Please explain postage insurance/costs ...

MimiJane

Hi,

I'm just getting into ebay and, so far, have only bought items to build up my feedback. I now want to sell a few bits and pieces and want to know all the ins and outs of the postage costs to make sure I'm being fair.

Can someone please explain when it's wise to add/include postage insurance (I presume this is recommended when the goods to be despatched cost over a certain amount). Also, how do you decide on the insurance amount? Do the Royal Mail have a guide, or do ebay automatically calculate this for you?

Many thanks.

danmanchester

Hello there,

Royal mail do have a website with all their costs for postage of ordinary,recorded and special delivery etc.:http://www.royalmail.com/portal/rm

As for deciding whether to include insurance that's up to you..and also your buyer-if you select the option when making your listing. Generally speaking if the item is of low value (less than £25) then recorded delivery is fine, as you are covered up to £28 if it goes missing. I tend to weigh my items then go to the Royal mail website and work out how much to send it by ordinary mail/recorded...and offer both options in the listing.

HairyHatMan

As a seller it's your responsibilty to ensure the item gets to your buyer. If it gets lost in the post, you should refund the buyer all their money. How much to insure the item for is therefore up to you.

Clareo

If the item is low you don't even need to use recorded delivery as you can get a certificate of posting which covers you for up to £28 the same as recorded delivery. If the item is lost then you can refund the buyer and claim your costs back off Royal Mail. Recorded delivery costs an extra 65p on top of normal first class postage whereas you can get a certificate of posting on anything for free you just need to ask for it. 65p may not sound like a lot but if the item is sold for very cheap every little helps!

If you sell anything expensive do make sure you send it special delivery as then you'll be covered for the full amount as opposed to just £28.

soolin

As people have already said the insurance is to cover you, not the buyer.

If the buyer pays by paypal he can do a chargeback unless you can prove delivery either by having a recorded delivery or special delivery tracking number.

However, like Clareo says, for smaller items even with paypal I don't use recorded. I just make sure I always get my Certificate of posting and should an item get lost I refund my buyer and reclaim my amount back from the post office.

Soo