' guidelines in order to keep those free supplies coming. I do worry that the postal authorities will eventually get sick of how often this rule gets abused and ignored ... and that they'll pull the plug on my free swag. There is an ungodly amount of bitching and moaning on this site about various fees and costs — imagine how bad it will get when eBay sellers have to begin buying their Priority Mail supplies.

+++++

*Any of our UK friends can provide some perspective on this. They usually turn green with envy when they are reminded that U.S. sellers can get all the materials they need for free.

lucyjoyce wrote:Using priority mail boxes for media mail shipments feels like stealing to me.  I won't do it, but I understand that others do it as a form of recycling, etc.  To each his own.

I would definitely recycle a priority mail box that I received from a sale to send something to someone else.

Does anyone remember the story about the fellow who signed up for a FedEx account, got a lot of free boxes, and made all of the furniture in his apartment out of them?

That may very well be the funniest thing I've ever seen.  I'm in shock right now, but I can feel the uncontrollable laughter slowly welling up....  Yep, gotta go.

jasonw1239 wrote:On another note, nothing makes me ignore an auction listing faster than somebody that just ships to Canada by UPS. Any amount shipped through them over $20 must be processed through a customs broker with brokerage fees and duty charges. Most Canadian buyers (me included) find that out the hard way.  

Quote again for emphasis.  Do NOT ship by UPS to Canada.

Supposedly you can avoid most of UPS's brokerage fees if you clear the items through customs yourself.  I'm not sure how this works; I've never done it but I've heard its possible.

Well, I had a look at STD's feedback, and it's confirmed: he is a troll. His shipping charges seem acceptable.
So it seems that Stinky-Troll-Shit only posts completely inane and inflammatory comments, purely for the purpose of getting the community in an uproar. Sorry to blow your cover.
Ratovarl, if you sincerely believe that STD is correct in his $10,000 handling fee, then you need medication. I don't think, though, that that is the case. What WILL inflame a lot of people is taking the "buyer beware" attitude. People who believe and operate with that philosophy hurt us all in some way or another.

FormCritic wrote:Then again, there is the somewhat high shipping I paid to CrazyEgor last week that translated into near instantaneous delivery of my items, in a very secure two-day envelope.  Nice work, Egor.  

And there's the other side of the coin, of course.  There is an eBay seller I know whose shipping fees seem to be a touch on the high side.  However, he always exceeds my expectations in terms of price, quality, and customer service, so I overlook the shipping fees entirely.  Not only am I a repeat customer, I frequently refer others to him as well.