[Rant]

Ok so I place a bid on Ebay for something and no where on the auction does it state that there is a shipping cost different from shipping to the US mainland than to Hawaii. It also states that if I win this item it will be shipping via UPS ground for $8.00 and will be shipped out within 3 business days after it has been paid for.

So 1 hour later I'm the winner of the auction. Like a robot i pay it immediately for the invoiced total which is $51 + $8 shipping = $59 via paypal. I don't get a contact from the seller until tonight.

This is what he tells me:

"I sent out your item today through FED EX with a tracking number of xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx. The shipping cost I quoted was within 48 states so to ship it to hawaii it was a additional $10. If you could send that to my pay pal account that would be great. I didn't want to not send it because I am sure you want your brace by the weekend"

this is NOT the first time that this has happened to me and I'm getting sick of this sort of thing. Of course I'm NOT going to pay the additional shipping since other auctions and other people clearly state that there is a different charge for shipments to Hawaii. Also if people don't say anything they eat the cost. Just plain and simple business ethics...

here is my reply to him:

"Jason,

Your auction doesn't say anything about a shipping difference to Hawaii vs the Continental US. Hawaii is still within the USA and we do have/receive UPS Ground shipping. I think that it is UNFAIR for you to ask me to give you more money for something that has already been paid for in full well within your specified guide lines according to your auction. It really wouldn't matter if I wanted it by the weekend or not since i was aware of YOUR SHIPPING CONDITIONS via your auction I knew right away that I was NOT going to receive it by then. By taking it upon yourself to make that decision to make it so that I'll have it by this weekend was thoughtful but not necessary and thus causing you to pay for the additional shipping cost. FedEx Home Delivery is FedEx's ground service

I do apologize but i will not be sending you the additional money you are requesting. If your auction had stated other wise of the difference of $10 to Hawaii then I would have GLADLY paid $18 for the shipping. Unfortunately it didn't.

Jon"

Am I in the wrong?

What are your thoughts on this?

Jon

[/Rant]

Edit: to top it off this guy wants to charge me additional money for shipping it via FedEx Home Delivery (Similar to UPS Ground / Same amount of time) and I won't get it any quicker...!

 

Well I always ask if they don't say, cuz I know it's always more. But he already sent it, so no you're not in the wrong. Everything you said and did is correct and you don't owe him anything, especially if he took it upon himself to send it. You can't send it without customer authorization then ask them to pay extra after. That's not how businesses run.

 

yeah I thought so. that's exactly how my job is. we deal with customers buying stuff and servicing stuff on a daily basis. if we don't charge them right then and there we cannot expect them to pay more later for what should have been taken care of earlier.

I guess that's the trouble you have to deal with selling stuff on ebay never knowning exactly who your customers are until they actually bid on something. of course if you cover your bases before posting your auction (easier said than done of course) then you can always make sure this sort of thing doesn't happen to you.

it's like if you give a customer a quotation to do some work and they authorize it then pay for it then come back to find that it's more that doesn't make sense.

there are some auctions that state only ship to 48 states, Hawaii/Alaska shipping more please contact before bidding... stuff like this makes ebay alot eaiser for the seller and buyer

Jon

 

I think you did the right thing, with any luck he'll learn his lesson and do more research on shipping costs before he posts more adds.
Ive underpriced shipping in the past and I ate the difference without any hesitation (no sense in someone else paying for my mistake)

 

You're totally right man. Its his fault for not specifing shipping cost to hawaii and just to quote on continental shipping to the 48 states. I myself with past retail experience feel that its the seller fault and not yours. Like they always say, "THe customer is always right" to a certain extent though.

 

well i just got my reply from him and this is what he had to say:

"Well to be honest $10 bucks means nothing to me but what it comes down to is people that are not honest like you and won't stand up for what is right. I hope you feel comfortable with the decision you have made and this will someday come back on you 2 fold. I am not asking for anything that isn't fair and only the actual shipping costs to the island. Thanks"

should I reply to him or should I leave it alone?

I was planning on saying something like this:

yes you are right $10 isn't a whole lot and doesn't mean anything to me either it's just the principle and bad business practice to be asking for more money after the transaction has been completed. please do not insult me by saying that I'm not an honest person since you don't know me at all. I do feel totally comfortable with my decision and i stand by it 100%. from a business stand point from a person that is in corporate sales there is no way possible, ethically/morally that i can ask a client of mine to give me more money after they have been given an invoice and paid for it in full.

just learn from this experience that if you plan on selling on ebay in the future that you cannot expect to have only customers from the continental US. just expect to have worldwide customers as the internet is not limited to the continental US. Also keep in mind that Hawaii is the 50th state and cannot be changed by shipping rates. what should have been done before the posting of your auction is to put something along the lines of... Shipping to Alaska/Canada and Hawaii requires more shipping (provided it does and the rate you stated in your shipping section is for the continetal US only).

 

If it is not stated on the auction about shipping to Hawaii, I contact the seller and inform them that I am interested and that I would like a quote on shipping. Most times the seller will honor what was posted on the auction, sometimes they quote a ridiculous price and I add them to my S-list. I would say it is best to contact the parties before the end of the auction to avoid problems. Living in Hawaii we do get raped by extra shipping and handling charges.

 

Well that's one thing I don't have to worry about here in Ohio

Yeah, it does suck that people don't realize that they need to state how much shipping is to HI.

 

Jon, Ebays States That You Are Not Obligated To Pay More Then What Is Stated..

 

yeah i know that that's why i didn't pay his ***!

 

lame. if anything he should have emailed you first with the new price.

 

at least he shipped it to HI, I see lots of thing I would want on eBay, but they dont ship to Hawaii.....now that's something I'll never understand.

 

I agree, you shouldn't have to pay additional shipping. He should take the loss and ship it to you for the stated price. I'd contact ebay if you havent already.

I am actually in the same situation. I bought a pair of tires for my mkiv and it said that shipping was free. I got email confirmation stating that shipping was free too. They stated that their computer system does not recognize HI and AK and says free shipping. They pretty much cancelled my order and told me to pay the shipping if I wanted to order it. If you go back online and order it, it still says free shipping! So I filed a complaint through the BBB. It says it may take up to a month for it to go through though.

 

That is why you should always put a shipping calculator on the auction.

 

if he insists you pay...send an email to ebay admin...they'll take care of you...