Has Lazada made a mistake using vendors outside of Thailand?

[NanLaew]

It has become clear that Lazada has been taken over by Alibaba, since the fake emails already have started.

A few weeks ago they had an LG 43LF540T LED for 8490 Baht offered by Tesco. I tried to order it, as it was in stock, but by the time I clicked the order button it showed up as out of stock.

I opted to receive email when it was in stock again.

Today I received the "back in stock" email.

Dear customer,

We are pleased to inform you that LG LED FHD Digital TV 43 inch 43LF540T (Black) is back in stock! You may want to order before they run out of stock again. For comfort You can make your purchase via the link below.

Strange enough there is no link at all in the email, and a search of the Lazada page shows that there is also no tv like that at all.

Is it possible that your email service or internet security software blocks/strips out embedded url's as part of a security protocol?

I have found that doing a specific item search may throw up a hit in Lazada whereas the item may not appear in the general listing. It's one of the things that turned me off from using them, even more now that they are Chinese owned.

[happy Joe]

Anybody is buying in Alibaba here ? How often do you have problems with sellers ? And you are refunded ? Thanks.

More than 150 orders in 3 years.

4 problems with traders who do not deliver, 4 full refunds.

A laptop very poor. It was my fault, I had not read the customer reviews.

Smartphone off after 1 month. Forced to send in China for repair. 40 days of non-use. Now it works, but not good.

For the rest I got fantastic items at incredibly low prices.

[impulse]

The problem with Lazada without the imported crap is the same as the problem with Thai brick and mortar shops.

There's a zillion of them, all selling the same extremely limited selection of goodies (and in the shops, for exactly the same price). If they happen to have the stuff I want, score!. If Lazada has it, I don't have to scrounge around for hours and spend hours on the BTS and MRT.

If I want something outside of the mainstream, I gotta import it myself, or go through EBay or Amazon with all the customs hassles, or Lazada with one price, delivered. But even with the imports, Lazada's selection is still very limited compared to an Amazon, and EBay, or AliExpress. I'm actually looking forward to the day I can have an AliExpress kind of selection, with a Lazada "one delivered price". But I'm not holding my breath.

Thian, let us know how your Banggood transaction goes. I've been eyeing a bunch of Arduino stuff on Banggood, but haven't taken the plunge.

Edited July 1, 2016 by impulse

[tropo]

Lost all confidence in them. Tried several times to order goods COD they accept order then after two weeks they say there carrier can not find our house as there is no road name!! Strange as the carrier is Thai Post and we get letters every other day. Anyway ordered it to MIL's house (two doors away only diffrence is house number still no street name guess what delivered two days after. Rang them explained but they just blame the carrier constantly. I buy of eBay again now no problems at all

I find eBay just as annoying. Too much stuff I want to buy goes via the Global Shipping Program, which I refuse to use, and they removed the ability to filter results based on whether the vendors would actually delivery to your country, which I thought was ridiculous. Now I have to wade through hundreds, or sometimes thousands, of results, most of which are completely irrelevant to me.

(Sorry, this is not a reply about Lazada, but it may be useful to some people)

Why would you refuse to use the eBay Global Shipping Program? Sometimes it the only way you can get an item shipped from the USA or UK.

I used the eBay Global Shipping Program last month to have a large and heavy piece of gym equipment delivered from the US. I was very impressed - it was quick and there wasn't an cent extra to pay. I'd rather know exactly what I'm up for including customs duty and have it cleared for me and delivered to my front door than have to visit customs up north (I'm in Pattaya) - which could cost at least 2000 in taxi fares and a lot of wasted time... and pay the customs officials whatever they want. A clearing agent isn't cheap either.

The Global shipping agent asked me for a scan of my passport and an explanation of what the equipment was for.

Sure, for small items there probably isn't going to be a customs hassle, but for big items you can't avoid it. I will most definitely be using them again.

Amazon have a similar shipping program where you pay for customs up front. I had an item delivered last week - it was lightening fast from the USA.

