Why doesn't PCGS combine shipping?

lkeigwin

What's the logic for higher shipping rates if your submission is five coins instead of four (regardless of declared value)?
Lance.

Dog97

<< << Dog,

It's been my experience that if you have a mechanical error a quick phone call to them will have it fixed at no charge. Give em a call. >>



but you still have to send it to them somehow... and that costs you money on postage... i recently had a mechanical error that I sent in and was told I'd be reimbursed for postage but I still haven't received a payment... guess i need to send another email today >>

illi420 I see your point but I'll let mine ride along in the package with my other submissions.

19Lyds

<< <i>I think shipping is a profit center for them. IT does not cost 16.95 to mail a flat rate priority mail box. >>

No it doesn't but then David Hall doesn;t work in the shipping and receiving department so somebody needs to be hired to work the position full time. I doubt they get paid by the piece so such things as overhead, salaries, taxes and such all need to be accounted for.

Don't believe me, open your own full time shipping department for your eBay sales.

rld14

<< <i>

<< <i>I think shipping is a profit center for them. IT does not cost 16.95 to mail a flat rate priority mail box. >>

No it doesn't but then David Hall doesn;t work in the shipping and receiving department so somebody needs to be hired to work the position full time. I doubt they get paid by the piece so such things as overhead, salaries, taxes and such all need to be accounted for.

Don't believe me, open your own full time shipping department for your eBay sales. >>



Well said. I used to sell probably.. oh $20-30,000 a month worth of car parts on eBay. I had an employee that did nothing but package and ship stuff. And yes, I made "profit" on shipping charges, but there's a HUGE difference between GROSS profit and NET profit.

MsMorrisine

<< <i>Whoever said they just have their order charged to their FedEx account is a genius. If you don't like their costs, then just do that.

Bunch o' whiners >>




Even using my own account, 3 separate shipments are more expensive than 1 combined shipment.

mrpotatoheadd

Unless they're not paying attention, if it was easier to combine shipments instead of sending them separately, they'd already be doing it.

AnkurJ

<< <i>

<< <i>Whoever said they just have their order charged to their FedEx account is a genius. If you don't like their costs, then just do that.

Bunch o' whiners >>




Even using my own account, 3 separate shipments are more expensive than 1 combined shipment. >>



Hit it right on the head!

canadanz

<< <i>

<< <i>I think shipping is a profit center for them. IT does not cost 16.95 to mail a flat rate priority mail box. >>

No it doesn't but then David Hall doesn;t work in the shipping and receiving department so somebody needs to be hired to work the position full time. I doubt they get paid by the piece so such things as overhead, salaries, taxes and such all need to be accounted for.

Don't believe me, open your own full time shipping department for your eBay sales. >>



Regardless of how much the postage and shipping costs actually are... charging upwards of $10 for "handling" is ridiculous. It does not cost $10 to handle a single order... there's just no way, unless it's a bulk order or something.

Full time shipping/receiving department or not... no way a single order should incur handling costs to a business of $10... especially for something as small as PCGS slabbed coins. If they truly do incur $10 handling costs per order, give me a call I can sort that out for them.

19Lyds

<< <i>

<< <i>

<< <i>I think shipping is a profit center for them. IT does not cost 16.95 to mail a flat rate priority mail box. >>

No it doesn't but then David Hall doesn;t work in the shipping and receiving department so somebody needs to be hired to work the position full time. I doubt they get paid by the piece so such things as overhead, salaries, taxes and such all need to be accounted for.

Don't believe me, open your own full time shipping department for your eBay sales. >>



Regardless of how much the postage and shipping costs actually are... charging upwards of $10 for "handling" is ridiculous. It does not cost $10 to handle a single order... there's just no way, unless it's a bulk order or something.

Full time shipping/receiving department or not... no way a single order should incur handling costs to a business of $10... especially for something as small as PCGS slabbed coins. If they truly do incur $10 handling costs per order, give me a call I can sort that out for them. >>

I'm sure you can!

I'm also sure you know exacltly how much the folks in the shipping department make on an hourly basis as well as what PCGS/CU pays in taxes for that shipping and receiving department. Lets not forget about the pick up and delivery at the local PO. Perhaps a company Van or Truck, along with the associated insurance and maintenance costs, might be involved? Let's not forget about all the packaging and equipment associated with a shipping and receiving department either. You can't just pick that volume of supplies up at swap meets.

