To expect a P&P discount if i buy 4 items from same seller on Ebay?

[raffyandted]

Sorry, but this seller has just got right on my nerves. She is selling four pairs of boy's Boden shorts. I wanted to bid on all four pairs. She is charging £3.50 per pair P&P, which I think is a bit hefty (considering I sold the same shorts a few weeks ago & they only cost £1.60 to post first class).

I sent polite email enquiring if she would do a P&P discount if i won more than one pair.
Got reply: "I can do you a 10% discount on the total. It's too complicated to combine P&P unless you do it at the outset"

Well, actually it's not hard at all but ok, it's her choice (thinks I). I wasn't exactly sure what she meant by the "total" though, so I replied (again, politely) apologising for seeming a bit thick & asking did she mean 10% off the total including P&P, or 10% of the total of just the items? Because at £3.50 P&P per pair, that's going to make a big difference on four pairs.

Just had this reply: "Hi,10% of total bill.
It's the best I can do. If they were sold to different individuals I wounld't have to offer any discount."

Am I being unreasonable to think that was really rude? She sounds like I'm being a complete nuisance by being interested in more than one of her items & i'm eating into her profit or something by expecting a bit of a reduction in (over-priced) P&P.

I know I shouldn't, but sent a shirty reply saying that after that comment I won't be bidding on any of her items, so good luck with selling them 'individually'. Humbug!

[chegirl]

YANBU for being annoyed but she can do what she wants really.

I always combine if I can and only charge what p&p costs, I dont try and profit from p&p at all (arnt I the little ebay angel?)

I did have someone ask me once and I had to say no. The two items were denim and were quite heavy. I sent them in the same package but the postage was the same.

She is being greedy but maybe she is a bit scared of the combining, discounting thing (hence the easy 10% figure). I was a bit like that at first but once I got the hang of ebay I realised it was easy peasy.

TBH if it were me I would tell her you didnt want them. She could make a complaint but I think you have made a reasonable request.

Sorry, just realised that was a long post and all I had to say was YANBU

[woodenchair]

Two words

Fee avoidance

Yanbu. Tis rude

[chegirl]

LOL at woodenchair's concise answer after my long waffly one

[raffyandted]

Thank you both. I feel SO much better now I know I am not just a grumpy old witch.

Chegirl, I'm a bit like you, I price the P&P reasonably & if someone asks me to combine P&P and it works out that I can do it and still cover the cost, then I do. I prefer it if someone buys more than one thing from me cos I don't have to faff around with so much packing & trips to the P.O.

[raffyandted]

By the way I haven't actually bought them. I would never bid on something and THEN ask for a discount on P&P, that's not very 'Ebay'

But I did email back saying I wouldn't be bidding on them after that comment, thank you very much. Just because I felt like it.

[woodenchair]

Good for you! Silly cow missed out on an easy sale.

[chegirl]

Ha Ha. Ebay is pretty slow at the moment and with all this rain she may not sell them!