AliExpress Dispute via PayPal with Unbelievable Outcome

kelvinsmj on 13/01/2023 - 14:43
Last edited 13/01/2023 - 16:06 by 1 other user

Just wondering anyone experienced similar issue.

Background, I purchased a 30,000mAh Powerbank from AliExpress and it can only charge my Galaxy S7 from 25%-75%, which doesn't sounds like "as advertised" for me.

I raised a case in AliExpress (very poor site, can't really reach out to AliExpress), and it was resolved with seller asking me to return the Powerbank and they will be paying for the return shipping fee (I'm more than happy to return it with them paying the return fee).

Just to be on the safe side, I reconfirmed with the seller, and the response was yes they will pay for the return shipping fee. Again just to make sure, I sent them the estimated cost (standard parcel) and then I was told I need to pay for the return shipping fee. With few days left before the resolution expired and the seller gets the money, I've raised a dispute in PayPal (since I have no way to contact AliExpress to inform them that the seller refused to pay return shipping fee that they agreed in the dispute resolution process).

Guess what, with all the chat history from AliExpress and explaining that 30,000mAh Powerbank can only charge Galaxy S7 from 25% - 75%, the outcome of the dispute was the product is NOT significantly different from what was advertised. Seriously? Trying to understand why the decision was it's NOT significantly different, hopefully i can get hold of someone rather than talking to bot.

Please share if you have any similar experience and how do you resolve it.

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Comments

  • duk242 on 13/01/2023 - 14:44
    +48

    The golden rule of Aliexpress is to expect the worst product, then be pleasantly surprised when it comes out better.

    • kelvinsmj on 13/01/2023 - 14:49

      agree, but I was under the impression that PayPal was quite good with buyers protection, which obviously I'm wrong.

      • brendanm on 13/01/2023 - 14:56

        They are, you didn't approach it correctly.

        • kelvinsmj on 13/01/2023 - 14:59

          how should I approach it then, would really like to know

          • brendanm on 13/01/2023 - 15:00

            @kelvinsmj: Hard to know without knowing exactly what you said, but it's always easier if you make it sound way worse than it is.

            • kelvinsmj on 13/01/2023 - 15:01

              @brendanm: not sure how worst can I make it though, a 30,000mAh powerbank can't fully charge a phone isn't bad enough? it didn't explode so i don't think it's right for me to say so.

              • brendanm on 13/01/2023 - 15:04
                +2

                @kelvinsmj: Just say it doesn't work at all. I highly recommend calling PayPal and speaking to an actual person. How much was this power bank?

                • kelvinsmj on 13/01/2023 - 16:14
                  +1

                  @brendanm: You are absolutely right there. luckily it didn't cost much. Just surprised with the outcome. I wonder how Ali can still not being banned here this kind of service, with no ability to reach out to them. Any way, a lesson learnt, luckily didn't cost me too much. Staying away from Ali unless I have no other options.

                  • brendanm on 13/01/2023 - 17:25
                    +1

                    @kelvinsmj: How or why would it be banned? It's just a marketplace, you are free to purchase, or not, from them, knowing the risks associated with buying random Chinese products from random Chinese vendors. Their claims are always outrageous, and products are, more often that not, garbage. As someone said above, have expectations that it is going to be a completely failure, if it's not, great success.

                  • mhz on 15/01/2023 - 12:59

                    @kelvinsmj: Can you contact your bank to have the transaction reversed? I have done this before when PayPal refused to play ball in a similar situation.

      • lachhelix on 14/01/2023 - 12:54

        I have had 0 good experience with PayPal buyer protection - have had to revert to CC charge back every time

  • SF3 on 13/01/2023 - 14:47
    +6

    unbelievable outcome.

  • Muzeeb on 13/01/2023 - 14:49
    +2

    Sounds like eBay

  • 87percent on 13/01/2023 - 14:52
    +1

    I bought something from Ali, was instead sent some random item. Raised a dispute and the seller said “I should have filmed myself opening the package”. PayPal sided with the seller as I had “insufficient evidence”

    Luckily it was only a $3 item, but I was pissed

    • kelvinsmj on 13/01/2023 - 14:54

      did you file a dispute in AliExpress? I did for mine, and it was agreed for a refund and I return the product at seller's expense, which the seller changed his/her mind after and I can't seems to find a way in AliExpress to notify AliExpress that the seller didn't comply with the agreed resolution.

