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 Replies: 16 / Views: 3,109 |
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Valued Member
United States
214 Posts |
I sold a small lot of Morgan dollars for $72.00 + $3.00 S/H. Since the item is valued at over $50.00 dollars I sent them an invoice with a USPS insurance charge. The seller emailed back saying they didn't want insurance, and that my auction description stated it was optional. My auction description says insurance is optional for item less than $100. My auction description states: "We ship 1st Class USPS on small shipments, and Priority USPS for larger shipments. Insurance is an optional feature, although, we use insurance for items of $100 or more." I consider this item a $100 insured item because anything over $50.00 cost the same to insure as a $100 item. Also, if the items is lost in the mail then they will expect me to make it good. If I just ship the item with delivery confirmation, and pay for it myself, and they say it didn't arrive, but USPS and the tracking number shows it did arrive, paypal will rule in my favor, but the seller can still leave me a neg. It's how I got my only neg in the first place. So, should I just charge them the $3.00 and ship insured out of my pocket, or tell the seller to send a signed note, relieving me of all responsablility, if the item is lost? I have never had a costumer complain about my insurance practices in the past, and I will be more specific in my auctions for the future. But what would you do as the ebay seller in this situation? |
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Forum Dad
 United States
24177 Posts |
quote:
Also, if the items is lost in the mail then they will expect me to make it good.
Well, you're responsible to get it to them by law whether they paid for insurance or not. Auction disclaimers do not override the FTC's Federal Mail-order law. That being said, let's move on... quote:
I consider this item a $100 insured item because anything over $50.00 cost the same to insure as a $100 item.
The buyer probably doesn't care what you "consider", they only care what you wrote in the listing. It's not really fair to say "Well, that's not what I meant" after the fact. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
549 Posts |
I know this isn't what you want to hear, but I agree with your buyer.
You claim your listing states that insurance is option for items less than $100. Your customer's purchase price is $72, which is less than $100. Therefore, it is optional. If you want customers to pay insurance on items of $50 or more, then you need to state that in the listing.
Your listing further states, "We ship 1st Class USPS on small shipments, and Priority USPS for larger shipments. Insurance is an optional feature, although, we use insurance for items of $100 or more." Even this is vague at best. If I were a customer reading this, I'd interpret it as being an optional cost to the customer on all purchases, but something that the seller provides automatically on purchases over $100.
A signed note is meaningless. If a package is lost or damaged and you did not purchase the insurance, Paypal will rule in the buyer's favor, despite the fact that the buyer CHOSE to not buy the insuance you offered.
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Valued Member
 United States
214 Posts |
No. I want to hear anyone's advice no matter which side they stand on.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
547 Posts |
 I would pay the insurance out of pocket if I was that worried about the item not getting there. I think that the cost of the insurance is a small price to pay relative to the final sale price if something does go wrong during shipping. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2254 Posts |
quote:
If a package is lost or damaged and you did not purchase the insurance, Paypal will rule in the buyer's favor,
Doesn't matter if you have insurance or not, Paypal will still rule in the buyers favor, because the seller did not get the package to the buyer. You could require $500 in insurance, doesn't matter, if you don't get the package to the buyer, it's your problem, not the buyer's. This has nothing to do with Paypal being the bad guy and trying to hurt sellers. This is to make sure the buyer gets what they paid for. To the matter at hand, I do agree with Mahgobbi's assessment in that you have confusing statements. Ship however you feel confident, but the buyer should not be responsible for insurance at this point, sorry. |
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Valued Member
United States
214 Posts |
All paypal needs is proof of delivery. I won a dispute because I shipped an item with delivery confirmation, but the buyer said they didn't get the package. Paypal ruled in my favor because I had proof of delivery, but the buyer left me my only neg, eventhough I told the buyer that I would ship him some more as soon as I purchased more of the same.
