topic Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason in Selling

eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

charmony — Sun, 20 Aug 2017 23:57:56 GMT

Just sold an item today (182199837858) and the buyer was able to pay for it with no postage charge included. The sales order says "Promotional Postage Service" $0 but I have no promotions running. It's really bizarre! I can't see anything wrong with the listing (it's recently been purchased by others and postage was added as normal) and this has never happened before.

Anyone know what's going on?

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

kopenhagen5 — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 00:06:46 GMT

I've gone back in your sold listings to 11-8, all have postage in them including that one.

Check your payments to see if eBay is footing the discount.

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

imastawka — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 00:23:36 GMT

I also see postage on that item.

You do, however, have free postage for purchases over $20

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

lm-entertainment — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 05:17:32 GMT

as stawks said - you do have a free postage promotion running (screenshot attached). did the buyer happen to buy more than 2 items or more or spend over $20? if so, that'd be the reason why..

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

lm-entertainment — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 05:19:45 GMT

just had a look at that listing you mentioned in your post and it appears that buy bought 10 of the item? 2 lots of 5? so they'd be entitled to free postage with your promotion that is running.

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

imastawka — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 05:29:50 GMT

I thought so too, but the OP says the item was bought today.

That purchase of 10 was made on the 19th

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

collect247 — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 05:35:50 GMT

Says free postage for orders over $20 and 2+ items well the 2+ items to me means any 2 items purchased also has free postage?

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

collect247 — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 05:38:01 GMT

You have 798 items with this promotional offer lol why can't you see this as we can?

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

collect247 — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 05:40:38 GMT

Hey eezi maybe only buyers can see the promotion and not the seller?

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

charmony — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 05:59:38 GMT

The Paypal payment says the buyer didn't pay postage, so it's not that ebay footed the bill because the buyer used a coupon or something.

The buyer did buy 10 sets in 2 orders (2x 5) but only paid for one (with no postage). She didn't pay for the second lot, which DOES have postage added in the sales record that I can see - she has told me she wants that one canceled.

The total paid was under $20 so it shouldn't have been free postage. The free postage thing has always worked well before.

I'm wondering if there's a bug whereby if someone "buys" (without paying) 2 (of the same?) things worth $20+, ebay applies my free postage instruction but gets confused when the buyer then only pays for one thing. The time stamps show she bought both items THEN paid for one of them a miunute later. Why didn't ebay combine the items? And if it did, how was she able to uncombine them?

My main concern is that it doesn't happen again!

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

charmony — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 05:58:02 GMT

No, this is NOT my promotion.

The promotion is for $20 orders. This order was $16.25.

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

collect247 — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 06:06:03 GMT

And 2+ items means any 2 items so it doesn't have to be over $20 which is the way I see it.

Is it just the orders over $20 or is your postage included in the orders eg $16.25 + postage cost makes it over $20 so then the postage becomes free anyway?

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

imastawka — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 06:16:04 GMT

Postage is not normally considered in that promotion.

So $16.25 order should not have gotten the free postage.

I honestly don't know how all that happened.

When you cancel the 2nd order, send her another invoice explaining that seeing

the 2nd order is being cancelled, she needs to pay for postage ???

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

collect247 — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 06:17:44 GMT

But what does (and 2+ items) mean?

To me that means any 2 items gets free postage included doesn't it lol

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

lm-entertainment — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 06:22:11 GMT

apologies, i misread the promotion as being for purchases over $20 or 2+ items, when it's in fact supposed to be when both of those conditions exist. my bad. i tried adding 5 of the item to my cart, and it does say that it requires another $3+ to be spent in order to get free postage.

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

collect247 — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 06:22:21 GMT

Shipping discount will be given when 2 or more qualifying items are purchased and when you click the qualifying items there are items that are $1.75- $2.00 so buy these 2 for $3.75 and get free postage.

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

collect247 — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 06:23:58 GMT

Well then the promotion is totally misleading and whoever-eBay should immediately reword it correctly seriously lol.

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

digital*ghost — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 06:50:29 GMT

The free postage option is a combined shipping rate which can be set up via promotional postage rules and is displayed like other promotions.

To the OP... I have been getting PayPal notices in the last 24 hours or so which have $0 showing in the postage section, but the total still includes my postage amount. And the payment in my account shows shipping correctly. Is there a chance that's what has happened with your payment notices as well?

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

charmony — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 07:00:01 GMT

It's never worked that way before. It's $20 AND 2 items to get free postage. (I've been doing this for 5 years!)

The $16.25 order should've been $18.75 total.

Re: eBay gave buyer free postage for no reason

charmony — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 07:03:31 GMT

digial*ghost, I think the timing of her payment must be the reason this didn't work.

She paid 1 minute after "buying" (not paying for) both items @ $16.25 each. (The second was apparently bought in error.) In the time it took for her to pay for one item, ebay combined the total to give free shipping, but didn't combine the invoice at her end - so she got to pay for only one item, and with free shipping.

Somehow.