Don’t get me wrong – I love Taobao as much as the next shopaholic, but sometimes there’s that ONE bad egg who ruins your otherwise happy shopping experience. Here’s how to deal with problematic sellers on Taobao.
The problem: The seller hasn’t shipped out your item, even after a week.
Most sellers on Taobao (especially the ones with Crown ratings) are usually quite efficient, so you can expect them to send out your item(s) within 2 to 3 days. However, it’s not uncommon for sellers to take a bit longer than that, so don’t abuse that “Remind The Seller To Ship” button just yet.
If the seller still hasn’t shipped out your order after a week, send them a chat message to find out what’s happening. Sometimes it may be that the item is out of stock, or that they can’t decipher your forwarder’s warehouse address and/or contact information. Some sellers get freaked out when they see an English name and foreign address in the delivery details, but just reiterate to them that you are using a China forwarder (转发).
At this point, you should have some sort of recourse about your order. However, there are some unfortunate cases where the seller completely ignores your messages, which brings me to the next point.
Foldable Laptop Table (Source: 韩米家品质家居/Taobao)
The problem: The seller is not responding to your messages, AT ALL.
This is probably one of the worst things to encounter while shopping on Taobao. I mean, it’s not like you can march over there and demand a refund right? Plus, getting snubbed by a seller is really frustrating to say the least.
If you encounter a seller who isn’t responsive to your messages, just forget about receiving your item and try to get a refund instead. Chances are, the seller will probably drag your order on and keep you in Taobao limbo, so applying for a refund is the quickest way to get recourse.
To be fair though, Taobao does extend a reasonable amount of protection to its buyers – especially if it has to do with dodgy sellers. To apply for a refund, go to your Order History (已买到的宝贝) and click on the Refund (退款/退货) button. You will then be prompted to choose a reason for your refund (see below for translations). If the seller doesn’t respond (either accept the refund or reject it and respond with a course of action) within 48 hours, Taobao will automatically refund the buyer.
Refund Reasons
买家缺货 Item is out of stock
排错产品 Ordered wrong item
产品缺少所需样式 Desired style or size is out of stock
无退款原因 No refund reason
未收到货 You did not receive the goods
与买家协商一致进行退款 Mutual agreement with the seller to get a refund
卖家为及时发货 The Seller did not deliver the items on time
Remember to use Google Chrome as a browser for this, so that the page is automatically translated to English. It makes things much easier when trying to navigate the refund application page.
(Source: 艺美家居软装饰品馆/Taobao)
The problem: I applied for a refund but the seller is still being dodgy. REALLY dodgy.
This is probably quite uncommon, and I’ve only ever experienced it once…but wow was it a real pain to get a refund. Applying for a refund on Taobao is usually quite straightforward when the seller is reasonable, but there are the rare few who will go out of their way to get your refund rejected. This is where the headaches start.
One particular seller didn’t send out my order for over a week (and was making up excuses/ignoring my messages), so I applied for a refund and stated that the seller did not send out the item. The next day, after a week radio silence, the seller miraculously changed the order status to “Contacting courier company.” Hence, my refund request was cancelled.
When I saw the updated status I was like, OMG FINALLY THANK THE LORD…except, after a few days I realised that it essentially means nothing without a valid tracking number.
I waited for a few more days (and the seller conveniently did not respond to any of my messages) but there was still no sign of the package being sent out with the courier.
I applied for a refund yet again, this time stating that the seller did not provide a tracking number. At this point I thought that I finally had him cornered – it’s either the seller provides proof of delivery, or Taobao will automatically refund me after 48 hours right?
Wrong. The seller rejected the refund request yet again, this time uploading a screen shot of a fake tracking document. I mean, ARE YOU KIDDING ME BRO. *flips table wtf*
The problem: I feel like murdering the seller and/or crying in frustration.
There, there. Wipe up those tears and put on your big girl panties because it’s time to take down some dodgy Taobao scammers.
First things first, get Taobao to intervene and mediate the situation. If the seller has already rejected your refund, go to 已买到的宝贝 (Order Summary page) > find the item you want to get a refund for > click 申请售后 (Aftermarket Application). From there, you should be able to find an option to get Taobao to mediate (要求淘宝介入处理).