If folks don't like what PCGS charges for their services then they should open their own grading services and actually experience those costs. Don't forget to guarantee your grades! Oh and don;t forget that some submitters like to under estimate what their coins are actually worth. (Just to save a couple of bucks on return shipping! )

mrpotatoheadd

<< <i>Regardless of how much the postage and shipping costs actually are... charging upwards of $10 for "handling" is ridiculous. >>

On the plus side- PCGS can't force you to submit coins to them if you think the cost is excessive.

AnkurJ

<< <i>

<< <i>Regardless of how much the postage and shipping costs actually are... charging upwards of $10 for "handling" is ridiculous. >>

On the plus side- PCGS can't force you to submit coins to them if you think the cost is excessive. >>



No. But the fact that board members here have said that they do not submit as much because of high handling and shipping costs should be a wake up call. They need to fine tune a few things related to customer service.

mrpotatoheadd

<< <i> But the fact that board members here have said that they do not submit as much because of high handling and shipping costs should be a wake up call. They need to fine tune a few things related to customer service. >>

Maybe they figure they have?

Just because you want something to be so, is no reason to expect that someone else will agree.

AnkurJ

Sure seems like others agree. I'm not asking to combine orders that finish a month apart. In my case it was one day. Again, if NGC can do it why can't Pcgs? I think it can be easily handled if they wanted to.

mrpotatoheadd

<< <i>Again, if NGC can do it why can't Pcgs? >>

What did they say when you asked them?

AnkurJ

<< <i>

<< <i>Again, if NGC can do it why can't Pcgs? >>

What did they say when you asked them? >>



We don't ship orders together.

mrpotatoheadd

Well, there you go. Submit your coins to NGC then.

TwoSides2aCoin

I will cherish the memories of the exchanges in this thread.

RYK

<< <i>

<< <i>

<< <i>Regardless of how much the postage and shipping costs actually are... charging upwards of $10 for "handling" is ridiculous. >>

On the plus side- PCGS can't force you to submit coins to them if you think the cost is excessive. >>



No. But the fact that board members here have said that they do not submit as much because of high handling and shipping costs should be a wake up call. They need to fine tune a few things related to customer service. >>


To be clear, I never said that it was purely a cost issue. It was cost and logistics for me. If I want five coins graded, and it requires me to make four trips to the post office to retrieve them (because one is a crossover at express level, one is raw coin at express level, one is express level with true view, and two are regular), I weigh the hassle factor on my end and generally decide to pass on the submission.

As a side note, the advent of CAC (NGC plus sticker equals PCGS) allows me to usually obtain PCGS market value and status for my NGC coins and makes me feel more comfortable in the NGC holders and less likely to deal with the cost, hassle, and disappointment of crossing them over.

BAJJERFAN

<< <i>

<< <i>

<< <i>Again, if NGC can do it why can't Pcgs? >>

What did they say when you asked them? >>



We don't ship orders together. >>



We already knew that. Did they say why they can't or won't accomodate that?


I'd guess that it is an issue that is not of concern to a lot of submitters.

blueifalcon

It's called Bottom Line / Nickle & Dime...All businesses do it!

AnkurJ

<< <i>

<< <i>

<< <i>

<< <i>Again, if NGC can do it why can't Pcgs? >>

What did they say when you asked them? >>



We don't ship orders together. >>



We already knew that. Did they say why they can't or won't accomodate that?


I'd guess that it is an issue that is not of concern to a lot of submitters. >>



They did not want to accomodate or make any exceptions. I had one package arrive yesterday, the other arrives today. $45 in total shipping paid.

Caleb

I don't mind the seperate shipping charges, even if they are a little high. Luck others have mentioned, employee benefits and wages plus materials. The thing that really gets me is that darn $8 application fee per submission

coinguy1

<< <i>I don't mind the seperate shipping charges, even if they are a little high. Luck others have mentioned, employee benefits and wages plus materials. The thing that really gets me is that darn $8 application fee per submission >>

That extra $8 per invoice is often small, in comparison, to the extra shipping fees that some people have to pay. So I don't understand why it bothers you, but the larger extra shipping cost doesn't.

leothelyon

<< <i>

<< <i>

<< <i>Regardless of how much the postage and shipping costs actually are... charging upwards of $10 for "handling" is ridiculous. >>

On the plus side- PCGS can't force you to submit coins to them if you think the cost is excessive. >>



No. But the fact that board members here have said that they do not submit as much because of high handling and shipping costs should be a wake up call. They need to fine tune a few things related to customer service. >>




If they were to start combining orders tomorrow, you know that there would be a fee for that as well! So it's really a no-win situation, no matter how we look at it.


