I recently won a Teddy Ruxpin cel on ebay. The person I bought it from has perfect feedback. I got the cel today. The way it was packaged was beyond atrocious and the fact that it wasn't completely destroyed was pure luck. Basically, it was put in a cardboard envelope with the packing slip. That's it. Unbagged, no reinforcement to keep it from being folded, nothing. In fact, the postman basically rolled it up to put it in my mailbox despite (or perhaps because) the seller wrote "do not bend' on the envelope. The envelope also obviously got wet during the storms this week, since it's still damp and warped, though the inside didn't get wet at least. It's probably some of the worst cel packaging I've seen. The cel doesn't appear badly damaged - no obvious chipping paint or anything, but who knows how many of the surface scratches are due to rubbing up against the envelope or invoice?
Should I leave neutral feedback with a note about the poor packaging? I find it hard to believe that all the other people who have bought cels from this person in the past had no problem or even liked the packaging? Unless they don't know or don't care or something. Should I contact the seller? I don't know that there's anything they can do at this point. I'm a little upset.
Hector the Collector loved these things with all his soul,
Loved them more than shining diamonds, loved them more than glistenin' gold.
Hector called to all the people,"Come and share my treasure trunk!"
And all the silly sightless people came and looked...and called it junk.
Neutral seems reasonable. The poor packaging was not accidental on the part of the seller. I'd only leave negative if the item was damaged, so in this case the seller got lucky with the product not being horridly mangled.
If you haven't already, I would contact the seller and explain that the amount of packaging provided to protect the cel was not nearly enough, and then give an example or two of some good packaging. I don't know how many cels this particular seller sells, but if it's not an item that they're familiar with, they may think that just putting it in a flimsy envelope and writing 'Do Not Bend' is sufficient enough.
I'm sorry to hear that your cel was possibly damaged during the shipment. It's always frustrating to look forward to something like that only to have it be damaged due to poor packaging and post office negligence.
Yeah, the weird thing is that almost all of this seller's auctions are animation cels. Mostly from 1980s cartoons. That's why I'm surprised no one else in the comments had anything bad to say about the packaging.
Hector the Collector loved these things with all his soul,
Loved them more than shining diamonds, loved them more than glistenin' gold.
Hector called to all the people,"Come and share my treasure trunk!"
And all the silly sightless people came and looked...and called it junk.
I've seen some weird packaging in the past, but thankfully have not had to deal with any damages do to insufficient packaging. I've heard that if you suspect there may be damage done to a shipment, you need to take it back to the PO and open it in front of a worker there to be entitled to any compensation. It's never happened to me before so I'm not exactly sure how it works. And it's probably too late now, but I'd try to take a photo of exactly how you found the cel when it came into your possession as sort of proof or even an example of what can happen to a improperly packaged cel. That sort of information might be useful to the seller.
Anyway, sorry that happened to you but I'm glad the cel didn't suffer from any great damage. I know what that must have felt like when you first saw how poorly it was packaged. My heart would have skipped a few beats.
Like cutiebunny and Rekka suggested, I would contact the seller first and explain the situation regarding shipping. Also, you can request a partial refund maybe, if you feel it got somewhat damaged because of the poor packaging.
One time I bought a magazine that was listed as being in mint condition. It was a MAD magazine, and when it arrived it obviously wasn't mint. The fold-in on the back cover had even been previously folded with obvious lines down the page from it. I didn't leave negative feedback, because it wasn't bad enough for me to want to spend the time and money to return it, but I gave positive feedback with 2 stars for condition and communication. After that, the seller contacted me and asked what was wrong, noticing his star rating went down. After I explained, they asked how they could make me happy and I asked him to give me a partial refund, which he did, down to the dollar amount I stated I thought would be fair. After it all, I felt bad that I hadn't contacted him before I left feedback. Yes, the condition was improperly listed on the auction, but the seller wanted to make it right even after I left feedback.
