I just received my ebay - subonnet sue & sam material.
I paid 3.50 shipping. Postal lady said the sender paid for
a letter, 5x7 envelope not enough. It weighted 3 oz.
I had to pay 5.31 more to get it. So that is 9.11 shipping.
This just doesn't sound right. The sender shorted me.
Does this happen alot.

Can you check with another P.O. ? I was in a block exchange on this board and some people had to pay extra to send a block in an envelope, one was required to get those small manilla envelopes for her blocks and had to pay over A doller to send out each, I wraped my blocks in syran put it in a legal size envelope and used 1 stamp they all went through no problem. I always thought the US post office charged the same way all over the US, maybe Im wrong or maybe the PO is. I better be quiet My PO may be in the wrong LOL and I'll pay for it next time!

post office now charges extra for anything bigger than a 5 x 9 envelope - there is letter rate, envelope rate (envelope over 5 x 9) and zone rate. Your seller could have put in a flat rate mailing envelope and only cost $4.90 to anywhere in US for whatever fit in box. Your post office may have calculated wrong. 3 oz according to my meter if using a large envelope would be $1.48 no matter where mailed. Are u sure was 3 ounzes. Thats only about the weight of a file folder and 3 sheets of paper. Even a yard of fabric (I just weighted it) was more than 3 oz.

From what you've said - that does sound very strange.

I do know that the size and shape of the package/envelope is also taken into consideration, along with the basic weight of the mailed item.

Yes the envelop is 3 oz. and marked on it the envelope is 5x7. I ask the sender she said sorry, I paid 1.75.
I paid 3.50 to her and 5.31 to post office?

No way a 3 oz envelope should cost over $7. to send. Ask your postmaster to show you in writing what rate you are being charged - something is way off!!

You can always refuse something that comes postage due.

Didn't know one could refuse an postage due postage - that's good to know!

? If I had refused to pay, I would have lost my order,
I paid 20. for, it is a sunbonnet sue & sam pattern.
Maybe I should go to post office, The seller said she paid a 1.75, and it not her fault. I paid 3.50 to her & 5.31 to postal lady. Or pay pal? I think they both we me., but
I know business do do a general cost I guess.

take it to two different post offices and talk to the manager at each one. i bet you get a different reason.

a 5 x 7 envelope is the same postage as a letter size. It's the largest you can send for same rate. Go see your post office clerk. Something is fishy.

Wow. It is the seller's responsibility to make sure that they have adequate shipping. If they sent it from their house, then I would question that they were accurate. If they sent it from a post office (from the counter or a meter machine), then I would definitely complain to my local post office and demand an explanation.

all I can think of that would cause that is if they used a Priority Mail envelope turned inside out.

That would do it, for sure. If you use anything that says, anyplace on it "priority mail" you'll get charged the priority rate, not even the flat rate envelope rate either.

I've heard that is true - even if the envelope or box is turned inside out.

There is no way an envelope that size and weight would cost that much, someone screwed up at the post office.

I sent out some fabric to someone in the US and it cost me 1.70. they measured the envelope in the post office to make sure it fit properly in their restrictions.

I wonder if they quoted you an expedited rate which would be more expensive. I'd try asking another post office.

If the envelope is more than 1/4" think it has to go parcel post. They have a cardboard thing that has a slot that the envelope has to pass through easily.

I would ask the e-bay seller for a refund of your postage paid when you tell her what you had to pay.

not unless it weighs more than 13 ounces. Up to 13 ounces - FIrst Class (there are 3 classes of First Class Mail). Over 13 ounces - Parcel Post or Priority.

I will go to post office 1st. I had already e-mailed sender
Wennine, she paid 1.75. I guess the rest of 3.50 is handling
for her.
It is not thick, envelope reg.manila almost 6 x almost 9. I guess from home meter- service on ebay. 3 0z. printed on envelope usps first class mail, eltronic rate approved on bottom. Then stamped balance due 5.31. I will get receipt tomorrow from payment to post office- rural mail.
I had guessed at envelope at first I measured.

YES...if it was more than 1/4" thick it is called a Parcel and costs like crazy...

what happens if I refuse postage, I don't get thr item and I don't think it was more than a 1/4".
have to try to get my money back. I" will let you know what happens at post office. It seems crazy, 3.50 paid by me to sender, and post office 5.31. I will find the answer I hope. For me that is 9.11 shipping. for a little, lite envelope

Thanks for posting all this info. I've been curious on the best way to send fabric, shouldn't be such a problem untill this sort of thing comes up :(

no wonder the post office is in trouble, they can't get their act together. I mailed a fat quarter in a business envelope, put 2 44 cent stamps and it came back postage due 20 cents after 6 weeks.

