Singapore customer buys 32-inch TV on Lazada, but receives package of tissues instead

With online shopping surging in popularity due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it’s no surprise that more and more of us are giving it a shot.

However, the experience of one first-time online shopping buyer who ordered a 32-inch television from Lazada ended up being far from successful as he mistakenly placed his order with a fraudulent dealer who sent him a package containing tissue paper instead.

Mr Shen, who had paid S$138 for the TV, spoke to Shin Min Daily News about his ordeal. He said that four days after he had placed the order for the TV, he received a message while he was out of the house that the order had been delivered. But when he got home, he saw a package weighing less than 400g instead of a brand-new TV. 

In an attempt to deceive, the fraudulent dealer had copied Xiaomi’s logo, but it actually reads “xiao-miss” when viewed closely.

And when Mr Shen filed a complaint with the customer service of Lazada so he could get his money back, he found out that the procedure would not be a simple one, as it required a series of steps beginning with the dealer agreeing to take the item back, and then Lazada itself would assess whether a refund could be made.

Mr Shen told Shin Min Daily News that every step would take between three and five working days, which could mean a full two months before the refund was issued. Meanwhile, the dealer had disappeared from the site.

Mr Shen then approached the police, but he was told he needed to wait for Lazada to confirm his refund. He could only proceed to ask the police for help if Lazada said no refund.

Fortunately, Lazada has given him a full refund. And not only did he receive his refund from Lazada by Nov 14 (Monday), but the platform also disabled the dealer and warned customers to be careful.

On his part, Mr Shen said that he hopes Lazada will be able to do a better job in keeping an eye out for fraudulent sellers on its platform, he told Shin Min Daily News.

Netizens commenting on Mr Shen’s story expressed the same hope that Lazada would be more able to regulate the sellers on its site.

/TISG

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