bf2rules141 3 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 If a business charged you $15.93 for shipping and handling and you received your item and looked at the postage they paid and it was $2.70 .... would you be peeved off???? would you give them a -1 feedback,....the item was mailed 1st class mail, in a vanilla envelope.....I asked them to refund $10.00 of the shipping and was told "no".... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TR Young 175 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 I would be pissed, but the word is pronounced 'capitalism'. It's how people make a little money in this world. Yeah, it sucks, but if you agreed to pay it, you're stuck. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Koliadko 207 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 I don't know how fast I'd be to jump on them. Some companies charge shipping to cover the actual shipping charges and build all other cost into the actual product cost. Some companies charge what they need to cover their cost and put the rest in 'handling' charges. I used to work for a mail order nursery. They paid around 20 people, for 2 days, to pull the orders. Then they would pay those same people for 3 days to ship them. That doesn't account for the cost of the boxes, the tape, the peanuts. Then you have the office staff that take the orders and print them out. To be honest, I couldn't say one way or another without knowing what you bought and at least a little about the company you bought it from. As for us, Cobra and I are working on looking at how we deal with our shipping charges. But it's way too early in the game for us to know if we need to make any serious changes. I hope everyone knows this much. We are trying to be honest and fair with our shipping charges. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Nailbomb 10,221 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 (edited) are you talking about e-bay? If so yeah i might be a bit pissed, but just the same i would leave a positive feedback, as i did agree to pay that for the shipping. would i buy from them again? no. That shit is sadly rampant. Rare is it that you find shipping paid is actual shipping cost anymore. Edit: after reading racegal's post i think maybe its understandable, begining to question my stance... Edited December 24, 2008 by Nailbomb Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Cobra 76 two 2,677 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 They do call it shipping and "handling" for a reason. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lonerider 1 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 I ship using a Flat Rate charge of $10. Sometimes it cost's me more and sometimes it's less, depends on where it's going. It evens out over the long run. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Cobra 76 two 2,677 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 I was on the phone when I saw this post. Racegal beat me to the punch on the response. Here's the way I feel about it. I have been on the buyer's end for years and years, and never understood why a company might charge more than the actual shipping cost for their products. If you are already pinching pennies to save up and buy a part, or whatever, and you check all around to try and find the best price, then do find a "good deal" on what you want, you don't want to pay someone more than a "fair" price just to get it to your mailbox. But...you have to think about something. First, your order has to be processed. That takes some of the company's time. Then they have to pull your item from the shelf, or maybe their warehouse, where they have to then take it to their packing center (or maybe their kitchen if it's a family business). They have to package it, which takes time, sometimes using materials they actually had to go out and buy. If they give a damn, and actually package it well to protect it from the mail monkeys....they are again spending their own time carefully "handling" your product, and doing their best to make sure you receive it in the best condition possible. Now at this point, if it's a small company using the USPS for instance, then they have to get in their vehicle, which takes expensive gas to operate, take their own time, and drive your package to the nearest post office. They hope they are not going to have to stand in a line like I stood in the other day. They hope they are not held up with other things that day, and end up rushing out the door to get their before the PO closes. They don't want to be "that guy"....like the poor guy who came in the door 5 minutes after I did, and the lady behind the counter said "sorry sir but we're closed"....even though there I was standing inside the glass door which was unlocked....with about half a dozen people standing in line in front of me....and this is a tiny little podunk town...not a big city where you have to fight to find a parking spot, or even pay to park, just to get in there. Then there's the difference between someone just selling one thing they have, that they just want to get rid of, and someone running a business of buying and selling....vs. someone like me who actually has to make most of the things they sell by hand. If you buy from a custom shop, who may be a one man show, or a small family business, they either have to spend a large amount of their own time, or like Racegal said, have an overhead from hiring other people to lighten the load, just getting it all finished, packaged, and ready to ship, as close to the intended shipping date as humanly possible. Meanwhile, they have to deal with impatient people every day, who email, call, and ask "is it ready yet"?? Have you shipped my item yet?? I even had one guy the other day, who was tired of waiting for the steel HGs (the ones that I told everyone who ordered, that it would be at least a couple of weeks before I would be able to get them myself...) and emailed me for the third time about it, and had the gall to ask me to take a couple off my personal weapons and send him those, since it had just become three weeks. Ok, sorry, I'm starting to rant.... My point is, there is a LOT more involved in shipping an item to a buyer, than just what the post office decides to charge for a given package. And you don't even want me to go into that....lol. Sometimes you come out better than others, depending on what the PO charges for different size and weight. It's best to be sure way ahead of time, that you have got your own ass covered before getting to the PO. I usally charge whatever I think the actual shipping is going to be, plus just a little bit to cover my packing and "handling" expenses. I'm not a big company with a big checkbook, and a UPS truck making pick ups at my business address every day. I do enjoy what I'm doing though, and I try to keep my prices low enough, to make up for any other charges I might have to pass on to the consumer. You will find that some companies who charge very little for shipping, just mark up their inventory to account for that. