Lazada has no customer service

[WhizBang]

I made my first (and now also my last) purchase at Lazada last Wednesday (#13).

It was a small order of 2 packs of 4 AA rechargeable batteries and 2 packs of 4 AAA. Everything was listed as being in stock. Total price was 2600 baht with free shipping.

Seemed like a deal.

Friday morning I get a call from delivery guy that he will be at my condo around 1pm. So far so good.

He arrives about 2pm, I have to do down to the lobby to meet him. He has the package and I give hime the 2600 baht and sign the delivery receipt.

I head upstairs and open the package as my girlfriend looks on (my witness). What is in the box is ONE set of AA and ONE set of AAA batteries, not the 2 sets of each I ordered.

GF chides me I should have opened the package before accepting delivery and paying. Very true of course, and lesson learned. But really, how difficult can it be to count to 2... twice?

Also, the packing list lists each item separately, for a total of 4 items, and the invoice lists 2 items each with a quantity of 2. So it's not as if the paperwork is wrong.

Grab the phone and call Lazada. Press 9 for ENGLISH, only to get a Thai who speaks no english. He hangs up on me. THREE times.

Now I am getting pissed, so on the 4th try the guy speaks nit noi english, but he wants me to call back. Ii say no I have done this many times already and just want him to transfer me to an english speaking rep. He says ok and puts me on hold.

After a few minutes (I was starting to give up hope), an english speaking girl comes on. I explain the situitation, she say she will look into it and call me back. She also says she will email me.

By Tuesday still zip out of Lazada about the order so I had my GF call. They told her the were investigating and it would take a few WEEKS to sort out.

Unbelievable. The customer is inconvenienced while they try to sort out their shortcomings instead of apologizing for the error and shipping the missing items immediately.

I now fully expect them to say that all items were shipped and I must be mistaken.

Long story short, Lazada have lost a customer. I will never order from them again. The small price savings and convenience (sic) is simply not woth the hassle in dealing with them and their mistakes.

Grrrrrrr.

[dageurreotype]

You've really rather answered your own question. I always check the contents received from Lazada, given their notoriously poor customer 'service'. Not worth the hassle if anything's wrong with the purchase. Other than that, I've found Lazada to be a boon on an island with no public transport, or alternatively having to shell out the cost of the item for an extortionate 'taxi' fare.

[canopus1969]

Never had a problem with them and have bought several items.

[WhizBang]

You've really rather answered your own question. I always check the contents received from Lazada, given their notoriously poor customer 'service'. Not worth the hassle if anything's wrong with the purchase. Other than that, I've found Lazada to be a boon on an island with no public transport, or alternatively having to shell out the cost of the item for an extortionate 'taxi' fare.

Indeed. If I was you I would use them too, allbeit with great caution. As you, and my GF said, open the package FIRST. Lesson learned. Silly me, I thought that it was such a simple order, what could they screw up.

But contrast Lazada with InvadeIT. Night and day, especially when it comes to customer service.

I also forgot to mention, that Lazada hung up on my GF twice when she called.

[2fishin2]

Why would you order common batteries from a Thai online retailer instead of going to the nearest store and buying them?

[alocacoc]

Are you sure guys that you are allowed to open the parcel before it's paid? In Europe, a cash on delivery parcel must not be open till it is paid.

[dageurreotype]

Are you sure guys that you are allowed to open the parcel before it's paid? In Europe, a cash on delivery parcel must not be open till it is paid.

Of course you can open the package. In fact it's mandatory here

[WhizBang]

Are you sure guys that you are allowed to open the parcel before it's paid? In Europe, a cash on delivery parcel must not be open till it is paid.

Of course you can open the package. In fact it's mandatory here

Especially when dealing with Lazada apparantly. The first thing my GF said was I should have opened it before paying. Then she went on to tell me horror stories about some of her friends who had ordered from Lazada and received damaged products.

[WhizBang]

Why would you order common batteries from a Thai online retailer instead of going to the nearest store and buying them?

You missed the whole point of what I was trying to say. Which was that this was a trial purchase to see how it would go.

