Some advice if you please...

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mrsuspend

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May 6, 2008
Messages
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Location
Stockholm, Sweden
I recently bought a speaker off Ebay from a UK company. Unwisely, I didn't check the shipping charges which turned out to be very high, ?20 for a ?21 speaker. I asked the company if they could provide me with cheaper shipping and suggested RM Airsure (trackable and insurable, ?15) but their response was "No, we only ship this way". I accepted this as I hadn't checked beforehand. It now turns our their way was Schenker lorry transport which is not only expensive but also very slow - the speaker took 8 days to arrive whereas Airsure would've been 3-4 days at the most.

And now it's feedback time... and I don't really know hot to rate this transaction. I've only ever given positive feedback but this time I'm not convinced.
I'd appreciate points of view from byers and sellers both!

/Magnus
 
Shipping charges also cover time to pack things, packing materials etc, also some sellers sell at reduced prices with inflated shipping to keep ebay fees down. You really should have checked the shipping charges first, I don't think it would be fair to leave a -ve.
 
If you're happy with the speaker - ?21 sounds like a pretty good price - then ?20 shipping within Europe isn't too bad. As John says, it's your responsibility to check the final price so shouldn't reflect too harshly on the seller.

I'd leave a neutral at worst, or a positive with one star for shipping charges. Bear in mind that the UK company would have likely had no idea how the final delivery to you would be performed (Schenker? Never heard of them! :D) as all the couriers have deals with each other when it comes to international shipping; and most companies in the UK won't trust RM because of the amount of returns they generate for them (they're not the kindest handlers in the world).
 
I take all responsibility for not checking first, I was a bit trigger happy then :)
Alright, you convinced me, positive with one star for shipping it is.
Of course if they complain I'll blame you lot! :wink:

/Magnus
 
Don't think thy can see who left how many stars so you're safe, however if all they've done is rolled the cost of shipping in with the cost of the speaker to keep the overall cost to you down then I still think it's a bit harsh doing that.

Would you rather buy the same speaker for ?50 with free shipping?
 
I wouldn't have bought it for ?50, no.
It's a Celestion Tube 10 speaker I can probably get for around ?40 in Sweden but normally prices are so high here I'm better off buying from the UK or Germany. Not this time though...
I just found the company sort of robotic and unhelpful whereas other sellers have gone out of their way to help get things right.
Oh well, learn from this kids! Check your shipping beforehand!

/Magnus
 
On the bright side I can now start my open back/closed back/iso cab project! :D
We need something to while away the long dark evenings up here in the north...
 
I know it's a bit of an advert but if you really want to buy from the uk go to soundslive.co.uk only because I used to work there and know I can trust them. My wife gets all my stuff from their online site Boss BR600 this year for my christmas present with a jumbo pack of strings and the jazz3 plectrums I like so much.
 
Geez....WHAT DO YOU EXPECT??
If Michael and Rudolph Schenker are driving trucks around Europe OF COURSE they'll be late....
A jam here...a gig there...a groupie or two....signing autographs....OH CRAP....RUDOLPH...WE FORGOT TO DELIVER EIN SHPEEKER TO ENGLANDT..!!!
 
Schenker is a big spedition company, I work a lot with them. They're cheap for big packages, but expensive for small one.
For example: we're distributores for german audio cables, Schulz kabel. Cables are heavy and we usually order large quantity. The packages are comming on pallettes an usually we pay like 170 ? for 500 kg package. If you use any other package distributor (DPS, DHL, UPS and so) it cames almost 500 ?. Here is the difference.
 
You need to check out:

www.parcel2go.com

I use it all the time. Enter the size and weight of the package, where it's going, value, etc. and the site will do a search and find the best way to send it.

I sold my Epiphone G400 in its box and sent it to Scotland. DHL were the cheapest. ?7.00! Collected from my house too.

Bargain.
 
I've checked parcel2go a few times for quotes, but their insurance costs have been astronomical. Since I won't send a guitar uninsured, that rules them out.

:cry:
 

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