Alibaba Is there a safe way
- Thread starter kevin09
- Start date
Well, you can't really judge names like that just off their names. How much do you know about Trustpass? If it's none and you haven't heard it before, go do some background research instead of just asking here, it'll help you decide in the future about other 'verified' dealers. It's like being paypal verified, it's reputed now but back about 2 - 3 years ago, it wasn't shit, believe me.
Alibaba is crap, dont send money via wester union, you are duped, and even if they accept paypal, once they've shipped the item to you, and you have received the item, paypal can't do anything for you, outside of ebay, paypal only deals with shipping, so as long as they sent you the crappy item and you do no like it, paypal wont give you that money back, coz you've received something from the seller.
I know this coz i sell on CL and when a buyer tries to get some claim, paypal always close that case, so ebay is your best bet to get the protection when using paypal.
I know this coz i sell on CL and when a buyer tries to get some claim, paypal always close that case, so ebay is your best bet to get the protection when using paypal.
A man with a brain on BHW said: Alibaba is safe but you have to do your research. Most electronic stuff is either fake or they wont send but anything else is good to go. Trust me i've dealt with Alibaba 100's of times.
Word!
Do your research. Ask for paypal-payment instead or a safer way.
Word!
Do your research. Ask for paypal-payment instead or a safer way.
Alright here is my research on Alibaba. I have been using the sit since 2006 and still am.
1) Gold suppliers pay money for that seal (does not mean they are safe) - Alibaba does not verify any information from the suppliers. You have to verify the authenticity.
2) Skip on Trustpass Members - Not that they cannot be trusted and all, their prices will be higher than those who are Gold members.
3) Contact Information - The best place to start your research. Most companies will not give out real contact information. Check even if the address they provided exists via google. Check if they have their own website information given (not the one with alibaba extension/co/subdomain). Call the phone number provided and see if its real. If the numbers ends in 0000 or 77777 be rest assured they are fake.
4) When in contact with the company representative ask for their email address(s). Ask for their own website (not alibabas storefornt) and check that here (my first post, i cannot enter an url) - from google type
bigger list of chinese scams
The first link filetrust is the place where you have a list of blacklisted websites.
Remember a scammer changes sites to often, the list might not be so up to date, but is farely good.
5) When you are in touch with a representative, say you are chatting - you ask how much does 33 item X cost including shipping to your country, if you get a repply in less that a minute with the price, its probably a scam. See 33 (or any uncommon number) is a qty a seller has to check weight to calculate shipping cost, the dimensional weight and enter in the shipping companies website to check the shipping cost. Not possible in under 90s imo. However if he is to give you a FOB price, thats a different scenario.
6) Lets say the representative claims they are the manufacturer of item X. Item X is a hair iron in which you are interested in. If their website has all sorts of goods like apparels, shoes, watches, health and beauty products, computer accessories blah blah .... how do you think one company makes all of them? Either the guy is trying to impress you or he is a scammer trying to sell all sorts of goods, who knows what clicks. Use you judgment. That said 80% of alibabas members are traders. They are the middle man, trying to sell you something for a commission (provided they are not scamming you). In one sentence - its a red flag in one supplier sells all kinds of high value goods.
7) Every one accepts WU and Bank Transfer. Why shouldn't they? Paypal is a stupid company which holds money for like ages, ask any high volume seller, he would not like paypal. What sort of safety do you get paying via paypal? You bought 33 item X and all the supplier sends you is one empty envelope with tracking number E007529490CN, it proves to paypal that the item has been sent and recieved by the buyer. Paypal wont accept any claims to gross misrepresentation of item any thing if you are not dealing within ebay (credits: one fellow member already said this in above post). Paypal is just for your convenience. You will not be refunded if you are scammed. That being said, supplier who do accept paypal generally don't scam you, but dont go on a hunt looking for suppliers who accept only paypal, as you would miss the really good ones out who gives great cheap prices.
8)I have sometimes asked a supplier
Me : Have you shipped any items to USA ?
Him : Yes friend we always do
Me : Can you show me 2-3 proofs of tracking ?
Him : blank . . . . blank . . . . blank ... he finally manages to find one after 7 minutes, what does it say about him ?
One proof of shipping is nothing. Ask him to show you 4-5 minimum in the last one month or so, check their status and you will get to know if he does actually ship the items.
