shipping returned goods to china

[Thrasherg]

Ladies & gentlemen, I recently purchased 3 different flying drones from China, all 3 have no resemblance to the item described by the seller. All 3 sellers have agreed to provide a full refund if I return the items. The items cost $60, $80 and $150 each, I took them to the post office and they want $70 to ship each parcel with a tracking number to China!! I cant believe the seller was able to ship them to the USA with a tracking number for less than $10, feel I am being ripped off by the post office, obviously there is no sense in shipping the first 2 products back if the shipping will cost more than the refund, even the most expensive item really doesn't make too much sense, it will be nice to get $80 back but I believe all 3 blatantly misled me and see no reason why I should be so out of pocket. I have asked paypal for their help, but they have been very quiet so far. Has anyone found a way to send parts back to china with a tracking number for a reasonable cost?

Thanks for all/any suggestions.

[kernowlass]

@Frainy 

Gosh, no way would I buy toys from China for my grandchildren !!!!

Their safety standards are awful and toys are often unsafe, would rather pay three times as much for a UK made one or UK checked one.

[Scoobee]

PayPal is a scam, just like the vendors in China and PayPal works with them hand and hand. Never use PayPal to pay for anything unless it's through places like eBay which will try and protect you from scam artist. PayPal receives 100s of complaints from the same vendors, but yet let's them operate freely through PayPal. Don't forget PayPal gets a percentage of the profit/transaction from the scams. You order a toaster and they send you a flashlight... Ok, PayPal steps in, the vendor agrees to refund, but you have to send it back first, and then you find out the postage is more then the item and they got you! .... PayPal allows this to happen over and over again. eBay will make then sender/scammer pay the shipping to return item which stops all of this from happening... PayPal does not.

[Crafter76]

I’ve found PayPal to be effectively useless in resolving disputes involving a Chinese merchant. After waiting over a month, I finally received a flashlight I’d ordered from a Chinese merchant, Banggood, for $80. The flashlight began malfunctioning within the first hour. By the next day, the flashlight malfunctioned constantly. I contacted Banggood and provided them with all the information they requested: pictures of the flashlight, shipping label, SKU code, batteries used, and videos showing how the flashlight was malfunctioning.

After Banggood refused to give me a refund or prepaid return postage, I opened a PayPal dispute. This was an ordeal since I purchased the flashlight using PayPal’s “guest checkout.” Every time I contact PayPal, I have to wait two to four hours online or on a phone before I’m connected with the “specialists” who handle “guest checkout” disputes. PayPal customer service directed me to return the defective flashlight to an address in China (even though Banggood has a facility in the USA) and to use a shipping method with a tracking number. While it only cost Banggood less than $2 to ship the package to me, with a tracking number that worked all the way, return shipping to China is extremely expensive. UPS quoted $150, FedEx wanted over $80. I returned the flashlight via USPS First-Class Package International Service with a tracking number for $23.50. I provided pictures of the package (showing I used the address PayPal specified) and the USPS tracking number to PayPal. PayPal said I would receive a refund once the package was delivered.

Here’s the problem: USPS First-Class and Priority Mail tracking numbers aren’t scanned once a package enters the Chinese postal system. My package reached China on January 12, 2020; the USPS tracking number still says “In Transit to Next Facility.” It will still say that six months or six years from now since USPS First-Class and Priority Mail tracking numbers don’t work inside China or numerous other countries.

PayPal has refused to refund my $80 even though I provided them with proof the flashlight was obviously defective and that I’d returned it using a method PayPal told me to use. I then opened a dispute with Chase Bank since the purchase was made on my Chase Amazon Visa card. Chase initially posted a $80 chargeback. Earlier today, I received a phone call from Chase customer service informing me they’re restoring the $80 charge since I can’t prove Banggood received the returned item. I can’t prove the package was delivered because USPS tracking numbers don’t work inside China. Every shipping method I’ve researched which has tracking numbers that work inside China cost more than the $80 I paid for the flashlight.

For all practical purposes, the “protection” PayPal and credit card companies afford consumers who receive defective or incorrect merchandise from Chinese vendors is worthless.

[THVPK]

I did the following and got the full refund right away:

1. I indicated in paypal resolution center that I want to return the item.

2. In the shipping company I entered XXXX

3. In the Tracking Number I entered NOT SHIPPED

4. In the Message box I clearly explained that the transaction was fraudulent and requested Paypal to address the problem by giving me a full refund

5. Within hours, I got a reply from the seller that they have initiated a full refund. No mention of returning the item anymore.