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bf2rules141 3 Posted December 24, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 I wanted to ask you guys before I post anytype of feedback....from what you guys are saying, I sould have and will from now on, find out how the item will be shipped, via standerd or priority and what amount is to go to handling,.... with over 300 sales under my belt, I have never over price my S&H by that much over what it cost. so it set me off..... Racegal20...it was not ebay, it was what I would call a mom and pop business selling AK parts,....not anyone or business on this forum,....when I did a google map on his address it came up as a house not a commerial building, anyway.....live and learn.....thank you all for your imput..... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Nailbomb 10,221 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 My only question though is... shouldn't those things be considered under the items price and not hidden in the shipping costs? I can understand packaging, but handling is something you have to do for that same item every time you sell one, and that is consistant enough that it could be accuratly shown in the items cost as labor... just like you labored to make the item in question anyway? As far as dealing with asshole consumers... well hell, thats why i don't rush out to put myself in your shoes. I would wait untill i have the items in hand as overhead befor selling, and if some stupid questions come up at that point, the prices rise too... i would consider it them paying me to deal with them for being doushbags... I have delt with machine shops and junkyards that worked this same way. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Koliadko 207 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 Think maybe I need to stay out of the shipping business. I'd rather be happy than rich. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
csspecs 1,987 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 (edited) Well I got to stand in line at the post office for over an hour the other day... It makes me want to add some handling charges on ebay stuff. And "at home" businesses are far more common than you would think.... I would say that around here 90% of construction company are at home offices around here. Many small businesses do the selling over a computer at home and then ship from a storage unit. As for feeling ripped off... If you felt good paying that price plus shipping. STOP WHINING This was not a bait and switch. (Edit: I kinda intended that as a good natured ribbing... Sorry if it sounds more than that) Edited December 25, 2008 by csspecs Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bf2rules141 3 Posted December 24, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 Not whining cscpecs, just getting some clarification on this sale, I guess one may see this as whining, thats ok, I see it as asking a bunch of friends what they think. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
yakdung 2,926 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 Pissed yes but always read the find print. Yakdung Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DogMan 2,343 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 (edited) I've had that happen and I was pissed. The problem is that people are usually led to believe that they are paying actual shipping with no explaination that handling is included in that. Now that I'm aware that this happens I don't have a problem with it as long as ALL charges are stated up front so I can compare actual costs between merchants. The merchants who intentionally deceive will pay in the end. P.S. I guess I need to have an avatar, too. His name is Sweetpea. Edited December 24, 2008 by DogMan Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bulldog 0 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 i ordered something off ebay once and waited......on the 10th day recieved item. they shipped it through USPS standard (which can take up to 10 day's) but then charged me $30 for shipping. the box was postaged at $13. i was mad, then thought about it and decided the trip to the PO was added to the price. here's where my salesman side comes in at (i'm a mailman, and Most area's offer carrier pick up) We'll be happy to pick up your shipment from your home or your business. use click-n-ship, print your own postage (Don't use stamps, anything over 13oz we can Not pick up anylonger. that's the airlines rules, not ours. same w/ the shipping different sized packages. that was also the airlines rules, not ours. We just get to take the HEAT!!!! If you ship quite-a-few packages, you may want to ask your carrier to get you a "customer connect" card. someone will contact you and help set you up. I hear from my customers ALL the time about the lines at the post office, so hopefully when More people start using the customer pick-up, it'll help SHRINK those lines and wait. http://www.usps.com/ I'm not trying to sell anyone on this service, just giving my 2cents. also if anyone has any questions, i'll be happy to get an answer. just PM me. ***some didn't know about our fixed rate box's. i can't remember prices right now, sorry. we had a customer paying over $30+ to ship through a competitor. after our new fixed rate boxes, they paid $7.95 (these were about 50lb packages) which put $ back into their pocket. Jeff Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Cobra 76 two 2,677 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 Good info there Jeff, thanks. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
