This Guide is written to help the beginner EBAYER out there who might be wondering about all of those different shipping and insurance rates that you see when bidding on EBAY.

Well, some sellers like to think that they can make Shipping, Handling and Insurance a separate "profit center" for themselves and you should be careful about checking out what you might have to pay for shipping, handling and insurance before you buy something. It is the SELLER who determines what they want to charge for shipping, handling and insurance, not EBAY.

First, lets look at insurance. While there are several types of insurers, most EBAY sellers us the US Postal Service to ship their items. The US Postal Service maintains a website that you can easily locate with a Search Engine that will give you rates for all kinds of postal services including a table of insurance rates that increases as the value of your item increases. Generally, it is $1.35 for items up to $100 and then it increases by a fixed amount for each additional $100 increment over that amount.  So if you are buying something for $88 and the seller wants to charge you $3.50 for insurance you might be getting ripped off and maybe you should think twice about whether this seller is really treating you fairly.

Handling can vary greatly as well and it never hurts to ask the seller how they ship items, i.e., in a plain envelope, a bubble wrap lined parcel envelope, a box or something else. Of course these things cost money and it is only fair to expect the seller to recoup the cost of the packaging, and maybe something for their time to package the item. However, if packaging such as a bubble wrap lined manila parcel envelope costs 60 cents and the seller is charging you $3.00 for handling, then something might be wrong with this picture.

Next there is the general shipping rate itself. If you are buying something to be shipped by the US Postal Service then you can go to their website again and find out exactly what your item should cost to ship, or you can just go to the Post Office and ask a clerk for help. When items are listed on EBAY, some sellers give you a choice of USPS, UPS, FEDEX or other services. Also, many of them will provide you with a calculator icon that you can click on, select the delivery service, enter your Zip Code and find out how much shipping will be. Beware of flat rates from sellers such as a $10.00 flat rate for shipping because chances are that they are trying to take advantage of you by charging excessive rates. Also, beware of sellers who do not divulge shipping costs until after the auction is over.

Finally, I suggest doing this. If the seller does not have explicitly posted rates for shipping, handling and insurance, then click on the Contact Member key for the seller and just send them a note asking what it would cost. If they know what they are doing and they are reputable, they should readily be able to provide you with a good estimate of shipping costs, with or without insurance.

Another tip, when you buy something you should figure in the cost of shipping in the total cost of the item.  If you know something is worth $20, you don't want to bid $20 and then find out that you have to pay an additional $5 for shipping and handling. Determine what the maximum amount that you are willing to pay for something might be, then deduct from that amount the shipping and handling cost. In this way your total cost including all expenses will not be more than the item is really worth and you can feel good that you did not pay too much for an item. Shipping is part of the cost of buying.

There are a great many good EBAY sellers who will charge minimal fees to cover the cost of shipping and handling.  Also, if you are buying more than one item from a seller, don't be afraid to ask for a discount on the total shipping cost, most reputable sellers will offer a discount for multiple item buyers.

Good luck and beware of those shipping and handling fees!