I`ve never had to pay anything else like duty.
I heard if you keep it under 50.00 you won`t get charged but also have heard other stories about people having to pay under 50.00 and over get it without paying extra, so its a real throw of the dice.
Gale

I order frequently online but always check shipping costs first. Don't know why some companies want to charge so much for shipping.

A few weeks ago I was going to purchase the Piece o' Cake DVD ($19.95). When I emailed to ask the cost of shipping, I was told $19.95! A total of $38.90 ($A44). Needless to say I didn't buy it. Managed to find it on eBay for $17.95 with $7 postage for a brand new unopened DVD. Don't know where they got their $19.95 postage from.

Far too high!

Add on to that, sometimes Customs also get hold of our parcels coming to England from the States. And do they know how to charge! Extortionate!

The customs charge once cost me more than the 'Sale' fabric and shipping combined!

Well here is me again.
I give praise to Quilter Lisa Moore!
I just ordered a 9.00 pattern from Alaska and shipping is only 1.55!
Gale

Did this include a customs charge? I sent Christmas gifts directly from a vendor in Maine to Ontario and the recipients were charged duty fees. Some Canadian companies will have a US location to avoid these charges.

I also don't order without checking the shipping charges. I add it to the cost of fabric. I have seen some crazy prices on ebay. When I ship I may add a few cents for having to drive to the PO but it is usually just rounding up a from say 2.47 to 2.50 I don't think that is unreasonable. :-) I won't charge any more that I would be willing to pay for something. And since I am on a very low fixed income that is not much. Have avoided buying or selling anything outside the 48 so far

I have canceled several orders because of shipping charges ended up being more than cost of material.

Try Fabric.com
No shipping fees with an order of $35 or more.
Beautiful Batiks.

I am totally with you on the price of shipping to Canada. I often consider it a reminder to support our LQSs, but oh, the lower cost per yard is so enticing.

Yes some of the shipping and handling charges are outrageous! Notice when you package arrives, it didn't cost that much for shipping. They charge us for putting THEIR product in a box!! Whats the reasoning here??

Some sites offer free shipping if your total is over a certain amount, like fabric.com as mentioned above. I have compared shipping fees from several sellers with the EXACT items on eBay. Most will have shipping for $2.99, some free(little Robeez shoes for the newly adopted granddaughter!)and the other will have it for $5.99 or higher! I refuse to buy from someone who is getting extra profit from shipping no matter if it is dirt cheap-principal of it. The boxes are free from the post office to ship priority. I've had some stores refund $ because actual shipping was less than a web site calculation (Farm House Fabrics-heirloom sewing not quilting) When I find a good web site, its hard to look elsewhere, except for recomendations from here :).

Just checked the USPS website. The flatrate box that I usually use costs $12.50 for U.S. delivery, but $26.95 for Canada delivery.

http://www.quiltingboard.com/t-48870-1.htm
Here is a link to my information - I still have almost 1000 yards of batik for sale! I can usually "squish" in a little extra fabric than what I state in my post (if you don't mind it being wrinkled). Send me a private message for further information if you're interested. I hate high shipping costs and I keep open boxes in my house for customers that want to "fill 'em up" before I ship!!

I found a purse quilt pattern in Louisiana and I live in Mississippi. The shipping was over $7 and I didn't buy it.
I found one on ebay and the shipping was $1.88 more like it.
I don't think there should be a handling fee for go to a bin, picking up the pattern and putting it in an envelope. I always check shipping/handling fees.

I sell pretty consistently via EBay ... and am always too LOW on my quotes
for shipping. So the difference is absorbed by me, deducted from my
"profit".... if any. I continue to sell because of my love of sewing/creating.

I have. My son told me it was because the post office is in BIG money trouble due to the internet, UPS and others.

Same for the newspapers. My paper this Monday AM was a joke. Like the magazines, there's too much advertising and not enuf news. I'm not renewing when my subscription runs out. My Dad was an old newspaper man from his teen years so I cut my teeth on linatype. First time in 82 years I will not have a daily. I get better news on the internet.

I never could figure out why a company charges postage and handling fees. If you have a business that requires your product to be "handled" (packaged) and shipped, why isn't that included in your product cost. I think this is a gimmick that some smart "numbers cruncher" thot up years ago to increase profit. We are being blackmailed. How else are we to get their product, by mule train?

Is that US shipping, or Canadian shipping. But either way, it sounds way to high. I ususally try to wait for one of the places I buy from to have a sale with "Free Shipping".

I wait for free shipping too - certainly makes it easier and I can also purchase more :)

Alaska is the same - some companies won't ship to AK because it's not in the "continental" US. I wonder what continent they think we're in? UPS is very expensive; if they won't ship USPS, I don't order.

Have the same problem with UK post. They try and charge the sender european rate when sending from the mainland to here. Idiots. I'm living in the UK not a foreign country.

That is exactly why we go to our local fabric stores. You don't have to pay shipping. Well, maybe we do in higher prices, b ut it is instant gratification, walking out with the fabric that you get to fondle. Can't fondle over the Internet, or catalog. also you can't trust the colors being right if you are trying to co-ordinate fabrics.

