Topic: Beautiful opalescent cameo - arrived in pieces :(

[Max]

Does it have a mould line running on each side of the opalescent part? 

[Littleblackhen]

It broke just below the cameo, and it wasn't a clean break, but several chips and tiny splinters of glass in the packaging.  It does have a mould line down the stem.  I would love to know what it is.  The opalescent glass fluoresces under UV light, and has a lovely shine, more opal like than any similar glass I have seen before, almost red in the light.

It wasn't really very well packed, with just one layer of bubble wrap around it, and then the space around it in the box filled with crumpled newspaper.  I bought two items together, the other was a bowl with a metal rim, and he had stood the stem in the bowl, but not packed it around, so it looks as though it has banged against the metal rim, which would act like a hammer I should have thought.

I am still waiting to hear back from the seller.

Here are some more pictures to help with identification.

[Lustrousstone]

That looks like totally inadequate packing to me, particularly in with something else.
I would have said the comport was probably Italian - but that's only a guess.

[Max]

My dear old Mum has a really lovely comport with a stem not dissimilar to this, it shows up reddish amber when held to the light.  I've always believed it was Italian,  so I'd guess alongside Christine.   

[Littleblackhen]

Thanks for the replies.  I am still waiting to hear from the seller, but maybe they don't look at ebay over the weekend.

Does anyone have any idea of what the resale value of this item would have been if unbroken?  Would I claim the resale value (which was where it was headed) or the amount I paid? 

[Max]

Would I claim the resale value (which was where it was headed) or the amount I paid? 

LOL!  I like the way your mind works LittleBlackHen!  Just the amount you paid.   

[Littleblackhen]

Lol

I was thinking of when my mother in law claimed for a lot of broken pottery when a china cabinet fell off the wall - the shards were assessed by an auctioneer and she was paid on the assessed value, not on the amount she had paid for them.  She was always a canny buyer, so she made a profit on it, although she would rather have had her precious collection intact.

[Pip]

Royal mail site put it in your favourites takes some trawling through. Always useful for reference and to see if sellers are over charging for postage. Always ask what service they will be using and weight of item plus packaging, as they say bubble wrap it, box it, bubble wrap it again, then box it again.

I had to respond to this because when I was selling on eBay it was one of my bugbears that some customers get wrongly hoity about postage charges.  What many buyers don't appreciate is that it's Postage AND Packing - which means that it's not just the stamp cost - the packing materials and and a handling charge can be levied on top - and this is in the eBay guidelines.  I would also suggest that if you're not happy with the P&P quoted on the listing, don't bid.  It's theoretically impossible to 'overcharge' someone when they've agreed to the postage charge displayed by buying the item.  The fact is simply that the buyer agreed to the postage charge then once they've received the parcel and looked at the stamp price on the parcel they decide they've been 'overcharged' without taking into consideration the packaging and handling costs which is just silly IMO.

[aa]

Postage AND Packing 

And packing is not only packaging materials, it is also time, and time is money!

It is not unusual to spend half an hour packing a single complex piece for shipment. It isn't always a five minute job.

I usually don't put a fragile sticker on a box. I prefer to pack to a standard that assumes that some of the hands that handle the parcel will not love and cherish the contents.

On practically every occasion that I have received something broken, the reason was that it was not packed properly.

But I can understand entirely why some carriers will not insure glass. It is because they know that many people will not pack it properly. Interestingly many of the carriers who say they won't carry glass or insure it, will actually do so if they are dealing with a firm that they know can pack to a satisfactory standard.

The quality and strength of the outer box is very important. If you are able to show that a strong outer has been damaged, it is easier to see a claim through, only if the piece has been packed properly inside. However, many people use just any old cardboard box. Always try to select a double wall box, but bear in mind that not all double wall cardboard is the same strength. Computer or TV boxes are the sort of strength I would recommend.

[Pinkspoons]

The fact is simply that the buyer agreed to the postage charge then once they've received the parcel and looked at the stamp price on the parcel they decide they've been 'overcharged' without taking into consideration the packaging and handling costs which is just silly IMO.

There are a couple of exceptions - there have been a few times where the stated P&P has been so high that you're lead to assume that it's going to arrive via an express service with full insurance and/or with exemplary brand new packaging materials, and it trundles up a week later by Standard Parcel wrapped in well-worn bubblewrap in a shoddy old box and has a £5-£10+ mark-up on the postage costs. I've complained in those circumstances. Another exception would be if the seller has actually stated it was going to be sent by an express service, and it arrives via a standard one. Again, this has raised complaint from me in the past.

But even if the packing material were new, it doesn't really justify that kind of price-bump. I buy all of my packing materials - and I've just run out after a very busy week and have reordered supplies - £40-£50 of bubblewrap, packing peanuts and parcel tape generally lasts me around 4-6 months. If a seller is buying in their boxes then I could understand a few pounds more on top, but I've only ever received items in new boxes on a handful of occasions.