It seems I did make the correct descion in this matter. I sent another invoice without the insurance charge, and will ship with insurance out of my pocket.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
827 Posts |
I'd pay the insurance out of my poacket if I was worried it might get lost or if I thought something might happen along the way. Typically I only charge insurance and not shipping to my customers. Then again I usually send 1-2 ounce items and the profit made from the sales easily covers my postage. So, if I were you, I'd buy insurance out of your pocket, which would be $2.05. I don't know what your profit was on the sale but it should exceeed what your cost of the item was.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
827 Posts |
Paypal only needs proof of delivery, but the seller can claim someone made a purchase with their account and delivered to their confirmed address and claim it was a fraud purchase. A buyer did that to me and despite having proof of delivery to the paypal confirmed address, paypal sided with the buyer and took my $50+ away from me and gave them to the buyer never replied to my emails.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
581 Posts |
Lately I've been selling a lot more than buying, but I remember when I was buying a lot.
As a buyer, I was ticked off at having to pay insurance. Insurance is to protect the SELLER, not the buyer. As Bobbie said, the seller is obligated to get the item to the buyer.
As a buyer, why should I have to pay to make sure the item gets to me? Or that YOU get re-imbursed if it gets lost?
Ok. I feel better now. Yes, I would insure out of your own pocket if you're uncomfortable with the situation.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
549 Posts |
Buyers don't feel that they should have to pay for insurance, since it's a seller's obligation to ensure the the item arrives safely.
As a seller, I don't feel that I should have to pay the carriers for insurance! In my opinion, it's the JOB of the carrier to deliver the package to the final destination in a safe and sound manner. I shouldn't be required to pay a premium in order to get the service that I'm already paying for!
I know this doesn't add anything to the discussion, but it's something that's bothered me ever since I started selling.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
7123 Posts |
The process of getting the package where its going begins with the seller ,, even though addresses are supplied with zip codes and everything ,, mistakes happen ,wrong addresses can be put on envelopes ,wrong zip codes , simple number transference or a dyslexic moment can cause the package to end up who knows where ,, with no fault to the PO for the error .
I supply insurance for purchases over 50.00 I also take care of any paper work required to file a claim ,, and will take anything below 50.00 out of my pocket to make my buyers whole in the event that the package does not show up.
one other way I protect my buyers is I do not spend the money for the Item until positive feedback is left or 2 weeks has elapsed whichever comes first .
these are just things I do ,,they make me happy !
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Valued Member
United States
214 Posts |
Insurance protects the buyer and the seller. I no better than not to insure items that I buy off ebay. It's the only way I can get my money back in the event it gets lost in the mail. Unless the seller is like metalman, but you don't always no that up front. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2254 Posts |
quote:
As a seller, I don't feel that I should have to pay the carriers for insurance! In my opinion, it's the JOB of the carrier to deliver the package to the final destination in a safe and sound manner. I shouldn't be required to pay a premium in order to get the service that I'm already paying for!
That's a good point, but we know it doesn't work that way. I often wondered why I was putting trust in any shipping service, but also had to buy insurance. I honestly think signature confirmation is all that is needed to protect the seller from the BUYER. It doesn't protect the seller from things getting lost, and that's why insurance is bought, but it prevents the buyer from stating that something wasn't received when it actually was. Mahgobbi, what is your ebay ID? With your experience in buying and selling, even though it is not all coin related, it may help other members with their buying and selling if they can look at different formats and listings. |
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Forum Dad
United States
24177 Posts |
I've also wondered this in the past. Look at it from a different angle.....
You're looking for someone to cut your lawn. A landscaper tells you the weekly cost is $50. OK fine. But then he says "Insurance is $5 a week, you really need to buy it, just in case one of my guys runs the mower through your flower bed you'll be covered."
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Pillar of the Community
United States
7123 Posts |
The landscaper already has insurance to cover Him ,,its called a bond and its forced on him by the State and local governments where He operates his business. which is something that the Federal Government does not demand of its entities ,, otherwise they would be required to be responsible for their actions at their own expense. The PO has a sweet deal,we pay them to do a job and if they fail its our fault  But they do provide a way of protecting ourselves from the expected loss ,,its called insurance . when I ship a package I always figure it will get lost! |
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Replies: 16 / Views: 3,109 |
Posted 02/24/2008 7:07 pm
