Why is buying from China so hit and miss?

[wellred]

It's hit or miss because they don't know how to instill any sense of originality. Everything there is a copy of something they have seen elsewhere. Imitation.

[giddyup]

Most of the Chinese / HK ebay shops have good reviews. Not a big risk to order cheaper items.

I just got refunded by a HK-shop, after I didn't receive the cheap item I ordered. A lot seems to get lost in the post.

Lost? I'm not sure if the items ever get sent in the first place. Either that or they have the worst postal system in the world.

Why would they refund me if the items never get sent? Makes no sense.

Just choose a shop with 99+% positive reviews. Those people did receive their items.

If they never sent the item why wouldn't they refund you? They aren't out of pocket. Read the feedback for the Chinese sellers, nearly all the bad feedback is for items that weren't received.

[soundman]

I am going to add to this topic. I am currently in Australia, and have been on and off for the last few months. I have ordered many dozens of things from China (and Hong Kong), both from Ebay and direct with China companies. I have not had one thing go missing or any problems whatsoever with China post. In fact many things come withing 3 or 4 working days on regular postage service which I find absolutely amazing given that DHL takes two days.

Stuff not turning up or turning up slow in Thailand will be almost always be to blame from Thai customs in my opinion.

[giddyup]

I am going to add to this topic. I am currently in Australia, and have been on and off for the last few months. I have ordered many dozens of things from China (and Hong Kong), both from Ebay and direct with China companies. I have not had one thing go missing or any problems whatsoever with China post. In fact many things come withing 3 or 4 working days on regular postage service which I find absolutely amazing given that DHL takes two days.

Stuff not turning up or turning up slow in Thailand will be almost always be to blame from Thai customs in my opinion.

Rubbish! I have lived in Thailand for 4 years and ordered dozens of items from Ebay, the sellers have been from the US, UK, Australia, Europe, Singapore and China. The ONLY items that have gone missing are from China and if they do eventually arrive it has taken nearly a month. Most of the items from China have been low cost items under $50, whereas some of the other things from the US etc have been worth several hundred dollars, so if pilfering was occurring in Thailand surely it would occur across the board, not just from China.

[kikoman]

I have used the Thai Postal service extensively in the last decade, always had reliable service, slow but reliable. I also had a 3000 baht import charge on a item that cost $20.00 in the states, I refused delivery and lodged a complaint with customs and Thai postal service, including a copy of the bill of sale.

A week later the item was left in my mail box with no added custom charges.

I have read on this forum you can not win a custom overcharge compliant, i filed my complaint not yelling and/or demanding, i provide the bill of sale and also advised the postal service that I would not pay any import duty greater than the 7% of the cost of the item imported. If it was a charge greater than 7% they could keep the item.

I do not know the reason for the custom decision, the professional manner in which I filed my complaint, The good intentions of Thai Customs/ or the Thai Postal Service, or the fact that they could not use the "Masa Harina" for anything!

Cheers:

[robblok]

I am going to add to this topic. I am currently in Australia, and have been on and off for the last few months. I have ordered many dozens of things from China (and Hong Kong), both from Ebay and direct with China companies. I have not had one thing go missing or any problems whatsoever with China post. In fact many things come withing 3 or 4 working days on regular postage service which I find absolutely amazing given that DHL takes two days.

Stuff not turning up or turning up slow in Thailand will be almost always be to blame from Thai customs in my opinion.

Rubbish! I have lived in Thailand for 4 years and ordered dozens of items from Ebay, the sellers have been from the US, UK, Australia, Europe, Singapore and China. The ONLY items that have gone missing are from China and if they do eventually arrive it has taken nearly a month. Most of the items from China have been low cost items under $50, whereas some of the other things from the US etc have been worth several hundred dollars, so if pilfering was occurring in Thailand surely it would occur across the board, not just from China.

I haven't missed a thing, but you have to factor in that those Chinese parcels are not signed for my other parcels even UK and US are often signed for. I am lucky to have a good postman and reward him with a bottle of JW each year. But i can imagine in Pattaya things get lost easier if they are not signed for.

Signed for does not mean with tracking nr, those are even more expensive.

[greg71]

When i order my stuff from Chinese companies i have the option of Singapore Post ,never had a prob ever.

[giddyup]

When i order my stuff from Chinese companies i have the option of Singapore Post ,never had a prob ever.

How do they send via Singapore Post from China?

[smooth expat]

Why not buy it from a US based seller?

[greg71]

When i order my stuff from Chinese companies i have the option of Singapore Post ,never had a prob ever.

