Small Rant About Vendors Shipping Prices

[A383Wing]

I bought a printed circuit board from a vendor a few weeks ago off the web.....price was $$$ plus $18 for shipping of single part. I thought it was kinda high, but figured it must come well packed and insured from damage for that amount....so I paid the price and waited for new circuit board to arrive. A few days later, our "mail-person" gave me a long box with new printed circuit board inside. Opened up box, and there was no extensive packing, just the board wrapped once with bubble wrap....item was loose inside box.

So, anyway, back to my $18 shipping fee that I was charged...note picture below, only cost $6.15 to mail this to me via US Mail....no signature, no return receipt.....I called the vendor, his response to why I was overcharged for shipping was "That's just the way it's set up on the web, nothing I can do about it"  So I asked where did the other $11.85 go to and would I get that back", He said, "No, that just the way it is"

Needles to say, I won't be buying from this company again.....vendor name is Charger Specialties

Rant over....draw your own conclusions

Bryan

[ws23rt]

Thanks for the heads up about that vendor.

Unfortunately this kind of thing happens all the time.  A little charge here and there that they hope will go unchallenged.

If something seems too high a few questions and postings like this is all we have to work with.

I had a charge recently that gave me pause.  Booking a flight and a one night stay in a hotel on line with Travelocity.  The flight was $469 and the combo (flight and hotel was $988.)  Wow that must be a cool hotel.

I booked them individually (same hotel) for a total of around $560.

I called with a question about this and was told that their must have been a mistake and they were sorry.

We are on our own to look out for overcharging but sharing this stuff helps us all.

[RECHRGD]

I'm still trying to figure out my phone bill......

[ITSA426]

I quit buying from Year One when their shipping prices got ridiculous.  I liked doing business with them but shipping just added too much to the prices.

[Lewis]

Are year one shipping prices bad? I'm about to import a harness from them to the uk 

[A383Wing]

Year One is the worst of all vendors for shipping

[Lewis]

Ahhh man

[John_Kunkel]

Many vendors use the term "shipping and handling" to get around the discrepancy between charged and actual shipping costs. IOW, they charged you $11.85 to "handle" it.

[ws23rt]

It's interesting to consider that "handling" an item is the beginning of depreciation/deterioration.  

Perhaps a back charge for "handling" the aggravation encountered would be in order?

[Lewis]

Yeah what he said!

[Charger-Bodie]

Megapartsusa.com has the best prices usually,and charge realistic shipping.

[Troy]

Not defending them in any way but...

the handling typically includes a box and packing material too. Try buying cardboard boxes without a bulk discount. Depending on the size you're $1.50-7.00 each. A roll of bubble wrap from Staples is $14-16. Label tape and printer ink cost money (yeah, that stuff is probably covered as "overhead" at most companies but it's directly tied to shipping). Large companies will have their packages picked up. Charger Specialties is NOT a large company.

When I was shipping a lot of t-shirts I was making 2-3 trips per week to the post office. Assuming I drove to the normal place it was 4 miles each way and took 20-30 minutes. The truck gets about 14 mpg and my time isn't free (well, in this case it was apparently!). Each package took me about 5-10 minutes to dig out inventory, stuff envelopes, log in to USPS.com to buy postage, print the label and tape it to the package. I packed the t-shirts in Tyvek envelopes - only about $0.40 each. So basically, 3-4 orders would take an hour of my time and use up about $2 in materials and $2 in gas. Assuming minimum wage, I would need to add $3-4 for "handling" on each order. The cheapest shipping - plus insurance and tracking but not counting foreign orders - was about $5 with the most expensive being over $11 (average of about $8). If I had charged a flat rate for "shipping and handling" it would have needed to be $11-12 - which seems excessive for an $18 shirt.

I have piles of cardboard boxes and packing materials in my garage to reuse for shipping parts. After selling a few large items (a couple that had to ship truck freight), I decided that I really wasn't making enough money to mess with it. You want your part, come get it - or pay me extra for the hassle of shipping it.

