Aliexpress Dispute Advice needed.

I know there’s some of you out there that have had experience with Ali disputes, so I could use some much needed advice.
I purchased this item about a month ago to use with the DPS5015.

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I put this item in my cart at $8.64 30% off sale, In my cart the item was $8.64 with free e-packet shipping. I hit buy now button and paid for item but they charged me $12.34 when I checked my order. My bank card shows they took $12.34. The only thing I can figure is at the exact moment I hit buy now the sale ended and restarted again. The item stays on sale but it has a timer, now the item is on sale for $8.14.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Cleqee-P1037-1Set-5Pcs-1M-4mm-Banana-Plug-to-Alligator-Clip-Crocodile-Test-Probe-Lead-Wire/32889477849.html
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I had to wait so many days to even file a dispute. By the time I finally could file, the item had shipped. I contacted the seller the first day after I ordered and explained they over charged me $3.70. A day or two later they reply they don’t understand. I explained it again and got about the same response each time I have messaged them. I filed a dispute and same messages again that they don’t understand why they owe me $3.70. Pretty simple I agreed to pay $8.64 they charged $12.34. They told me one time when item is delivered rest assured we will help you friend. The item arrived at my door so I messaged them and said okay item delivered now help me friend, they say sorry we can’t :person_facepalming: . Then it starts with the we don’t understand message again.
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Now $3.70 isn’t that big of deal but when they start playing dumb I tend to make it personal. Ali has stepped in but has not offered me a refund of $3.70 yet. Best I can tell they have not offered me anything yet. So this has been going on about everyday or two back and fourth.
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So if you have had any past experiences with Ali I really need some advice.

Review time?

“Ugh, what junk! Not at all like described in the ad! Half of them were broken!”

That might get their attention…

(Yeah, I’m going to Hell…)

First, look at your Ali transaction history. What amount do you see there?

Pretty much regardless of what is there I’d threaten them with chargeback from the bank. And if threats don’t help - actually file a claim with the bank. But the transaction details as recorded on their site are very important when it comes to the strength of your claim.

I’ve been in a situation that was similar yet different.
I’ve been charged mistakingly. But the actors were Banggood and PayPal, completely different from Ali+bank.

PayPal accepted my claim. And actually refunded me the entire transaction amount, not just the fraction that I disputed.

That’s part of the problem I guess why the seller thanks he will win and acts like he don’t understand what I’m saying (playing dumb).
The instant you hit buy now it takes a screen shot of the item and price. In that instant is when the price went to $12.34 at the same time I hit buy now. I don’t understand why their system would even change the price if its in your cart for a amount and you hit buy now. Seems kind of shady.

CAVEAT EXTREME EMPTOR! Especially with off shore sellers! Worse than eBay ever thought of being! My first purchase will be my last…I ordered something small “just to see”…so far, experience is not that happy.

Being persistent but polite got me half credit on a new merino wool shirt that arrived with a tear in it. I kept the shirt and my wife sewed it up, and I bought a new replacement shirt from the Ali seller for 1/2 price. It helped that I had some purchase history with the store.

But it seemed like the guy was following some script at first to wear me down and turn me away. He used the language difference to his advantage by pretending he didn't understand what I was saying and sending me responses that made no sense. Sent him pictures and he said the tear looked like it was done with scissor. I think he was trying to get me angry so I would give up in disgust. I never threatened him but I never gave up.. Then all of a sudden he understood English perfectly, and we came to an agreement fairly rapidly. I believe that he made a business decision to simply maintain my good will and unass me.

i’ve seen previously unnoticed shipping charges that appear sort of after you quit looking

for instance, i ordered something that cost $3.00—cost was $3.00
when i changed quantity to 2, it became $6.87 or something - because the package had to be bigger
yet you could make 2 separate orders of 1 each and avoid that

also sometimes an item quotes a low price, but in reality you have to select between several options of it, like color or wattage or something
the 1w bulb might be 50c, but the 2w is $2.00 and that is the default, if you do not select the 1w, you will get a 2w for $2.00

i;ve never seen what you mentioned though.

i’ve probably ordered 50 things from them.

wle

I have experienced the “Wear Down Technique”, as well as the “Start from Scratch Move”. Or offering to credit 1/3rd of cost of DOA flashlight. Chinese flashlights, awesome, customer service, somewhat scary, mystical.

