Q Talk

[Shanus]

I noticed during a gem show the other day, some items shipped for free, others were $3.50 & some were $5.50 which means you’re out $11.00 if you order it and don’t like it and return it!! 

If a small box of earrings can ship free or $3.50, certainly a D&C fleece jacket doesn’t weigh the same to cost $3.50 to ship.

Handling? Stuffed in a plastic bag, slapping a label on it is not “handling”. Wrapped in tissue, folded nicely, maybe boxed instead of jammed in a Jiffy envelope requires handling charge. 

[Anonymous032819]

"Handling" is more than paying for the packaging.

Handling includes the pay for the human being who put the item in to the package, and the label on it.

[2blonde]

It also covers insurance costs.

[Desertdi]

The dimensions of the package is also a consideration

[loriqvc]

No, QVC does not charge shipping based solely on an item's weight, though many smaller/lighter items such as jewelry or tank tops would qualify for the $3.50 USPS First-Class Mail rate, a category that rarely offers much of a discount to vendors. Most of the time, I find that if a jewelry item has a $5.50 shipping charge, it is because there is a specialty box or some other unique packaging involved (and I would guess that inclusion of additional insurance coverage for high-ticket items may also apply).

Although many people complain about QVC's shipping charges—and of course none of us wants to pay anything for shipping—the Q often gives buyers substantial shipping discounts. For example, it would cost the average consumer about three to four times the $5.50 shipping amount charged for a set of Temp-tations dinnerware, and no ladder is going to ship for just $7.50. Even in situations where buyers feel they are being "cheated" by paying $3.50 per jewelry or clothing item when they ship in the same package, that amount is in line with the current USPS and UPS shipping rates that are based on size and weight. And although there have been substantial recent increases in shipping rates for medium to large packages that surpass specific weight and size thresholds, so far, I've seen few to no changes for most of the larger items in QVC's inventory.

As long as QVC continues to include shipping fees as a major part of the revenue model that keeps it in business, we're going to have to pay them to get what we want, but I do feel that frequent shoppers come out even or better when buying across categories with the tiered shipping fees. It would definitely be nice if there were a few more free shipping events, though!

[Still Raining]

Perhaps they think no one will notice? 

[Shanus]

@loriqvc .....Q also recommends using their label for returns...$6.95 or $7.95 to insure faster credit. I can usually mail something back for less than 1/2 that amount.

[GinaV24]

I would like them to give me the option to have my packages shipped thru UPS without going thru the US mail system as the last step. In the past 3 months, I have had 3 packages simply not show up for delivery. I can track them to the post office, sometimes they then wander around from post office to post office even thru various states even when at one point they were IN my local area for delivery.

I've complained to both the post office about the problems but they can't track the packages because they start out as UPS numbers so essentially the consumer is stuck. I've also called CS at QVC and stated my problem.

I would be willing to pay additional shipping if I would actually receive my packages!

[GinaV24]

yes I agree. If I have items to return - especially several items, I now mail them back and pay the postage because QVC will charge return shipping for both items. then you have to watch to be sure you aren't "mistakenly" charged the shipping fee even when you don't use their label.

[loriqvc]

@Shanus - Again, even with returns, it really depends; I recently bought a jacket in two colors and ended up disliking both of them. I could either send them back for $10.95 with the QVC return label or I could pay about $19 to send them back on my own. It was not pleasant either way, but I definitely saved money with the QVC option. But you're correct that with smaller items, it is often cheaper to pay on your own; that $3.50 USPS First-Class rate works well for jewelry and other small/light items (but does not include insurance) and will get your package back to the Q much more quickly. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to matter how fast QVC receives returns lately—the process of refunds and credits is ridiculously slow and backlogged.