9) Regarding fake items and replicas - All branded items in alibaba are fake (99.9%). There is a huge market for these and poeple make loads of money. Alibaba is not a good source say if you are looking for Genuine Tiffany Jewelry. Do you know what chinese people think of you when you ask ' is this genuine ' ? they laugh at your stupidity. Not being mean, but comon, a microsoft xp professional for $20 with coa ? Doesn't that ring a bell?
10) Enough said bad about alibaba, if you are into finding unbranded items, you will find the largest pool of suppliers in one place. And please done say you bought from alibaba, its not right. All you do is look into alibabas listings, you actually buy from that suppliers. Alibaba has nothing to do with the transactions. So don't blame the company.
11) If you are into replica branded items, check prices first at dhgate, belltal, tradetang and alike and then compare them to prices you get from alibabas suppliers directly, there should be a minimum 15% price difference on the green side to you.
12) Suppliers based in you own country can should be more trustworthy. Guys if you are looking into what to sell and what not, don't go into branded items, you wont last long. Buy general merchandise and sell more of it to make a decent profit.
* * * please done copy and paste this post elsewhere, written by sharif890 * * *
1) Gold suppliers pay money for that seal (does not mean they are safe) - Alibaba does not verify any information from the suppliers. You have to verify the authenticity.
2) Skip on Trustpass Members - Not that they cannot be trusted and all, their prices will be higher than those who are Gold members.
3) Contact Information - The best place to start your research. Most companies will not give out real contact information. Check even if the address they provided exists via google. Check if they have their own website information given (not the one with alibaba extension/co/subdomain). Call the phone number provided and see if its real. If the numbers ends in 0000 or 77777 be rest assured they are fake.
4) When in contact with the company representative ask for their email address(s). Ask for their own website (not alibabas storefornt) and check that here (my first post, i cannot enter an url) - from google type
bigger list of chinese scams
The first link filetrust is the place where you have a list of blacklisted websites.
Remember a scammer changes sites to often, the list might not be so up to date, but is farely good.
5) When you are in touch with a representative, say you are chatting - you ask how much does 33 item X cost including shipping to your country, if you get a repply in less that a minute with the price, its probably a scam. See 33 (or any uncommon number) is a qty a seller has to check weight to calculate shipping cost, the dimensional weight and enter in the shipping companies website to check the shipping cost. Not possible in under 90s imo. However if he is to give you a FOB price, thats a different scenario.
6) Lets say the representative claims they are the manufacturer of item X. Item X is a hair iron in which you are interested in. If their website has all sorts of goods like apparels, shoes, watches, health and beauty products, computer accessories blah blah .... how do you think one company makes all of them? Either the guy is trying to impress you or he is a scammer trying to sell all sorts of goods, who knows what clicks. Use you judgment. That said 80% of alibabas members are traders. They are the middle man, trying to sell you something for a commission (provided they are not scamming you). In one sentence - its a red flag in one supplier sells all kinds of high value goods.
7) Every one accepts WU and Bank Transfer. Why shouldn't they? Paypal is a stupid company which holds money for like ages, ask any high volume seller, he would not like paypal. What sort of safety do you get paying via paypal? You bought 33 item X and all the supplier sends you is one empty envelope with tracking number E007529490CN, it proves to paypal that the item has been sent and recieved by the buyer. Paypal wont accept any claims to gross misrepresentation of item any thing if you are not dealing within ebay (credits: one fellow member already said this in above post). Paypal is just for your convenience. You will not be refunded if you are scammed. That being said, supplier who do accept paypal generally don't scam you, but dont go on a hunt looking for suppliers who accept only paypal, as you would miss the really good ones out who gives great cheap prices.
8)I have sometimes asked a supplier
Me : Have you shipped any items to USA ?
Him : Yes friend we always do
Me : Can you show me 2-3 proofs of tracking ?
Him : blank . . . . blank . . . . blank ... he finally manages to find one after 7 minutes, what does it say about him ?
One proof of shipping is nothing. Ask him to show you 4-5 minimum in the last one month or so, check their status and you will get to know if he does actually ship the items.
