32 ms·

Regardless of agreement, shipping and handling are not synonyms.

bluedevil2k 3y ago
“Shipping and handling” is a ubiquitous term in U.S. online stores and I’d challenge you to find any site that separates them out like Fanatics does.
- notyourwork 3y ago
  They are literally different things and always have been. Whether it’s common to bundle them isn’t really the point.
  - scott_w 3y ago
    They're a doublet, like "cease and desist." Separating the two makes about as much sense as paying someone an extra fee to "handle" the goods from the warehouse to the supermarket shelf.
    - saghm 3y ago
      Hopefully if something is done about this, they'll make the policy Fanatics currently holds both null AND void
  - bluedevil2k 3y ago
    It’s 100% the point. It’s such a common and accepted thing here that most sites just have “S & H” during the check out process. To advertise free shipping in the US implies the S&H is free. To suddenly spring a “handling” fee at the last step is deceitful and no different than airlines or hotels advertising a price and then adding a “resort fee” on the last step. And if you think differently, then why do they hide the handling fee until the very last step?
NikolaNovak 3y ago
Sure, I think at some historical point, and by dictionary definition, they are not. In practical terms in north america, I've never seen them separate, and I buy online A LOT. So if they're not synonyms (and I agree with that pedantry:), they are functionally equivalent for most people's most practical purposes. They're just a phrase that goes together. Ultimately, if a retailer advertises "FREE SHIPPING", and I find that I need to pay some additional fee beyond item's advertised price, to get the item to arrive to me, I will feel I've been deceived, whether they call that charge shipping, or handling, or gnorf.
- jffry 3y ago
  Admittedly if they advertised "FREE GNORF" I'd at least be intrigued
  - labster 3y ago
    They offer free fnords all the time but people never take them up on the offer for some reason.
    - hyperdimension 3y ago
      They include them in the box; it's just no one ever sees them through all the packing material.
Cpoll 3y ago
Regardless of semantics, a bait-and-switch is a bait-and-switch.

“Shipping and handling” is a ubiquitous term in U.S. online stores and I’d challenge you to find any site that separates them out like Fanatics does.

notyourwork 3y ago
They are literally different things and always have been. Whether it’s common to bundle them isn’t really the point.
- scott_w 3y ago
  They're a doublet, like "cease and desist." Separating the two makes about as much sense as paying someone an extra fee to "handle" the goods from the warehouse to the supermarket shelf.
  - saghm 3y ago
    Hopefully if something is done about this, they'll make the policy Fanatics currently holds both null AND void
- bluedevil2k 3y ago
  It’s 100% the point. It’s such a common and accepted thing here that most sites just have “S & H” during the check out process. To advertise free shipping in the US implies the S&H is free. To suddenly spring a “handling” fee at the last step is deceitful and no different than airlines or hotels advertising a price and then adding a “resort fee” on the last step. And if you think differently, then why do they hide the handling fee until the very last step?

NikolaNovak 3y ago

Sure, I think at some historical point, and by dictionary definition, they are not. In practical terms in north america, I've never seen them separate, and I buy online A LOT. So if they're not synonyms (and I agree with that pedantry:), they are functionally equivalent for most people's most practical purposes. They're just a phrase that goes together. Ultimately, if a retailer advertises "FREE SHIPPING", and I find that I need to pay some additional fee beyond item's advertised price, to get the item to arrive to me, I will feel I've been deceived, whether they call that charge shipping, or handling, or gnorf.

jffry 3y ago
Admittedly if they advertised "FREE GNORF" I'd at least be intrigued
- labster 3y ago
  They offer free fnords all the time but people never take them up on the offer for some reason.
  - hyperdimension 3y ago
    They include them in the box; it's just no one ever sees them through all the packing material.

Cpoll 3y ago

Regardless of semantics, a bait-and-switch is a bait-and-switch.