Aliexpress at its best

[crankestein]

Went ahead and found some items at a very good deal at Aliexpress.
Bought the items and the next day I received a notification payment is on hold and they need additional information.

The file included with this thread is a print screen of what they sent me in case I wanted to appeal why items are on hold.

They are crazy, asking for picture of credit card and passport, seriously, no respect. Might as well ask me for bank routing numbers...

They care for my security!

 

[Revolauncher]

 

[Whoduh]

wow

 

[WoodiE]

Social Security card?!? WTF... Thanks but no thanks.

 

[crankestein]

Intrusions everywhere...

From Russia!

 

[BigNightTrain]

Never had that problem with them been shopping with them for 2 years great deals but slow shipping.

 

[crankestein]

They have been good MOST of the time. I have one specific credit card set to buy with them.

Certain things you need to watch out for,
The items are set with e Buyer Protection guaranteed, which from China rolls from 20 days to max of 60 days. I don't mind paying a buck or two depending if I need the item sooner than later. BUT this is the trick the are lately getting away with, you buy the item that says 20 days or money back and spend the extra 2 to 5 dollars etc whatever. A few days passed by and the seller has the permission to change AFTER the purchase to change the buyer protection which ONLY should be the buyer, not the seller. And the max days is 60, so I end up paying more, and the item sometimes does not arrive.

In fact I have two items which are reaching 50 something days and still says PROCESSING FACILITY, and I have told the seller it will never make it so just cancel and give me my money, it has never left the warehouse. So I get the impression sometimes Aliexpress is like a 60 day loan company.

The other catch with them, they have around 15 days to ship the item, and if not mistaken, 25 days if you decide to cancel within 2 to 4 hours of the order. I have cancelled and the seller does not respond, they are mad the buyer change their mind and let the 25 days bleed out, which is a complete d..**k move. And the seller does respond with the classic "logistics problem" cannot cancel at this time BS.

There have been cases where the seller never sends the item, mostly when buying multiple at one shot and only one tracking number.
Also, when opening a claim, the claim requests pictures or video, and the claim closes to the favor of the seller because one has to send both; photo and video. I opened a chat with print screens, and chat is all nice ans friendly, trust me it gets old quick. So then I proceed to upload video, and it will not upload regardless of file format, file size, browser IE or Mozilla, computer or mobile phone, so Aliexpress puts it basically impossible to win a claim because a video is needed but one cannot upload.

I get them opening a claim via the credit card, and 100% always get my money back.

But this are only random bad apples in Aliexpress, I think the video glitch got fixed and claims got back to normal.

Another deal is when adding the card to Alipay, to remove the card its a hidden link. I saved it after customer chat told me the link, but its not available.

And this is true, Aliexpress is ten times better than Amazon and Game Stop. Amazon most stores are now from China or distributors in CA from China. Amazon does not get in the middle, and they do fight back w a credit card claim and I always lose. Each store has its own terms and conditions separate from Amazon. In Aliexpress its one policy for all, no shuffling of rules among sellers at their convenience.

And Game Stop is the worst, and pre orders are a nightmare.

Most of my spare parts, pull startd, spark plugs, overall RC parts come from Ali. For electric RC sometimes I use Banggood or Gearbest, and both have gotten better over the years.

 

[crankestein]

Right now I have two claims with the credit card, ordered two items;

One with 60 day buyer protection guaranteed at the beginning of September, seller extended buyer protection to 30 more days, so I wont be able to file any disputes with Ali until the middle of DECEMBER!!! a order from September. Seller does not want to cancel and his reply is "we extended buyer protection, your money is secure, no worries".

The other item was 39 day buyer protection, seller extended to 60 days, and once the two months are reached he can extend another 30 more days. Same situation, asked seller to cancel, or to NOT extender buyer protection. And like usual I get the "My friend..." talk which I hate, as if they know me and is looking for my interest, "we are here to help you, feel safe and secure with us, more days to save money", and then they talk with the consistent because we know you like its ok have good time style, as if there is a communication barrier.

Aliexpress also changed the policy for feedback, the seller can choose WHEN to post the feedback, and if they don't choose it takes 30 days or sometimes the feedback does not show at all. The seller sometimes ends the listing of the item, and then no feedback can be left.

Its not a smooth road on certain orders, expect small inconvenience and a little homework when tracking orders.

About tracking purchases;

If you buy several items on the SAME day from different sellers, each purchase will show as individual per order, not the TOTAL of all.
This makes it difficult when opening a claim with the credit card, because I get charged the total, and not per item, but if one item does not arrive, its difficult to argue, or justify, only a fraction of the order. Some credit cards lets you adjust the amount, others don't. I have to remind myself and track how many orders per day, so if need to open a claim I have to look for the total of all, not only of the item in question.
It happens that I am looking for a 10 dollar purchase, when in reality has to be the one for 35 to say a number.

All in all, since the time I started buying with them, around 2 years ago, have got burned once or twice and has not been more than 20 dollars total. Which similarly has happened with other online stores, EBAY, Amazon (which is the worst, they don't get in the middle at all, but do fight at the moment of credit card disputes), Banggood, Gearbest. It has saved me good amount of money. FYI, the document request was approved, the reason I started this thread, Ali asking for social security, the funny thing is I sent random pictures of a landscape, some stock rc photo, lol, and they said, the card is good now, ja ja... hillarious.

 

[crankestein]

So for example;

The item is purchased on September 15, he states 25 day buyer protection, so you buy from him/her instead of a seller with 60 day. You look at orders made and there are 50 to 60 orders, it looks too good to be true, you buy and within 2 or 4 days the protection changes to 60 days, and withing 30 days of waiting he can add 30 more days.

Keep in mind during this whole time one cannot leave feedback, and if so the 30 day clock starts after leaving feedback. And feedback cannot be left during dispute. So add the 90 days, plus about 20 days of dispute, plus if you left feedback immediately after closing dispute, 30 more days. So the item will not show a negative feedback after 140 days!!!

So one never hears from the other 50 or 60 buyers, and all of us got smoked. Some will follow a dispute, others will give up and say its only 4 dollars... a million dollar starts with one dollar.

By then the seller has banked profit from the item and simply closes the listing and opens a new one, clean slate. Like it just happened w my CNC manifold.

They play the system, and Aliexpress does not do anything about it. Chat customer support just blows smoke and are useless, with the usual don't worry my friend, we look after interest talk.

Facepalm

 

[voo2doo]

Of what I have read it sounds like a phishing scam!
J