There are two types of Taobao refund mediation processes – 绿色通道 (a panel of 31 Taobao experts will review your case and come to an objective conclusion, usually within 24 hours) and 淘宝小二 (Taobao’s internal team will review your case and take action).
绿色通道 is usually an easier process, but it also means that Taobao can’t really intervene if the process is taking too long (i.e. during peak periods like Double 11). I used this option once and it took about 2 weeks for them to come to a final conclusion. When I called the Taobao helpline, they said that they couldn’t intervene because the 绿色通道 option involved external partners (and not their own internal staff).
淘宝小二 is a slightly more tedious process, but you have the assurance that Taobao has more control over your case. When you apply for a refund (已买到的宝贝 > 退款中), you’ll have to fill in a form with an appeal (limited to 200 characters) and upload any necessary evidence.
Taobao will give you and the seller 3 days to upload any proof (tracking documents, screen shots of chat messages etc.) before reviewing the case.
Glass and Bowl Set (Source: inza 一宅幻享家/Taobao)
If all else fails, call the Taobao helpline at 800 188 6018 or access the help chat function (you have to type in Chinese though). The Taobao helpline has an English option but erm, you might have to speak a bit slower and clearer. Also, as frustrated as you may be, try not to vent your anger on the call operator. It’s really not their fault that the seller is being a dodgy rat. Also, nobody wants to help a rude person, so yeah.
See here for a list of problems and issues that Taobao will deal with.
The problem: I got my item, but it’s the wrong one.
Yup, it happens. You think you’re getting a nice new dress, but receive a pair of men’s skinny pants instead (true story – and the saddest part was that the pants were too small for me someone kill me now).
Most sellers would probably tell you to return the item for a refund, but let’s be real here – the international return shipping fees would probably cost more than the item itself.
In cases like this, chat with the seller and explain that you’re an international buyer. Most sellers will either agree to a partial refund (which is unfair yes, but then again the item still has re-sale value no?) or to refund your shipping fees. Anyway, you can always sell or give away the item.
(Source: inza 一宅幻享家/Taobao)
The problem: I got my item, but it’s defective.
If your item is defective, take a video or photo of it as proof and send it to the seller. Let them know that it makes no sense to return the defective item, as you’re an international buyer. In most cases, the seller will either refund you or send you a new item. If the seller refuses to do anything, get Taobao to intervene on your behalf.
(Source: 淘杂物ZAKKA生活杂货/Taobao)
The problem: I got my order, but there’s an item missing.
Contact the seller and let them know which item is missing. Most sellers state the number of items on the packing slip, so they can check if an item was missed out from your order list. If that’s the case, the seller will usually issue you a full refund for the missing item.
(Source: 淘杂物ZAKKA生活杂货 木/Taobao)
Some seller are scammer!! careful
Urgent I wan you to. I wan cancel and stop the account for transfer please call me back asap. Thank 96447297
Miss CHIA.
I ordered an item just days back. And Merchant sent the wrong item. I requested they return back the money but they rejected and advise us to ship the item back to them before money can be return.The return shipping fee was expensive. Help anyone ? *Urgent*
Try calling the Taobao helpline at 800 188 6018! If not, you can try negotiating with the seller to do a partial refund.
Hye. I have same problem. Seller want me to send it back. The postage fee is expensive. How
Hi can u help me..i buy 50 pieces of items from taobao…but the seller put it in 3 different package..i only received one package with 17 pieces item in the package…i have contact the seller and the seller show me the proof that they already post the 3 package and all the package is arrived at dongguan warehouse..the problem is people in warehouse did not ship all 3 package..but only ship one package only…how can i contact warehouse or solve the problem
@mazni that’s easy. Since your seller shipped 3 diff parcels to you , hence there are 3 tracking numbers, just submit the other 2 tracking numbers to your warehouse. ( hopefully your seller still keep informations on the other 2 tracking numbers. )
hello…i am just wondering if you have dealt with situations whereby after 15 days (no refund options available and also cannot report the seller)? seller has mentioned he shipped out the item but after that no updates… 🙁 and exceeded 15 days!
Hmm does the tracking show if the parcel has been received or signed for? Try sending the seller a chat message to ask what’s up. They might be busy because it’s peak period (for the Taobao Double 11 sale), so sometimes parcels can get delayed. If not, try calling the Taobao helpline at 800 188 6018 and explaining your situation.