I agree and I sell on eBay! We pay a sellers fee based on the selling price but not the shipping. So they sell something for 99 cents and charge way too much for shipping. I have also cancelled orders when the shipping was out of line. I can get up to 7 yards into the flat rate envelope for $4.95. I add the shipping cost to the cost of the fabric and divide that by the number of yards. Then I make my buying decision.

WOW
I would never order anything with those charges.

???????? It costs money to ship, so prices should be increased on eveybody, including those that shop in the store to cover this expense?

i have started to order stuff on the internet and when i get to the part about shipping and nandling sometimes it cost more than my order, i could never figure this out , i just cancell my order i figure it is there loss

http://stores.ebay.com/CROWSNESTQUIL...IN=1&_fsub=-33

Crows Nest Quilting: flat rates for USA and Canada. no surprises!!!!!!!

http://stores.ebay.com/CROWSNESTQUIL...IN=1&_fsub=-33

Crows Nest Quilting: flat rates for USA and Canada. no surprises!!!!!!!

(ooops)

Has anyone asked the companies why they are charging so much for shipping? Perhaps letting them know they are loosing orders because of the shipping might impress them.

I know what you mean about shipping costs to Canada. I buy alot of stuff from the US but I always check on the shipping. I too have not completed orders because of the high shipping costs. I buy my batiks from a company in California and they can get 9 yards of batiks in a flat rate Priority envelope so I always make sure I order 9 yards at a time. If I buy on Ebay I always confirm the shipping before I bid as I have seen many sellers who start with a low price but have high shipping costs to make their money. Keep looking as there are reputable sellers out there that won't gouge us on shipping just because we live in Canada.

As someone else posted... eBay takes their cut of the sale, based on the selling price of the item, NOT including the shipping. So to avoid eBay taking a huge percentage of the sale, some sellers decrease the item price and increase the shipping price. So if you're buying on eBay, never mind what the item price is versus the shipping price. Add the two together, and that's the number you want to work with, as far as figuring out if the total cost is good or bad.

Ummmm... I suppose it's all in the way you view the numbers. If you view the shipping cost as being what the seller pays to USPS/Fedex/UPS... then the handling cost has to cover the box or envelope, bag, tape, and labels, bubble wrap, and any other packaging materials.

USPS provides free boxes for Priority Mail and Express Mail shipping. I think UPS and FedEx provide free boxes, but only for packages sent by air, not by ground (and shipping by air is very expensive with them, so they cover the cost of the "free" boxes in their rate structure). Unless it's a teeny box, it probably costs that business between 75 cents and a dollar to buy the box they're shipping their products in.

You are correct, though, in that the cost will either come through as "handling" or be built into the item cost. I can think of good reasons for doing it either way.

I feel sorry for anyone in the UK that's importing fabric. You certainly do get hit with a lot of fees. Supposedly there is a way for you to act as your own customs broker and avoid some of the fees. If anyone reading this has tried that route, it would be interesting to know how that worked for you!

Wow the shipping sure will get you.

Been there did that! I live in Canada too and the shipping from some shops to Canada is unbelievable. Sometimes they just have a blanket policy that the shipping rate is so much regardless of the size of the order. I did find a source for some nice tonal blender fat quarters. They send to me from HI for about $6. I find things on ebay but really watch the shipping charges.

I do exactly the same thing. Some companies don't even ship to Hawaii.

ok so i just dont understand the whole shipping thing why can i order off say a fabric panel and one person can give me free shipping and the same panel from another seller can be less but the shipping makes it more than the one with free shipping like someone else said about priority mail why would you not ship that way when ever possible the boxes and envelopes are free i just love the ad for those "if it fits it ships" i worked at walmart and we had to send our wic vouchers out every week and at the beginnign of the month and the girls would weigh them out then put them in big envelopes and hope they didnt rip and put a bunch of stamps go to the post office and then pay for the priority till my post master told me about the priority envelopes i saved wm a ton of money after that because some weeks we could get away with one envelope where normally we would have had to send 2

just an fyi dont know if usps still does it but at one time your could send audio video stuff (books cd videos) free but i think this only if it was gifts.

i don't get it. six pages of anger and steam over something we can each control as it affects our own little corners of the universe.

1. check the shipping policies and prices. if they are not to your liking, leave the site and look elsewhere.
2. if they seem to be within your acceptable range, continue to shop.
3. don't commit to the order until you have calculated the final cost per yard. if it's within your acceptable range, place the order. if it isn't, cancel out and shop elsewhere.
4. if it's the only thing in the world that will make you feel better, then do drop them a polite note explaining that you lost interest once the total cost became clear. i have found from personal experience that calm, logically presented complaints or questions get answered more quickly and more often to my satisfaction than are those that are smokin' because i've sent in the heat of the moment and didn't stop to calm down first.

if we each do these things we will ensure for ourselves that we enjoy our shopping experiences.

it's all up to us. the choices are all ours. that's what matters most.