High rate of non-delivery or incorrect items - different sellers

macrocephalic on 08/07/2016 - 15:05

This is just a general observation.

In the last year or so I've taken to actively tracking and reporting all purchases that don't arrive or are the wrong thing. I'm sick of waiting for things that never arrive. It seems that from any overseas vendor, I have about a 20% chance of either not getting my item, or not getting the correct item. With all the cheap doodads that I buy (thanks OzB) I seem to be forever chasing refunds through PayPal now.

It's not just that I'm choosing dodgy sellers; often I just choose the cheapest on ebay, but some of the non-delivered items have been from reputable sellers who have deals posted on here often. It's actually come to the point that, if I actually need something (spare part), and it's under $5, then I'll order it from two different sellers - because it's a fair bet that one won't arrive. Some of the more recent ones are: An item stuck indefinitely in Malaysian customs, an item shipping to Netherlands instead of Australia, and getting the wrong part (dropshipped no doubt) - and that doesn't even take into account the non-tracked no shows.

Has anyone else noticed this? Is this what the world has come to, that I have to buy extra things just so I can be sure I get one of them?

General Discussion

Comments

  • SnoozeAndLose on 08/07/2016 - 15:10
    +1

    hat why you are buying from ebay and if it is not arrived, the seller has not proved that they have sent it and have to refund you in a short period of time.

    • macrocephalic on 08/07/2016 - 15:14

      I have been doing that lately. In the past I was less diligent and I probably have tens of items that haven't arrived over the years.

      It's a bit inconvenient having to go through the process all the time - I had to provide multiple photographs of an obviously wrong product recently before the seller would refund my USD1.55 (I'm doing it on principle). I seem to always have at least one PayPal dispute open all the time.

      I was just wondering if this happens to others.

      • SnoozeAndLose on 08/07/2016 - 15:24

        it happens to me one time the seller just a big parcel from China with a ultra thin package bag and no bubble wrap as all. The bag is cracked open and seller just ignored my email. Luckily ebay got me refunded.

        I have only use ebay to buy stuff, although sometime is a bit more expansive, it is worth for the protection.

  • StewBalls on 08/07/2016 - 15:27
    +1

    I reckon you're just having a bad run, I've been ordering from eBay more of late & I was actually thinking that my deliveries were getting quicker & more reliable! ;)

  • [Deactivated] on 08/07/2016 - 16:55
    +1

    I have a work colleague that ordered a Samsung s2 watch and it was shipped to the Ukraine. He eventually got it but it had to be returned from there before he got it. Pretty poor form, he should have been sent another one and the seller should have been left to wait 2 weeks for it to arrive back to him.

    • macrocephalic on 08/07/2016 - 17:52

      Currently I'm waiting for a Xiaomi battery pack to arrive. The tracking number shows that it has been shipped to Netherlands. I informed the seller and just got a response, this afternoon, from the customer service officer named Dodo (I shit you not) who told me:

      "Because the shipping method is Standard Shipping,so there is no tracking number.

      But you could use the number XXXXXXXXXXXX to check your order on the web:

      http://www.flytexpress.com/Tracking/PackageTracking_En.aspx?… "

      Of course the link they sent shows the tracking of the parcel and that it was provided to the local courier in Amsterdam on 2016-06-15.

      They have said that shipping may take 25 business days. I will give them the benefit of the doubt and wait one more week before I lodge a PayPal dispute.

      • pinchies on 08/07/2016 - 18:43

        Netherlands post is common for HK sellers to use as it is quite cheap and still faster than china post. Don't be put off by it going to amsterdam.

  • [Deactivated] on 08/07/2016 - 18:31

    Just put in a dispute about an IP camera that I cant get to connect, one hour later I had notices of full $21 refund. It's certainly not all bad, especially if I work out the camera issue.

    Last year I had 2x 3M car wax take 4.5 months from Aliexpress, and something else take 3 months. More free stuff. The wait can be deadly.

  • aoeueoa on 08/07/2016 - 20:10

    Since you're tracking, exactly how many ordered/arrived/lost/wrong?

  • Miss B on 09/07/2016 - 09:55

    I have been ordering from places like eBay, Everbuying and Aliexpress. So far everything I have ordered has been as described and received. Obviously some things are still on the way. I keep a spreadsheet of items and note sent/delivery dates and most of my items from China come in ~ 3 weeks. I had one item arrive in 8 days, but all others have been at least 2 weeks. During my early tracking, same seller, NL Post my orders were all taking 12 days to arrive in Ausralia and clear customs. Then were taking ~3 days to 2 weeks to get to me from there. All of the variability in those was AusPost. Now because I'm ordering from all over the place it's more variable and they don't always show arriving/customs in Australia. I ordered one item from the Philippines and it arrived in 2 weeks so it's possible shipping is quicker from there, or it could have been a once off.

    The main issue I have had recently is an eBay seller with 99% positive feedback. There was an item available for ~$1 from a number of sellers in China. I wanted it quicker so I ordered one listed in Australia for ~$5. Only then did I read the feedback saying they lie and actually ship from China. I'm still kicking myself for not reading the negative feedback before buying, I normally do.

    Pretty much everything I order is a want rather than a need and they're mostly low cost items, so I'm not too worried abut things going wrong. I've had a good run though.

    I have found the tracker suggested by sellers to sometimes be wrong and primarily use packageradar.com with a rarely used email address, although it hasn't worked for all of them. I just try different trackers until I find one that works (not always successfully). None of the NL Post items I have received seem to show them actually going to the Netherlands so that doesn't sound good. I hope your luck starts to turn around.

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