If you want to import decent gym equipment, there aren't many choices other than from the UK or USA. Australian merchants won't ship here.

In the past, I have refused to use it because the shipping and duty charges were far higher than they would otherwise be. For example, I just looked at a turntable on eBay that, including shipping charges, comes to around $600. The import duty quoted is $296, which is nearly 50%. Unless I'm very much mistaken, that's way above the actual import rate + VAT. Even at 30% (and some musical equipment only attracts a rate of 10% duty) + 7%, it should come to around $234, not $296.

The item I bought on eBay, the gym equipment, was $170 on eBay. I paid an extra $98 to have it shipped here and cleared through customs. I don't consider $98 a lot to ship a heavy, large box from the US to Thailand AND clear it through customs... and then have it delivered to my door.

There often is no choice - either pay it, or don't get it. No sellers were offering to ship the item to Thailand without using the Global Shipping Program. Even if they did, I wouldn't do it as I wouldn't want the hassle of trying to clear the item through customs.

Another example: I bought a small piece of gym equipment on Amazon. Item: $20, shipping and customs: $40.

What to do? Pass up on it or just cough up and pay it? I really wanted it, so I paid it.

As you've probably discovered, "May not (or does not) ship to Thailand" is the message you get when you click on most eBay or Amazon items.

Edited July 1, 2016 by tropo

[Berty100]

The problem with Lazada without the imported crap is the same as the problem with Thai brick and mortar shops.

There's a zillion of them, all selling the same extremely limited selection of goodies (and in the shops, for exactly the same price). If they happen to have the stuff I want, score!. If Lazada has it, I don't have to scrounge around for hours and spend hours on the BTS and MRT.

If I want something outside of the mainstream, I gotta import it myself, or go through EBay or Amazon with all the customs hassles, or Lazada with one price, delivered. But even with the imports, Lazada's selection is still very limited compared to an Amazon, and EBay, or AliExpress. I'm actually looking forward to the day I can have an AliExpress kind of selection, with a Lazada "one delivered price". But I'm not holding my breath.

Thian, let us know how your Banggood transaction goes. I've been eyeing a bunch of Arduino stuff on Banggood, but haven't taken the plunge.

Another problem why I gave up quickly on Lazada, everything from abroad can be had cheaper and faster on other sites, but what is listed by Thai sellers is just a gamble.

Not so long ago I was looking for a swivel tv bracket.

There was one from Mastersat, quite a famous shop in Bangkok, that had one from which the picture and price was to my like.

Even more they had a Youtube video in the ad that showed how to mount the bracket and all the movements you could make with it.

Only thing that made me suspicious was that the brand in the Youtube wasn't what Mastersat, so I phoned them.

Turned out that the pictures and Youtube in the ad had nothing to do with their product, they had just use it to give us "and idea".

Now just imagine you order that product and then open the box, and no don't claim COD, because the courier is instructed that you can't open the box before paying.

[MissAndry]

I just ordered 2x Sandisk Ultra Class 10 32GB MicroSD for my camera from Lazada (shipped and supplied)

http://www.lazada.co.th/sandisk-microsd-ultra-class-10-48mbs-32gbsqunb-032g-gn3-2609935.html

240bht each ........ are you sure you can buy cheaper elsewhere?

(450bht each on Amazon.com)

Edited July 1, 2016 by MissAndry

[Berty100]

I just ordered 2x Sandisk Ultra Class 10 32GB MicroSD for my camera from Lazada (shipped and supplied)

http://www.lazada.co.th/sandisk-microsd-ultra-class-10-48mbs-32gbsqunb-032g-gn3-2609935.html

240bht each ........ are you sure you can buy cheaper elsewhere?

(450bht each on Amazon.com)

Why does your link say 239 + 29 Baht delivery.