I worked mail order for 11 years and our shipping was considered "net zero" - yet people would still complain when they got an envelope with a 2 oz item inside and a postage mark of $0.75 when we charged them $2.30 for shipping and handling. No one complained when they got the 30 pound box for $6.50... Even so, the rates we charged took into the "average" cost between carriers and then the shipping department would determine the actual method once it was packed and labeled. If the packer used a different size box it could easily ship a different way.

And I'm gonna guess that no one else has this particular product...

Troy

[stripedelete]

Not defending them in any way but...

the handling typically includes a box and packing material too. Try buying cardboard boxes without a bulk discount. Depending on the size you're $1.50-7.00 each. A roll of bubble wrap from Staples is $14-16. Label tape and printer ink cost money (yeah, that stuff is probably covered as "overhead" at most companies but it's directly tied to shipping). Large companies will have their packages picked up. Charger Specialties is NOT a large company.

When I was shipping a lot of t-shirts I was making 2-3 trips per week to the post office. Assuming I drove to the normal place it was 4 miles each way and took 20-30 minutes. The truck gets about 14 mpg and my time isn't free (well, in this case it was apparently!). Each package took me about 5-10 minutes to dig out inventory, stuff envelopes, log in to USPS.com to buy postage, print the label and tape it to the package. I packed the t-shirts in Tyvek envelopes - only about $0.40 each. So basically, 3-4 orders would take an hour of my time and use up about $2 in materials and $2 in gas. Assuming minimum wage, I would need to add $3-4 for "handling" on each order. The cheapest shipping - plus insurance and tracking but not counting foreign orders - was about $5 with the most expensive being over $11 (average of about $8). If I had charged a flat rate for "shipping and handling" it would have needed to be $11-12 - which seems excessive for an $18 shirt.

I have piles of cardboard boxes and packing materials in my garage to reuse for shipping parts. After selling a few large items (a couple that had to ship truck freight), I decided that I really wasn't making enough money to mess with it. You want your part, come get it - or pay me extra for the hassle of shipping it.

I worked mail order for 11 years and our shipping was considered "net zero" - yet people would still complain when they got an envelope with a 2 oz item inside and a postage mark of $0.75 when we charged them $2.30 for shipping and handling. No one complained when they got the 30 pound box for $6.50... Even so, the rates we charged took into the "average" cost between carriers and then the shipping department would determine the actual method once it was packed and labeled. If the packer used a different size box it could easily ship a different way.

And I'm gonna guess that no one else has this particular product...

Troy

Spot on with what "handling" is.  Handling costs.  What they charge and what it costs the company is rarely 0 sum.
The vendor never fully covers everything when costs are fully burdened.

Before someone posts, "It's the cost of doing business".   It's not.  It's a service.  If you don't want the service, drive to the location and pick it up.

The vendor could build it into the cost.  Then you will be paying sales tax on the "Built In" shipping and handling.

[1974dodgecharger]

PRIORITY BOXES ARE FREE AT POST OFFICE!!!  I can go in and grab the whole rack and they wont say anything...that's how USPS gets business by those boxes.  

I could be wrong, but it seems they even used a USPS priority box......

Hell USPS has flat rate boxes now fit what you can fit in there and its good to go....

IN this case 383  got ripped off.....Hell if you do postage online you get a discount on shipping also....


Also walmart has boxes for .98cents large ones and the largets one is like 1.50 or so..granted you have to drive so the gas is considered, but hell you gotta go to walmart anyways...so grab a box while your there.  


also USPS can pick up your box if you did an online shipping with them..YES the mailman comes to your place asks for the box....FREE no handling on his part for using HIS LEGS to WALK to your door...... in fact UPS and fedex do this service also if you use their service.

NO EXCUSES in this case for charger specilities.....383 wins in this case.

[ECS]

.....back to my $18 shipping fee that I was charged...note picture below, only cost $6.15 to mail this to me via US Mail....