Is there any way to contact taobao Hongkong office. Because of language constraints we cannot contact the seller..
Hi. Thanks for your informative post. I recently managed to got a successful refund from a Taobao seller. I paid by credit card but instead of refunding back to my credit card, it refunded to alipay. However, I have tried but failed to verify the alipay account and as a result, I cannot use the credit in alipay for future purchases.I tried to add in my SG credit card to alipay but couldn’t. Any idea how I can resolve this?
Yikes, Alipay can be a bit tricky. Try calling the Taobao helpline at 800 188 6018 to ask them about it – they have an English option too.
hi, may i ask how is ur refund? Do u manage to verify ur alipay acct.. cz im facing the same problem too.. need help..
Did you resolved the issue?
what happens if I accidentally clicked the received item button but the seller hasn’t shipped it yet?
will they still let me refund?
Hi, can I ask where will the money be refunded to? It’s used to be your Singapore credit card account but now, they send it in alipay. And we can’t possibly get that money from the account without a proper china bank account. Let me know if your have any experience with this. Thanks.
I think Alipay credits it back to the credit card tied to your account? I got a refund on an item that was out of stock and Alipay issued the refund back to my account, which was then credited to my Singapore credit card.
how to get a refund to debit card? the seller want my account number to refund, i have alipay account.
hello,seller didn’t ship my item then i request for refund and seller hasn’t responded me. there has been passed 48 hours but refund proccessing haven’t completed yet. what have i to do?
Was your refund rejected by the seller? If so, the seller should have stated a reason. If the refund is still pending (i.e. the seller hasn’t approved or rejected it), maybe give it a few days. From what I understand, if the seller doesn’t respond with action, Taobao will automatically issue the refund to you anyway. Anyway, if you’re still stuck, try calling the Taobao helpline at 800 188 6018.
I bought an item around 20 days ago. I’ve checked back every now and then to see if the seller had shipped the item. Today I checked on the item and the seller still had not shipped it. Curious, I clicked on the item name to redirect me to the item page on taobao, but I got redirected to a page telling me the item does not exist. I immediately went to request a refund. I am unsure as to what category for a refund this would fit under, but I’m also concerned because I wrote the refund description on English. Will this be a problem?
Hey Alex, not sure if it’ll be a problem, but I usually use Google Translate to translate the refund description to Chinese.
What should be written in the refund description?
Hi, I tried to follow your instruction above. Once i have scrolled down to the item that I want to refund, I unable to find the ‘Aftermarket Application”. Its more difficult since i dont understand chinese and cant find it in english either. Can you describe to me where can i find the button?
Hi all
May I know when then am I able to apply for the mediation?
I’ve been going back and forth with the seller regarding refund without return but it still couldn’t route me to mediation.
Similarity is that I have to wait for 72 hours but whether is it at the point of my application for refund or at the time when seller rejects it is the cause of confusion.
Please advice if any of you have been through and know what I can do next to bypass the process of return or refund and direct to mediation.
Thanks so much!
Hi all
May I know when then am I able to apply for the mediation?
I’ve been going back and forth with the seller regarding refund without return but it still couldn’t route me to mediation.
I’ve also called up their singapore customer service team and sad to say, different officers advise me differently on the route.
Similarity is that I have to wait for 72 hours but whether is it at the point of my application for refund or at the time when seller rejects it is the cause of confusion.
Please advice if any of you have been through and know what I can do next to bypass the process of return or refund and direct to mediation.
Thanks so much!
anybody try buying items from 乐清圣光酥油灯
will likely to receive half of your order. Rest assured that your email will not be response !!!
Beware of buying any items from 乐清圣光酥油灯……they ship out only some of your order. The rest wait long long
I bought 2 item, which I pay the shipping fee of 35RMB. I cancelled both the order cause the main order is oos, so will i still get back my 35rmb shipping fee? And total I paid 285.31 rmb in total, so will i get a 100% full refund back? As I cancelled everything within 1day.
Hi, placed 2 pairs of jeans in taobao, it came on 20th jun 17 in noon time which my old mom help to sign and received, when I’m back home from work,
I find that package was bit thin and light which don’t feel inside contain 2 pairs of jeans, after dismantled is really 1 pair instead of 2,
Now worse thing is that outside the package sticker shown “Quantity 2”! I immediately use taobao that messenger inform the seller,
She told me that her side already send out 2 pairs, probably is the courier company send separately, but that doesn’t make sense to send separately whereby the sticker shown quantity 2!
