[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by ani_meher

I think some people are abusing Amazon's return policy heavily

Yep. I have made about 20 orders on Amazon India (although 15 of those are the same item: printer cartridge). Once I did get a used product: a vacuum cleaner that was clearly used and not cleaned. Seamless return though.

A friend had an interesting experience: she is in the habit of returning a bunch of products she orders. Not exactly to abuse the returns policy but more, to exploit it. For eg: order clothes to try them out and if she doesn't like them, return. Same with shoes etc. She has never used a product and then return it though.

A year back, she ordered a phone and a lesser variant of that phone showed up. When she called Customer Care, they refused a return stating that her account had a suspiciously high % of returns. It was after a very long-drawn conversation that Amazon finally relented.

This also reminds me of another episode. Certain WalMart and other retailer stores around the popular hilly regions in the US (Grand Canyon, Yellowstone) had/have withdrawn the returns policy for common camping gear because it was increasingly observed that people bought them, used them during the weekend camping trip and returned the items.

[ani_meher]

^^^ Previously Yebhi.com had this 'try and buy' policy, where they would ship a number of items and you keep only those that you like. People are simply extending that idea on other online sellers!


As long as the returns are for unsold items, its fair. But those who return it used should be marked and banned by online shopping sites, because they will effectively spoil the experience for other buyers.

[kavensri]

I want to share my 'pleasant' experience with ebay.in.
I had ordered OPO replacement battery and it was clearly mentioned in the item page that the return is not accepted. But i still took the risk and ordered one. After i replaced the battery, it was not charging. I searched the web and found that the main reason being 'temperature sensor' is part of the Original battery and the replacement battery that I had brought did not had that sensor.
I raised the dispute with the ebay with the technical reason for the issue and they promptly called back to enquire about the issue that I am facing. They understood the problem and agreed to refund without any further questions. Only condition was, I have to ship back the item and share the proof of shipment details. They also agreed to refund the shipping cost. I shipped it back through speed post, shared the details and next day i got the confirmation that my dispute has been resolved. They have issued the refund (through DD) which i should be receiving it soon.
So, all is well that ends well

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by ani_meher

I think some people are abusing Amazon's return policy heavily. I had ordered a toy, and it came to me in heavily used, horrible condition! I wonder how the packer who saw that used toy didn't think twice before packing.

Here you go.

Amazon has banned consumers from making purchases on their retailing site for practices such as returning too many items.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/...ers/636089002/

[bejoy]

Originally Posted by deathwalkr

Having similar issues with Aliexpress shopping done during the sale period. Got a few items, rest are still at "insert item into bag" for more than a month now!

Shall give it a week before contacting the seller and ask for refund or to extend protection period.

Originally Posted by audioholic

The items have just left Singapore.

Originally Posted by sdp1975

Ordered for a $50 tpms on aliexpress a few days ago and this is the tracking info I saw today on 17track . Does this mean a customs problem and the item being returned ? I saw an "import clearance failure" message on the aliexpress tracking.

Use the IndiaPost tracking and it is much reliable.
https://www.indiapost.gov.in/VAS/Pag...nsignment.aspx

Alternatively:
http://ipsweb.ptcmysore.gov.in/ipswebtracking/

You may have to wait for a week after your purchase to get the tracking number into the system. But when it starts giving the details, you can be sure that the parcel is really moving. The initial tracking details immediately after purchase is mostly book-keeping steps and is of no use.

[deathwalkr]

Originally Posted by bejoy

Use the IndiaPost tracking and it is much reliable.
https://www.indiapost.gov.in/VAS/Pag...nsignment.aspx

Alternatively:
http://ipsweb.ptcmysore.gov.in/ipswebtracking/

You may have to wait for a week after your purchase to get the tracking number into the system. But when it starts giving the details, you can be sure that the parcel is really moving. The initial tracking details immediately after purchase is mostly book-keeping steps and is of no use.

Got booking details on March 30th and from April 1st week, the status has been item has left origin country. Indiapost shows the same. No hope except to claim for refund since protection is running out in 2-3 days time :(

Also what is it with Amazon and their click-bait price notifications? I get deal alert mail for a 13,000 headphone, click buy now and it is at 20,000!