IndyArms 10,186 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 Whenever I sell on EBAY I will state my shipping policy... This is as follows... Buyer will pay ACTUAL UPS shipping charges, PLUS handling charges, which I explain is EXACTLY what has been discussed above! Packaging materials - the box, tape, bubble wrap, foam peanuts, etc..etc.. Then there is my time and effort to PACK the item WELL ENOUGH that it WONT BE DAMAGED in shipping! ( Did you know that you have to have at least 3" of packaging all around all 6 sides of a UPS parcel or they can deny your claim if there is damage?? ) Once its packaged, I still have to get the box to a UPS pickup location... Which thankfully is at my job, ( but the buyer doesnt need to know this... LOL ) And because we ship UPS daily where I work, I can give GREAT deals on UPS shipping rates!! so the prices are NOT that bad, when you figure it all out!! I have a 100% feedback on eBay... and I have shipped some very delicate things... FOR EXAMPLE... vacuum tube amps... every tube is removed from the socket, and hand wrapped in tissue, and bubblewrap, and placed inside the unit, along with a label and a map to which socket it belongs in... Tell me 15 tubes being wrapped like that dont deserve me to charge a few extra bucks for the 30 minutes it took me to PREP the item before I even STARTED PACKING it?!?!? I think for the amp I charged $20.00 in handling alone! but it also took me 45 minutes and a lot of packing materials to make sure it arrived in 100% condition! Again... I STATE VERY clearly in an auction how much my "handling" charges are... and let the buyer know that shipping will be ACTUAL UPS charges... I too am irked when I am charged $15.00 shipping and it arrives in an envelope that they paid $1.98 to ship... But SOMETIMES I can understand what they go through... sometimes... yeah, you just get BENT OVER! ... But thats the free market... and the price ya pay when you shop online! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bean.223 365 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 Do the google work aka footwork, keep serching the same item till you find the perfect mix of shipping and general cost. The reason I LOVE aimsurplus.com is because ALOT of their stuff is 1 penny shipping!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Kwicko 8 Posted December 25, 2008 Report Share Posted December 25, 2008 For that kind of markup on what they actually paid in postage, I'd be a little put out. I run shipping and receiving for a small company, and our markup on shipping is normally 20%. As in, the actual shipping cost plus 20% of that cost added on to help cover the cost of shipping materials. Mind you, I recycle almost every box we receive in the warehouse, I recycle packaging products (peanuts, newsprint, etc.) - in short, I do everything I can to keep our costs down and to keep stuff out of the landfill. Still, we spend around $600 a month on boxes, peanuts, newsprint, and tape. When I say we use a standard 20% markup on shipping costs, that's the high end. Larger orders generally cost less to ship, so I drop that to 10% above cost. And really large orders (pallets or containers, for example) get charged what we actually pay. So charging you over $10 for something that cost $2.70 to ship seems a bit much to me. If it were me, I'd have charge you more like $3.24 ($2.70 plus $0.54 markup, or 20%). I've also learned to be pretty careful about buying tiny stuff online, just because a good price on a $1.00 part doesn't work out to such a great price when they add $7.99 for shipping it to your door... Sooooo... Did you get screwed? Kinda, but not royally. But it would be enough to make me think twice about ordering from that company again. But if you're happy with the purchase, and happy with the service they provided, a little extra shipping might not be too high a price to pay. Good customer service IS hard to find these days! Mike Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ruffian72 548 Posted December 25, 2008 Report Share Posted December 25, 2008 Noticed, most reputable outfits have a minimum upfront. no problem with that. I sometimes just have to wait and build list. HATE those who go by dollar amount ordered. Have compared orders on some outfits against another (Major Names/Suppliers). Some will sell out lower price and bend over, no kiss on shipping/handling. Know they get lowest volume shipping charge. I, then just order from other outfit. Don't go back. If you UPS, try finding a regular volume shipper, when I was shipping over ordered ammo, It was about 1/3 the price. Outfit was a machined parts supplier with volume. Saved the guys I shipped to. The $9.95 shipping/handling on small piece thrown in regular envelope, with 2 stamps, will never recieve my business. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
22_Shooter 1,560 Posted December 25, 2008 Report Share Posted December 25, 2008 Would you be upset??? How did you feel about the shipping price, before you found out what they paid to have it shipped? The way I see it, if you were OK with the price beforehand, no need to be upset now that you know exactly how much they paid to ship the item(s) to you. But I can see where you're coming from. Personally, I think companies should be straight up about prices, etc. Just to save on confusion. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kanur 7 Posted December 25, 2008 Report Share Posted December 25, 2008 I fool around a lot with vintage dirt bikes and have found 2 suppliers that have a lot of the things I need. One is one state away in TN and the other is 2000 miles away in California. On the same item for the same price the TN guy will be 3 times higher on shipping. Guess what? I always check with the CA guy first. When I sell something on ebay I always advertise my item with free shipping and set my opening bid accordingly. This seems to get more bids and more money for me in the end. Ebay now requires a seller to post a shipping charge so it makes me think they were getting a lot of complaints. If I fail to ask shipping charges on something I buy and get stung........... Well we all know that old saying. MERRY CHRISTMAS everyone, I hope there is a lot of Saiga stuff under your tree. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sonnydazegunsmithing 42 Posted December 25, 2008 Report Share Posted December 25, 2008 i was charged 36.00 for shipping on 7 ar recievers and 116.00 for shipping on 3 uppers from a company ive been buying from for years but this is it no more . if i want this companys stuff ill buy it from rsr or some one else not them and ill probably stop carring thier products . ps i was quated 36.00 on shipping uppers and 10.00 on recievers Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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