[rods68stang]

I bought a flywheel and the shipping calculator that the seller included said shipping would be $13.26. I got an email from him stating that he grossly underestimated the weight and that shipping would be $27.90 instead. Then asked if there was any problem with this. Here's my reply:

"Yes, There is a problem with that. I base my bids on shipping costs. You presented a shipping calculator in the product listing, which I used to calculate my bid. Now you want ME to pay for your mistake. That is wrong and poor business practice.
Our options are either that you own up to your mistake and charge the stated shipping amount from your included calculator; or deal with misrepresentation, poor feedback, and repercussions of fraudulent behavior.
Example:
A friend bought an item on Ebay CLEARLY worth $300+ for $50, but the guy forgot to insert a reserve and wanted my friend to pay more. It doesn't work that way.

Thank you,

Rodney Wendell"

 

[Lemondrop]

I can't see a flywheel being that cheap to ship It is possible that when he started the auction he did not change the weight from a prior listing and that's where your price is at .
If I sold it , if I was not giving you the flywheel AND paying shipping ... Id go ahead and ship it ... as long as it did not cost me more than the part itself .
IF it was gonna cost me more than the part , Id take a negative and bounce one back to the bidder and move along .
That being said , how badly do you want a negative from the deal ?
If you can't agree on the deal you can both agree not to finish the deal and walk away .
If you paid a decent amount for the flywheel and think the guy wants more money to soak in a profit , report him to ebay and they will deal with it .

 

[The_Dude]

I've done this myself and told the buyer, since it was my mistake, I would eat it. In that case the buyer offered to pay the difference. Clearly, you are in the right. I would decide how badly I wanted the item and if it was cost effective, offer to split the difference.

 

[66babyblue]

I would say that you knew you were being undercharged. You HAD to know it would cost more than what he stated in the auction. He made a mistake. You, on the other hand are taking advantage of the situation and are actually the one who is being "fraudulent" I would be the bigger man a pay the man his shipping charge as long as its what it should be.

I recently won a lot of oil filters that there was some discrepancy on what they would fit. He clearly stated that they fit my Mercedes AND that I am reponsible for making SURE they fit my car. Well, I bid and found out later that they might not be the ones for my car afterall. There is still a bit of confusion. I could have held his description agaianst him, but it was my responsibility to make sure they would fit. I paid the man his money and learned from the experience. My feedback is 100 at 100% positive.

 

[astang68]

you know what i would do, i would check shipping for this item and make sure the guy wasnt trying to pocket extra money. and if it actually was 27.90 for shipping i would offer to split the extra shipping. Is the part worth the extra money or is the 14 dollars a deal killer. if it is then tell him to stick to the original deal. i dont mind helping someone out when it is an honest mistake.

 

[sharkmouth]

When he set up the shipping calculator, he basically set the terms of the auction. Now he wants to change the terms, plain and simple.

 

[Ronstang1966]

I shipped a manual flywheel from Houston to Salt Lake City and it cost about $17.

 

[oldgreydog]

I think the way this should be handled is to treat this fellow like you would want to be treated yourself. It is just that plain and simple. My thoughts on life is that if a mistake is made that both parties should step up to the plate and solve the problem. Ask yourself if the roles were reversed how would you want it settled and then you will have your answer.
Al

 

[Blueovalfan]

I Buy and sell on Ebay quite often and I just shipped out some items today. I quoted shipping and cost me an extra 10 bucks, I ate it as that is what I quoted. There are alot of people that make up the difference on shipping. As a Buyer and Seller I think you are right.

 

[wayne50f1]

I recently baught a flywheel , my shipping cost was $15.00

 

[Rickmaan]

Not knowing who the seller is, if ebay is a biz for him, or how much the part sold for, I can't say whether or not the extra $14 would be a big deal to me. If he is running a biz on ebay he's probably trying to protect a very slim profit margin on the part, and eating $14 would likely eliminate any profit on the deal for him. That said, he is still obligated under ebay rules to sell the part at the bid price, but shipping is not controlled by ebay and sellers are not required to show a shipping amount. When a seller does list a shipping price (or include the calculator) they do so as a convenience for buyers and hopefully to increase the number of bidders. Although an argument can be made that you bid in good faith with the information provided, I don't believe that the amount shown for shipping is binding the way the bid price is. The only ebay policy I can find on the subject is this;

"When a bid is placed, the bidder is entering into an agreement with the seller to purchase the item, which most often means incurring reasonable shipping charges that may also include handling fees.

In the case of disagreements between buyers and sellers regarding shipping charges, eBay encourages the parties to try to work the matter out."