[Gh63]

This was my second time getting ripped off from items coming from China, the false advertisement on Facebook- the name itself “marsmall”, after reviewing some of the write-ups about sending stuff back, I’m see if I can get a charge- back from my credit- card, I’m think I’m going to leave Pay-Pal alone as well, cause they aren’t any help with getting your refund back from China and you would know if Pay-Pal was in your side, look at how many complaints on stuff coming from China!!😡😡- I’m done.

[terrilonghorn]

Hi Scoobee, so well put, you are 100% correct, xx

[exhaustman]

Bought a Laurence Robot what I received was nothing like what was advertised, I also noticed that payment was to Dressing.co.ltd company house do not list this as a limited UK company, I reported this to PayPal as it looked like a fraud was taking place, after some weeks their solution send the item back with tracking, the cost of which was three quarters of what I paid for the item. Under the circumstances the seller should pay for the return costs, PayPal why are you dealing with these companies you must know what is going on. I am disgusted with Paypal

[Rem131]

This is the same thing I am going through. The company claimed to be in the US. I bought The stuff because I trusted PayPal and now I have to ship to China. That’s not right and I can’t do anything but upload the tracking number for the parcels. This is ridiculous.

[kernowlass]

@Rem131 

Chinese Web Sites or on Facebook easy to spot so buyer beware.

1. No return address on the returns policy............thats because the site will look as if its in your country (where they despatch goods from) BUT they will ask for returns to go back to China (returns depot) at a shipping cost nearly always more than the item is worth.
2. No contact telephone number............if you click on contact the most you will get is webmail or an email address.
3. No company address information.
4. Great looking items at bargain prices that turn out to be tat.

In the event of a dispute you need to bear in mind possible return trackable costs before you buy from that seller / item / country.

Paypal state this >>
PayPal is not obliged to reimburse you for any costs that you incur to comply with any of PayPal’s requests for cooperation for the purpose of resolving the problem (including, without limitation, costs that you incur to return a SNAD item to the Payment Recipient or another party as PayPal requests), although sometimes it may reimburse these costs.

Although they will compensate you for some of the cost if you have activated this at some point before you made that transaction.
https://www.paypal.com/us/selfhelp/article/what-is-return-shipping-on-us-and-how-do-i-activate-it-fa...

You also have the option to do a chargeback via your card issuer instead of a Paypal dispute if you funded your Paypal payment via a credit card.

[chillcat]

I just had a custom guitar made in china with my name on the logo, problem is the guitar turned out to be defected, I got a letter from a local luthier who described it as been cut crooked and unrepairable, he told me to show this to the bank and not to order a custom guitar from the Chinese ebay seller again but one that is in stock with no counterfeit logo like Fender Gibson or Gretch etc,

So i shared the photos with the luthier in china and he immediately agreed to replace the guitar, claimed it was already in production, this dragged out for a month, then he claimed it was been painted, he did not insist I drop the paypal case but instead said it was mistake and I will have to pay more to ship the old guitar back and HE DID NOT WANT IT as the shipping label clearly states it was made in China,

On top of this paypal was at the verge of closing the case and they had agreed to extend the time frame twice but encouraged me to return the guitar anyway, after the second time the luthier in china started to get frustrated and out wardly lying, I found a guitar exactly like the one I had asked him to produce and he had 5 in stock, I asked him why he did not tell me if they had this already, I was expecting an answer like there was a counterfeit logo on it, they can remove those easily from what I read by covering it with a different one, but his answer was again vague, he said he willl send it but had to be sure it was sprayed, assuming he was talking about paint I asked why if its the exact colour I ordered? he ignored the question and just gave me a tracking number, but the item showed that it was been shipped to the US and I am in France recording, now stuck in France due to a virus issue. ,

I asked him about the tracking number and a few days later and he just sent me a newer tracking number (just to note there is a email every day from him saying tomorrow I will check, then tomorrow I will do this, tomorrow I will do that, wasting time) but today his email not only included a tracking number but a photo of a EMS label in Chinese when translated  showed that it was the label used in December 2019, not march 2020... will paypal see our emails to confirm this scammer or not?

Paypal now gave me ten days to get a letter from the post office stating that they can not ship to france, although there is a sign at the post offices as well as info on French government websites saying this including the fact that products made in china are not allowed back into the country., something I never heard of.

I don't want to hijack your thread but any advise about this is appreciated, and im just saying, this is out of control.