By no means do I support the ridiculous prices that some charge their Customers with respect to S/H.  I can honestly say that ECS NEVER marks up or charges a shipping amount other than the actual costs of getting the product to the Customer.  One thing should be noted however.  The $6.15 cost to ship your item was the charge from the Postal service to the Vendor.  

One thing that is almost always overlooked is the costs for an Employee to pull the product out of stock and package it into the shipping box. A Vendor also has costs to have an Employee enter the transaction into their system for shipping, the costs for packing slips/invoice receipts, the "box" costs, etc.......  While the shipping amount you referenced does seem high, there are real costs that many people never take into consideration other than what the carrier charges the Vendor to ship it.

[1974dodgecharger]

sorry that's still an EXCUSE!!!  I don't see summit charging me to charge the guy to use the pallet jack to go tell the guy in the warehouse to go tell the guy to use the pallet jack to bring him an item.....That's the cost of business is that you don't charge, 'EXTRA shipping and handling' into the shipping, but you charge extra for the item then if that's the case. 

for example item item costs 20 dollars and 5 dollars to ship....charger specilitiesl well changes his mind and say hey lets make this costs 8 dollars and charge 17 dollars to ship it the item....hell yeah why not right 

NO, and NO USPS did not charge charger specilitiles the 18 dollars on the item they did that on purpose...I have shipped many items through USPS...

.....back to my $18 shipping fee that I was charged...note picture below, only cost $6.15 to mail this to me via US Mail....

By no means do I support the ridiculous prices that some charge their Customers with respect to S/H.  I can honestly say that ECS NEVER marks up or charges a shipping amount other than the actual costs of getting the product to the Customer.  One thing should be noted however.  The $6.15 cost to ship your item was the charge from the Postal service to the Vendor.  

One thing that is almost always overlooked is the costs for an Employee to pull the product out of stock and package it into the shipping box. A Vendor also has costs to have an Employee enter the transaction into their system for shipping, the costs for packing slips/invoice receipts, the "box" costs, etc.......  While the shipping amount you referenced does seem high, there are real costs that many people never take into consideration other than what the carrier charges the Vendor to ship it.

[A383Wing]

it was not a flat rate box...the box it came in was 2"x2"x12" for the circuit board...

I would not have been upset if the shipping he charged me was maybe $2 over what was on the postage label...I do understand about other costs like bubble wrap, tape, & the box itself....but to overcharge me $11+ for this small item? I'm not seeing it...

he can charge $2 over for every item he ships and that will cover his shipping supplies cost for everyone...but the $11.85 was not justified in my opinion

[69CoronetRT]

.....back to my $18 shipping fee that I was charged...note picture below, only cost $6.15 to mail this to me via US Mail....

By no means do I support the ridiculous prices that some charge their Customers with respect to S/H.  I can honestly say that ECS NEVER marks up or charges a shipping amount other than the actual costs of getting the product to the Customer.  One thing should be noted however.  The $6.15 cost to ship your item was the charge from the Postal service to the Vendor.  

One thing that is almost always overlooked is the costs for an Employee to pull the product out of stock and package it into the shipping box. A Vendor also has costs to have an Employee enter the transaction into their system for shipping, the costs for packing slips/invoice receipts, the "box" costs, etc.......  While the shipping amount you referenced does seem high, there are real costs that many people never take into consideration other than what the carrier charges the Vendor to ship it.

Bingo...

By the responses, you can tell the people that have and haven't run a business. Time and labor are a factor above the material cost of s/h as well as volume.

[ECS]

I don't see summit charging me.....

That's the point!  You won't see those charges but I guarantee you are paying for them.  A Business can't stay in business without charging for their products and services.

[Aero426]

All the USPS shipping software I have seen, has the capability to print the label without the ship cost visible.    While I understand and accept flat rate ship policies, there is no need to rub it in the face of the customer on a small parts order.   