How about 220 include delivery, and open to an offer?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/32GB-SanDisk-Ultra-MicroSDHC-Memory-Card-Class-10-with-Adapter-Micro-SD-SDHC-UK-/172259659229?hash=item281b79cddd:g:wwsAAOSwZ1BXcj3n

Edited July 1, 2016 by Berty100

[impulse]

I just ordered 2x Sandisk Ultra Class 10 32GB MicroSD for my camera from Lazada (shipped and supplied)

http://www.lazada.co.th/sandisk-microsd-ultra-class-10-48mbs-32gbsqunb-032g-gn3-2609935.html

240bht each ........ are you sure you can buy cheaper elsewhere?

(450bht each on Amazon.com)

Why does your link say 239 + 29 Baht delivery.

How about 220 include delivery, and open to an offer?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/32GB-SanDisk-Ultra-MicroSDHC-Memory-Card-Class-10-with-Adapter-Micro-SD-SDHC-UK-/172259659229?hash=item281b79cddd:g:wwsAAOSwZ1BXcj3n

You left out the fine print that may (or may not) kill your EBay deal, but only after it's too late:

International items may be subject to customs processing and additional charges.

Item location:Suffolk, United Kingdom

Give me a local Thai item for a little more any day. Typically, I get 1-2 day delivery on Lazada if it's a Thai based seller.

[MissAndry]

Why does your link say 239 + 29 Baht delivery.

Minimum purchase for free delivery is around 400bht for the total order.

Buy only one item at 239bht, and you have to pay delivery.

[Berty100]

I just ordered 2x Sandisk Ultra Class 10 32GB MicroSD for my camera from Lazada (shipped and supplied)

http://www.lazada.co.th/sandisk-microsd-ultra-class-10-48mbs-32gbsqunb-032g-gn3-2609935.html

240bht each ........ are you sure you can buy cheaper elsewhere?

(450bht each on Amazon.com)

Why does your link say 239 + 29 Baht delivery.

How about 220 include delivery, and open to an offer?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/32GB-SanDisk-Ultra-MicroSDHC-Memory-Card-Class-10-with-Adapter-Micro-SD-SDHC-UK-/172259659229?hash=item281b79cddd:g:wwsAAOSwZ1BXcj3n

You left out the fine print that may (or may not) kill your EBay deal, but only after it's too late:

International items may be subject to customs processing and additional charges.

Item location:Suffolk, United Kingdom

Give me a local Thai item for a little more any day. Typically, I get 1-2 day delivery on Lazada if it's a Thai based seller.

There is no need for fine print, because Thai customs law says that everything over 1500 Baht must pay duty and tax, so even 6 sd cards come in free of duty

[Thian]

The problem with Lazada without the imported crap is the same as the problem with Thai brick and mortar shops.

There's a zillion of them, all selling the same extremely limited selection of goodies (and in the shops, for exactly the same price). If they happen to have the stuff I want, score!. If Lazada has it, I don't have to scrounge around for hours and spend hours on the BTS and MRT.

If I want something outside of the mainstream, I gotta import it myself, or go through EBay or Amazon with all the customs hassles, or Lazada with one price, delivered. But even with the imports, Lazada's selection is still very limited compared to an Amazon, and EBay, or AliExpress. I'm actually looking forward to the day I can have an AliExpress kind of selection, with a Lazada "one delivered price". But I'm not holding my breath.

Thian, let us know how your Banggood transaction goes. I've been eyeing a bunch of Arduino stuff on Banggood, but haven't taken the plunge.

I also ordered Arduino stuff from banggood...but when you order a lot there they ship it in many smaller packages. Even a week after i paid i got an email which said the order was shipped, all other ones were allready shipped a week before that one.

Aliexpress drives me crazy, they only want to waste your time and nothing of the contactoptions works well, even if you make an account.

Alibaba the same, i stopped looking there.

I only pay by Mastercard or Paypal and prefer the last one because it's so easy and good.

Here in Europe we can order anything online and cheaper than in BKK, also better quality. Now the UK is getting cheaper against the Euro. So much easyier to buy online instead of shopping in BKK.