Leo

leothelyon

They did not want to accomodate or make any exceptions. I had one package arrive yesterday, the other arrives today. $45 in total shipping paid.



In my day, that could buy dinner for 2, a cheap motel and 12 pack of beer. And you had to have the beer.........(where the heck is the home run emoticon?)


Leo

After all these years and there's no "home run" emoticon? WOW!

Bear

We are living in an age when the ridiculous is normal and the absurd is sublime.

scottgardener

It could be that their infrastructure in place may be built around the current model--that is, two orders, even two orders arriving in the same package, may be split into seperate offices, and that trying to re-unite the individual shipments might be cumbersome, or one more chance for errors to happen. Not that I like being dinged with extra charges, but unlike cable or phone companies, PCGS at least has the advantage of being streamlined, with good customer service and remarkably little error.

Caleb

<< <i>

<< <i>I don't mind the seperate shipping charges, even if they are a little high. Luck others have mentioned, employee benefits and wages plus materials. The thing that really gets me is that darn $8 application fee per submission >>

That extra $8 per invoice is often small, in comparison, to the extra shipping fees that some people have to pay. So I don't understand why it bothers you, but the larger extra shipping cost doesn't. >>



Because when you have to count your nickels, eight bucks for nothing is $8 lost. At least when you pay for postage, you are getting something for your money.

19Lyds

<< <i>

<< <i>

<< <i>I don't mind the seperate shipping charges, even if they are a little high. Luck others have mentioned, employee benefits and wages plus materials. The thing that really gets me is that darn $8 application fee per submission >>

That extra $8 per invoice is often small, in comparison, to the extra shipping fees that some people have to pay. So I don't understand why it bothers you, but the larger extra shipping cost doesn't. >>



Because when you have to count your nickels, eight bucks for nothing is $8 lost. At least when you pay for postage, you are getting something for your money. >>

The entire point behind the $8.00 handling fee (which BTW used to be $5) was to minimize the onesey/twosey submissions. After that, there was a five coin minimum (which has subsequently been dropped).

PCGS always has been and always will be a Dealers Company where volume is king. The Collectors Club has not ALWAYS been in existance which meant that ONLY Authorized PCGS Dealers could submit coins for grading. After the Collectors Club was formed, a lot of onesey/twosey submissions started clogging the system.

What PCGS would prefer is big submissions and I do not have a problem with that. I don;t have a problem with the shipping charges and sincerely appreciate the fact that they now use Priority Mail instead of Registered, fully realizing that there is a higher potential for loss which given the right curcumstances could be a substantial amount of money.

Bottom line, if you don't like how PCGS has set up their business policies then find somebody else. The number of Forum Members that submit and ultimately whine about this or that need to maximize their submissions for cost effectiveness and/or realize the costs involved with running a now World Class operation that maximizes the return on your coins.

This "combining of orders" subject rolls around every year or so by someone that finally realizes that being in the coin business has expenses. Being a private collector that submits coins for grading also has its expenses.

I believe that if PCGS had a way of combining orders that had minimal risk, that they would do so. I also believe that PCGS receives a LOT more submissions than just the folks on these forums. Check out the Shared Orders page and start counting. I could only imagine the whining and complaining and crying should your order get combined with someone elses simply because of combining orders.

I personally appreciate the security that have single order shipping provides regardless of how many coins are submitted. I would not be a happy camper had I found out that somebody else received my coins due to some error in procedure.

The alternative is to start your own grading company and deal with hundreds of submissions per day and then try to sort them out for proper shipping and handling.

ProofCents

The fact that we still send in coin regardless of the outragous shipping charges shows they don't need to lower the prices

mrpotatoheadd

<< <i>The fact that we still send in coin regardless of the outragous shipping charges shows they don't need to lower the prices >>

Anybody who *really* felt the charges were outrageous wouldn't send their coins in for grading. The fact people do send coins in means they expect to get an acceptable return for their fees. Or, I suppose, they're just deluded.