Confiscated 8k worth of goods - supplier nor alibaba want to refund
What to do?
I ordered a product that needs to comply with many EU regulations, one of those is Radio Emission Directive…
The supplier claimed everything was in order, that they have many clients in Europe already and they have all the certificate… at the border though, they established the product does not comply on various counts… and that they are going to destroy it.
Supplier says it is my responsibility to handle the import of goods… the problem is 2 fold… 1, I paid only 30% deposit over alibaba, and paid other 70% directly to their US account (I never ever did this before… but wanted to help them out and naively I did)…
So my first mistake… the second is that Alibaba does no want tor efund not even those 30% saying it is my responsibility since the contract is DAP and the supplier cannot possibly know all the regulations of the importing country!
So what am I to do? 8k is really a lot of money and I am desperate… also worth noting, that the resolution for the product to be destroyed was 3 weeks ago already
58 replies
Seller_BS5lg2keRs2QO
Firstly, you have my sympathy.
With it being a Saturday afternoon you may find practicable advice might take a while. Unfortunately the only advice i can give would be essentially pointing out the mistakes / naivety of the transaction which doesn’t really help to move you forward.
I assume the supplier isn’t prepared to offer any amount by way of a refund?
Seller_vIpv9uvBH6CFY
This will be difficult advice but you do need to hear it.
At the end of the day, selling on here is not for everyone. It takes a very specific type of person to run a business, and an even more specific type of person to run an eCommerce business.
If you are vulnerable enough to wire funds directly to an alibaba supplier, and you also try to import products with requirements that you do not understand, and you are also risking high value transactions while being this far out of your depth, then quite simply, you’re not cut out for the job.
This sort of thing will keep happening to you until you quit. It’s better to do that sooner rather than later. Find something you’re good at, because everybody has something they’re good at. Not everybody is good at this particular thing, and that’s ok.
Seller_7VbclcPFFRTnc
Did you buy and receive samples first ? If so, were they labelled correctly?
Seller_6sxtIS0RbZ5k7
You can do a chargeback on Revolut, it won’t let me post the link, just google it
Seller_7VbclcPFFRTnc
Do you have anything in writing from the supplier that states they would have all the correct paperwork
Seller_NoMNQDGnEW5Bx
I think you might find it harder to get it reversed with it being a wire transfer so you probably need to gather all the info you have that suggests the supplier was wrong and try approaching the bank if you’re getting nowhere with the supplier.
Have you tried Alibaba direct as they have policies in place for items retained by customs and if it started as a sale through them that might work?
Seller_xUKHc5xSYJmI4
I always say do your homework before importing goods. Check your seller credentials and a test purchase so you know what you are buying. Unfortunately it sounds like you have made too many errors.
- Making direct payments will expose you to scams without any protection from the website. (Transactions outside the website are not covered)
- Importing goods which are restricted you could be liable for a fine and also have your goods destroyed.
- Bank usually do not reverse the transaction especially when the transaction took placed months ago and you authorised a business transaction.
Seller_bZIZpnFfcEWdZ
MiloStar, is trough failure that success can be accomplish. Don’t listen the NO Sayers.
You really F*** U* big time, but what ? Take the best of it and next time you know what NOT to do.
It takes a really strong person to assume such error in “public”. So congratulations for it.
Don’t quit and follow what you want. Good Luck 