Lazada fell flat on their face by not responding properly to the shortage I reported. Now I have nothing but a bad taste in my mouth and will not bother trying again.

I have ordered hunderds of thousands of baht of computer parts from InvadeIT without a single problem. Likewise, I have ordered tens of thousands of dollars from Amazon (USA) without a problem. Yet on my first simple burchase (AA/AAA batteries) Lazada could not perform. Absolutely pathetic.

And Thailand wants to move to a digital economy.

[Ungabunga]

Bummer. I've ordered several items from Lazada (mostly small kitchen appliances which are perhaps harder to mis-count ) and luckily all turned out well.

Interesting to read their returns/refunds policy here

[h90]

few weeks and nothing will happen....tried that already.

Forget the loose and don't use them anymore

[zyphodb]

Its the same problem all practically all customer services have here, & the Gov & councils come to that. A lot of Thais lie to get jobs, not badly, but if asked if they can speak & write English they say yes & then get work in customer services where they delete any email written in English because they don't understand it, & give you the runaround if they get an English language phone call.

Thailands businesses will never be able to have an international online presence until companies all employ staff who can read & write English properly.

Of course given the educational standards here this is never going to happen, & they won't employ foreign staff due to ongoing Gov policy, plus these hypothetical staff would want proper wages which the Thai companies won't want to pay...

So all in all I wouldn't hold your breath waiting for proper customer service for "aliens" in Thailand, still lost in their own little bubble....

[Henryford]

Ordered 20+ items from them never had a problem. If you can't be bothered to check the delivery before paying sorry but your fault.

[dddave]

I've used and recommended Lazada many times in the last few years but they have grown really rapidly and their CS has taken a nose dive. Used to get calls answered right away and issues easily resolved...not true anymore. As the OP stated, long, LONG hold times, often to be cut of when it is answered as well as CS agents who are clearly burned out.

Too bad because their service is great and easy to use...when all goes right.

[dp4868]

They have got to have the worst customer service in Thailand. You cannot speak to anyone in English, mostly being left on hold for 20 mins plus and then hang up. Either that or being told someone will call back in an hour, which they never do.

If by chance you do get someone who speaks English they will simply tell you what you want to hear, but do nothing. I got so frustrated I went to their office which is a complete disgrace, seems the last thing anyone wanted to do was answer the phones. They have very limited information they can access so when you do get to speak to anyone they cant tell you much and certainly can't do anything.

I will never order anything from them again and would strongly recommend that others don't either.

[WhizBang]

few weeks and nothing will happen....tried that already.

Forget the loose and don't use them anymore

You got that right.

[WhizBang]

Its the same problem all practically all customer services have here, & the Gov & councils come to that. A lot of Thais lie to get jobs, not badly, but if asked if they can speak & write English they say yes & then get work in customer services where they delete any email written in English because they don't understand it, & give you the runaround if they get an English language phone call.

Thailands businesses will never be able to have an international online presence until companies all employ staff who can read & write English properly.

Of course given the educational standards here this is never going to happen, & they won't employ foreign staff due to ongoing Gov policy, plus these hypothetical staff would want proper wages which the Thai companies won't want to pay...

So all in all I wouldn't hold your breath waiting for proper customer service for "aliens" in Thailand, still lost in their own little bubble....

It's not just us foreigners who are getting poor customer service, the Thais are treated equally bad.

The real issue is that few Thais have ever experienced good customer service, and so do not understand bad service when they receive it.

[WhizBang]

Ordered 20+ items from them never had a problem. If you can't be bothered to check the delivery before paying sorry but your fault.

Thank you for your compassionate reply.

However my main point was NOT the shortage in the package, but the extremely poor customer service upon reporting the shortage. Had Lazada responed to my call with... 'I am sorry for the inconvenience and we will ship out the missing items today', I would have been a happy camper. Instead I was told I will have to wait WEEKS while they 'investigate'. Sorry, but that is just not acceptable.

