Why do top sellers ship to uncomfirmed address with high value items?

[IWishIknewWhatIknewNow]

So thats my questions- Why do some top sellers with over 50,000 feedback ship to uncomfirmed address with high value items? Like iPhones and ipads which are over 250? I mean i've seen a few who dont even require signature confirmation. How can ebay sellers continue to this forever and continue making a profit? I would expect they would get tons of chargebacks and whatnot. Do they have some special partnership with USPS, fedex, or UPS or are they doing something special to avoid all the fraud?? Or are they just ordinary sellers that people rarely do chargebacks with? Any helps is appreciated

[Burning]

Maybe they don't mention it in there ad's but they probably do require signature confirmation upon delivery. Most of the time I don't include "fine" shipment details into my ebay listings as I'm sometimes too lazy..heh.

[rsot]

Exactly - tracking with sig.

[forummember]

Anybody shipping high value items without tracking and a signature is mad. I would imagine everybody selling items like mobile phones, computers etc would send them via recorded delivery. In the U.K., I don't even like sending by recorded delivery any more because the service states that it doesn't always get there. Next Day Delivery, in the U.K. allows you to keep track of the shipment, and I've never had a parcel go missing when using this service.

[IWishIknewWhatIknewNow]

Maybe they don't mention it in there ad's but they probably do require signature confirmation upon delivery. Most of the time I don't include "fine" shipment details into my ebay listings as I'm sometimes too lazy..heh.

I have ordered several items over $300 from some top ebay sellers (over 10k feedback) and they never require signature and they always ship to uncomfirmed addresses. I've done this with my accounts that are 5days old and no feedback. And some people say ebay has cleaned up fraud so signature isnt really needed but i dont know. So im thinking ppl just dont do chargebacks with them, or has ebay actually cleaned up fraud, or what am i missing? Cause I would like to ship stuff cheaper and safer as well. Any helps is appreciated

[forummember]

Originally Posted by IWishIknewWhatIknewNow

I have ordered several items over $300 from some top ebay sellers (over 10k feedback) and they never require signature and they always ship to uncomfirmed addresses. I've done this with my accounts that are 5days old and no feedback. And some people say ebay has cleaned up fraud so signature isnt really needed but i dont know. So im thinking ppl just dont do chargebacks with them, or has ebay actually cleaned up fraud, or what am i missing? Cause I would like to ship stuff cheaper and safer as well. Any helps is appreciated

I'm really surprised to hear this. Usually when someone puts in an a case with PayPal about an item not being received if no signature is there they will usually side with the buyer.

[SlickJane]

I thought as a powerseller, you don't need to ship to a confirmed address for Paypal protection. I also thought tracking was good enough. Although i don't sell high-dollar items so I don't know.

[pod]

If I had to guess: With the volume they sell any chargebacks are just factored in. The extra sales they get for just letting the system do what it does is offset a few percent so in the long run, just the cost of doing business. Cheesy BS chargebacks are a pain and they suck. But its not like its at 20% or something so painful it can not be handled. [Yet]

I mean if the chargeback situation was so high it was crippling big sellers eBay would make buyers jump through more hoops just to buy. Again, it sucks when it happens, but its not the norm.

[GreenBean]

Top sellers can afford the write off values. Soon as they start to lose too much money, they will change their approach :

[jeffweico]

Originally Posted by pod

If I had to guess: With the volume they sell any chargebacks are just factored in. The extra sales they get for just letting the system do what it does is offset a few percent so in the long run, just the cost of doing business. Cheesy BS chargebacks are a pain and they suck. But its not like its at 20% or something so painful it can not be handled. [Yet]

I mean if the chargeback situation was so high it was crippling big sellers eBay would make buyers jump through more hoops just to buy. Again, it sucks when it happens, but its not the norm.

Exactly. They have made a business decision that too many sales would be lost if they would only ship to a confirmed address.