      • 87percent on 13/01/2023 - 16:07
        +1

        Yep.. waste of time.

  • holdenmg on 13/01/2023 - 14:54
    +1

    Some Samsung had a Cap on Charging that you can override.

    Goto:
    Settings/Battery and Device Care/Battery/More Battery Settings/Protect Battery (Toggle to Off).

    Then restart.

    • kelvinsmj on 13/01/2023 - 14:56

      I have been charging it with my 10,000mAh powerbank without issues. I tried charging other phones with the so called 30,000mAh powerbank, same outcome (the powerbank went down to 0% before fully charging a phone).

  • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 13/01/2023 - 14:57

    So is the powerbank flat after charging your phone to 75%? Can it then continue to charge another device? Or does your Samsung stop charging at 75%?

    If the later, the problem exists with you and your phone.

    • kelvinsmj on 13/01/2023 - 14:59

      as per my reply above, the powerbank went flat before fully charging a phone

      • PissLUR on 13/01/2023 - 15:23

        how long was the duration of charging from 25% to 75%? were you using the phone simultaneously?

        • kelvinsmj on 13/01/2023 - 16:12

          not using it. maybe about an hour or maybe less, as I don't sit there for such extended period until it goes flat.

  • CyberMurning on 13/01/2023 - 15:25
    +1

    well… dont buy random powerbank.. what brand if you dont mind telling us? and maybe the link?

    just check ozb…. thats ozb is for…. so many xiaomi, romoss, anker deal here… every week maybe.. and you still go and buy from ali… duh….

  • CyberMurning on 13/01/2023 - 15:26

    in my experience sometimes when i raised a dispute, i got the approval (Ali agree) within minutes, or hour!
    sometimes i feel the process is automatic approval for me lol;….
    and then the full refund in 2-3 days.

    well ofcourse not $1,000 items, but not 80cents either.

    • kelvinsmj on 13/01/2023 - 16:10

      the dispute with AliExpress was resolved with the seller "agree" to paying the return shipping fee, but they came back to claim that I have to pay for it, and since the case has been closed, I can't raise it to Ali that the seller changed their mind and decided not to comply with the agreed resolution

      • Richardc on 13/01/2023 - 18:04

        Did you give them the quotation for the postage? postage from AU to China can be 10X than the seller would expect.

  • Xistn on 13/01/2023 - 15:32
    +1

    I bought some phone stand, got sent a $3x toy,

    Gotta try it once right??

    Right?!…

  • Clear on 13/01/2023 - 15:56

    If we measure the real capacity of the power bank since their cells are typically rated at 3.7V, while the output is measured at 5V we should end up with a lower mAh capacity.

    3.7V x 30000mAh / 5V = 22,200mAh

    So theoretically the Galaxy S7 3000mAh battery should get 7.4 charges out of the power bank. Taking into account the power loss during charging due to efficiency a very very rough figure is about 5-6 full charges.

    So it certainly sounds like the power bank is a dud. Out of curiosity what is the brand?

    • kelvinsmj on 13/01/2023 - 16:11

      garbage brand. I know, i get what I paid for.

      • Clear on 13/01/2023 - 16:15
        +1

        If you've been with PayPal a long time you can call them and say that the return postage to send the item back to China costs more than the value of the product. They can give you a PayPal voucher for the same value of the purchase as compensation. The dispute still closes in AliExpress' favour but in a way you've been compensated.

        I did it recently when the AliExpress dispute system refused to upload videos and I had to go through PP.

        • kelvinsmj on 13/01/2023 - 16:25

          thanks for that. Will give that a try, but not putting my hopes up. prepared for the worst.

          • Clear on 13/01/2023 - 16:26
            +1

            @kelvinsmj: I was quite surprised at how good their phone support is. Getting the right department took a bit with the painful phone menu but their reps were helpful and answered quickly.

