Shipping Costs Horror Story

[diptixon]

OK, so this morning I shipped out, at the UPS Store, a bass I'd sold here on the forum. The bass was in the OHSC (heavy - wood, not molded) and total weight was just under 30 lbs. The cost, to ship from the Southeast USA to the Pacific Northwest USA, insured, packed and boxed by yours truly (not the store),via ground - $67!!
What is going on here...? This is not the first bass I've shipped via UPS ground from that particular store location, and never have I paid nearly that much. It was almost double what I'd recalled paying in the not-too-distant past, which was what I'd figured in when calculating my selling price. Are there cheaper alternatives than UPS..?
And, how do the rest of you estimate the cost into the price when posting a bass' price as including shipping..? I am planning on thinning the herd a bit more, and am concerned about getting roasted on the shipping charges. It seems like it is would be a hassle to get the shipping charges covered by the buyer after agreeing on a price...
any advice???
danny

[Eric Moesle]

There is a difference between shipping "via UPS" and "through a UPS STORE". There is always a surcharge at the "store".

Your best bet is to go to your nearest UPS distribution center and ship it there. Much cheaper than the UPS store because there are no brick and morter surcharges.

[erochelle77]

UPS raised their rates not long ago. I just shipped a bass through Fedex for $24

[i_got_a_mohawk]

DHL if you get them? They are usually pretty fairly priced and give a great service.

[diptixon]

Interesting.. I was unaware you could ship directly from a UPS distribution center...

[Basshole]

Originally Posted by i_got_a_mohawk

DHL if you get them? They are usually pretty fairly priced and give a great service.

Worst shipper ever. God forbid you have to file a claim. UPS is second worst. Their Crawford insurance division is criminal in their evasion of claims. FedEx is about as bad as any in terms of safe handling, but their claims dept. is fair.

[Basshole]

Originally Posted by diptixon

Interesting.. I was unaware you could ship directly from a UPS distribution center...

Uh...yeah. "The UPS Store" is just the old "Mailboxes Etc." chain rebadged. UPS bought them a few years back.

Not to be outdone, FedEx bought Kinkos.

[lefty007]

UPS Stores are franchises, independently owned, so they don't have to follow UPS rates. My experience has been the same, very high prices. and their insurance rates vary also from store to store. I know this one store that charges $2.99 per hundred for insurance! (Fedex charges something like .49c per hundred.)

Go Fedex/Kinkos. Exact same prices at every store, a lot cheaper, transit times are shorter and more accurate, and packages are handled better. Every time I received a package from UPS it has been mishandled and comes in with a hole, or crushed, or torn.

In other words, UPS sucks.

[Chunk-O-Funk]

If you're sending it through a "UPS store" call around and get quotes from different stores. They're are plenty of independently owned shipping stores that will give you quotes on UPS, FedEx, etc and they all seem to vary.

One box I shipped I got a quote from one place of over $80.00. The next place was around $50.00

If a UPS, FedEx depot is nearby use them. No surcharges.

You can also go to their website for a shipping quote. Just make sure you put in the correct size and weight. There is a fine line where UPS considers a package "over-sized" and the charges goes way up.

[John123z]

If your using UPS, just go online to UPS.com and process your order, charge it to your credit card and print out a shipping label. Tape your label to the box and just throw it in the door of any UPS store. There are no additional charges. Also, if UPS picks up where you work, you can let them pick it up there.

Your paying extra for the store to process the order.

John