Posted By:
Cobby33I, too, am annoyed by these practices, but I've learned to review the seller's shipping terms before bidding and work out any disagreements before the transaction is complete. If it's something I really want, I'll pay whatever outrageous charges there are. If the items are received without damage when the seller only used .37 as postage, sobeit.
As a seller, I charge $3 plus insurance if needed and I do combine. From a seller's standpoint, not only are there the costs of postage (including Paypal fees for postage), but there's also the hassle of packaging (I always use bubble mailers and either screwdowns or enclose the protected card in a sealed sleeve) and posting and sometimes standing in line at the post office, which is worth something. For those of us who sell as a hobby or to "recycle," it can't be said that the labor is the "cost of doing business."
As for insurance, there's no excuse to charge for it and not insure it--unless of course the seller plans on self-insuring and honoring the lost/damaged item from his own pocket.