  • realbargainhunter on 13/01/2023 - 16:32
    +1

    I had bought an item worth around $28 and it never got delivered but I received a notification saying that it was delivered. I checked everywhere but never and nowhere to be found. I raised a dispute with AliExpress (based on forums at OzBargain, credit where it's due). The seller kept telling me to close the dispute and he'll refund. Few days later, AliExpress asked me to send the photo of the item (which was never delivered). **Profanity, how was I supposed to send the photo of item I never received. I justified in text which didn't convince *profanity AliExpress and they sided with the *profanity seller. I then took all the necessary screenshots to PayPal who fortunately sided with me and got my refund. Ever since then, I never buy anything worth more than $15 from AliExpress unless it's approved by OzBargain community (again, credit where it's due).

    • ChickenAdobo on 15/02/2023 - 01:16

      Fark this is me right now. Seller accept refund but want me to send back a tracking for 30 dollar when i got nothing.

  • GordonD on 13/01/2023 - 16:36

    Products are expected to meet reasonable expectations.

    The question is whether when you go to the cheapest place you can find something and it makes unbelievable claims about how many watts or watt hours or lumens or whatever its capable of, it is a reasonable expectation that it'll deliver what it claims.

    Most of us would say it isn't reasonable. That's why we don't shop there.

  • harshbdmmaster718 on 13/01/2023 - 17:06

    There are certain things you just don't purchase on Aliexpress.

    If you wanted a decent powerbank with decent efficiency and quality cells inside should have gone with one of the locally available ones on Amazon. Some have had good experiences with cheaper brands but I find Anker to be a good choice very happy with my Powercore 13000. Paid $39 shipped still happy but it has been as cheap as $29 (shipped Free with Prime).

    Gotta go but I will come back later and comment my thoughts on paypal and recent changes to Ali later.

    • harshbdmmaster718 on 13/01/2023 - 19:15
      +2

      So my thoughts on Ali.
      I used to shop their regularly for certain items.
      But as I said I noticed sellers prices going up quite a bit during covid and not coming back down. I also noticed a lot of these sellers migrated/cloned their store to Etsy under their new policies which means they could sell the same items for triple the amount, riding off of Etsy's previous reputation.
      Anyway so I ordered from there less and less. To the point I haven't ordered anything in months. But I would still go to Ali for certain items you can't find anywhere else.

      Anyway so what changed on Ali in the last year?
      Well firstly I noticed if the seller ships the item with tracking, once the item arrives to you it is automatically marked as "Confirmed item received" in the order area. Which is a confirmation process that I did not go through with in the past until fully unboxing and inspecting the item because it made it harder to dispute if something was wrong.
      e.g. you receive something else or item is broken, but tracking auto "acknowledged" the item you received so it gives the seller the upper hand.

      Secondly, they removed the chat feature. Which was a simple easy way that was in the bottom right corner of every page to contact Ali CS member directly and dispute an order (you just needed to get past the bot which wasn't hard to figure out).
      So towards the end of my shopping experience on Ali, luckily I did not have any issues with the small amount of orders I had made but if I did have an issue and needed to dispute. There was no easy way to contact Ali CS. I did not want to deal with messaging sellers directly (don't do this, best you get is USD$5 refund to keep your silence and if you don't agree you are met with silence) and the way to properly have dispute's judged was by having a Ali CS member look at the evidence.
      I did try to find where to contact Ali CS on the "new" website, but I could not find it anywhere.
      Only place contact/support areas and links took you to was a FAQs/Frequently asked questions page. Terrible.

      Now in saying all this Ali is not the only shopping website to do things like this. Amazon recently switched up their website and changed where you need to click to actually chat to support/a real person. But that was not too hard to figure out I was able to find it on the first go and just had to remember where to click.

      Forgot about paypal. So yeah I used to think paypal was a bullet proof payment method that always sides with the buyer as well. But it just seems like it's not the case.
      But most importantly, paypal no longer refunds you the return shipping amount which it used to do. So don't have confidence with that either.

      • harshbdmmaster718 on 14/01/2023 - 15:36

        I also forgot to mention one more thing.