Just remember, ebay is a community of individuals. Some of the individuals are buyers, some are sellers, and some are in business. Here's how I view ebay transactions; Those who are sellers (whether a business or not) have a responsibility to list their auctions accurately, but they are just people and people make mistakes. Buyers have a responsibility to complete the transaction in a timely and civilized manner, but simply out of courtesy they should also handle it as they would want it done if the roles were reversed. If you believe the seller is just trying to soak you for more profit try to hold him to the price and deal with the repurcussions with the knowledge that morally you are in the right. If however, you believe the seller just made an honest mistake put yourself in his shoes. How would you as a seller want the buyer to respond to this situation? If you stick to the original shipping price the seller could reply in feedback that you were an uncooperative buyer. If he simply made a mistake and is trying to cover his costs, he would probably be very thankful for an offer of splitting the extra charges. Would another $7 brake the deal for you? How about if it meant a very favorable feedback comment? Just my 2 cents FWIW.

 

[rramshur]

I think your right but just a little to much attitude,This is someone you wanted to do buisness with try and meet him half way be for you call him a rat.

 

[grentis]

Being a seller that recently made a mistake, i can see how the seller feels. I sold my old rims on ebay and used the DHL website to get the shipping quotes for the bidders. What i didn't know that DHL doesn't have a direct shipping office around here and usually goes through a third party post office. The third party post office charges more to get money off the deal. I shipped 4 rims in 4 boxes. It was $10s more per box more than the website said. I shipped it anyways the same day and just emailed the buyer told him the mistake. I didn't demand the money but just said if he was willing to send any extra money it would be great. He said he would take a look at the rims first and email me about it later. Never heard back from him. It is and it isn't my fault, but i ate the 40 bucks. Live and learn. Never going through DHL again. Sticking with UPS. BTW, it would of cost the same to ship through UPS but at least i would of quoted him right.

 

[EJD68]

I think you are clearly in the right. It's his error - he should own up to it. He may have been asking just to see what you would say.

That being said - if he won't eat it and the additional 14 bucks still makes it a good deal, I would probably go ahead and pay it and claim the moral high ground :winkgrin:

 

[66babyblue]

Here is another way of looking at it.. Shipping costs these days is a joke. UPS wastes more fuel constantly going back and forth to the same place 3 times before it sends the item back. They refuse to leave it on your doorstep if you live in an apartment. They also use ineffiecent trucks that burn a lot of fuel.

Shipping costs are ridiculous these days. They also seem to change almost everyday including a "fuel charge"

So do I as a seller say, Hey! , Y' know its gonna cost me more to go to the UPS store today as I have to drive there.. Its also gonna cost more to wrap and pack your stuff since material costs have also gone up.

No, I make sure I put a higher than most likely charge for the shipping then refund any overage.

I still say pay the shipping.

 

[johnpro]

IME, shipping charges are a fine line to walk as a seller on ebay. You can never REALLY tell what the shipping is until the item is packed and you know the destination to which it is going. I have eaten more on shipping than the item actually sold for in several cases, because I mis-quoted the shipping.

The guy just asked, and you were a bit harsh. Personally, I like the idea of others to offer to split the difference with him. My guess is that the shipping calculator will quickly disappear from this guy's future auctions. I very rarely put actual shipping charges on any auctions I put up now, unless I know for sure that it will fit in a "USPS $7 flat rate box". I've just been burned too many times on shipping.

 

[Fast68back]

I cant imagine the shipping actually being that much more unless he was packing it with bricks. If it shows up and the postage shows he paid it, send him half the differnce, it was his fault, i have eaten the difference in the past when I made the mistake.

 

[68RCodeConv]

I agree with what you did. I do a LOT of research on the parts I am buying and I know what I am willing to pay for the TOTAL (shipping included). If a guy gives me a break on shipping then I bid more for the item - plain and simple.

When I am selling something on eBay I will deliberately understate the shipping costs by a couple of dollars. I get a LOT more bidders that way because they don't feel like I am screwing them on the shipping. In a perverse "reverse psychology" kind of thing some people bid because they feel like they are screwing ME on the shipping.

So IMO the shipping charges are an integral part of the auction (non-negotiable) and the guy should take his lumps.

 

[Mustangerbob1]

Did you have a good idea the shipping was understated before you bid? If the part sold for $10, and the person honestly put in the wrong shipping cost, and it cost him an extra $14, then he is out the part, pays ebay some fees and loses money. He would have been better just to throw it in the trash, and not have the hassle. He/she may think twice about putting up parts again in the future. Some people are not real sharp understanding shipping costs. If the guy is on his 3rd auction on ebay, I would cut him a break. If this is his 689th auction, would look at it a little different. I sell about 15 items a week on ebay, and always put in a shipping price, based on either a guess for FedEx or USPS, and then understate it by about $1, so I do not have a quibbling party over the cost. I do not charge for packing materials, since I figure that is included in the price of the part, same with taking it to the post office/fedex. If it is a large, strange part, I will state the shipping will not exceed XXX amount.

Overseas is much harder, as the rates are very touchy about exact weight. I recently quoted $9 to ship a part, and managed to fit it into the $5 overseas envelope. Since the person had used paypal, I refunded the $4 overage. He was VERY happy and noted that in the feedback.

 

[hotdog]

Yeah, the kind of guy I love to hate. States outright you give a negative for a negative even though YOU broke the agreement. Lordy, you guys are a real royal pain. If the purchaser conforms to the sellers terms, no negative is due. Bounce on back to yourself for that comment.