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Got Bit On eBay!


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Not for much, but I  won two auctions from same seller; when I sent a request for a combined invoice I instantly received an red eBay announcement that stated this seller doesn't offer combined shipping.  That's fine, but if that's your policy then state that in your auctions.  This one will go on my "Do Not Deal With Again List", they got my first and last business.  Seems like most of the time when I hear buyers complaining about getting bit on eBay it's almost always over shipping charges, combined shipping or something else to do with shipping like hefty handling fees or something like that.  I've both bought and sold on eBay, so I don't understand the no combined shipping thing especially when it saves both parties a dime or two.  Just one more thing to watch out for on eBay.

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Guess I'm one of the lucky ones... Been using E-bay for many years buying and selling.... and never ran into a problem.. once the seller lost the decals for a kit and didn't realize they were listed in the auction... They gladly refunded part of the price and I kept the kit.

Sorry to hear you had some trouble...

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Depends. I have sold and purchased quite a bit from eBay. When I was selling some items, I wouldn't combine because I already had things packed in the boxes I had available and I wasn't interested in finding a new box, repackaging, etc. I wouldn't say you got "bit", there is no rule that sellers have to combine shipping and if the seller is only doing it part time, extra income, whatever, they probably want it take as little time as possible. 

Yes it's nice when they combine though, but not combining isn't the worst that happens on eBay. 

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I wouldn't combine because I already had things packed in the boxes I had available and I wasn't interested in finding a new box, repackaging, etc. I wouldn't say you got "bit", there is no rule that sellers have to combine...

That's true and one can't blame a person if they choose that policy, I guess.

If I have more than one item up at a time, I know there's always a chance of someone wanting a couple at once so I take advantage of the free box pile at the local supermarket to be flexible. Never hurts to think ahead.

 

mike

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Not for much, but I  won two auctions from same seller; when I sent a request for a combined invoice I instantly received an red eBay announcement that stated this seller doesn't offer combined shipping.  That's fine, but if that's your policy then state that in your auctions.  This one will go on my "Do Not Deal With Again List", they got my first and last business.  Seems like most of the time when I hear buyers complaining about getting bit on eBay it's almost always over shipping charges, combined shipping or something else to do with shipping like hefty handling fees or something like that.  I've both bought and sold on eBay, so I don't understand the no combined shipping thing especially when it saves both parties a dime or two.  Just one more thing to watch out for on eBay.

This happened to me few times recently.  Even on a listing where seller mentioned that he does do combined shipping.  It is probably no seller's fault but some eBay glitch.

What I did in all those instances, instead of asking for combined invoice, I went to one of the individual listings and contacted seller through "ask seller question" and asked them for combined shipping. They had no problem sending me a combined shipping invoice.

The EBay is getting weirder and weirder - try contacting the seller like I did and see what happens.

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This happened to me few times recently.  Even on a listing where seller mentioned that he does do combined shipping.  It is probably no seller's fault but some eBay glitch.

What I did in all those instances, instead of asking for combined invoice, I went to one of the individual listings and contacted seller through "ask seller question" and asked them for combined shipping. They had no problem sending me a combined shipping invoice.

The EBay is getting weirder and weirder - try contacting the seller like I did and see what happens.

Same thing here . . . more than once .  I always send the seller a message asking for combined shipping , and I tell them about the message I received .  They always thank me because they didn't realize it was happening (you think ?) and send me a combined shipping invoice .

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I use a shipping address in the US as the border is not that far away from me and I avoid the international fees that get charged from time to time.   Recently I won two models from the same seller.   Instead of putting both into one box they were shipped separately and got charged shipping individually.   I sent an email to him thinking he might offer a reduction.  No go.

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When you create a listing for an item to sell you are required to check a box combined shipping or not.....so if an auction does not state seller does.....assume they do not. 

I have had 3 sellers in the last 3 months never ship an item.......I got all my money back...but took a month or two. Still use ebay since 1999. 

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I have never used EBay for anything myself just because I prefer to see for myself just what it is I'm getting. I have recently sent a part cross country and used U.S. Post Office "if it fits it ships" boxes. It seemed like the best deal at the time. Is there something better that I should consider in the future ?

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Sounds like that seller didn't make their policy clear. 

Right in the eBay listing, I always warn bidders about this:   "IMPORTANT!  If you win multiple items, please DO NOT PAY INSTANTLY. Wait for my invoice after the auction ends.  If you instant-pay for multiple items, you WILL be charged for shipping ON EACH ITEM. If that happens, I will refund your excess shipping thru PayPal."

I hate high shipping prices as a buyer and try to keep those costs as low as possible when selling.  I also refuse to buy from those people who obviously pad their shipping charges with outrageous "handling fees" etc.

Unfortunately, some bidders just will not RTFI (Read The Flipping Instructions).  They go ahead and pay for each item separately, and EBay charges them shipping for each item. Then they complain to me:  "Your listing said you combine shipping!!!"  Yes I do, but it would help if you read the whole listing...including that stuff in ALL CAPS, telling you exactly how to avoid this problem.

