Am I reading this correctly?

[spinelll]

Just ordered 1lb of parts worth $125 (Includes 2 gift certs).
Do these shipping options costs vs days look a bit odd to anyone else?

[chap52]

I have seen where the postage is more than the part...Needed it, paid it. Another reality of mail ordering.

[old31]

$21.85 Priority Mail seems very excessive for a 1 lb item.

[Dick Steinkamp]

The seller may be including "handling charges" in with those numbers.

[KGBnut]

Having been the mail order business for about fifteen years I can add some insight.

First of all, the first pound is always the most expensive. Not just because the shippers bill that way, but also the supplier has flat costs involved with processing each order; paying the guys to pack the box; keeping the lights on; etc.

Second, it is INCREDIBLY difficult to figure out shipping costs until it is actually packed in the box and sitting on the scale. Why? Because you're not sure of how you are going to pack it...one box...three boxes...how much packing material? Did the customer order something fragile (headlight lens) with something that really wants to smash it (transmission gears)? Now you need a bigger box with more packing material in between. Maybe you need to go to two boxes. Just trust me, these estimates are harder to make than you think.

Now, you try to design your website to perform those calculations for you, but usually, your website platform only allows for calculations based on weight and ZIP code...nothing else. These are usually off-the-shelf systems. They are improving, but still somewhat limited.

So, what are most retailers forced to do? They have their systems estimate high. That way you don't loose your shirt on the small orders. Small orders can kill you. I would much rather have one $100 order than five $22 orders.

You didn't say which supplier this was from, but I have found that the really good ones will adjust your shipping charge once they have actually packed the box. I have had Bratton's do that many times.

Sorry for the lengthy explanation.

Ken

[Tom Wesenberg]

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Have the seller ship it in a flat rate box or envelope. Those prices are very high for only one pound.
Bert's only charges actual shipping costs.

[katy]

Howcum, it used to be that the more you bought in one order, the less the shipping charge, nowadays it's the other way around, the more you order the more the shipping.

[1928Mik]

What shipping carriers have done is apply a 'dimensional weight' to all their rates. FedEx was first and UPS followed. It's their way of raising rates without actually raising them, if that makes any sense. If a package is 1 lb, but overall it's size is large, like a set of head gaskets, you pay for those dimensions with added rates. USPS has not applied that as of yet. I met with our UPS rep over this, and he said they were shipping alot of 'air', which means, for instance, people were shipping a pair of shoes in a huge box which takes up space. Those added rates really cut into what we do at our business. All our items are fragile, so we need the extra 'crush' space. We have to enter in the dimensions of every carton we ship now. The rep blindly told me to ship smaller cartons, but that doesn't apply to fragile items. So, guess what? The consumer ends up paying, and those 'dim' weights are built in to the shipper's quotes as yours reflects.

[BillLee/Chandler, TX]

Originally Posted by spinelll

Just ordered 1lb of parts worth $125 (Includes 2 gift certs).
Do these shipping options costs vs days look a bit odd to anyone else?

That's off the Snyder's website.

I have ordered several times from them recently and since I prefer UPS, I ask for that. Their "7-day" is always less and the actual amount charged is also less than what's listed.

[29Cabriolet]

Originally Posted by chap52

I have seen where the postage is more than the part...Needed it, paid it. Another reality of mail ordering.

Not necessarily restricted to mail order. I know I've driven to the hardware store for a bag of screws or a paint brush or something whose cost was way less than the cost to get it home. It's just more visible when shipping and handling costs are printed on an invoice or credit card statement than the cost of local purchases: i.e. use of gas in your tank, wear on the vehicle and of course the time spent.

[2manycars]

Originally Posted by spinelll

Just ordered 1lb of parts worth $125 (Includes 2 gift certs).
Do these shipping options costs vs days look a bit odd to anyone else?

Odd that 2 day shipping is cheaper than 3 day shipping, which is actually 5 day shipping.
I am confused.

[spinelll]

Originally Posted by 2manycars

Odd that 2 day shipping is cheaper than 3 day shipping, which is actually 5 day shipping.
I am confused.

Thank you Bill. You win the porcelain feather duster.
That was my confusion also. I wasn't barking about the prices. No one is forcing me to pay.