More Pathetic Ebay Behaviour
Following on from my previous rant about sellers on Ebay comes further news of bad practice. Last week I purchased an item and paid £2.75 for P & P. I felt this was a little high at the time but the item was what I wanted. Upon delivery it arrived in the type of plastic bag I use in my own business and know costs between 1 and 2p. The postage sticker showed 2nd Class 76p. The charge should therefore be no more than £1 for this item. I left neutral feedback outlining my disgust at this outragoeus practice and received a very nice reply back.
IT WOULD OF BEEN NICE OF YOU TO CONTACT ME 1ST BEFORE YOU LEFT THE NASTY FEEDBACK,AS YOU CAN SEE BY MY FEEDBACK I AM A FRIENDLY AND GOOD EBAYER.
I ALWAYS SEND MY POST 1ST CLASS RECORDED DELIVERY,BUT MY LOCAL POST OFFICE,DID THE MISTAKE AND PRINTED IT 2ND CLASS ONLY,HE PRINTED IT AND PUT IT ON THE PACKAGE,BEFORE HE TOLD ME THE MISTAKE HE HAD DONE.NORMALLY COST ME AROUND 2.00 OR MORE FOR RECORDED POSTAGE.
How should this seller have handled this? Firstly I would have asked to postmaster to see if he could have voided the transaction and then put it through correctly. If this was not possible I would then have emailed my customer and explained what had happened and why they were getting a partial refund of the postage payment. Simple to do wasn’t it and would have resulted in an understanding customer who was not pissed off at you because they feel they were ripped off by your sharp practices. Instead none of it was her fault at all was it?
This morning I received delivery of an item I bought 10 days ago. Only after I paid the postie £3.20 though. This seller charged me £3.07p for postage and packing, placed 3 items into one large envelope (which was open when it arrived), and slapped 4 first class stamps onto it. The Post Office decided this was insufficient and levied an additional charge to be paid on delivery of £2.20 plus £1 handling fee for their inconvenience. I have emailed this vendor but have yet to hear back. Good item though and already in use. I am saving 1 for when we go on our cruise to keep in the wardrobe for dirty clothes to go into.
Now some people may think I am being a little picky but I do not feel that I am at all. I operate my own business in a very fair manner and I personally believe my customer service is second to none for a mail order business. I include my postage charges within my price to eradicate all confusion and head off any bad feelings regarding additional charges. What you see is what you will pay. Everyone knows where they stand. Ebay has been clamping down a little over excessive postal charges because it is actually a way to avoid paying a part of the final valuation fees. It also helps if the item goes for a cheap price by sticking some extra cash in the vendors pocket and making the item look more competitive. For example on Monday I purchased 2 pairs of water shoes to wear on the beach and when in the water. Stops the pain of hot sand and stepping on rocks, coral or nasty sea creatures like urchins. I saw a few pairs on ebay that looked good. I narrowed the prices down a bit and then chose a vendor who had the shoes we wanted in the sizes we wanted. 1 pair was £7.25 and the other was £7.95 postage free. I used the buy it now and paid right away. Got an email thanking me for the purchase and then another yesterday saying they had been dispatched. The shoes arrived today and I am happy with my pair. Tony is out so hasn’t tried his yet.
I shall continue to give honest feedback both in words and in the star ratings I give. The shoe vendor got 5 stars all around and a very positive comment. The vendor above didn’t and I am still waiting to hear from one vendor..
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