How do they send via Singapore Post from China?

Like i mentioned its an option for 1 Us dollar from the company itself.Fasttech is the name.

[jbrain]

Why not buy it from a US based seller?

ecause most of the US basewd sellers will not ship to Thailand.

[giddyup]

Why not buy it from a US based seller?

Because some items aren't available from the US, also some US sellers don't want to ship to Thailand.

[giddyup]

This is typical of the Chinese sellers. I ordered the item nearly a week ago and I just get this response:

"dear friend
Sorry to tell you that the item have been stopped manufactured and in this case ,we will issue a full refund to you .if you make any inconvenience to you .here we apologise for you .thansk you for your understanding .have a nice day and we also hope you become our future customer so if are into our other item ,you can mail to us ."

This is the second time I've ordered the same item from different sellers. Six weeks later I still haven't got what I ordered. Too many of them are advertising products that they don't have or are no longer in production. They are just bloody timewasters.

[giddyup]

When i order my stuff from Chinese companies i have the option of Singapore Post ,never had a prob ever.

How do they send via Singapore Post from China?

Like i mentioned its an option for 1 Us dollar from the company itself.Fasttech is the name.

I had a look at Fasttech, I can't see where it says even what country the item is being shipped from or the option of shipping via Singapore Post.

[jbrain]

When i order my stuff from Chinese companies i have the option of Singapore Post ,never had a prob ever.

How do they send via Singapore Post from China?

Like i mentioned its an option for 1 Us dollar from the company itself.Fasttech is the name.

I had a look at Fasttech, I can't see where it says even what country the item is being shipped from or the option of shipping via Singapore Post.

I was earlier today searching for a battery on Aliexpress, form Hong Kong companies, and with a few I got the option, China post, HK post or Singapore post. There was even one who had an addional option for Sweden post.

[Bcgardener]

Ordered a lot from Aliexpress in the past, not anymore since they are 30% more expensive for the exact same item from the same seller on Ebay these days, never had anything got lost. But I never buy items shipped by China Post. On Aliexpress you always have a choice of how you want it to be shipped, and I will choose EMS. Sometimes it will cost a little extra, but it's worth the time saved and the security.On Ebay most items are shipped by USPS priority mail. which provides you with a tracking number.

As for the FTA's, these can only be honored if you have the right import documents, and you can only larger companies that have an export license will be able to provide you with those. Ebay and the Chinese online sites are all drop shippers and have no access to these kind of documents.

To import from China under the FTA the supplier must send a Chinese Government Form 'E' with the paperwork. However the Form 'E' can only be used by Thai companies registered with Thai Customs for Import. In most cases this is called a Paperless Customs registration. It can't be used by a person importing from China.

[greg71]

When i order my stuff from Chinese companies i have the option of Singapore Post ,never had a prob ever.

How do they send via Singapore Post from China?

Like i mentioned its an option for 1 Us dollar from the company itself.Fasttech is the name.

I had a look at Fasttech, I can't see where it says even what country the item is being shipped from or the option of shipping via Singapore Post.

Its a Chinese company from Hong Kong ,and when you checkout your items you then get the postage options .You must register and log in to do this .

[h90]

Ordered a lot from Aliexpress in the past, not anymore since they are 30% more expensive for the exact same item from the same seller on Ebay these days, never had anything got lost. But I never buy items shipped by China Post. On Aliexpress you always have a choice of how you want it to be shipped, and I will choose EMS. Sometimes it will cost a little extra, but it's worth the time saved and the security.On Ebay most items are shipped by USPS priority mail. which provides you with a tracking number.

As for the FTA's, these can only be honored if you have the right import documents, and you can only larger companies that have an export license will be able to provide you with those. Ebay and the Chinese online sites are all drop shippers and have no access to these kind of documents.

To import from China under the FTA the supplier must send a Chinese Government Form 'E' with the paperwork. However the Form 'E' can only be used by Thai companies registered with Thai Customs for Import. In most cases this is called a Paperless Customs registration. It can't be used by a person importing from China.

And it is expensive I got told.

[Bcgardener]

 

Ordered a lot from Aliexpress in the past, not anymore since they are 30% more expensive for the exact same item from the same seller on Ebay these days, never had anything got lost. But I never buy items shipped by China Post. On Aliexpress you always have a choice of how you want it to be shipped, and I will choose EMS. Sometimes it will cost a little extra,  but it's worth the time saved and the security.On Ebay most items are shipped by USPS priority mail. which provides you with a tracking number.