Thanks for all the comments, the seller has offered me a discount on a non discounted products in his store. But almost everything in his store is on sale already discounted. I just don’t want to spend more money to get my (cheated out of money) back when I’m not really interested in anything else in his store that’s not on sale. I offered for him to discount a product that was on sale that I was interested in and he declined.
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At this point I’m just hoping to wear them down to where they will just refund me to be make me go away.
Yeah, they done that to me, with the seller don’t understand, then 4 messages later they understand everything, last time I checked they were back to “why you need refund”. There’s only about 20 messages that explain it. I messaged back to read all the messages not just the last one.
Losing the money isn’t that big of deal to me but when they start acting dumb instead of offering to fix the problem or a apology, I tend to take it personal, so I’m going to do everything I can until they make it right. :wink:
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If you’ve ever visited Asia, and been to a night market, or to a street market/bazaar elsewhere, it may help to think of AX in those terms.

They can be fascinating for a shopper, both in terms of the wares and the thrill of bargaining, but you’ve gotta be on guard, and set spending limits to a personal level of comfortable risk. At least that’s how I try to approach it.

Multiple storefronts, “official” or otherwise. Multiple listings of the same item. Image “borrowing,” descriptions that may only tangentially match the item in the listing, compounded by the AX system itself (note the warnings Convoy places in their listings), on top of a potential language barrier. It’s a wild west.

From my experience, those discount countdown timers just roll over, more often than not, and are about as truthful as the “if you order in the next two hours” your hear on TV infomercials. But, given the OP’s experience, it appears they can have some bite if the timing is wrong, so it’s probably best to leave yourself a good margin.

I’ve never had the misfortune of having to file a dispute with AX, but I wish you good luck. It’s not about the money, but the principle, and to me, rolling over just encourages more potential dishonesty. And that would be a shame, particularly since there aren’t many outlets for the goods in this little hobby.

I'll hand it to you, you would outlast me anytime in a dispute over there. I got the "we don't understand" play from a high price item on Alibaba when it failed early and just gave up trying to get them to understand after it was obvious it was just a tactic of theirs to get me to go away.

That’s why I want just go away. Its their dishonesty and “dumb don’t understand” game they play. I can play too. :smiley:

You were smarter than me. After I finally realized what was going on, I was fuming and stopped contact with them lol.

Ah yes, I’ve experienced that. They pretend to not understand to wear you down. They never ask for clarification though. They just send Hi friend! emails that say nothing useful. If you pay a tiny bit more you can find US sellers that source the same parts from the same place. I would rather pay a little more and get it faster from the US than wait for a month and have to deal with the Chinese sellers.

Curious. Every single purchase I make I am exactly charged the advertised amount, precisely reflected next to the “Confirm and Pay” button. AliPay/AliExpress handles this stuff (or so it seems) because sellers don't see a dime until you confirm the product receipt.

I always take care about this sort of stuff with what is mine, I believe in it. Could tell you an example with a more or less recent purchase in GearBest, had to spank :-D their asses.

My advice is be honest, and never lose faith. Politely and respectfully make them understand they have done wrong. For example:

Sorry for my :-D pronunciation.

Cheers ^:)

“Okay, I go paypal. They give me back money.”

Might be all it takes.

haha

you should ask aliexpress customer service , not seller, beacuse the seller did get the money, the system charge your money , you should ask aliexpress
The seller know nothing , this is the fact .
BTW, did you pay for this order by paypal ?

It may be me but from some e-mail correspondences I have had with Chinese vendors concerning “Warranties” I get the distinct feeling I am being played, and they are using our language barriers to their advantage. They have been in the commerce game for dynasties.
Why, dear Lord can’t they take an actual size picture of a flashlight in the hand, rather than some photoshopped monstrosity twice the size of the actual light. I would not change in the slightest the Chinese valiant attempts in mimicking the English Language. Who hasn’t chuckled reading the translations. Couldn’t they just have someone proofread their adds? Really? How hard could that be. Hell they could call me. But in the end all these uneasy feelings about Chinese flashlight producers fade away when I feel how smoothly and effortlessly the end cap tightens down on my, excellently machined and finished Klarus with a perfectly manufactured reflector and a crisp powerful beam of pure light. A tool of Kings.
So I move on to our next Chinese flashlight purchase, with my PayPal account and my fingers crossed, whispering to myself a small prayer that Trumps Tariffs won’t put an end to the cheap Chinese flashlight thing. Dang.

no, this is not seller problem, it is system problem
I guess he should use paypal, paypal will charge more