[Troy]

sorry that's still an EXCUSE!!!  I don't see summit charging me to charge the guy to use the pallet jack to go tell the guy in the warehouse to go tell the guy to use the pallet jack to bring him an item.....That's the cost of business is that you don't charge, 'EXTRA shipping and handling' into the shipping, but you charge extra for the item then if that's the case. 

for example item item costs 20 dollars and 5 dollars to ship....charger specilitiesl well changes his mind and say hey lets make this costs 8 dollars and charge 17 dollars to ship it the item....hell yeah why not right 

NO, and NO USPS did not charge charger specilitiles the 18 dollars on the item they did that on purpose...I have shipped many items through USPS...

.....back to my $18 shipping fee that I was charged...note picture below, only cost $6.15 to mail this to me via US Mail....

By no means do I support the ridiculous prices that some charge their Customers with respect to S/H.  I can honestly say that ECS NEVER marks up or charges a shipping amount other than the actual costs of getting the product to the Customer.  One thing should be noted however.  The $6.15 cost to ship your item was the charge from the Postal service to the Vendor. 

One thing that is almost always overlooked is the costs for an Employee to pull the product out of stock and package it into the shipping box. A Vendor also has costs to have an Employee enter the transaction into their system for shipping, the costs for packing slips/invoice receipts, the "box" costs, etc.......  While the shipping amount you referenced does seem high, there are real costs that many people never take into consideration other than what the carrier charges the Vendor to ship it.

And no one ever shops by the price of the product, right? Any search engine that shows "lowest price first" will be full of vendors undercharging for items and overcharging for handling - because it works! If it isn't built into the price the money has to be made up elsewhere. Even on sites like Amazon and eBay where you can sort by "price plus shipping" you'll see vendors undercharging by a penny just to be listed first. Now, certain companies are known for ridiculous shipping charges (Year One for example) which seems to drive more customers away. That seems like bad business to me - especially when the products themselves are priced higher than most of their competitors.

Again, not defending the company but also trying to be objective. I cannot have USPS pick up my packages because I actually go to my real job and do stuff during the day. Most of what I ship doesn't fit in their boxes. Many times, even if it does fit in their boxes I can ship it cheaper if I don't use the "flat rate". I'm betting Charger Specialties is very similar. A lot of the smaller parts vendors do it as a side job.

Troy

[6spd68]

Back in 2003-2004 I worked in shipping/receiving, my company would charge a 33% mark up on our shipping cost in order to handle the expenses.  The 11.85$ is a little much, but that's how it goes.  Much like others have stated before with the 5$ e-bay items that cost 25$ in shipping.  

I'm more inclinded to complain about UPS, and thier processing fees when shipping international...  Be ready to COD your soul...

[RallyeMike]

I think anything is fair as long as its stated up front what the cost is, and what kind of shipping and timeframe you are paying for. If "handling" isn't built into the overhead of the item price, then its fair game.

I quit buying from Year One when their shipping prices got ridiculous. I liked doing business with them but shipping just added too much to the prices.

Agree 100%. Remember the days when their black and white catalogs used to say up front that the were not glossy high-cost productions "to save you money".

[ws23rt]

I agree that all is fair as long as it's clear about the total cost before the purchase.

Sellers are forever looking for ways to make the sale while making it look as good as they can. --- Marketing ---

The reason for this thread is how the customer sometimes is greeted with a hard pill to swallow.

How many of us (for example) have clicked on the "agree" button about terms and conditions only --after-- reading and understanding it?  

What we have to work with is vendors that make poor marketing decisions that cause grief and places like this to complain about them.

[ITSA426]

I once ordered two underwood decals from Year One.  They came UPS in an envelope, inside a 4"X4"X8" box filled with paper wadding.  I think if you're running a business you try to do the most efficient work you can and shipping should be reasonable and should reflect the necessary amount of shipping cost unless you're just padding to run up expense to the customer.  When I asked the sales rep at Year One about the cost I was told they have a deal with UPS.  The decals could have been thrown in a padded envelope between two pieces of light cardboard, and mailed or even sent UPS a lot cheaper.  Shipping should not be another profit center within a company.