Seller trying to get more money out of me for p&p - is this email ok?

[TrampyPants]

I won a top on ebay for a fiver on monday, p&p was £1.50. Yesterday the seller emailed me this: "Hello there postage was £3.15 would u be so kind to forward an extra £1.50 to cover otherwise i have received next to nothing for the top. many thanks;+)"

Now, I've sold on ebay before and lost huge amounts of money. I've also mispriced p&p. But, you have to suck it up. Its the risk of pricing low and selling on an auction site. want a set price? set a price. or put it in the paper. I had the £6.50 in my paypal, otherwise I wouldnt have bothered. its a nice top, but nothing special. anyway, I was going to message back:

Hi, I'm sorry you mispriced the p&p, its a pain when that happens. However, I'm not prepared to pay extra for your mistake. Its not only against ebay rules and would mean that I would no longer be covered by them, but I paid the price I wanted to pay and as agreed. If you havent yet sent the top I would be happy to cancel the sale so you can relist at the correct price.

Regards
Tramps

what d'ya think?

this isnt the first time this has happened, surely ebay's been around long enough for people to know how it works!

[trikken]

Sounds good to me. They shouldnt ask for more once you've won and paid.

[dischordant]

You're happy to cancel? That's v understanding of you, I wouldn't!

[TrampyPants]

dischordant, I'm sure theyve sent it but tbh, I just cant be arsed. theyve already left positive feedback though.

trikken, exactly. the rules havent changed in the last 10 years or so.

[CocktailQueen]

Hi - P&P for a top should be £2.20, not £3.15 anyway - and sellers should know how much postage is! Agree that you have been v understanding and that it's against the rules to ask for more postage afterwards.

[TrampyPants]

thank you, I shall send the email now then. tbh, I thought £3.10 was a bit pricey for a silk (so not heavy) top.

[DeafLeopard]

Agree that you have been very tolerant actually.

If she has sent it already it will be interesting to see how much it did cost to post, cos that sounds expensive for a top.

[TrampyPants]

it was economy delivery too.

[TrampyPants]

and thank you!

[HormonalHousewife]

2.20 plus 95 p recorded delivery by the sounds of things.

I'd deffo not be wanting to pay for that !

[fuzzpig]

If you underestimate postage cost as a seller that's your own fault! They were being very cheeky indeed.

We have made a few errors where we have lost out but that's our own fault. We now have some scales that we use to weigh things in packaging before listing.

[MrsZoidberg]

Second class Packet + recorded would be £3.15 - but I can't see a silk top being bigger than Large Letter size. It sounds more like she isn't aware of RM pricing structure and has over packaged it. I have found that a lot of people still think that RM charges by weight and not size.

[TrampyPants]

I once sold a brand new 6-7 m&s autograph suit for £3.95 inc p&p. took the hit.

I know that if I were sending a lightweight silk top (esp if it had sold for less than I wanted) I would send in a plastic envelope, folded neatly. to cut down on p&p costs.

[TrampyPants]

Ive just had a reply: "Too late now ? as a buyer I would always do this nevermind"

thinking about replying, "well you shouldnt. its against the rules and voids the contract as per ebay rules. and btw, as a seller, I would never ask."

[fuzzpig]

If she does it as a buyer regularly (I doubt it) she is a twit. It is entirely down to the seller to research prices before listing.

Thank goodness she had already left feedback for you. Are you going to leave neutral or negative, do you think?

[TrampyPants]

I really dont know. was going to leave positive, but after that reply I'm not so sure.

[fuzzpig]

I would add "it is always the seller's responsibility to research and set appropriate postage costs"

[Jayne266]

I had the exact same thing recently I ended up speaking to eBay and they said it's their loss (just of it)

[TrampyPants]

done, at snippy emails, its not my fault!

[Viviennemary]

She is absolutely in the wrong. I've sometimes not bid on things where I've thought the postage costs were excessive compared to the cost of the item. so in a way she was misleading you as to what you would be paying for the top. And this is just not on. If it was a heavy item like a large book I'd probably have more sympathy but not for a top which doesn't weigh that much. I wouldn't be surprised if she does this quite a lot.

[TrampyPants]

Jayne, its crap, isnt it? and you feel bad about saying no, naff off. bloody manners!

[TrampyPants]

Ive just had another look at her seller profile, she sells loads and usually quite high value stuff. so not a novice.

[badtasteflump]

She's a cheeky bugger and you are being v. polite about it!

I've guessed postage before when selling and found, to my cost, that i'd badly underestimated it. I had to suck it up because it was my mistake - I never would have asked the buyer to pay extra!

[ByTheWay1]

I think your email is fine - she made a mistake and needs to absorb the cost herself.... oh - and P&P does not JUST include how much the stamp cost - also the packaging and getting to the Post Office (seller should always factor it in - but buyer often looks at stamp cost and thinks they have been diddled!)

[TrampyPants]

thanks all. It is v cheeky, and for the sake of £1.50...

[DeafLeopard]

Oh she is being very cheeky trying it on....and then sending snippy e-mails.
What she chooses to do as a buyer is one thing, but as a seller she needs to follow ebay rules.