I need some advice....

[stitchysyl]

Alarms bells are ringing here...or am I just being cynical?

A buyer has just bought 86 magazines with BIN, and bid on a couple of other items which end soon.

They joined eBid yesterday (12th) and asked a question - did I do combined postage. I answered yes. I have had international buyers purchase maybe half a dozen mags at a tiime, but 86??????

I don't want to post an ID here...the buyer could be genuine...but it could also be someone messing about...

They are in the USA and the cost of postage to there from the UK is horrendous.

One magazine weighs approx 280 grms so 86 will weigh around 24080gms without the other two items added. I know this sounds stupid but the more I look at it the more I am doubting my own adding up....so is that around 25kgs?

If thats right, then the cost using an international courier service is between £80-£100 (much cheaper than Royal Mail) but still a lot.

It could be that being a new buyer they haven't realised how much the postage would cost. I do state on my auctions that international buyers should email for postage costs before buying/bidding.

One question I have is, if they pay through Paypal and I then send the items, and they don't arrive or whatever, (read into that whatever you may) with Paypals rep with buyers/sellers. would they refund the seller, and would they refund the cost of the items only, or the whole amount, leaving me out of pocket for the cost of the postage. I've heard horror stories about sellers having refunds given to buyers even when they have proof of the item being received.

What do you think?

[suesjools]

Alarms bells are ringing here...or am I just being cynical?

A buyer has just bought 86 magazines with BIN, and bid on a couple of other items which end soon.

They joined eBid yesterday (12th) and asked a question - did I do combined postage. I answered yes. I have had international buyers purchase maybe half a dozen mags at a tiime, but 86??????

I don't want to post an ID here...the buyer could be genuine...but it could also be someone messing about...

They are in the USA and the cost of postage to there from the UK is horrendous.

One magazine weighs approx 280 grms so 86 will weigh around 24080gms without the other two items added. I know this sounds stupid but the more I look at it the more I am doubting my own adding up....so is that around 25kgs?

If thats right, then the cost using an international courier service is between £80-£100 (much cheaper than Royal Mail) but still a lot.

It could be that being a new buyer they haven't realised how much the postage would cost. I do state on my auctions that international buyers should email for postage costs before buying/bidding.

One question I have is, if they pay through Paypal and I then send the items, and they don't arrive or whatever, (read into that whatever you may) with Paypals rep with buyers/sellers. would they refund the seller, and would they refund the cost of the items only, or the whole amount, leaving me out of pocket for the cost of the postage. I've heard horror stories about sellers having refunds given to buyers even when they have proof of the item being received.

What do you think?

Wow, that is odd, I don't blame you for being suspicious - 86 magazines is a lot. On the other hand, if they're specialty mags the buyer can't find elsewhere, they might be willing to overlook the high postage, or if it's a new buyer and they didn't read the bit about postage, they might not be aware of the shipping costs.

I would e mail the buyer explaining the situation re: postage costs, that way you'll know for sure what the deal is - if they're a collector or fan of the magazine (as some comic collectors certainly are) and willing to pay the postage, or an unaware newbie who didn't read the ask before buying bit as regards postage.

Regarding Paypal, I had a scam buyer a while back try to claim items not received, but by providing the tracking numbers to Paypal I was able to prove the items were sent and delivered and therefore Paypal found in my favor. As long as you have tracking/proof of delivery info., I wouldn't worry about Paypal overly much. Even so, I still wouldn't ship anything til I got an OK on postage from the buyer first.

Good luck, hope it's a collector and not a suspicious buyer. If you don't get a response from the buyer re: postage, you might want to pass this info. on to support to check out.

Best wishes for many sales to all,

[luvintage]

Hi,

Before you ship can you email them and tell them what the approx. shipping cost will be in dollars? Maybe they will cancel the order. That would be a bummer but better than sending the items out just to have PPal refund their money. Chaces are, at that cost, the buyer will not ship them back.

The way the post office works here is that if items are over 4 lbs. or over 14 inches, they will be bumped up from first class international to Priority INternational. That greatly increases the cost. It sounds simple to just say combine but it's really not that simple.

Personally, I wouldn't ship until they got back to you saying that they know and understand what the cost will be.

Best wishes and I hope that the sale goes through satisfactorily for you.

[stitchysyl]

I've emailed them with the cost of postage and waiting to hear back. Will let you know what happens.

[suesjools]

Good, hope it works out well.

Best wishes for many sales to all,

[Juliebabe25]

I would say tell them to pay for say 10 items as they are a new buyer.

Then if that goes well do the rest.

They are either an avid collector or a bit of a "xxxx" you know what.

[burgyeb]

I would lay low & communicate with buyer! I have seen multiple buyers buy very large orders, but not for that kind of postal rate. Would ship insured & would not ship until fully paid for.

[meebo1]

I have sold magazines in that quantity twice (but not here) One lot went to France and I did make sure she was fully informed of the shipping costs before I sent anything and all was well. Hope it will be for you

[bluejypsy]

I would suggest that the reason they are a new buyer is that they have found your items through Google and have joined especially to purchase said items. I have had many sales this way (many not showing on feedback I hasten to add) so I wouldn't read too much into the new buyer bit. If you do all that has been previously suggested to you and cover yourself every step of the way all should be well. I think someone pointed out in an earlier thread that you can put the tracking number into paypal as soon as items are posted and this speeds up any claim from other parties and works in the sellers favour. Good luck I hope this turns out to be a very positive sale for you.

[bykimbo]

If you don't quote postage on your listings, I'd suspect they may not realise you're going to add an additional charge - they could have been reading the postage as free; it's an easy mistake to make. Their response to your email warning them about the cost should clear things up. They might even have a UK address for you to ship to - you can't tell till you "talk" to them.