9) Regarding fake items and replicas - All branded items in alibaba are fake (99.9%). There is a huge market for these and poeple make loads of money. Alibaba is not a good source say if you are looking for Genuine Tiffany Jewelry. Do you know what chinese people think of you when you ask ' is this genuine ' ? they laugh at your stupidity. Not being mean, but comon, a microsoft xp professional for $20 with coa ? Doesn't that ring a bell?
10) Enough said bad about alibaba, if you are into finding unbranded items, you will find the largest pool of suppliers in one place. And please done say you bought from alibaba, its not right. All you do is look into alibabas listings, you actually buy from that suppliers. Alibaba has nothing to do with the transactions. So don't blame the company.
11) If you are into replica branded items, check prices first at dhgate, belltal, tradetang and alike and then compare them to prices you get from alibabas suppliers directly, there should be a minimum 15% price difference on the green side to you.
12) Suppliers based in you own country can should be more trustworthy. Guys if you are looking into what to sell and what not, don't go into branded items, you wont last long. Buy general merchandise and sell more of it to make a decent profit.
* * * please done copy and paste this post elsewhere, written by sharif890 * * *
OKay sorry for replying an old threat but I have to say this:
Why is everybody always saying do research, I always do it and I never found 1 honest supplier.
I wonder is there any list that tells "these are good suppliers because we dealt with them for a long time."
So my question can somebody tell me if they know a honest supplier ?
Why is everybody always saying do research, I always do it and I never found 1 honest supplier.
I wonder is there any list that tells "these are good suppliers because we dealt with them for a long time."
So my question can somebody tell me if they know a honest supplier ?
TheTRUTH
Regular Member
- Oct 1, 2008
- 344
- 40
animatronico1
Regular Member
- Oct 3, 2007
- 208
- 115
last year i contact some suppliers to buy gloves and scarves but alot of people started sending me too much emails and insisting too much so I got scared and did't buy anything. ye would be nice to know who is the real suppliers
emperorniks
Registered Member
- Mar 9, 2009
- 91
- 7
Are gold sellers reliable?
TinyHulk
BANNED
- Feb 8, 2009
- 231
- 141
I lost around 200usd on Alibaba.com
They try to hook you with small deals and once they have your trust and want to do bigger business they STAB YOU IN THE BACK AND SCAM YOU!
Just a warning. I'm not saying all of them are scammers.. But I have learned my lesson the hard way..
Always I mean ALWAYS be on your guard when dealing with chinese people. They love the dollar so much they do almost anything.
I still do business with chinese people but only from DHgate and with powersellers with alot of feedback. ALWAYS assume products your order are FAKE. There are some honest people who admit its 'HIGH QUALITY REPLICA' but some people just fuck you up.
Once you found a nice and trusted wholesaler treat him well because they are rare.
Just my 0.02$
They try to hook you with small deals and once they have your trust and want to do bigger business they STAB YOU IN THE BACK AND SCAM YOU!
Just a warning. I'm not saying all of them are scammers.. But I have learned my lesson the hard way..
Always I mean ALWAYS be on your guard when dealing with chinese people. They love the dollar so much they do almost anything.
I still do business with chinese people but only from DHgate and with powersellers with alot of feedback. ALWAYS assume products your order are FAKE. There are some honest people who admit its 'HIGH QUALITY REPLICA' but some people just fuck you up.
Once you found a nice and trusted wholesaler treat him well because they are rare.
Just my 0.02$
My advice would be to definately do alot of research on the company ur interested in doing business with.
Do a google search, chances are, if they are scammers theres probably already been a few people atleast who got scammed by them, and have reported it on a website somewhere.
Also, dont even bother to try buying branded products, these will just be fakes, or you wont even receive anything
Do a google search, chances are, if they are scammers theres probably already been a few people atleast who got scammed by them, and have reported it on a website somewhere.
Also, dont even bother to try buying branded products, these will just be fakes, or you wont even receive anything
I don't buy off people unless their account is atleast a year old. and after phoning them make sure their phone number matches the address by finding the right area code. I've
I read somewhere that 95% of these scams are on electrical goods but I'm not sure how accurate that is. Keep your common sense and don't go looking for ipods with 90% off the rrp
I read somewhere that 95% of these scams are on electrical goods but I'm not sure how accurate that is. Keep your common sense and don't go looking for ipods with 90% off the rrp