In business point of view which courier company will send separately instead of saving cost just send both at the same time?
Really worried the next step what I should do?
Hi, placed 2 pairs of jeans in taobao, it came on 20th jun 17 in noon time which my old mom help to sign and received, when I’m back home from work,
I find that package was bit thin and light which don’t feel inside contain 2 pairs of jeans, after dismantled is really 1 pair instead of 2,
Now worse thing is that outside the package sticker shown “Quantity 2”! I immediately use taobao that messenger inform the seller,
She told me that her side already send out 2 pairs, probably is the courier company send separately, but that doesn’t make sense to send separately whereby the sticker shown quantity 2!
In business point of view which courier company will send separately instead of saving cost just send both at the same time?
Really worried the next step what I should do?
Hi everyone, I had an issues on my ordered item send wrong location by seller and then the detail of item suddenly missing from taobao logistics information.
Whereas after 2nd weeks of payment made, I start to asked the seller about my ordered item, the seller said he/she send wrong location the first time and he resend it to Pingdingshan City, Henan Province (China) only by following taobao information (as the seller told me). My sg address sudden gone from the Taobao system and the seller have no idea where is my home address. So i still thinking either taobao will update the shipment information after few days (but i was wrong, the details still show “获取物流信息失败”), really frustrated.
Now is the 3rd weeks, still no news where is my item heading to and I decided to get refund but unknown how to settle because item shipped by seller but no information at where the item reached currently.
So my question is what categories should i choose to get refund? and will I get full refund?
I ordered 3 merchandize items from Taobao sometimes around 13/7/17. On 17/7/17 & 20/7/17, the tracking record showed items already in Lazada store.I waited until today, 28/7/17, and have received the goods. 1 of the items in tracking record stated as received, where in actual facts, never reached me. How & where can I lodge the complaint? Pls advice.
Posted by Genna Tan Jan 23, 2017
I think Alipay credits it back to the credit card tied to your account? I got a refund on an item that was out of stock and Alipay issued the refund back to my account, which was then credited to my Singapore credit card.
Hi Genna,
How did u get the alipay verified? I cant verify the alipay without china bank acc.
Hi Samuel, I can’t remember exactly (because I set up mine a few years ago) but I think I just linked my Singapore credit card to my AliPay account (under Overseas Account or something) and they sent a verification code to my Singapore line to confirm.
I try to buy something on taobao. After i make payment , i just already know that i have to pay more shipping fee. But the shipping fee is more expensive than the item i bought. Could i get a refund for this situation ? Thanks for your information
Hi, my refund was stuck at the bank process, seller has approved but the full process of refund is still uncompleted? How many days should i wait? Please advise
Hi,
Hope you can help shed some light. I have ordered 4 items from the same seller and they shipped out in 2 package. 1 package was said to be returned back to seller and the other was delivered to warehouse. Warehouse however checked and confirmed that they have not received.
On the seller end, they said courier has acknowledged that they sent to warehouse. How can I proceed next?
Also, I did initiate a refund for the 1st package which was returned however seller rejected. Now that I tried to request for intervention and when I tried submitting my application; they kept prompting me to key in correct contact details which I did. Have you faced such issue before?
Hi Genna;
Need some help on this..previously taobao messagging works well but recently it seems blocked?
How do we contact the seller by msg
Hi KQ, I’m actually not sure because I use the AliWangWang app to chat with sellers. Sometimes it’s a bit wonky and won’t sign me in, but I usually just reinstall the app and it works fine after. Or maybe try downloading the Taobao phone app and using the chat function there? I haven’t had any issues with chatting through the phone app so far.
Hi,
I buy a cell phone from taobao, saler sent me phone which was not charging and don’t have international version. The saler said, you courier me cell phone without making any application, i will send it to you after replacement. But i make request for exchange. He didn’t accept my request. He got cell phone but now 5 days has been passed, he is replying me after my lots of messages and only say “ok”, “well”, “i will send it at night” and days are going to pass. He also said me to cancel the application for exchange. He said when you will cancel then i will send you phone. Please help me, what i should do in this situation.
Great article
But do you have any advice for partial order received?
