eBay Clamps Down on Shipping-Charge Abuse
eBay users have long complained of sellers who list items for low prices but then surprise buyers with inflated shipping & handling (S&H) charges. So eBay North America President Bill Cobb got a positive response during his keynote address at the eBay Live conference when he said the auction site would begin clamping down on these policy violators.
Cobb said at the time that a recent study had revealed that the number one reason buyers don’t complete a transaction is because of the “nasty little surprise” of excessive shipping charges, and he said such offenders compete unfairly, “game” the search results, and erode buyer trust.
How does eBay determine when a seller is charging a fair S&H fee to buyers? That question came up last week on industry discussion boards as some sellers complained they were victims of over-reaching by eBay Trust & Safety’s department who took down their listings for violating policy.
While some cases of shipping gouging are blatantly clear, there’s a gray area where sellers recoup costs of packaging material and handling costs. While it’s easy to determine the carrier cost, such as USPS priority mail fees, it’s impossible for anyone but the seller to know what his or her packaging and handling costs are. Some sellers complained last week that eBay is targeting certain categories, such as cell phone accessories, and they said it is questionable whether some of the targeted sellers’ S&H fees are in fact excessive.
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