Did your seller add any extras, Insurance, priority mail, delivery notification, signature required? Was this from outside the US? That will also add to the cost of postage.
All of these add up and may have added to the cost.
Just a thought..
Happy quilitng, Susan

I think I would take it to the post office. I have mailed things first class package that cost less. If I am sending out fabric or a book it goes first class if it is under 13 oz. I am very curious what the post office says.

the days of doing this are over - your FQ may have qualified as a parcel (FC) - minimum $1.71. even if it is only an ounce.

I got a package from a QB member last year, payment for something but she included a little bean bag (?) so it came postage due - turned a letter into a parcel.

I've bought several hundred things off Ebay through the years and never had this problem except once, when I let the lady know that I owed another seven cents, and she refunded all of my postage to me to make up for the problems she caused....and it was an honest mistake. Postage had just changed and she hadn't updated her website to calculate it correctly. so no, this is not the "usual" on Ebay.

If the postal carrier said the shipper paid only for a letter, she would have only paid .44 cents,, plus $5.31 total the post office received was $5.74 The shipper charged you $3.50 and if it cost more she should have paid the difference. I have never paid postage on an order from ebay above what was agreed upon. I would contact the seller...

No extras, just first class reg.mail. The postal lady said you should use their different size letter envelopes, what they have it sized and always postage is same, and poastal workers understand this, remember they on't all speak good English or understand. Never thought of that.

so did they say why they charged you so much? Ask them to show you the actual rate they charged - they can't just make this stuff up.

I just received my reciept from my postal worker about
5 min. ago, and I am going to post office after lunch.
The postal worker I was just talking about was my mail
lady. Hope fully I get an answer there, if not I will recall pay
pal, as the person on the phone from pal pal suggested.
I my need a little luck. It sems things just go along, then
you hit a snag and boy does it mess things up.
Being my first order do I want to do this again. It seamed
so simple and great.

I had the flat rate boxes for up to 70 lbs and shipped 6 jars of home canned tuna and it was supposed to go for $10.65. My husband took it to a private service that is supposed to charge the same as the post office and they charged him $18.65.

I know what you feel like. I was in as swap not long ago and had used really small envelopes to sent out finished blocks, it cost me $1.74 per envelope, I was only mailing 6 at the time-35 would be mailed out in total. When I questioned the price the postal clerk said they had to charge differently since they could tell it was more than just a letter inside. I went ahead and sent those that day. A couple of days later I received a block from another swapper with postage due for the $1.74 rate-this seemed odd since most of the other blocks came back to me at $.44-$.64. So when sending out the nextt bunch I used larger envelopes 5x9 manilla ones and they all went for either 44 or 64 cents each. So I began using large envelopes and have watched my seams better-it has to freely slide through their slot card to go as a large envelope.

We just went to USPS on line to check postage rates. We put $.88 as it was under 1 oz. It just came back and I had to add $1.25, they didn't even try to send it postage due, I'm surprised they even offered it to you.

So why is the website not up dated?

I do know if that 5x7 envelope has one of those brass clasp on the back to close it, it costs more to send it since they can't run it through the automatic sorter. That could be part of the extra cost if it has that. Everyone needs to keep that in mind when mailing things. If you need to cut that out and tape over it. That's what I have done in the past. Hope you get it sorted out. And soon. Keep smiling and enjoy the pattern despite the problems with the cost.

file acomplaint with ebay, you already paid your postage.

Ok, I am back from the post office, went through 3 people,
last one the head mail guy. It will not go through the
slot thing they have, and it has a metal clip on back, plus it is 6x9. It is the sender's fault.
She should have used one of their envelopes it would have
cost 3 dollars something. Sender error.
Will call pay pal as they requested and see where that goes.
I paid 9.11 for a 3.00 package bad business. I am sure it
hard if you have done it and think you can, but it doesn't
work all the time. The mail guy said you may get by if someone doesn't do their job and use the slot, but it will catch up with you.

Still, no WAY it should have cost over $3.41, the MOST you can pay for a first class parcel.

I would have asked him to show me in writing, the rate that they used.

well now I know to take off the metal clasp. I usually tape over it anyway. I really wish there was an alternative to the PO. It is getting way too many rules that it didn't have before.

I thought just taping over the metal clip would be adequate to eliminate the extra cost?

Sound off base to me! Talk about gouging!