 

As for the FTA's, these can only be honored if you have the right import documents, and you can only larger companies that have an export license will be able to provide you with those. Ebay and the Chinese online sites are all drop shippers and have no access to these kind of documents.

To import from China under the FTA the supplier must send a Chinese Government Form 'E' with the paperwork. However the Form 'E' can only be used by Thai companies registered with Thai Customs for Import. In most cases this is called a Paperless Customs registration. It can't be used by a person importing from China.

 

 

And it is expensive I got told.

It is not that expensive to register with Thai Customs but you must have a proper Thai company and registered for VAT. Normally a freight forwarder will do all this for you for free or a small fee. The cost of the Form E can vary from nothing to around USD100. It depends on the size of your purchase. If we order 6 or 7 thousand dollars it is included but if we only order a few hundred dollars then we normally pay around 50 Dollars

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[soundman]

I am going to add to this topic. I am currently in Australia, and have been on and off for the last few months. I have ordered many dozens of things from China (and Hong Kong), both from Ebay and direct with China companies. I have not had one thing go missing or any problems whatsoever with China post. In fact many things come withing 3 or 4 working days on regular postage service which I find absolutely amazing given that DHL takes two days.

Stuff not turning up or turning up slow in Thailand will be almost always be to blame from Thai customs in my opinion.

Rubbish! I have lived in Thailand for 4 years and ordered dozens of items from Ebay, the sellers have been from the US, UK, Australia, Europe, Singapore and China. The ONLY items that have gone missing are from China and if they do eventually arrive it has taken nearly a month. Most of the items from China have been low cost items under $50, whereas some of the other things from the US etc have been worth several hundred dollars, so if pilfering was occurring in Thailand surely it would occur across the board, not just from China.

Actually, the most items I have had go missing or arrive tampered with have been sent from Australia to Thailand.

Of over 50 items sent this direction over a ten year period, nearly half have not arrived or have been tampered with to some extent, including individual items missing from multiple item packages.

I don't think it is Australia Post doing the pilfering or tampering.

So who would you blame that on?

[giddyup]

I am going to add to this topic. I am currently in Australia, and have been on and off for the last few months. I have ordered many dozens of things from China (and Hong Kong), both from Ebay and direct with China companies. I have not had one thing go missing or any problems whatsoever with China post. In fact many things come withing 3 or 4 working days on regular postage service which I find absolutely amazing given that DHL takes two days.

Stuff not turning up or turning up slow in Thailand will be almost always be to blame from Thai customs in my opinion.

Rubbish! I have lived in Thailand for 4 years and ordered dozens of items from Ebay, the sellers have been from the US, UK, Australia, Europe, Singapore and China. The ONLY items that have gone missing are from China and if they do eventually arrive it has taken nearly a month. Most of the items from China have been low cost items under $50, whereas some of the other things from the US etc have been worth several hundred dollars, so if pilfering was occurring in Thailand surely it would occur across the board, not just from China.

Actually, the most items I have had go missing or arrive tampered with have been sent from Australia to Thailand.

Of over 50 items sent this direction over a ten year period, nearly half have not arrived or have been tampered with to some extent, including individual items missing from multiple item packages.

I don't think it is Australia Post doing the pilfering or tampering.

So who would you blame that on?

I have direct proof that some Chinese sellers will take your money without having the item you purchased in stock or even knowing if it's available. Then they will make you wait a month before refunding your money. Are you saying that the postal thief only selected items from Australia to steal? Very discerning of him.

[robblok]

I am going to add to this topic. I am currently in Australia, and have been on and off for the last few months. I have ordered many dozens of things from China (and Hong Kong), both from Ebay and direct with China companies. I have not had one thing go missing or any problems whatsoever with China post. In fact many things come withing 3 or 4 working days on regular postage service which I find absolutely amazing given that DHL takes two days.

Stuff not turning up or turning up slow in Thailand will be almost always be to blame from Thai customs in my opinion.

Rubbish! I have lived in Thailand for 4 years and ordered dozens of items from Ebay, the sellers have been from the US, UK, Australia, Europe, Singapore and China. The ONLY items that have gone missing are from China and if they do eventually arrive it has taken nearly a month. Most of the items from China have been low cost items under $50, whereas some of the other things from the US etc have been worth several hundred dollars, so if pilfering was occurring in Thailand surely it would occur across the board, not just from China.

Actually, the most items I have had go missing or arrive tampered with have been sent from Australia to Thailand.

Of over 50 items sent this direction over a ten year period, nearly half have not arrived or have been tampered with to some extent, including individual items missing from multiple item packages.

