Most reviewers were somewhat happy with their experience overall. Consumers frequently highlight the smooth purchasing process, highly efficient communication with suppliers, and consistently good product quality across all multiple orders. Many buyers also deeply appreciate the helpful support provided by agents, secure packaging, and reliable tracking services.
However, some customers also noted significant issues with severely delayed shipments, unsealed boxes, and missing components. People additionally mentioned receiving defective items, encountering unhelpful sellers, and facing difficult obstacles when requesting refunds or resolving disputes. Others expressed deep frustration regarding inadequate customer assistance when serious problems suddenly arose with their valuable purchases.
Truly "Caveat emptor". I purchase from this site from the consumer perspective, meaning I'm not buy large quantities of items. Sometimes it works out but lately I've had a few purchases go wrong that were no fault of my own. Products were either not as shown or the description on fit were either were unclear or completely incorrect. However when you purchase you feel safe because of their "order protection". This protection is a farce in my opinion and only serves to give a false sense of security. It protects the seller more than the consumer. They'll say you can ship it back for a full refund but that's on your dime and is quite expensive. Shipping goods from China to the US is significantly cheaper than vice-versa. Knowing that they low ball you on the refund amount (my experience is around 25% of the purchase price) which leaves you out money. Chances are the product you bought costs pennies on the dollar relative to what they sold it for so they're still making a decent profit on their unrecoverable goods. Buying here is a bit like gambling. Be sure you're comfortable with the risk in case things don't work out.
Sourcing from China is difficult and Alibaba makes it more difficult.
Alibaba TA for some reason flags purchases risky which makes it impossible for buyers to make payments. I have used my credit cards and bank accounts to make 12 purchases and out of that 3 of them were blocked by Alibaba for being risky. Alibaba will not give OK to the supplier to send the product until they have the money. Who is at risk here – buyer or Alibaba?
I have made 12 purchases and 3 of them have been flagged risky. They keep on giving me instructions to have my supplier change the order so I can pay by T/T. 2 of my suppliers refuse to do it. I ended up paying for one order via PayPal, but it is expensive.
I understand there is a need for security but not to the point where they chock the businesses. It is frustrating and I am having my doubts that there is viable business importing Chinese goods.
I am providing the 2 orders that were flagged risky today. Please do not give me the canned answer that the orders are flagged risky and that I should tell me supplier to change the export service of this order from "Not Choose Onetouch" to "Choose Onetouch as customs clearance agency". After modification, you will be able to make payment via T/T.
My suppliers will not do it and the only option I have is wire the money to suppliers bank account which I will never do.
The reason i used Alibaba was because of the strong guarantee they appeared to offer and it was a porthole to Chinese business. I am disappointed with the convoluted way they conduct business in general but the issue here is they expired my trade assurance contract prior to my receiving my goods. They do not have an email contact and any issue you need to address must be in a chat with someone who might not resolve but rather offer "on the fly" suggestions which is not the way to address some problems. Can merchants just game the system and delay your delivery and you are no longer covered? I have not received my package yet and to be fair, there is still apparently a 15 day dispute mechanism but if there is an issue like the package disappears or is damaged in delivery and that type of thing, i don't know how that will be fixable. Basically, it is nothing short of bizarre that Alibaba would "expire" their delivery insurance the day before the goods are supposed to arrive and they don't have an email address to deal with customer problems!!! Wow
10/dec/17 update, Apparently there has been some changes to the period of coverage for "trade assurance" guarantee. It is now extended until after receipt of goods for 30 days. That is very positive news.and for me, it makes all the difference. A guarantee is absolutely necessary for me. I will likely do more business under these conditions
Messed around should be the title of this website!
Its really not straight forward buying from Alibaba unless you go to the wholesale part and even then i encountered problems there. I purchased something in wholesale to find a message from the seller asking me to cancel the transaction and pay through paypal instead because the Alibaba fees were too expensive. So i opened a dispute as advised to start the refund process and found that the payment wouldn't be refunded until after 7 days. So i wait and i receive a refund, less £3, unbelievable!! And i didn't trust the wholesaler after that after being told 3 different quotes, after them trying to make me accept in the invoice less units so i was paying more per unit on a few occasions and now this refund mess, forget it!! My first ever order wasn't too bad, but the units were not wrapped well leaving me with damaged items and boxes. Still waiting for one more order to come through and i hope it isn't like the first two, i keep my fingers crossed!!
We purchased 7 Ebikes from Shenzhen Shenhai Mechanical and Electrical with good warranties. As soon as the 1st warranty claim was submitted, they fell off the radar. I submitted a complaint to Alibaba but all they said they would do was put a comment on the sellers mini site, a slap on the wrist with a wet bus ticket. As a minimum, they should have barred them from trading on Alibaba. However, after discussions with my colleagues in New Zealand and overseas, we have decided to severely restrict our trading through Alibaba until they sort out an amicable solution to this situation.
Alibaba should not be seen to be supporting dodgy traders that do not honour their warranty periods on their own merchandise.
You need to be careful if you buy valuables in here unless you go and see them in person, I have bought gemstone from Rough International in Pakistan and he is not a guy to work with, I mean he try to sell junk to you.
AliExpress
Joom
Temu
DHgate
Etsy
Made-in-China.com
Amazon
eBay