At 06:40 AM 2/23/2004 -0600, jerrymoos ushered forth:
>Well, I believe it is devious to hide very high handling costs in the
>Calculated Shipping.
It is what it is. Any stateside buyer can simply enter their zip code and instantly know exactly what they will pay for shipping/handling. That's a good thing for buyers, especially when dealing with larger items -- or, in your case, with sellers who charge handling fees that are higher than you think they should be. No matter what the case, the seller knows the full and complete shipping charge, quickly and accurately, and can therefore factor it into their bid. A good thing. So you have to type in your zip code (only once with Internet Explorer, after that it is automatically entered for you).
It's a good thing for sellers too. No more answering 50,000 "how much will
it cost to ship to x" emails, at least 49,999 of which do not ever enter a bid.
> A buyer
>who was very familiar with shipper rates might feel no need to check the
>exact amount until the auction was over.
Shipping and handling charges have always been an important factor in eBay
transactions; making such an assumption just because the seller is
exercising a new eBay feature would be a foolish shortcut for any buyer to
take.
> It also does not appear on the
>main auction page.
It appears in the "Shipping and Payment Details" section, directly beneath the "Description" section. All part of the same page.
rgds,
Dave Baseley from Berks County PA