Other cases, see an item you like, price shown as 2,000 and shows it is available from other sellers at 1,500 onwards, go into other sellers, nowhere is 1,500 to be seen!

And is there anyway you can disable import items from showing up?

[Thad E Ginathom]

Got a consignment of herbs/supplements from iHerb, USA, a few days ago.

Did the same thing two years back, and it was a bit of a nightmare, with difficulties uploading KYC documents to DHL, and impossibility of contacting anyone at DHL who could actually find out about consignments held in customs, which was a bottleneck at the time.

On this occasion,

--- the docs already uploaded to DHL back then remain associated with my email and phone number and I didn't have to do anything else.

--- DHL emailed me re duty due (Argh! fifty-plus percent on supplements) and followed up with phone calls to confirm that I would pay the courier cash, and to arrange delivery time.

Two years ago, dealing with a DHL delivery from the same USA supplier was a bit of a nightmare. This time it was... almost a pleasure!

[condor]

Those waiting for international shipments thru India Post as local service provider - pls be ready for some delay. India Post delivery staff are on an indefinite strike since 22-May

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by condor

... India Post delivery staff are on an indefinite strike since 22-May

Thanks for the warning. That could mess up a lot of peoples' China e-shopping plans.

[KK_HakunaMatata]

Originally Posted by condor

Those waiting for international shipments thru India Post as local service provider - pls be ready for some delay. India Post delivery staff are on an indefinite strike since 22-May

I got a call from post office last Thrusday mentioning this and they asked me to collect my Ali express shipment from post office which I did the same day. Didn't knew the strike is still going on.

[condor]

Does anyone have an idea about Economy SpeedPAK shipping ?

Ordered an item from Ebay SG, and item is being shipped from China / Taiwan / HK via this method. Wondering it will be faster than the shipping from Aliexpress.

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by condor

Does anyone have an idea about Economy SpeedPAK shipping ?

Ordered an item from Ebay SG, and item is being shipped from China / Taiwan / HK via this method. Wondering it will be faster than the shipping from Aliexpress.

SpeedPAK is a tie up between Ebay and a logistics company. For countries like India, they forward it to a local company which will handle the logistics and delivery. Hence, depending upon who gets it here your delivery time will vary. If they have a tie up with Speed post for Indian consignments, then it will be slower. Do check on their website for the status. I have never tried this method.


I once had ordered some parts and requested the Ali seller to ship it using a faster method. He responded in translated english that he would use 'Professional airline service' for the same and will reach me faster. He had shipped it though a forwarder called J-NET, which had no reliable tracking. Two days later I got a call from a company in Mumbai that there was a consignment which was supposed to arrive that day and they requested my identity proof. Initially I did not believe them thinking that they were trying to scam me especially since it was a company unheard of. They shared the order details with me and I was surprised that it was my order itself. I shared them my Aadhar card scan and had to transfer the customs amount(this is the disadvantage if you want ultra fast clearance) and they cleared customs the following day(4th day from order) and reshipped it to me using Fedex. It reached me on the 6th day after ordering which was quite a surprise. SO mostly you might have the same experience too.



In similar lines, I ordered an earphone from Gearbest and it reached me in record time:

[itwasntme]

Originally Posted by condor

Those waiting for international shipments thru India Post as local service provider - pls be ready for some delay. India Post delivery staff are on an indefinite strike since 22-May

Any update on this? My AliExpress stuff is stuck!!

[diyguy]

Originally Posted by itwasntme

Any update on this? My AliExpress stuff is stuck!!

I have not felt any disruption. Got one packet yesterday and a few the week before.

[blackasta]

Originally Posted by condor

Those waiting for international shipments thru India Post as local service provider - pls be ready for some delay. India Post delivery staff are on an indefinite strike since 22-May

Originally Posted by itwasntme

Any update on this? My AliExpress stuff is stuck!!

My latest Aliexpress order was delivered on time this weekend (saturday) by IndiaPost.
There was a strike for a couple of days, and they are additionally stuck for a majority of postal banking activities due to software upgrade.