Long story short, always contact the seller 1st and give them a chance to make amends. If they don't, then leave the feedback you feel is fair and don't feel bad about it.
"Come now, let us reason together," says the LORD. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." -Isaiah 1:18
BuraddoRun wrote:Like cutiebunny and Rekka suggested, I would contact the seller first and explain the situation regarding shipping. Also, you can request a partial refund maybe, if you feel it got somewhat damaged because of the poor packaging.
One time I bought a magazine that was listed as being in mint condition. It was a MAD magazine, and when it arrived it obviously wasn't mint. The fold-in on the back cover had even been previously folded with obvious lines down the page from it. I didn't leave negative feedback, because it wasn't bad enough for me to want to spend the time and money to return it, but I gave positive feedback with 2 stars for condition and communication. After that, the seller contacted me and asked what was wrong, noticing his star rating went down. After I explained, they asked how they could make me happy and I asked him to give me a partial refund, which he did, down to the dollar amount I stated I thought would be fair. After it all, I felt bad that I hadn't contacted him before I left feedback. Yes, the condition was improperly listed on the auction, but the seller wanted to make it right even after I left feedback.
Long story short, always contact the seller 1st and give them a chance to make amends. If they don't, then leave the feedback you feel is fair and don't feel bad about it.
This.
As a seller myself, I always want to make things right when I mess something up, and it really bothers me when a buyer is quick to leave a low star rating (which is far more painful for a seller than a neg) without any attempt to contact me. I know some sellers don't care, but it's really rough for the ones that do. I can't speak for your seller, but I think it's always worth a shot to contact them first .
Honestly, the eBay feedback system is so completely borked now, I don't know why anyone even looks at it anymore except to spot utterly over the top and grossly poor sellers. I only say sellers, since you can't tell for buyers anymore.... Can't leave negative feedback for a lousy or dishonest buyer? What a crock!
The star system is equally poor with "shipping and handling charges" listed as something to rate. Items cost to ship what they cost to ship. END OF LINE. I wish eBay would show some balls and tell their bidders if they don't want to pay for shipping, they can drive to a brick and mortar store and pay tax instead. I note this especially since I don't doubt eBay's completely ridiculous and unfounded in reality shipping charge limits are a HUGE part of the reason for piss-poor packing of items by sellers.
From the description of the packing you received, it is so bad that anyone with half a brain would have realized it wasn't sufficient and I, at least, don't have patience for that. Your mileage may vary. ^_^ I only have patience for problems which appear to be honest mistakes or problems due to situations out of the seller's control. My answer to packing like that would be an immediate negative feedback. I've never previously bothered with the whole stars thing because (and I know eBayers here will cringe to hear it) I can't be bothered, but knowing now how big a deal it is, I would give a lousy star-score too. The most contact I would have given the seller would be to inform them I was dissatisfied. As I told my cleaning service before firing them: "There are some things for which the only reimbursement is to NOT BREAK the item in the first place." Trying to educate the seller is noble, but it's not your job. When I sell something, I make sure to educate myself about the item, even if I'll never sell another of the item again, and I expect other sellers to also educate themselves -- without my help.
BTW, for packages that are *insured*, you do NOT need to open them in front of a postal worker. It won't hurt to open it in front of a postal worker or to take pictures while opening, but all you need to do when submitting a claim is to present the damaged item and the shipping container with *all* packing. (I might add, that if the post office deems packing was insufficient or inappropriate, you won't be able to claim the insurance.) The bigger problem with postal insurance is that, to claim the insurance, you will need to SURRENDER THE ITEM to the post office. This is why, when working with people I know and trust, I sometimes don't pay to fully insure packages. I insure them for enough to make it so that the post office won't leave them out in the open on my doorstep (maybe $100 worth), but after that, I take on the risk myself. Anime artwork would have to be absolutely and completely destroyed beyond recognition before I would surrender it to claim the insurance, so I've sometimes questioned the point (for me) of paying heaps for full insurance.