[WhizBang]

They have got to have the worst customer service in Thailand. You cannot speak to anyone in English, mostly being left on hold for 20 mins plus and then hang up. Either that or being told someone will call back in an hour, which they never do.

If by chance you do get someone who speaks English they will simply tell you what you want to hear, but do nothing. I got so frustrated I went to their office which is a complete disgrace, seems the last thing anyone wanted to do was answer the phones. They have very limited information they can access so when you do get to speak to anyone they cant tell you much and certainly can't do anything.

I will never order anything from them again and would strongly recommend that others don't either.

Yup, agree 100%.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

For some reason, rechargeable batteries seem to be relatively rare here...and really expensive.

I see some off-brand models, GP I think, in the stores sometimes, but they seem to be priced at 500-600 baht per package.

I use them at home, both AA and AAA, so I order Eneloop models from Amazon and have them sent here.

Never seen Eneloop rechargeables sold here in LOS.

Lazada and Amazon -- the night and day of online retailing. The contrast between the two couldn't be any wider.

Edited May 22, 2015 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[NoshowJones]

Seems like Lazada is one of the many places in Thailand who employ one of the many school leavers whose final exams the teachers are not allowed to fail.

[evadgib]

I'm a happy customer too. My wife takes their calls. We haven't had any probs & they're always on time.

[Pomthai]

Used them several time, both cash on delivery and via paypal. No issues. Very happy thus far.

Use the online service or email if you have a problem. Never picked up the phone. Had one issue once, resolved same day via email.

[Beachbunny]

I ordered a crockpot from them...sent by a seller that uses their service,just like Amazon. It was damaged. Used the information on how to return an item. Did that and had a couple e-mail clarifications from me in English.which they replied to in English....got a refund and refund of costs for returning item also.

I DID take pictures of the damage and I did send them with my first inquiry for refund instead of waiting to see if they would require them. Went fairly smoothly IMO.

Sometimes I think it's just the luck of the draw!

[h90]

I ordered a crockpot from them...sent by a seller that uses their service,just like Amazon. It was damaged. Used the information on how to return an item. Did that and had a couple e-mail clarifications from me in English.which they replied to in English....got a refund and refund of costs for returning item also.

I DID take pictures of the damage and I did send them with my first inquiry for refund instead of waiting to see if they would require them. Went fairly smoothly IMO.

Sometimes I think it's just the luck of the draw!

I had something similar.

Order Drum for a laser printer. Came in a resealed pack and clearly used before.

Wrote an email, got a fast answer that I should send it back and after it get verified I get the refund + my shipping costs.

Also sent photos.

Sent it back, gave them the EMS tracking number. Never got an answer.

Sent several more emails no answer.

After 4-5 weeks or so I filled a dispute with Paypal. Got my money refunded (but of course not my shipping), without any comment.

[bmore99]

I ordered a Samsung 64GB SD memory card + OTG through them. Didn't arrive on time. Status always remained as "in processing". CS phonenumber is disconnected and customer inquiries through their contact form are not replied. Lazada is unreachable.

I was able to call the company actually selling the product and was informed that Lazada cancelled the order. This without informing me and without refunding me either.

Amazingly, without prior notice, one week too late, the product was delivered in good order. Guess what, the next day I got a message from Lazada telling me the order was cancelled as they could not confirm the shipping and that they will refund me once the product is found and checked (??????).

For me, Lazada never again. And I will only buy online after verifying the shop's CS phone is actually answered.

[vogie]

How long is 'soon' in Thailand. I got an email from Lazada on Friday telling me my product will be with me soon. Now Tuesday still not heard anything. The item is a deep fat fryer, do I ask the driver if he minds waiting while I make some chips to see if the appliance works before paying him.

[Thailaw]

I have purchased many items from Lazada, including 2 laptops, 2 tablets, 1 TV and 1 smartphone, and I have generally been pleased with the purchase process and the products. So long as things go smoothly with the actual seller, Lazada works well. But if/when things go wrong, expect no help from Lazada -- NONE! I ordered 2 8" Asus Memo Pads for my kids and 2 cases that are designed to fit that Asus tablet model. The tablets and cases were in a single order. because the cases came from outside Thailand, COD (which I normally use) was not available and I had to pay within 48 hours via their "over-the-counter service" (I have tried to use my credit card from a bank outside Thailand before, but they will not accept it). So, I trecked to Tesco the next day and paid the full amount of the order plus a small service charge. My payment was acknowledged and the order status indicated that the order was "verified" and all items were being "processed for shipment".