The difference between them and you is that they are working on VOLUME. So a refund here and there is just a cost of doing business to them. To a small seller, one loss can be HUGE!

I would not recommend skimping on the shipping insurance or the signature confirmation on anything over $250. If you do, and the buyer files a claim with eBay/PayPal saying item not received or item is damaged, then you will lose out. They almost ALWAYS side with the buyer.

Here is what I see from a business perspective:

Small Seller: Sells $250 item to buyer that cost them $175. So, you have a $75 gross profit. Let's say shipping with insurance and signature confirmation costs $10. So now your profit is only $65. Not using the signature confirmation and insurance saves you $5, so your profit is now $70.

However, if the buyer returns the item, or it goes missing, then you are out $175 for the cost of the item plus $5 shipping w/o insurance/signature confirmation. So you have a $180 loss.

Is the risk of losing $180 to save $5 worth it to you? Probably not.

Lage Seller: Sells 100 per day of the same item for the same price. Since they work on volume, it only costs them $150. They know from experience that the loss rate is 1%. One loss costs them $155 (the $150 item cost plus the $5 shipping, also no signature confirmation or insurance).

To add the insurance and delivery confirmation would cost them $5 also. But, that adds up to $500 per day on 100 items.

So it is CHEAPER for them to eat the one loss than to insure all 100 at $5 each.

That is one of the advantages of working on volume. Of course, the above example assumes very high profit margins that are probably not very realistic. But the same principle applies.

[pod]

Originally Posted by jeffweico

The difference between them and you is that they are working on VOLUME

To a small seller, one loss can be HUGE!

I would not recommend skimping on the shipping insurance or the signature confirmation on anything over $250

Yes, yes and I would say even $100+. But ya, what kills us is just another day at the store for these guys.

[bmwsouthside]

it wont matter because paypal will freeze their account with thousands of dollars and the seller wont get paid anyway!! dont forget that. eventually it happens.
I have had several buyers try to steal from me lately in different ways.
They have an american address the day the item sold. after i ship to us address a day later they change their address to malaysia or something stupid and never leave feedback and paypal would not release the funds even with tracking for $350.I sent it 1 day air. Its crazy. They have a lot of tricks these days.

Originally Posted by jeffweico

Exactly. They have made a business decision that too many sales would be lost if they would only ship to a confirmed address.

The difference between them and you is that they are working on VOLUME. So a refund here and there is just a cost of doing business to them. To a small seller, one loss can be HUGE!

I would not recommend skimping on the shipping insurance or the signature confirmation on anything over $250. If you do, and the buyer files a claim with eBay/PayPal saying item not received or item is damaged, then you will lose out. They almost ALWAYS side with the buyer.

Here is what I see from a business perspective:

Small Seller: Sells $250 item to buyer that cost them $175. So, you have a $75 gross profit. Let's say shipping with insurance and signature confirmation costs $10. So now your profit is only $65. Not using the signature confirmation and insurance saves you $5, so your profit is now $70.

However, if the buyer returns the item, or it goes missing, then you are out $175 for the cost of the item plus $5 shipping w/o insurance/signature confirmation. So you have a $180 loss.

Is the risk of losing $180 to save $5 worth it to you? Probably not.

Lage Seller: Sells 100 per day of the same item for the same price. Since they work on volume, it only costs them $150. They know from experience that the loss rate is 1%. One loss costs them $155 (the $150 item cost plus the $5 shipping, also no signature confirmation or insurance).

To add the insurance and delivery confirmation would cost them $5 also. But, that adds up to $500 per day on 100 items.

So it is CHEAPER for them to eat the one loss than to insure all 100 at $5 each.

That is one of the advantages of working on volume. Of course, the above example assumes very high profit margins that are probably not very realistic. But the same principle applies.

[pod]

These sellers have way more protection then you and I. They don't just get frozen like we do believe me.

[Gamefreak]

Yeah they get preferred treatment and paypal will more likely to side with them than the casual buyer especially if your new to paypal.