All said, I doubt you would be able to get any partial reimbursement through postal insurance. Your only recompensation might come from the seller, if there's a question about it receiving damage by the poor mailing. I'm glad to hear that the cel at least made it to you in safe enough condition to still be enjoyable. ^_^ I've been in several close calls like that with poor packing too.... Including one that was so bad, my post office crew commented that it almost looked as if the seller didn't care if the package made it to me or not. I agreed. (*wince*)
Drac of the Sharp Smiles wrote:Honestly, the eBay feedback system is so completely borked now, I don't know why anyone even looks at it anymore except to spot utterly over the top and grossly poor sellers. I only say sellers, since you can't tell for buyers anymore.... Can't leave negative feedback for a lousy or dishonest buyer? What a crock!
I've been away from eBay long enough for this to seem like a huge surprise. So not only is there positive/neutral/negative feedback now but also star ratings? They might as add a rating for page design by sellers and how adamantly a buyer ups his bids in order to win. We'll call them the eBay Awards. Whose idea was this!?
The star system is equally poor with "shipping and handling charges" listed as something to rate. Items cost to ship what they cost to ship. END OF LINE. I wish eBay would show some balls and tell their bidders if they don't want to pay for shipping, they can drive to a brick and mortar store and pay tax instead. I note this especially since I don't doubt eBay's completely ridiculous and unfounded in reality shipping charge limits are a HUGE part of the reason for piss-poor packing of items by sellers.
I can only see this as being valid by sellers who charge way more in the shipping fee than what it actually costs. Just for an example, I recently won several auctions by the same seller who charges a flat fee of $15 for shipping, adding an additional $1 per extra auction won. I was perfectly fine with this until I received the package and saw that it actually cost roughly $12 to send. So what was that extra $3 for? Gratuity? I can deal with the extra fee for handling extra auctions--I don't like it, but I can deal, but the shipping fee should reflect the actual cost of shipping. It should not be a loophole for sellers to make an extra buck or two.
Rekka Alexiel wrote:I can deal with the extra fee for handling extra auctions--I don't like it, but I can deal, but the shipping fee should reflect the actual cost of shipping. It should not be a loophole for sellers to make an extra buck or two.
I completely agree, and I remember a time when there were bad eggs who used to charge stupid amounts of shipping. I also remember the sellers who would charge 1 cent for the bid buyout and then $50 shipping fee. They were often doing it to dodge final value fees. But now, eBay limits what you can charge for shipping. I tried to list a CD a little ago and couldn't list the shipping for more than $3. It's not possible to ship a properly packed CD anywhere for $3. By the way, eBay now ALSO charges final value fees on SHIPPING costs too. So for the $3 that already won't cover the shipping cost for the CD, you don't even get the full $3. So.... yeah. It's moved into the realm of the ridiculous.
Rekka Alexiel wrote:
I've been away from eBay long enough for this to seem like a huge surprise. So not only is there positive/neutral/negative feedback now but also star ratings? They might as add a rating for page design by sellers and how adamantly a buyer ups his bids in order to win. We'll call them the eBay Awards. Whose idea was this!?
The worst part of the star system is that it's out of 5 stars, but a 4 star rating is failing. If you average less than 4.2 or 4.3 in any category you get huge restrictions placed on your account.
I can only see this as being valid by sellers who charge way more in the shipping fee than what it actually costs. Just for an example, I recently won several auctions by the same seller who charges a flat fee of $15 for shipping, adding an additional $1 per extra auction won. I was perfectly fine with this until I received the package and saw that it actually cost roughly $12 to send. So what was that extra $3 for? Gratuity? I can deal with the extra fee for handling extra auctions--I don't like it, but I can deal, but the shipping fee should reflect the actual cost of shipping. It should not be a loophole for sellers to make an extra buck or two.