        The reason you have hugely different opinions regarding the dispute process is (and always has been).
        Ali favours long term customers who have spent more, over those with new accounts or those who have a history/habit of issues.

        I was not a huge Ali shopper, but I did buy often enough and was always honest with my feedback and my experience was mostly positive. This was enough to get into the good books with Ali and sellers I repeatedly bought from. While I was navigating the old website I never had any issues. Mostly because I was smart about what I bought and from which sellers, but yeah just wanted to say it's not that hard to be in the good books if you are honest and smart about things.

  • Borg on 13/01/2023 - 19:08
    +1

    Grab a USB capacity tester from Aliexpress to check how many mAh it receives when charging from 0% to 100%. :-)

  • altomic on 13/01/2023 - 19:53
    +2

    I've made ~1400 orders with aliexpress.
    Raised ~10 disputes
    Only 2 have not gone my way

    One issue with aliexpress disputes is the wording/category used when raising the dispute.

    It seems as the category must specifically match the issue. But with in aliexpresss context.

    I.e. OP lodge their dispute as not as advertised when they have been more successful is using the dispute option as faulty.

    Even though you may write the same description of the problem under which ever context choice - if the context/category does nt match aliexpress's definition then you're more likely to be unsuccessful.

  • Nillionaire on 13/01/2023 - 20:03
    +1

    -> buys from aliexpress
    -> complains

  • ozboygsl on 14/01/2023 - 09:07

    both have a deservedly disgusting reputation.

  • BigBirdy on 14/01/2023 - 10:54
    +2

    Having purchased hundreds of (mostly cheap) items on AliExpress, it is very unusual for a seller to ask you to return a product. I suspect your seller was either trying to dissuade you, or they are new and don't understand western postage costs are so much higher than their own. I've found the Ali dispute handling works well. Photos always help, keep your language clear, simple and polite, and politely stand your ground with the seller. If you can't resolve it with seller, Ali has always given me a favourable result (possibly based on my long history with them). And never expect ratings on batteries, powerbanks, etc, to be accurate, instead closely examine the customer feedback to get an idea on what you're likely to get

    • Borg on 14/01/2023 - 11:30
      +1

      The problem with Ali Express (undelivered cheapie items in this case) is that one cannot dispute until "after" the 65 day est.delivery period. By then though one cannot dispute as the dispute 65 day period has expired! Catch 22 situation and ridiculous. In turn I never buy anything from vendors that note this duration as there is no recourse, unless it is the manufacturers own site e.g. Orico. They all post quickly and usually with tracking.

  • johninmelb on 14/01/2023 - 17:00

    I had two disputes with Ali last year, both resolved in my favour, money refunded, and no need to return item to China. Admittedly only low value items. I wouldn't risk more than a few bucks with them, though I recently bought some rubber tips for my 4 prong walking stick with some trepidation as they cost me $13. They arrived ok on Thursday, sooner than predicted. So am happy with that. I can only buy these tips from China. Where I can find them in Oz, they cost an arm and a leg for some reason. Not as though they are made of gold or platinum! Usually buy them from an ebay supplier in China for $17.

  • jmys01 on 22/01/2023 - 23:52
    +1

    AliExpress is for cheap dispensable items. Never buy anything of value from there especially electronics, because chances are when something goes wrong, you're on your own.

  • zond on 24/01/2023 - 15:29

    Lately have been using aliexpress quite a much, instead of feebay. Same item, cheaper and sometimes faster!!
    Had to raise few disputes, with pictures. Ali always sided with me.
    By any chance did you select return and refund? or only refund? usually I choose refund only. Its costly to return back.
    YMMV.

  • lightfoot on 25/01/2023 - 13:08

    Get an iphone

  • KnifeEnthusiastBoi on 03/04/2023 - 22:16

    I used to experience Aliexpress siding with me without any questions asked but these days not really.

    I used to buy cheap crap from Aliexpress that i dont mind not getting my money back for but as my confidence in them grew i started buying a little more expensive stuff (i.e. tablets and $30 screens that show PC temps).

    Unfortunately i might start buying less from Ali. seems like its not even worth the trouble

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