Seller is asking for more money for postage.

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I've had an email from a seller today apologising because the £7 I've paid for postage isn't enough and on going to the post office, it transpires that postage is £27. She has asked if I'll contribute an extra £10 or if I'd rather cancel the whole purchase.

It is a heavy ish item but can anybody who knows anything about postage fees tell me if it's worth me recommending a different service to her? Would hermes be better? Can something seriously cost £27 to post?

I really want the item. I like to think well of people and assume this isn't just a woman chancing her arm but seriously, £27 postage?

What would you do? Suggest she look at alternative shipping methods? Quote ebay rules and regs at her?

Trying it on I guess
That is a ridiculous amount for postage. She should suck it up but I don't believe the quote
How much do you want to item?
If you really want it ask her to use Hermes or similar

I use Hermes every day and it is a lot better for the heavier items. Ask her the weight of the item and look around yourself.

If she's using Royal Mail that's probably right, I was quoted similar for a large fairly heavy parcel. Parcel force was cheaper.

Parcel force/ Royal Mail can be very expensive for large / heavy parcels.

Point her in the direction of the parcel
Monkey website which acts as a comparison site for couriers and will help her find the cheapest option.

She may not be looking at all the options - if she buys her postage via eBay then there may be a cheaper option. I did a similar thing the other day, selling a box of books and guessed the weight. I'd put £10, but it turned out to be £27 I think from memory. But when I looked there was a parcel force two day option that was only £15 or so, so I went for that instead - it seemed too good to be true, but it worked fine! Either way I wouldn't have dreamed of asking for more postage - my too bad for not checking.
Ask her for the dimensions and weight and have a look yourself?

She should have checked beforehand, personally I wouldn’t give her any more money, she should be paying any extra postage as it’s her error.

Thank you.

I've emailed her a link to the parcel monkey website and asked her to confirm the weight.

I do really want the item (I've been trying to get hold of a reasonably priced one for a LONG time).

Pay what she asked for when you bought the item, if the postage is £20 more that's her own fault for not checking beforehand

Prosecco but then the OP risks the seller cancelling the order. Yes, it's crap and the OP could leave negative feedback but the seller is still within their rights to do so.

To be clear, I paid a few days ago, the seller has even marked it as dispatched. She subsequently emailed and said the p&p is £20 more than expected and do I want to pay more money or cancel.

In defence of the seller. . I got an estimate for posting a pram of £10.55. When in actual fact it was £22.99!! False advertising in my mind!! And the fuckers never came to collect it so have been refunded!! I had to remove the handle to get a cheaper price from another courier. . It was a genuine error from a shit advert. . Maybe similar for your seller. .

She just guessed. It wasn't a quote.

I've currently got something listed on ebay with an estimated postage because I was too lazy to weigh the thing and check on the royal mail website. If it sells and the postage turns out to be higher there's no way I'd be that cheeky and ask the buyer to pay more. It's pure laziness not to work out the postage ahead of time.

It sounds like you've done the sensible thing by looking for an alternative courier. I would probably have shot myself in the foot and got arsey at the seller and insisted they posted it without my paying more, or cancelling the whole transaction.

Hmmm, I can see it from both sides but it was the seller's responsibility to not "just guess" (and I say that as someone who sells and buys on eBay). She advertised something at one price, you've paid it and they're now trying to change the price. Not sure how that stacks up legally but I wouldn't be inclined to pay for their postage mistake; it's the only way they'll learn to actually check in the future. Might be worth contacting eBay to find out whether the seller is allowed to do this or whether they're obliged to send it to you for the cost they advertised, especially as you've paid and they're now technically withholding the goods from you!

mumm of course the seller isn't obliged to send the item, you can't force someone to sell you something!

If they don't they risk a defect and negative FB, but that's about it.

I actually think she has been very reasonable. Yes it’s crap the she got postage so wrong but at the same time she has offered to cover half the difference or cancel the sale. I really believe she just hasn’t explored options and with a better courier this can be resolved much easier.

the seller cannot ask for extra postage after the auction has ended. That is against eBay rules and you can report her.

I find parcel to go. ( parcel 2 go) better and more often than parcel monkey. Ask her to check out that as an option. They even heave services where the courier service chosen will collect fo she won't even have to drop it off anywhere.
It will also be much cheaper that Royal Mail. As an example..just sent my sil a present of some nice bedding and a reed diffuser and Royal Mail wanted £13. That was parcel force 48, special delivery was £21!! Parcel 2 go was £4.90 and that was a next day delivery service.

Seller has not been 'very reasonable'. She's not allowed to do this and it's a breach of ebay rules. I've paid and I'd like my item. If not, raise a dispute and leave negative feedback.

When I first started selling on eBay I guessed postage prices and on a couple of occasions under quoted. However it was by a few £'s rather than 20 and I took the hit as it was my fault. Royal Mail can be very expensive for bigger items so I started using collect + instead. Was much easier too as you can drop off/collect from local shops so aren't restricted to the Post Office location and opening hours.