posted on October 28, 2001 09:58:26 AM new
I won an auction from the USPS on eBay, and when I received my package, I noticed that the postage cost was not displayed on the package anywhere. They charged substantially more that it cost to send, but since it wasn't on the package, I couldn't make it an issue.
That got me to thinking. Is there a way for the common person to send items through the USPS without the postage charge being displayed? Does stamps.com or endicia offer this option?
posted on October 28, 2001 10:16:57 AM new
USPS charges fixed shipping. That does not mean actual postage. They include cost of the employee to put the auctions up, all fees, etc.
There is an online postage service that allows the postage cost to not be displayed but I can not remember which service it is. Endicia does not have that option at this time.
A seller can charge what they want for shipping. If the amount for shipping is listed in the auction then you can not agrue it after receiving it. If they do not list the shipping amount it is up to the buyer to question it before hand.
So anyway you look at it you can not argue the cost the charged you. Besides, you agreed to pay it when you placed the bid. If you did not like the charges, then don't bid.
The USPS auctions I have seen all have negs for excessive shipping charges.
I totally agree on abiding by the listed shipping price on an auction you bid on. I just wanted to see what services out there dont display the shipping cost on the package.
posted on October 28, 2001 03:55:49 PM new
Was there a sequence of numbers anywhere near the postage indicia?
This is known as a "stealth indicium" in USPS-speak. Some shippers have been pressuring USPS to offer this option for the very reason noted here -- it's hard to figure out how much the shipper paid. USPS is giving in a bit here as UPS and FedEx are essentially "stealth" with regard to the amount charged to the shipper.
We (Endicia) have been looking into the stealth indicia for a few high volume customers who have requested it. My understanding is that a stealth indicium will still have a bunch of human readable numbers near it which have embedded the postage amount with other data (like the destination ZIP5 and/or the meter license number).
That's the reason for my original question --did you see any number sequences around the indicium area?
I honestly do not recall. There was a bar code, but that is the only thing that I recall on the label.
I think it would be a huge grand slam for Endicia to offer a stealth indicium. You only need to read these message boards to see that one of the biggest complaints against sellers is that they overcharge for shipping. A SI would take care of that.
