I am assuming those are for regular USPS First Class domestic shipping. If so, they can ask those prices...it is their right to do so. It is also the customer's right to not purchase anything from these sellers. In addition, they may, in fact, be in violation of the HipStamp terms and conditions for sellers. Quoting from HS T&Cs, "Shipping and Handling charges must be realistic, and are not allowed to be excessive". It is also the buyer's right to report these sellers to HS's trust and safety group. trustandsafety@hipecommerce.com
I have only read about one seller that stated “shipping was only done through registered mail” and a few out of state that had a high price. But why so much for “a one stamp purchase?”
The APS Stampstore charges a minimum of $5. They send in a hard mailer. I used to use photo mailers for moderately pricey items and pay the "non-machinable" rate. Now there is apparently a directive out that if it is "too stiff" it must go as a parcel (even if under 1/4 inch thick) and it is a crap shoot as to whether it cost $1 or $4 to send depending on which window clerk you get..... So now the expensive stamps get a foam core stiffener and the higher rate - I consider the extra cost part of overhead - not going to charge the customer extra.
You do realize that most of the sellers are charging you per shipment and NOT per item. Most customers have a tendency to purchase more than 1 item so that the shipping does not come out actually to $5 per item. (If you happen to ONLY purchase that single stamp, then yes it a shipping charge of $5 for the single stamp.)
At the time the PO raised the first class rate, they also reduced the holiday charge for packages, however they didn't lower them back to what it was before they raised them back in Oct. The current rate to ship a package starts at $4.75 for zone 1. Zone 4 is now $5 to ship and it goes up to $5.25 for zone 8. So if the seller is ending it via 1st class parcel for most customers the charge is actually less than the listed price to ship it via USPS.
On an 0.85 cent purchase, Hipstamp is going to take a % of the entire invoice, and Paypal will take at least 35 cents on your payment. There is no way that a seller is going to make money any money on an 85 cent purchase and just charging the face value of the postage needed. The seller is going to lose money and have to listen to complaints about "overcharging" . Most sellers are trying to make a iiving in this business and should be thanked for offering the 85 cent stamp that you needed for your collection.
I received a negative feedback from a buyer that purchased one stamp from me for 5 cents. The reason for his negative feedback was that I charged my standard $1.50 for shipping. According to his feedback, that shipping charge was totally unreasonable for a five cent stamp.
For his one 5 cent stamp and my $1.50 shipping charge, he paid a total of $1.55. On that $1.55 total, the postage cost $0.60 (it was before the rate change). HipStamp charged their 8.95% fee on the total order including the shipping charge for another $0.15 in fees (they added in their 1 cent minimum charge for just the stamp itself). PayPal charged their 3.49% for another $0.05 in fees + their standard $0.49 transaction fee. That totals $1.28 in postage and selling fees. I normally use a small stock card that runs about $0.22 each and enclose it in a glassine envelope that runs about another $0.08, although I may not have used the stock card in this case.
Not counting the packaging, a seller would have to charge at least a $1.30 shipping charge just to cover postage and fees. Otherwise they would only have a to sell higher priced items and delete part of these expenses from their selling price. That can be done by only selling higher priced items. But that leaves no one selling all those minimum value stamps that one needs to build a complete collection.
My experience has been that buyers have absolutely no idea what it costs to sell and ship an item. To most, any charge above what it costs in postage to mail a one ounce letter is a scam by the seller.
And thus it has always been. Check his feedback given to sellers. If he does this all the time request that Hipstamp remove the feedback and point out he does this all the time. I was successful at getting the negative removed once when it happened to me.
So a -4 cents loss is the net for the seller. Add up all the time it took the seller to list the item, and process the sale. Maybe it took 30 minutes. Would you, the complaining buyer, work for -8 cents an hour? I'll wait for your answer.
Even if the seller just threw the stamp in an envelope, and stuck 63 cents postage on it, the seller would still lose money, and the risk is that the 5 cent stamp arrives damaged.
I want to commend you guys that offer the low value stamps. You are how I am filling out my France used album. But I order $10 -15 at a time, and I simply do not see any logic in buying a single nickel stamp. They are trolls, they get off on being minor pains in our kazackises. I doubt anyone would genuinely do this.
Richard, regardless if his feedback shows he’s done this to others, contact support to have the negative removed. You cannot be gigged for something the buyer was fully aware of.
Thanks for the feedback I appreciate all the price break-down knowledge and how the selling and mailing process works. But I want to make it very clear I am not making a complaint or going after any seller - just curious!
Phil, I don't necessarily agree that those who buy just one stamp are trolls. I get many one stamp orders. These could be coming from, and I do this too, buyers who are looking for specific stamps, and put them in their carts when they find them regardless of the seller, or from the lowest price seller. when finished, they go to their cart and check out.
I don't care how many items a buyer gets from me. They pay, and it all adds up at the end of the month. I give everyone free gifts (usually stamps) for any purchase no matter how small. Often the value of the stamps negates the shipping fee. I offer free shipping too.
Comments
I am assuming those are for regular USPS First Class domestic shipping. If so, they can ask those prices...it is their right to do so. It is also the customer's right to not purchase anything from these sellers. In addition, they may, in fact, be in violation of the HipStamp terms and conditions for sellers. Quoting from HS T&Cs, "Shipping and Handling charges must be realistic, and are not allowed to be excessive". It is also the buyer's right to report these sellers to HS's trust and safety group. trustandsafety@hipecommerce.com
At the time the PO raised the first class rate, they also reduced the holiday charge for packages, however they didn't lower them back to what it was before they raised them back in Oct. The current rate to ship a package starts at $4.75 for zone 1. Zone 4 is now $5 to ship and it goes up to $5.25 for zone 8. So if the seller is ending it via 1st class parcel for most customers the charge is actually less than the listed price to ship it via USPS.
For his one 5 cent stamp and my $1.50 shipping charge, he paid a total of $1.55. On that $1.55 total, the postage cost $0.60 (it was before the rate change). HipStamp charged their 8.95% fee on the total order including the shipping charge for another $0.15 in fees (they added in their 1 cent minimum charge for just the stamp itself). PayPal charged their 3.49% for another $0.05 in fees + their standard $0.49 transaction fee. That totals $1.28 in postage and selling fees. I normally use a small stock card that runs about $0.22 each and enclose it in a glassine envelope that runs about another $0.08, although I may not have used the stock card in this case.
Not counting the packaging, a seller would have to charge at least a $1.30 shipping charge just to cover postage and fees. Otherwise they would only have a to sell higher priced items and delete part of these expenses from their selling price. That can be done by only selling higher priced items. But that leaves no one selling all those minimum value stamps that one needs to build a complete collection.
My experience has been that buyers have absolutely no idea what it costs to sell and ship an item. To most, any charge above what it costs in postage to mail a one ounce letter is a scam by the seller.
Even if the seller just threw the stamp in an envelope, and stuck 63 cents postage on it, the seller would still lose money, and the risk is that the 5 cent stamp arrives damaged.
That's why it's called "shipping and handling".
Not worth the effort. I am have over 24,800 positive feedback and a total of 8 negative feedback.
Also 32 neutral from one guy who didn't give a reason. I asked him why and never got a response. If any feedback rating bothered me, it was this one.
I don't care how many items a buyer gets from me. They pay, and it all adds up at the end of the month. I give everyone free gifts (usually stamps) for any purchase no matter how small. Often the value of the stamps negates the shipping fee. I offer free shipping too.