Due to a cross-country move and other drama, I haven't sold on eBay since 2014.  I am trying to gear up for a big sale right now, but it interferes with my model building...

Edited by Mike999
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Not for much, but I  won two auctions from same seller; when I sent a request for a combined invoice I instantly received an red eBay announcement that stated this seller doesn't offer combined shipping.

Skip, that is eBay talking. I buy a lot of stuff from one seller in particular and I always send him a message saying I'll be buying or have bought several items. He always gives me a combined shipping invoice.Don't use the "request combined shippinG" just contact the seller directly.

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Right in the eBay listing, I always warn bidders about this:   "IMPORTANT!  If you win multiple items, please DO NOT PAY INSTANTLY. Wait for my invoice after the auction ends.  If you instant-pay for multiple items, you WILL be charged for shipping ON EACH ITEM. If that happens, I will refund your excess shipping thru PayPal."

 

Yes, and when a buyer pays for each item individually, the seller gets charged a transaction fee each time by Paypal.  I buy a lot of cheap items for my stamp collection.  At times I may buy 15 $1 things from the same seller and always wait until all are on my invoice before I pay.  Sellers have told me there are idiots who will zap them with 15 separate transaction fees, so they made nothing!

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Not for much, but I  won two auctions from same seller; when I sent a request for a combined invoice I instantly received an red eBay announcement that stated this seller doesn't offer combined shipping.  That's fine, but if that's your policy then state that in your auctions.  This one will go on my "Do Not Deal With Again List", they got my first and last business.  Seems like most of the time when I hear buyers complaining about getting bit on eBay it's almost always over shipping charges, combined shipping or something else to do with shipping like hefty handling fees or something like that.  I've both bought and sold on eBay, so I don't understand the no combined shipping thing especially when it saves both parties a dime or two.  Just one more thing to watch out for on eBay.

I have had this exact thing happen to me at two deals recently. I think it is the Ebay software that makes the problems. I had to just complete the transaction and then send a message to the seller when I paid. I was the refunded the extra postage fee by the seller. If I did not complete the transaction I have not bought the items because I have not clicked the "Commit to buy" button. I did not have the option of waiting for the seller to send me an invoice.

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I sort of see both sides of this as I've bought from sellers that you can tell prepackaged everything, they write what the item is on the box the put the label on top.  So obviously they don't like unpacking an item to combine with another.  Big deal if you're that meticulously organized then eBay must be your thing!  I never was, sure I had bits in boxes but never sealed the box until it was ready to ship, I hate running around for cartons at the last minute.  (Couldn't have been the case here the items were small stuff for my wife, both would fit one small box.)  I always tried pleasing every person I did business with, your feedback is only as good as the last person you sold something to.  To me as a seller combining is less work, better customer satisfaction and less postage for all.  Which in this case I ended up feeling a little used and abused, I'd have never done this to a buyer.

Guess that's why I don't sell on eBay anymore, especially after a run in or two with blatantly dishonest buyers.  Agreed, it seems like eBay is likely behind the stupid stuff going on lately, more money in their pocket skimming off of everything they can think of.  Trouble is that when it comes to looking for some stuff like model parts, old magazines,,, this is the site with the widest audience so everyone gets nicked one way or another.

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Still use ebay since 1999. 

 

Same here, but less and less and only for buying. I completely stopped selling on eBay, because there
simply are too many annoying time wasters out there. 

You will have to agree that over the past ten years eBay deteriorated to a mongtard infested legal minefield 
and the powers there be are apparently rather indifferent about it.

I think it jumped the shark quite a while ago.

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I don't know if it's crept into the model car section yet, but the trend in HO scale train stuff seems to be almost insanely low starting-prices on some lots (to get the bidding going) with equally insanely high shipping costs (that a fair number of bidders apparently don't notice at first). I'm seeing a fair number of "won" lots get re-listed a couple of days later, too.

Also, a fair number of sellers do seem to be refusing to combine shipping.

Creeping greed, everywhere.

 

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The absolute capstone hitherto was when I needed an NPSM threaded fuel pipe connector for the fuel pump of my Rover V8.
This is an AC Delco pump, thus has an American thread that's not commonly available in the UK, so I wanted to order said fitting from a supplier on eBay USA.
The price of the piece was $2.37 (I don't know how they come up with these odd prices, would they really sell one less if they'd charge $2.50 for it?).
It's made from brass and about the size of a little finger, so you could toss it into a padded envelope and send it as a letter.

Imagine my surprise when I was quoted $67.00 for postage!

So altogether, I'd have paid $69.37, plus 20% VAT, plus £8.00 processing fee, i.e. in the neighbourhood of a hundred Dollars!

I made it on a lathe a local engineering shop gave me access to for a beer tip.

Edited by Junkman
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I've been on eBay as a buyer for 20 years, and only maybe 3 transactions out of thousands were unsatisfactory... one was a seller that didn't combine shipping, one was a seller that didn't actually have the product they were selling, and one where an old kit was no where near as complete as the description.

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