Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To be fed up of ordering stuff that turns out to be sent from China

89 replies

MrsCipo · 09/01/2020 19:22

I have noticed in the last few months that a huge majority of things that I order on eBay are being dispatched from China. Even when I select 'Item location: UK only' - sellers are obviously saying they are in the UK when they are not. It seems incredibly inefficient and wasteful for individual items to be flown halfway across the world in small quantities so I want to avoid this, but it seems to be getting harder. It's not just eBay - I have ordered stuff from other UK websites, with UK addresses, only for it to turn up 2 weeks later having come from China.

But then, if it is all being produced in China in the first place, it has got to be flown over sooner or later - then trucked to a warehouse then to a shop then dispatched from there. So does it really matter? Is it really less efficient to buy direct from China? I can't decide if it actually matters.

AIBU to not want to buy items direct from China?

OP posts:
user127819 · 09/01/2020 20:01

Don't let them get away with it. If you can prove from the packaging that they have lied, ask for a "not as described" refund, and if it's a cheaper item, chances are they won't ask for it back. If they don't want to refund you, say you will get Ebay involved. When I rang Ebay about this, they confirmed that this is the correct course of action if a seller has lied about an item's location.

VenusTiger · 09/01/2020 20:02

I'd say 90% of everything is Made In China - what's your point?
The items you order won't be flown alone in an empty cargo plane. Hmm

Sneakyisbest · 09/01/2020 20:06

Anything over 3 days is not from the UK, second class post is 2 to 3 days maximum. This also annoys me and I avoid those sellers. Wish ebay would sort it out.

GreenTulips · 09/01/2020 20:09

I'd say 90% of everything is Made In China - what's your point?

See previous posts

BigChocFrenzy · 09/01/2020 20:10

I wished yesterday for the umpteenth time that I could filter on Amazon by continent, or even by delivery date
Precisely because it seems chock full of Chinese imports

FleasAndKeef · 09/01/2020 20:45

This is the reason why I have tried to be more thoughtful about how and where I buy things. I try and buy locally if possible, or otherwise from brands with clear ethical standards for products produced abroad.

Remember the recent fire at a garment factory in India? Hundreds of workers were killed as they slept on the factory floor.

We vote with our wallets for the kind of world we want to live in.

Bibby26 · 09/01/2020 21:22

Ugh I had this.

I thought I was buying some nice clothing from an independent UK store, it was reasonably priced but not cheap enough to rouse suspicion. Wish I had done my research as it was cheap shit from China that took months to arrive, that was never acknowledged in the delivery times though Hmm

shatteredmama · 09/01/2020 22:11

Absolutely agree with you, it’s not just the delivery time, environmental cost etc, most stuff is horrendous quality and often not fit for purpose.

Booberella9 · 09/01/2020 22:19

YANBU it boils my piss. Ebay and Etsy. The filters simply don't work! I don't want knockoff missold shite.

I really wish the platforms would crack down. Surely with all the AI they could easily identify and remove listings with false locations.

On Ebay I actually filter by "used" for a lot of things now. That works.. for now..

CaptainCabinets · 10/01/2020 00:21

If you click on ‘seller’s legal information’, it’ll come up with their registered address, even if it says ‘UK items only’.

If the legal information has a UK address, it’s posted within the UK, but a Chinese legal address is as you describe.

FattyCutty · 10/01/2020 08:53

When you are Amazon if you look on the right where the basket/ buy section is, underneath it says who is sending it, click on the name and go to the left and it usually gives you the address. Lots of stuff comes from Shenzhen, Guangdon China usually means it`s crap.

Donkeytail · 10/01/2020 09:02

If you click on ‘seller’s legal information’, it’ll come up with their registered address, even if it says ‘UK items only

I can't see how this would work when the majority of it will be drop shipping. The business will be UK based but they use a fulfillment centre in China. With all the 'I made a million dollars in just six months' videos on YouTube about dropshipping these days every tom, dick and harry thinks they can be a successful entrepreneur by doing it.

SkySmiler · 10/01/2020 09:05

Yep, been stung this year, would never buy from China as mentioned above, different H&S regs, proved on Christmas

SkySmiler · 10/01/2020 09:06

Sorry, dropped phone, doh!

Morning when I inserted some batteries into dino car and almost immediately smelt smoke!

Ionacat · 10/01/2020 09:18

I got caught by this on eBay. Item was supposed to be located in London but had a customs label on the parcel with a matching tracking number to mine. It wasn’t as described anyway and when I asked for a refund, I got fobbed off with partial refunds and it would cost too much to return it - I pointed out second class post to London would be around £3 and got nowhere. I raised a dispute with eBay and got a full refund including postage and got to keep the item. However the item listing are still on there with the wrong location - you would have thought that when eBay resolved my dispute they would have taken down the listing.

Twickerhun · 10/01/2020 09:19

All this online shopping makes me sad. Please go to your local high street and support local businesses

SaskiaRembrandt · 10/01/2020 09:22

All this online shopping makes me sad. Please go to your local high street and support local businesses

Not everyone has a local high street. And even those who do don't necessarily have access to shops which sell everything they need.

ArialAnna · 10/01/2020 09:25

I'd be very surprised if small non perishable items were being flown from China. Are you sure? It's much more likely that these items are shipped in bulk from China to a UK warehouse.

MaxNormal · 10/01/2020 09:29

I'm also sick of the fake reviews on Amazon. Supposedly verified and UK based then if you click on them they've 5 star reviewed screeds of random crap in a short period of time.

Bellyfullofbiscuits · 10/01/2020 09:29

I hate this too. If it a load of rubbish ,I request return as item not as described . If they then give me a forgein address,I insist that they provide me with a UK one,as this is where they have days they are from. After a few ,to and fro emails , them offering me a 10 %,30%,50% discount ( usually it is such a load of rubbish ,I still don't want). I stick to my guns and say I want and UK return address or I will inform eBay..they refund in full ( after they try and tell me what feedback I should leave !) And I then throw it in the bin and leave a true feedback. I am hoping that if the sellers get too much of this , they won't continue as it won't be profitable.

JosefKeller · 10/01/2020 09:30

Even Etsy is full of stuff from China! Some are not even hidden, I am not sure how they get away with it.

JosefKeller · 10/01/2020 09:31

I'm also sick of the fake reviews on Amazon.
report.
Amazon is doing a huge crack down on fake reviews, it's not 100% but when they are aware, they have quite strong penalties for the sellers.

MaxNormal · 10/01/2020 09:32

I will but honestly I'd be there all day, the vast majority seem to be bullshit now.

Kpo58 · 10/01/2020 09:32

All this online shopping makes me sad. Please go to your local high street and support local businesses

I would if they actually sold what I wanted. Even with my local big town, they normally don't sell the non everyday things that I want. How can I buy what they don't sell?

Vulpine · 10/01/2020 09:33

Cybergran - cyber in name only i see Grin