I’ve ordered from TB before and there weren’t any issues but this time i ordered some shelves.
The seller send out 3 parcels but I only received 1 out of the 3.
Seller send via ZTO express with 3 tracking no. to the consolidating warehouse,
The warehouse used DEX-I and RoadBull was used for delivery in SG.
But i suspect something went wrong with the transition as when DEX-I ship out the order,
they only gave 1 tracking no.
Im not really sure what to do next or do you know who I shd seek advice from?
Appreciate it~
Hey Z-Min, I’m not sure because I haven’t experienced this, but usually when there’s an issue with my parcel I’ll contact the China forwarder (in your case it would be DEX-I) via AliWangWang and give them my waybill number. I guess you could maybe check with DEX-I if the tracking number they gave you was for all 3 parcels that were received at the warehouse? And maybe compare the weight of the parcel that was sent out from the DEX-I warehouse vs the weight of the parcels that the seller sent to the warehouse. Hope this helps!
Hi!
Thanks for the informative post. Would like to clarify on the part on a dodgy seller refusing a refund – you wrote the status was updated to sent but a few days later you realized it essentially means nothing without a valid tracking number.
Would like to check how do you actually check if there is a tracking number for your order, and whether it’s valid? Cos for my orders, I’m only able to see a tracking number only when the item reaches the warehouse..
Having issues with some sellers not replying and thinking if I shd go ahead with a refund 🙁
Many thanks in advance!
Hey Jerrine, I can’t remember exactly but you should be able to see the parcel status under your Order Page –> View Logistics. If the status says that the seller has shipped (卖家发货), I think there should be a waybill number (运单号码) at the bottom of the page where the delivery address is. If the seller hasn’t shipped it, the status might say that the order is processing (您的订单开始处理) or pending (您的订单待配货).
Hmm if the seller hasn’t replied for over a week, I would probably apply for a refund. If I’m not wrong, Taobao will issue you the refund after a few days if the seller doesn’t respond to the refund enquiry. Hope this helps!
My order was stated received on taobao but I did not receive them on my end. The taobao hotline is not working too.
Howdy, i have a major issue, i was sent some items to the consolidation warehouse and was grossly overcharged with the pandemic situation in China,cause as of now we NZ have no cases , for items by volumetric weight and weight of item as well not just one or the other which is really stressful stuff .
Anyways i initiated a refund with the seller,i told him the reasons why was it was cause the logistics company who sends the order to NZ was over charging and he denied my refund. I asked my Taobao agent what do i do and they said just return back to seller and they will deal with my refund.
What do i do now as i i have never in 4 years shopping on Taobao have had the need to do a refund before
What should we do if we ordered through a proxy seller but the item came damaged and the proxy seller is only willing to refund us a very small amount of money? My friends and I ordered some cups and paid $40 USD for shipping, but 1 of the 3 cups came broken. USPS and Taobao won’t take responsibility so we’re not sure what to do
Hi, usually how long does the refund takes? The seller was nice and approved my refund on the same day.
Hi. I’m very curious about something. Is it a good thing to tell seller that you’re living overseas? What if the seller sent a defective item intentionally. What should we do?
hi, who can i seek recourse as EZBUY AS AGENT of TAO BAO and i bought a wardrobe rack from them. Delivered but non functional . Means not per picture shown and it topple upon 2nd and third tier. I sent a photo to show them and they sent a video to show me how to setup but only at lowest tier only. Not 2nd and third tier level. I want to return to get back my money but they refuse to refund even shipment back is my own cost. Who can i seek recourse as EZBUY is not mediating though i indicate middle ground settlement
Hello! I have a problem I bought lotion on taobao but the seller has scratched the part that shows the expiration date. And because I am not in china I don’t know what to do.
Hi Ellen, that sounds suspicious! I would suggest you contact the seller and ask why and send a picture with your message. You can also apply for a refund and choose an applicable reason. If the product is broken or spoiled the seller needs to refund you/pay for the return postage. If they are uncooperative you can then contact Taobao customer services and tell them. Good luck!
Complaint on a purchased goods , need refund
Hello! I made a taobao order a while back of 18 items. All of them arrived except one. I paid for delivery fee but it didn’t come. Hence, I wanted to make a refund however the product has been marked as trade closed. What can I do ?