Have you been scammed by a seller in DHgate? Did you receive extremely poor quality products? Did the seller ship fake stuff after telling you the merchandise was the authentic brand?
Well, you are definitely not alone. Like any other Chinese wholesaler, one of the biggest challenges for DHgate is to fight against scammers and ensure the product quality is good enough. And they are moving in the right direction in our opinion.
Recently they posted the steps to follow in the case you’ve been scammed on their official blog.
They tell you what to do after being scammed, but how to avoid the disappointment and frustration before shopping?
0) Read other customer reviews
Before making your shopping decision, go and check the DHgate reviews left by other customers here and in other websites. Keep in mind that angry customers are more likely to leave reviews than those with OK experiences, but normally you’ll find a bit of both sides. Learn from them.
1) Check seller feedback score and history
If you are buying for the first time there you may not be familiar with the sellers feedback history, but it works pretty much as eBay’s so it’s fairly easy to get grip on it.
2) Check the reviews for the product
This is a recently added feature (at March 2010) and so at the moment there may not be many reviews, if any, for the product you are interested in. But maybe a similar product already have some reviews! Definitely choose the product with better reviews over the cheap one.
3) Talk to the seller before confirming the order
Have a question about the item conditions, the processing and delivery, the warranty, the seller itself? You can chat or leave a message to them. Do it!
4) Use PayPal or Credit Card to pay
Ok, at this point everything looks alright and you go ahead and pay for the order. Using PayPal or Credit Card gives you additional safety measures in the case you are scammed. Avoid sellers that only accept Western Union.
5) During shipment
Now you’ve done your part. The seller is processing the items and will give you a tracking code as soon as the merchandise is shipped. Is he sticking to the committed timeline? Is the tracking code genuine? If no, make use of DHgate dispute system. You will find it on your account, next to the order details.
You receive your items. Do they live up to seller description?
6) Dispute and contact DHgate promptly
If you feel you’ve been scammed, contact immediately DHgate Customer Care at service@dhgate.com and file a dispute, if you haven’t done before, against the seller.
7) Attention to dispute timelines
If you can’t get to an agreement with the seller, such as merchandise replacement or so, you still have the option to escalate the dispute for DHgate involvement and arbitration.
8) Contact your payment provider
If anything else fails, the last bullet is to talk with PayPal or your credit card provider and request an additional investigation or even a chargeback if possible.
Conclusion
Shopping in DHgate or other Chinese wholesalers is definitely more risky than the groceries store down the street but following these basic steps will eliminate most of the risks.