I don't think it is Australia Post doing the pilfering or tampering.

So who would you blame that on?

I have direct proof that some Chinese sellers will take your money without having the item you purchased in stock or even knowing if it's available. Then they will make you wait a month before refunding your money. Are you saying that the postal thief only selected items from Australia to steal? Very discerning of him.

I think what he is saying is that your postman is a thief. Just read it again he says buying stuff from china in Oz does not give a problem. But sending stuff from Oz to Thailand it often never arrives.

Fact is I hear a lot of people complaining about Thai post usually people in Pattaya. One of my friends lost countless items sometimes they dont even bother putting EMS notifications in his postbox. I have send him stuff from BKK to Pattaya by EMS and he then has to look at the post office if its there. If this is done with EMS what chances does normal post that is not registered have.

I am lucky to live a lil outside of BKK and have a good postman who I reward with a bottle of JW at times. Think its time again to give him one just to keep him on the game and express gratitude. I would not advise this in Pattaya unless you got a regular mailman and he is doing a good job.

[jbrain]

I think what he is saying is that your postman is a thief.

Who would ever have suspected sucha thing from a Thai postman

[giddyup]

I think what he is saying is that your postman is a thief.

Who would ever have suspected sucha thing from a Thai postman

Actually, my postman is a great guy and I trust him 100% to deliver all my mail. I'll say it once again because my point doesn't seem to get through to some, the ONLY items I haven't received are those from China, which I don't believe were ever sent in the first place. Items from the UK, US, Australia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Europe have all arrived without a problem.

[Whale]

Am surprised by all the negative comments, I use ebay extensively, esp for shipments from China and US. 114 purchases in the last 2 years and every single one has arrived. China Post is slow but its always gotten here eventually.

[robblok]

I think what he is saying is that your postman is a thief.

Who would ever have suspected sucha thing from a Thai postman

Actually, my postman is a great guy and I trust him 100% to deliver all my mail. I'll say it once again because my point doesn't seem to get through to some, the ONLY items I haven't received are those from China, which I don't believe were ever sent in the first place. Items from the UK, US, Australia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Europe have all arrived without a problem.

Ok if you rule out your postman and seems you do and if you vouch for him who am i to say its untrue. Just heard a lot of things about Pattaya and post. My mailman is great too so its quite possible.

Then I must say you have been real unlucky, did you use paypal to pay ? Usually that helps keep them honest as I buy by ebay from china and so far nothing has gone missing.

[DtemJai]

All of my items I bought with a label “Made in China” broke, got a shock, internal malfunction, self- destruct , or got xxxx up in other ways in a short time period.
Except for multi-national brands who manufacture there, and Chinese full clone to the original Honda spec of my lawnmower & portable power generator, 1000 watts, 8000 baht.

[giddyup]

I think what he is saying is that your postman is a thief.

Who would ever have suspected sucha thing from a Thai postman

Actually, my postman is a great guy and I trust him 100% to deliver all my mail. I'll say it once again because my point doesn't seem to get through to some, the ONLY items I haven't received are those from China, which I don't believe were ever sent in the first place. Items from the UK, US, Australia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Europe have all arrived without a problem.

Ok if you rule out your postman and seems you do and if you vouch for him who am i to say its untrue. Just heard a lot of things about Pattaya and post. My mailman is great too so its quite possible.

Then I must say you have been real unlucky, did you use paypal to pay ? Usually that helps keep them honest as I buy by ebay from china and so far nothing has gone missing.

As I've said a few times now, the items went "missing" because they were never sent in the first place. Someone pointed out that a lot of these sellers keep nothing in stock but buy it in once your order has been placed. If the item is unavailable they say nothing until you put in a PayPal claim and get your money refunded. In the meantime you've wasted a month waiting for an item that was never going to arrive.

[astral]

Some Thai postmen are just plain lazy

I was not getting mail to the house so I complained to Head Office, New Road Bangkok.

It turned out the man was taking the mail form the post office

then just dumping, rather than making the delivery............

[cpofc]

I keep telling myself I am living in a parallel universe. Maybe I am just lucky, which would be a turn up as Murphy's Law is no stranger to me.

I order gadgets and electronics from China, (I do have one website which I use frequently) it is a bit of a hobby of mine these days. I have had no problems. I opt for the EMS delivery method and it is here in 5 days + - Delivery to the door, even on a bloody Sunday!

Most times they don't charge me any tax at the thai end. Although a couple of weeks ago they did.

I almost feel left out having never been dudded in this way.