Extremely disappointing dispute…
**Extremely disappointing dispute resolution – we feel completely abandoned as a buyer** **Alibaba Case / Order No.: 28064960501049911** We are a small German start-up and placed an order for several rolls of tulle through Alibaba, relying not only on the supplier but also on Alibaba’s dispute resolution and buyer protection in case something went wrong. Unfortunately, we received material with serious quality issues. A significant part of the tulle arrived heavily wrinkled. The main problem is that these wrinkles simply cannot be removed. We tested different steaming methods – carefully, with different temperatures, distances and techniques. Nothing worked. The tulle remained wrinkled. Even worse, after carefully steaming the material, the fabric shrank. Material that was supposed to be approximately 2.00 metres wide measured only around 1.90 metres afterwards. There were also numerous holes and defects in the tulle. When we raised this issue, the supplier referred to the so-called **Four-Point System** for fabric inspection and argued that a certain number of defects should therefore be considered acceptable. However, this quality standard and the acceptance of such defects were never transparently communicated to us as part of the agreed product specifications before we placed the order. We therefore find it unacceptable that such a standard is introduced afterwards to justify holes in newly delivered material. We documented the problems extensively with photos and videos and submitted this evidence during the Alibaba dispute. What disappoints us most, however, is the way Alibaba handled the case. From our perspective, the supplier’s explanations were largely accepted, while our photos, videos and practical evidence seemed to have very little impact on the decision. We never felt that the actual usability of the material was seriously examined. The latest suggestion from the supplier was essentially that we should somehow stretch or tension the material ourselves in order to make it smooth. We do not own industrial equipment for stretching enormous rolls of tulle, nor should a customer be expected to develop a technical process to repair newly delivered material before it can even be used. **We purchased material that was supposed to be ready and suitable for manufacturing our products. We did not purchase defective material that first requires industrial treatment by the buyer.** As a German start-up, an order of this size represents a significant investment for us. We relied on Alibaba because we believed that if there was clear documented evidence of quality problems, the platform would provide a fair and independent dispute process. Unfortunately, this experience has seriously damaged that trust. What is particularly frustrating is that we provided photos, videos and measurable evidence, yet we feel that Alibaba simply adopted the supplier’s arguments instead of independently assessing the actual condition and usability of the delivered goods. We are now left with a substantial quantity of material that we cannot use for our products and no reasonable solution. We would very much welcome Alibaba reviewing this case again – independently, taking all submitted evidence into account and focusing on a very simple practical question: **Can a professional customer reasonably be expected to accept newly delivered fabric that arrives wrinkled, contains holes, cannot be smoothed through normal steaming and shrinks when carefully steamed – and then be told to find a way to stretch the material themselves?** For us, the answer is clearly no. So far, our experience with Alibaba’s dispute resolution and buyer protection has been extremely disappointing.