Well I disagree on this. If it costs $12 to ship, and you add in the cost of packaging and materials, cost of going to post office, and the fact that ebay and paypal take a chunk out of the amount you receive, $15 isn't unreasonable at all. Sure it'd be nicer if the shipping were lower (and I often take a hit on my shipping charges) but I wouldn't blame somebody for trying to nose lose money on S&H.
It always bothers me when people complain about the cost of shipping. Unless you're sending the item without any kind of new protective packaging inside a USPS priority mailer, there is going to be some material cost involved. So while the postage on the envelope may say $10, when you include the price of an envelope, maybe bubble wrap or a hard case to protect the item, it could easily be an extra $5. Buyers, naturally, think that this additional cost should be included in the price of the item, but that's not always easy to do with E-bay telling you that shipping for that item should be no more than a certain amount. If the shipping difference is only a couple of dollars, I don't make a big fuss about it. After all, I wouldn't have bought the item on E-bay if I could find exactly the same item, in the same condition, for an equally stellar price, at a brick and mortar store. Unless it's artwork where it's hard to assign a value, I usually only buy things on E-bay if I am already being offered a good deal on them. I also take into account that, unless I could buy it on Amazon and had Prime, I would have to pay for gas and vehicle wear/tear in order to drive to the store to buy the item. In most cases, the shipping prices are reasonable. And, if they weren't, you still have the option of not buying from that particular seller.
As a buyer, I never fill out the star ratings. I don't care. I do look at overall feedback, but even then, I read a couple of pages worth of feedback. One negative or netural feedback will not prevent me from bidding, but if the majority of the most recent trasactions from several sellers are negative, I will likely not bid. I honestly didn't think that most buyers looked at the star rating as I figured the feedback was more important.
cutiebunny wrote:It always bothers me when people complain about the cost of shipping. Unless you're sending the item without any kind of new protective packaging inside a USPS priority mailer, there is going to be some material cost involved.
Given the quality and personal value of these cels of a recent purchase, I'm not going to make much of a fuss over excessive shipping costs. But out of principal, I have a problem with price gouging.
Okay so charging $15 for flat shipping plus an extra $6 for six other cels is reasonable? Shipping totaled $21 for something that actually cost $12. I don't agree with that unless the cost of the cardboard package that was wrapped entirely with plastic tape cost $9. All cels were placed loose in the center of a once folded length of cardboard. Cels weren't damaged but the packaging didn't scream "I cost more than I look!" Oh, and maybe he took a taxi to the post office and that's the reason for the extra shipping fees.
I don't think it's right to charge a buyer wear and tear plus gas that it took for you to drive to the post office. If that were widely acceptable then the postal service just found the method by which to stay afloat: charge extra postage to operate the mail trucks. Then again, maybe we already pay for this in taxes, I don't really know.
Maybe the extra fees were to compensate for listing fees?
$21 for $12 is probably a bit excessive. Maybe $15 or $16 would have been fair. It depends on what the seller had to go through, which we don't really know.
I just calculate the overall cost to me, and gauge if it's worth it, and not worry about the rest. I just bought some douga for $8 each, $6 shipping for 1 and .50 for the additional, for a total of $22.50. So in my brain, I paid $11.25 for each, and they're worth that much to me. BUT, I expect my items to come undamaged, as described, and within the time limit specified by the seller. If they arrive in a crummy package, I don't care as long as the artwork survives. But if they get damaged, then yeah, I will care and will take action.
"Come now, let us reason together," says the LORD. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." -Isaiah 1:18
Unbagged, no reinforcement to keep it from being folded, nothing. In fact, the postman basically rolled it up to put it in my mailbox despite (or perhaps because) the seller wrote "do not bend' on the envelope. The envelope also obviously got wet during the storms this week, since it's still damp and warped, though the inside didn't get wet at least. It's probably some of the worst cel packaging I've seen. The cel doesn't appear badly damaged - no obvious chipping paint or anything, but who knows how many of the surface scratches are due to rubbing up against the envelope or invoice?
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