[impulse]

You left out the fine print that may (or may not) kill your EBay deal, but only after it's too late:

International items may be subject to customs processing and additional charges.

Item location:Suffolk, United Kingdom

Give me a local Thai item for a little more any day. Typically, I get 1-2 day delivery on Lazada if it's a Thai based seller.

There is no need for fine print, because Thai customs law says that everything over 1500 Baht must pay duty and tax, so even 6 sd cards come in free of duty

Something doesn't pass the sniff test when the cheapest I can send an express letter to Europe is more than the quoted delivered cost of the product coming from the UK.

And keep in mind the additional charges may include the actual duties and the customs service fee to run the item through customs to determine there's no duty to pay. If they ship via National Postal system, it may be zero, but if they use a commercial service like UPS, DHL, etc, there may be a nasty surprise. There have been many times I paid a service fee on duty free shipments, though they were always bigger shipments.

Have you actually tried that source?

[Berty100]

You left out the fine print that may (or may not) kill your EBay deal, but only after it's too late:

International items may be subject to customs processing and additional charges.

Item location:Suffolk, United Kingdom

Give me a local Thai item for a little more any day. Typically, I get 1-2 day delivery on Lazada if it's a Thai based seller.

There is no need for fine print, because Thai customs law says that everything over 1500 Baht must pay duty and tax, so even 6 sd cards come in free of duty

Something doesn't pass the sniff test when the cheapest I can send an express letter to Europe is more than the quoted delivered cost of the product coming from the UK.

And keep in mind the additional charges may include the actual duties and the customs service fee to run the item through customs to determine there's no duty to pay. If they ship via National Postal system, it may be zero, but if they use a commercial service like UPS, DHL, etc, there may be a nasty surprise. There have been many times I paid a service fee on duty free shipments, though they were always bigger shipments.

Have you actually tried that source?

No I don't have used that particular seller, but I have ordered hundreds of items from Ebay with similar conditions and small prints, and they all came in without import duties.

Has it eve come up to you that they don't send it express nor use couriers, and due to the fact that they may send several hundred items each and every month, they may get some favorable rates?

[111tingtong]

I love Lazada and its Pay on Delivery service.

Below from the Lazada staff, took approx 1 hour for a reply:-

"Good day!

Thank you for reaching Lazada.

There are three groups of items here in Lazada. They are (1) item sold and fulfilled by Lazada, (2) item sold by our partner seller in Thailand, (3) item sold by our partner seller abroad.

In order for you to know which item is sold by our partner seller in Thailand and is on a cash on delivery, you can sort it by delivery time. Because, items sold by our partner seller abroad has a longer delivery time frame."

This works as I do it all the time. If you filter delivery time and are still getting the same international sellers it more than likely because there are no Thailand distributors for that item.

[Thian]

I love Lazada and its Pay on Delivery service.

Below from the Lazada staff, took approx 1 hour for a reply:-

"Good day!

Thank you for reaching Lazada.

There are three groups of items here in Lazada. They are (1) item sold and fulfilled by Lazada, (2) item sold by our partner seller in Thailand, (3) item sold by our partner seller abroad.

In order for you to know which item is sold by our partner seller in Thailand and is on a cash on delivery, you can sort it by delivery time. Because, items sold by our partner seller abroad has a longer delivery time frame."

This works as I do it all the time. If you filter delivery time and are still getting the same international sellers it more than likely because there are no Thailand distributors for that item.

I guess Banggood also works the same way. They have many sub-contractors who are allowed to send products.

I ordered many parts from Banggood , some were small pulleys and the ones for axle 5mm were sent immediatly while the ones with 8mm holes were sent a week later. Now i'm still waiting for those. They even put 2 small pulley's in a package and send it, they can't collect all those small parts together and make it one shipment.

It's really time Thailand wakes up and goes into internetshopping. Those huge onlineshops really have it all, i even get lost in their internetshop and can't find products back which i wanted to buy. Online shops are much better then Phantip, Chinatown, Chatuchak, Bang mor, Central departmentstores all together.