I don't like using AliExpress because delivery can be dodgy, often tracking goes into a black hole when it reaches Thailand and may or may not emerge again.

Happened last week, something finally arrived after a month, AliExpress wanted me to wait another 35 days for a refund.

I'm going to avoid it in future and stick with Lazada and Shopee

Has anyone else any recent experiences? I have been using aliexpress for components and items for various different projects for many years. Very rarely an issue, but since the import tax changes, I seem to have issues all the time.

One time - Flash turned up with a consolidated package, and claimed it was COD - we make a rule, no COD, no matter what - my wife and I worked out it was an aliexpress delivery but the guy had no invoice, the amount was just handwritten on the parcel. I found a receipt from some company beginning Ali on my flash app. My wife explained that we dont do COD and that if he came back again, we needed a tax invoice or receipt. The online invoice wasn't itemized, and it appeared a little expensive - like I had 3 items to get the choice option, maybe total 100B and the duty was almost the same.

I had a subsequent order of 3 items totaling 1000B - enter the country and then vanish. Refund came, but I had to apply on three different occasions and wait for investigation, refund was instantly to my bank card.

I don't feel like making any more orders, it's the uncertainty rather than any financial loss - I have always used Ali to get stock, often cheaper to buy 5 of the same component that one in Thailand.

2 minutes ago, recom273 said:

Has anyone else any recent experiences? I have been using aliexpress for components and items for various different projects for many years. Very rarely an issue, but since the import tax changes, I seem to have issues all the time.

One time - Flash turned up with a consolidated package, and claimed it was COD - we make a rule, no COD, no matter what - my wife and I worked out it was an aliexpress delivery but the guy had no invoice, the amount was just handwritten on the parcel. I found a receipt from some company beginning Ali on my flash app. My wife explained that we dont do COD and that if he came back again, we needed a tax invoice or receipt. The online invoice wasn't itemized, and it appeared a little expensive - like I had 3 items to get the choice option, maybe total 100B and the duty was almost the same.

I had a subsequent order of 3 items totaling 1000B - enter the country and then vanish. Refund came, but I had to apply on three different occasions and wait for investigation, refund was instantly to my bank card.

I don't feel like making any more orders, it's the uncertainty rather than any financial loss - I have always used Ali to get stock, often cheaper to buy 5 of the same component that one in Thailand.

AliExpress doesn't do COD? I haven't seen that option

10 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

AliExpress doesn't do COD? I haven't seen that option

Flash came to the gate saying they had a COD parcel - we sensed a scam, because we make a point of not using COD.

The goods were paid in as normal with a Thai debit card, the flash guy was confused, he was collecting the duty - there was a recipt on my flash phone app from a Thai company, it must be a handling agent. He let us open the parcel, the gear was a consolidated delivery from Aliexpress, so I either paid or he just took the package away. I just paid it, and did some investigating.

21 minutes ago, recom273 said:

Flash came to the gate saying they had a COD parcel - we sensed a scam, because we make a point of not using COD.

The goods were paid in as normal with a Thai debit card, the flash guy was confused, he was collecting the duty - there was a recipt on my flash phone app from a Thai company, it must be a handling agent. He let us open the parcel, the gear was a consolidated delivery from Aliexpress, so I either paid or he just took the package away. I just paid it, and did some investigating.

Maybe it's the additional import tax payable is COD, if you search AliExpress there is no COD option when ordering = you've paid already, don't pay again on delivery = scam

1 hour ago, scubascuba3 said:

Maybe it's the additional import tax payable is COD, if you search AliExpress there is no COD option when ordering = you've paid already, don't pay again on delivery = scam

The driver was confused, the only thing he knew was that it was COD, maybe it was an oversimplification for him - he knew he had to collect some money. The parcel was from aliexpress. I opened the parcel and I discovered it was a delivery from Aliexpress - if I wanted the parcel I needed to pay. I paid - there was no scam, when I researched on my flash app there was a receipt from a company, a handling agent. Since then I have made an order of 1000B, and none of the items got delivered. This is the issue.is, why are Ali or their shippers using some kind of agent - I know one thing Anutin has done was to enforce or change some import laws - in the past I never paid duty, now I seem to have paid once (this is not an issue either) and I have also lost parcels, which has never happened in the past.

Bad experience with them enough to ensure I never am going back

22 minutes ago, recom273 said:

The driver was confused, the only thing he knew was that it was COD, maybe it was an oversimplification for him - he knew he had to collect some money. The parcel was from aliexpress. I opened the parcel and I discovered it was a delivery from Aliexpress - if I wanted the parcel I needed to pay. I paid - there was no scam, when I researched on my flash app there was a receipt from a company, a handling agent. Since then I have made an order of 1000B, and none of the items got delivered. This is the issue.is, why are Ali or their shippers using some kind of agent - I know one thing Anutin has done was to enforce or change some import laws - in the past I never paid duty, now I seem to have paid once (this is not an issue either) and I have also lost parcels, which has never happened in the past.

You don't seem to understand, when you go on AliExpress can you order goods using Cash on Delivery?

30 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

You don't seem to understand, when you go on AliExpress can you order goods using Cash on Delivery?

No - you can't.

The flash driver thought it was COD, because thats all the info he had.

Simple.

50 minutes ago, earlinclaifornia said:

Bad experience with them enough to ensure I never am going back

I have had 15 years of good experience - before lazada - things would take months to arrive, never a problem.

I had some pieces like server cases, way cheaper than a Thai supplier, all I needed to do was pay the duty at the post office on collection.

On 3/26/2026 at 5:34 AM, scubascuba3 said:

I don't like using AliExpress because delivery can be dodgy, often tracking goes into a black hole when it reaches Thailand and may or may not emerge again.

Happened last week, something finally arrived after a month, AliExpress wanted me to wait another 35 days for a refund.

I'm going to avoid it in future and stick with Lazada and Shopee

I get a lot of free stuff from AliExpress. If it doesn't arrive by the expected date, the give you the OPTION to extend the delivery date. Just refuse the offer and you'll get an almost instant refund. Then when the item actually shows up days/weeks/months later it's actually free. There's no tracking for the cheaply shipped stuff so they can't stop it once it's in the system.

I order in both Thailand and the Philippines. When you order something from China via shopee (I don't use lazada), they bundle the Chinese originating packages in China and then break the shipments down and do the local deliveries with their own services. That's why something from China takes up to a week with shopee and who knows how long with AliExpress.

Always refuse the extended time in AliExpress. They make it sound like they're doing you a favor, but that's not the case.