The next day, I got a call from the actual seller of the Memo Pads that there was only 1 in stock and he had no plans to order more. I called Lazada Customer Service and told them about the call and asked if I would receive my full order, as I did not want the cases if I wasn't going to get the tablets. The representative said that he would check with the seller. I got an e-mail saying that they had checked with the seller and I would be informed if anything changed with my order -- a completely worthless reply. I called again the next day and got a similarly worthless response from the Lazada representative. She said that someone would check on my order and call me back; no one ever called.

On the fourth day after I placed my order, I got a form e-mail saying that "a part of my order" had been cancelled because the items were out of stock, and please provide my bank details for a refund for the price of the cancelled items. I again called Lazada and said that they could not cancel part of my order; either deliver all of my order or cancel all of my order, as the tablet cases are designed to fit the tablets I ordered and have no value without the tablets. The woman said that she understood, but she could only cancel the tablets. I could return the cases (at my cost for postage) after they are received by me, which could take a month or more. So, if I ever get my money for the cases back, I will need to wait until I receive them, take them to the post office and pay for the postage to return them to Lazada and then wait for a refund, all where it is clearly their (or their seller's) fault. I did everything I was supposed to do; the cancellation of my order is solely Lazada's fault and responsibility, but their is no recognition of that whatsoever.

The moral of the story -- if you buy from Lazada, never pay in advance. Use COD or a credit card, nothing else. And remember, if you purchase through Lazada from different sellers, you are purchasing from different sellers and expect no coordination or support from Lazada where one seller does not honor its commitment -- you will get none! And the people that work in the Lazada customer service have no authority to do anything and just make notes on a record and, from what I have seen, follow through on nothing. They are, along with the policies that they strictly follow, totally incompetent.

I am not sure that I am through with Lazada, but if I do every use them for a purchase again, I will be much more careful in dealing with them. They are very good at taking your money; they have, however, absolutely no capability (or interest) in solving problems when they arise.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

That's why I laugh loudly anytime I ever hear anyone calling Lazada the "Amazon" of Thailand.

Just an episode in contrast to how Lazada operates:

A couple months back, I ordered a smartphone from Amazon in the U.S. as the seller for my wife. It arrived to my mail box in the U.S. and then I had the package forwarded here, so it ended up arriving more than a month after my original order.

Upon opening the box, I discovered that Amazon had sent the correct brand and model phone I had ordered, but the wrong type (they sent a U.S. version instead of the intl version I ordered) and also sent the wrong color (I had ordered black, they sent white). So at that point, I got on the phone with an Amazon CSR and explained the situation, including that I was, at that moment, outside the U.S. for work where I had initially received the phone, hence the delay.

In what probably was no more than a 5-10 minute phone conversation, the Amazon rep agreed to 1) accept the return of the phone, even though it was past their normal return date, because I was out of the country; 2) refund my entire original purchase price including the original Amazon shipping fees; and 3) do a subsequent credit to my credit card for whatever intl shipping charges I incurred to return the phone to them from outside the U.S.

The refund to my credit card for the original purchase showed up on my card account within a day or two of that conversation. And, as soon as I put the phone in Thai Post back to the U.S., Amazon asked me to email them a copy of the postage amount and tracking receipt. I did that, and the additional credit for my return postage was likewise quickly credited to my account, before they had even physically received the phone back.

That's the way to run an online marketplace business and the way to keep your customers coming back -- not the half-a**** non-customer service approach that Lazada takes.

[bmore99]

....

But if/when things go wrong, expect no help from Lazada -- NONE! ....

.... I called.....

That's a thing of the past. No way to call Lazada nowadays. "Numbe tempolaly suspended"